Yes, Virginia...

Hello from Virginia, well not really Virginia.  This is Jan updating for him.  I just got in from cutting the grass, washing both cars, and painting the outside of the house (not!) and saw that Dave hadn't updated in over a week! So I will do my best to give you a glimpse of his past week on the trail. And yes, he is finally in Virginia!

Dave spent most of Friday and all day Saturday in Damascus, Virginia at the Hiker's Inn.  He must have been really busy smoking cigars and drinking "liquid nourishment" to get those pounds back on.  It wasn't Ensure, but it was "smooth" and compliments of his good friend Carl!  You get the idea.  He didn't have time to do the blog update. Seriously, we are all very proud of Dave and what he has accomplished thus far and can't wait to see him in a couple weeks.

Dave's past week has been full of excitement.  He spent Tuesday night at the Watauga Lake Shelter (mile 424) and was able to wade in the lake by the Watauga Dam.  He said it was cold but felt great on his feet.
The shin splints he has been suffering with are much better.

On Wednesday he did about 14 miles and spent the night at the Iron Mountain Shelter. He was still in TN.  His mat had deflated and sprung a leak and so he had to borrow someone's mat that night.  The mat company has already sent a replacement to our house so we will get it to him soon. In the course of that day he met the other "Torch" on the trail.  He is from Fort Wayne, Indiana, much younger than Dave, and was carrying a 7' piece of bamboo. Not sure why....

Thursday he did about 16 miles and spent the night at the Abingdon Gap Shelter, just a few miles from Damascus, VA.  So on Friday morning he was able to make it in to Damascus, get a spot at the Hikers Inn, get his packages at the post office, and enjoy the two days of living the good life.  He said that everyone there was upset that people were killed in the area as a result of the storms/tornadoes passing through.

He is hoping to meet friends who are driving back to Ohio from Florida one day this week at a stop in Virginia.  Other news is that he saw a timber rattler right on the trail.  He said he wouldn't have seen it, but one of the other hikers brought it to his attention and they took a picture of it. I think he also said that his buddy Currahee had gone off the trail.

Thanks so much to everyone who has supported Dave in this endeavor.  He appreciates all your support and is very excited to be in Virginia and getting closer to an area where we can visit him for the day.  By the way, I think he has enough "liquid nourishment" and cigars for a few more days!


"Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose."
-Tennessee Williams