April 18, 2000

Partnership Shelter, VA · 14 Miles Hiked Today · 519 of 2167 Miles Hiked Total

First, before I forget, I saw a bumper sticker and t-shirt in Damascus that summed up this effort: "no pain, no rain, no Maine".

Last night we killed two shelter mice using a mousetrap someone left behind. First kill at 8:45 and second at about 12:30. Broke both them necks. Sweet revenge for my jacket.

Today was a quick hike, 13+ from 9am to 2pm. Cool and rainy today but arriving at the shelter made up for it. Its two stories with a warm water shower (not working), a ranger station nearby (100 yards) with heated bathrooms (open 8:30 - 4:30), and a pay phone where you can order pizza (3 of us shared 2 larges, mozzarella sticks, and 2 subs). If you put a wood stove and glass windows and doors on this place, I could live here.

Did I write that 2 days ago I finally saw some wild turkeys? About time.