I found out my neighbor Jeff was into backpacking so we planned this short trip. We left at 9 AM taking two cars since our hike is not a circuit. Jeff had done a day hike once up the first stretch of our hike. Once we got the cars situated, we started on this hot humid day--straight up.

We saw three thru-hikers by the parking lot. We busted up the hill so they never caught up with us. On the way up we saw another hiker. He had started the trail in Springer on March 23rd. Surprisingly he let us pass and we didn't see him again. Most of the time I get blown away by thru-hikers but at the moment these guys were taking their time.

After the god awful uphill in the heat, we were relieved with a nice mellow hike the rest of the way. It was still hot and humid but the way to Dick's Dome Shelter is all down hill. We made excellent time. We estimated we hiked 2 mph making the first leg around 3 hours. Dick's is an interesting shelter. It was put together in triangular sections giving it a hexagonal shape. The top is covered with shingles. Not the nicest thing to look at but interesting. Located in front of the shelter is a stream. The guide book said to definitely treat the water. It wasn't the cleanest/purest supply but was clear and cool for the thirsty. I noticed a couple of very large rabbits along the stream--plump on VA berries. According to a sign in the shelter, there is a resident varmint that likes to chew pack straps for the salt. The sign states, "until a salt block is installed -- beware and hang everything." Wouldn't a salt block attract animals?

We pitched our tents in a clearing off to the side of the shelter. I started a nice fire with only one match. Good to know I still have it in me... the pyro that is. It's going to be a humid night. I hope the breeze kicks up. We can hear thunder once in a while and what I think are fireworks. Tomorrow we have about 5.5 miles back to the car. We pass through a civil war site and I hear there is a cemetery. That should be cool to poke around. Just a nice weekend in the woods!

I forgot to mention that yesterday all the thru-hikers caught up with us. They had the shelter all to themselves. One of them--probably the one with the dog--setup a tarp tent not far from us. One thing about these thru-hikers is they go to bed early.

It rained through the night. My pack and food was hanging outside. I really need to get a new pack cover. I didn't think it would rain last night or I could have put a trash bag over my pack. Now it's soaked. No worries since we are hiking out today.

Easy and pretty hiking on the way out. We saw lots of rabbits, a trail worker, and a little trail magic (cold soda and fruit).