Miles: 84.0 | Sleeping in, coffee in town, and the relief of finally finding a sleeping pad that might actually keep me warm. Surprise reunions, a shockingly good Chinese buffet, scorched cookware revelations, and a solid plan forming — including the decision to go southbound to make up missed miles. Sometimes progress looks like rest, gear upgrades, and rewriting the plan entirely.
Today I slept in late for the first time in a long time. We went for a walk around town and found some coffee. I finally found a sleeping pad that I thought might work: The Big Agnes Q Core Ultra with an R Value of 4.4 and 15* at 3 Eagles Outfitters. They were so nice there! Also did 10% off for Thru-Hikers!
Whisperer unexpectedly finished his make up miles early and met is back in town. We went to Wal Mart with him and to the Chinese Buffet right next door. Which was super clean and very delicious!
We all went back to the motel after that and ate candy and made some plans. Tomorrow was going to be Monday so I planned to go to Outdoor 76 to get my new shoes. Michelin and I made our plan to make up my miles from Deep Gap to Winding Stair Gap. We decided to go Southbound for that section as well.
As I was packing I realized that I had scorched my pot at Muskrat Creek when I made dinner and... reheated it... yeah the nonstick coating was peeling off... so I needed a new pot. Michelin offered to go get one at Wal Mart (less than half the price of the outfitter. I had the feeling I was going to ruin another one...) in the morning while I got my packages at the post office.
Relieved, I finished packing and set up my sleeping pad. I slept on it that night to test! It was super comfortable! I also wrote on my umbrella: 'Hiker to Town' and 'Hiker to Trail' for hitch hiking later down the road. Fresh Ground taught me that!