Sheltowee Trace Trail Thru Hike Day 9
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- Опубликовано: 18 сен 2024
- Sheltowee Trace Trail
April 25th, 2023
Day 9, 28 Miles
No Uber, no desire to hitchhike, no rideshares. The only way out of London, KY came in the form of a single taxi company, and an incredibly Deep South experience.
The driver was… polarizing to say the least. Due to being in the far back, we could only hear about 5% of the conversation, but in that small percentage the flavor was defined. It was an unhealthy looney tunes thinking.
Getting out of the ride, more was said, and more of his thoughts were clarified. We would like to say here, that while he had drastically different ideals, all minds fascinate us. Whether a mind aligns with our own beliefs, directly contradicts them, or is something we have even never heard of before, the way the mind works is just simply, in its infinite complexity, fascinating.
If you can distance yourself from right or wrong, and just see the mind itself, it’s an interesting thought experiment.
A weird experience later we were stepping with a goal in mind. Professor had another friend meeting us 28~ miles down the trail by 8pm and it was already 10am~…. Time to go get it!
Twisting single track, two track, and varieties of both ebbed and flowed up and over constant hills. Across HWY 80, it became mostly single track through rock, waterfalls, and felt the most immersive “trail” so far on this trail.
A couple creek fords, cemeteries, and constant ups and downs later we were about 3.5-4 miles from Holly Bay Campground and it was 7:10, challenge accepted.
One of our favorite things about thru-hiking is challenges found along the way. While everyday is “challenging” we have now hiked long enough that we know those challenges and they almost have become common place. Yet, this time split gave us a “new” challenge and fueled our spirits into beating the clock.
Jogging, hiking, jogging and moving quickly we zig and zagged around Laurel Lake and hit the meet spot at 7:59pm, glorious!
A dinner at the marina with wonderful trail magic, setting up our tents with headlights to guide our way, and a Twix bar capped off the night. Great day!
I enjoy the camaraderie with you high milers you all make it seem so effortless .
Absolutely gorgeous presentation my friend, this looks and sounds so peaceful and serene!
Can you imagine the water was up high enough at Sinking Creek suspension to damage the suspension bridge there. Hawk creek used to have a super nice suspension bridge before the flood got it too. Enjoying your videos. Can't wait to get out there and explore some more myself - Tony w/ Po'Boy Adventures.
I live in Central Kentucky and grew up here. The weather you experienced is not uncommon for April less the dryness. Normally you would have one to two more inches of rain across the month than what you experienced so the creek crossings weren’t too challenging like they could be in a more normal year for moisture. As cool as it was for you, you certainly could have had warmer days another year. April is a relatively unpredictable month for weather in Kentucky. With the cooler weather you also escaped the bug hatch to some degree. That was a bonus along with the lower water levels.
Id like to deliver some trail magic but it looks like you’re posting in about a week behind and I don’t know where y’all are! Keep on truckin’!!
Just cruised through the trail, thank you for the thought for sure, we were absolutely spoiled with trail magic out there!!!
C, you seem to be averaging roughly 23 miles a day without having any late night hiking, or even uncorking one of your infamous 40+ milers. Amazing. Are you in the running (!) for a Sweltowee speed record?
Definitely one of the prettiest hiking days so far, except at 14:19.
Also, your videos make it seem you are the only three on the trail. Is there anyone else hiking out there?
No no no, not going for any speed records at all, we actually have been very lax with the miles and just sitting into a pace. Just for all (3) of us individually these feel like short days of hiking. I think all of us got used to 30+ mile days on minimums usually so these miles out here just cruising.
Hahahahaha I love the shot at 14:19, just a man, some Vasoline, and some chafe with a camera to capture the beautiful moment
P:S: There are sporadic day hikers or hunters, but no other thru hikers we have seen