chester in the stride
Joined: 18 Jan 2012 Posts: 56 Location: Slade, Kentucky
|
Posted: Tue May 28, 2013 7:37 pm Post subject: Day 14 Ky-11 to KY-77-18.7 miles |
|
|
Day 14 Ky-11 to KY-77 (18.7 miles)
Because I was making such good time and was feeling no pain, I decided to forgo the planned rest day before the RRG section.
But as the rain continued throughout the night and I contemplated taking the rest day. I had almost 20 miles to go today and I didn’t feel like hiking it in the cold rain. After checking the weather forecast for the next day, I decided that hiking in the sprinkling rain today would be better than hiking in the thunderstorms tomorrow.
I didn’t even need my guidebook or maps. This section of the Sheltowee I knew very well. This was my home turf; a trail I had numerous times hiked last year while training for this thru-hike. I knew that if I wanted to get out of the woods before the thunder rolled in, I would need to hike fast. I wasn’t too worried about that. I was feeling strong.
But for some reason, this section of the Sheltowee was my slowest hiking day. I felt like I was moving super fast, but my GPS told me otherwise. Even Dave was concerned while watching my Spot Tracker. He noticed I was hiking slower. I’m not sure if it was the hills (they didn’t seem any steeper) or what.
It felt good to be back in my neighborhood. I had contemplated bringing a dog with me but decided to hike it alone. Towards the end of the day the rain picked up from a mist to a slow sprinkle to a steady drizzle. By the time I reached the KY-77, the rain was really coming down. The advantage of this was that the dogs were not out to chase me. As I was hiking down KY-77, my rain hood pulled tightly around my head with an opening just wide enough for me to see and breathe a little, that familiar car came around the bend with doggies in the back barking fiercely at this strange person hopping in. It was back to the cabin for a much needed rest day. |
|