Thursday was a very long day. I woke up off and on a few times in the night due to those annoying dogs. At one point they all started howling in a strange choir chorus that lasted 3 or 4 minutes. It was both beautiful and haunting... I had originally set my alarm for about 3:30 or 4, so that I could attempt to wake up and be out of there before any hunter found me and got mad at me for smelling up his spot, but it was so cold outside, and it was so comfy in my hammock, that I fell back asleep until the morning rush hour traffic woke me back up at 6:30. Having slept longer than I intended, I decided to get my ass out of there as fast as I could and regroup at Jones Lake State Park. I didn't bother cooking or changing clothes or anything, I just shoved everything in my bags and got back on the road.
About a mile later, my hunger was getting hard to ignore, so I stopped for just a minute to have a snack. I really wanted to get to Jones Lake where I could cook a real meal, so I kept it light. I still believed that it was only another 8 or 10 miles away (about an hour ride). About 1.5 miles after I left my campsite, I realized I didn't have my gloves.
"I must have taken them off to get my snack and left them on the back of my bike when I set off! Crap! I hope they didn't get run over..."
I was soon trying to remember if I even had them on when I stopped, however, as I had this sinking feeling and didn't remember having them as I was pushing my bike back through that sandpit of a road. I rode all the way back to camp without seeing them, and then remembered that I had indeed taken them off to take a quick picture of my two trees before heading out. They were back in there somewhere. So, angry at myself for my carelessness, I left my bike and trudged back into the woods as quickly as I could. They they were, next to the logs on the ground that I had to roll over.
Swearing to myself that my trail name was going to become "False Starts" at this point, I finally started my trek towards Jones Lake, with a 3.5 mile warm-up already under my belt.
I was starving at this point, having not eaten a decent dinner as well as skipping breakfast, and I was feeling the crash coming on. I kept nibbling on little snacks here and there just trying to get through the next few miles. Soon I realized that Jones lake was actually going to be about a 20 mile ride, and I was extra thankful that I had decided to stay put last night, even after all of the mental hockey I played with myself for half of the night of should I move on or not.
I finally got to the fire tower before Jones Lake and saw that the ladder went all the way down, allowing people to climb it if they wanted to, so I went ahead and pulled over. Some park rangers unlocked the gate for me (liability issues) and I went up. The view was, of course, fantastic, and I got internet at the top! I wasn't able to get into the crows nest itself as it was locked, but I went up as far as I could. Coming back down was even scarier than going up.
There was a big party/picnic group under one of the shelters when I finally got to the lake. I found a group of picnic tables with a grill where no one would mind me spreading all my stuff out to dry, and went to take a shower in the bath house. Little did I know that I should have snuck into the camping showers because the bath house showers only had cold water! I had my leg under there for about 10 minutes before I decided it wasn't ever going to warm up. So I did the best I could, and as it was still relatively cool outside I decided not to wash my hair. As I was in there, several of the women from the picnic came in and commented about how "You know that girl is freezing in there!" I was a little bummed about not getting a hot shower after last nights ordeal, but I got over it as being clean was refreshing, even if it was a cold shower.
After my shower I tried to boil some water using the grill as a windbreak. It didn't work very well, and as I couldn't use my lighter to get the alcohol lit because of the bar placement, I tried to use my waterproof matches and found out how fragile they are. I probably broke 5 just trying to get one lit. Annoying to say the least. Not only that, but the grill made a horrible windbreak (either that or the spacing between the flame and the pot was not ideal) as my water never boiled. I went ahead and decided to make hot chocolate and mashed potatoes anyway, as those things don't really require boiling water. I unfortunately lost my appetite after trying the potatoes. I must have accidentally grabbed the wrong packet-one requiring butter and milk instead of just water.
At this point, I was reminding myself about how the second day was the hardest day on my Wilmington trip as well, and how glad I was that I didn't give up then. I considered calling it a day and spending the night. I took a short hike to think on it, and when I got back, it had warmed up some and my things were drying out. I felt clean and refreshed, and I wanted to visit my friend at Singletary Lake, since I knew he was expecting me to swing by sometime. I tried to force myself to eat some more food, but I wasn't really feeling it, so I packed up, refilled my water bottles, and moved on into what turned out to be a beautiful day. I decided that I didn't like having to get moving like that so early in the morning. I was stiff and cold and I really need an hour or two to wake up and pack up and get moving in the right direction.
A few miles before I got to White Lake, I was again feeling the hunger. I was desperately looking around for a restaurant to stop at, as some properly cooked food was what I needed. I stopped at a golf course, thinking that there might be a restaurant in their clubhouse. No such luck. I turned into White Lake hoping and praying that something was open, and pretty much stubbornly deciding that I wasn't going to leave until I found something that was. (Last time I came through everything was closed.) I was just thinking how great a burger would be when I saw the pizza place. I really wanted a burger... I couldn't believe I was feeling picky at a time like this! Then I saw it: Ski Burger, and they had an OPEN sigh lit! I rolled right on up trying not to look too desperate.
Ski Burger is under new management and is one of the only places that is going to stay open after Labor Day this year. The manager told me that this town shuts down so completely that it all but rolls the street up like a carpet after the summer. They were extremely friendly and the food was excellent and very reasonably priced. They said they don't use frozen meat: they make their burgers fresh in small batches every morning. I also ordered some chicken fingers, but was unable to finish them. I really can't say enough how great Ski Burger is. I didn't realize that they closed at 3, which was a little after I showed up. They didn't make me feel rushed at all and actually got on me a little for eating too fast after I realized I was there after they were supposed to close. They also gave me extra cookies and didn't want me to leave any tip. The manager was great to chat with and told me that a huge ride with over 1100 entries had come through about a week prior. They had been busy feeding all of them dinner and then breakfast the next morning as this was an overnight stop. It was a 6 day ride, and I forget how many miles. I think it was over 500: more than I could do and finish in 6 days, that's for sure.
After my tummy was happy again, I continued on the last 5 miles or so on to Singletary Lake. Stevie was out trying his new kayak that he had painted in camouflage for duck hunting. Another ranger radioed him and told him that I was here, and a few minutes later he came roaring in on his truck. We chatted for a little while and he offered me a cabin again. I was definitely ready for a real hot shower, and wasted no time making myself at home. I had a lot of chores to do tonight, including some laundry and bike maintenance. My bike was squeaking and grinding all day long from the sand getting in places where it didn't belong. I spent a few hours cleaning the chain and figuring out how to take apart my tensioner and clean out the bearings. It was good as new after that and I felt accomplished.
I went out to the lake for sunset again, but it was a quick trip as there weren't any clouds, which is what makes most sunsets spectacular, in my opinion. I found some squirrel prints, which I thought were raccoons at first because of the distinctive little hands they have, but then I decided they were too small. I don't like raccoons... After chatting with my mom and a few friends I turned in early.
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