Two miles later we reached the Jim and Molly Denton Shelter. There were two elderly hikers inside and we chatted them up while we took a much needed break. I took off my Gortex jacket and my pack. They were section hiking but they were from the Boston area. They had been Hiking the AT for nine yrs and they were almost finished. Nine Yrs! I hope I finish before that. But what an accomplishment, maybe I can't climb Mt Everest, or swim the English channel...but I sure as hell can hike the whole AT with a little perseverance. We left Denton, but it quickly became clear with 6 more miles, we had bitten off more than we could chew. A quick team conference and we all agreed for Jeremiah to go ahead and meet his wife at Rt 522. I was moving very slowly at this point, my legs and knees protesting every movement. Jeremiah made the call on my Motorola Razr phone. He said we were only 1 mile away from the pickup, so I bet him $20 I would beat Diedre...mainly to get her moving towards us, in a timely manner. The last two times we had to wait hours for her to pick us up. Not fun after a 20 mile hike! Jeremiah left with such energy and speed, I was impressed with how much energy he had...Instead of the 1 mile he had promised us we ended up hiking 4 more miles to 522 were we completed our 20.5 miles in about 15 hours...I know, I know slow right? Well we didn't see to many people out in those conditions...Every time we complete a leg I'm filled with a overwhelming sense of accomplishment. I can look at the map and say...I did that.
Another thought I couldn't shake...Was the Grey Ghost alright?
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