AT 81 - 15th June (1049)

Pine Knob Shelter 

I was in the shelter last night with Old Buzzard. He snored so loud I had to move upstairs. I slept well after that. Up early and headed down the trail, as always. Nice viewing rock looking over Maryland. The mountains aren’t as dominant here. Visited the original monument to George Washington, good view from top. Got to camp at 4 and setup tent, not going to risk shelter if Old Buzzard turns up!!!

This is the first shelter that you can hear the road traffic, but I don’t mind. 

Wandering Thoughts. 

As I came out of the woods near HF I came to a busy road bridge. As I crossed I saw drivers turn their heads wondering “who is that strange forest person with a pack on their back”. Then I came to the forest again and disappeared. 

I was thinking our lives are kind of like that, we appear and in no time at all we are gone. Years roll by in the blink of an eye. It seems you are young and then one day you wake up old. It reminds me to make the most of every opportunity, life is short. 

As I walked I met an Amish couple walking up the AT. They looked so out of place. They were in HF for a holiday and wanted to as much as they could. Lovely chat. I was thinking that the world has a lot of different people. I’ve certainly seen that on the AT. I’m learning to never write people off by what they wear or by their full body tattoos or by the amount of piercings they have. Also never judge by first impressions, when you get to know people they are much deeper. I’m learning to give people my time and not worry about the trivial things that distract us from talking. We have become so insular and self absorbed that we loose sight of community. We all need each other. On the trail we are  often disconnected from social media, which I like. So much of it distracts us to be more disconnected. Look for the loners and shy people and chat, it’s amazing what you find.