This morning again, I really didn’t want to leave. After any form of night-hiking, the intended early rise is generally out of the question… Even though it had not rained significantly during the night (or that I was aware of at least), my tent was still pretty soaking wet. Nothing to do but to pack it up and hope for sunshine along the way. Getting into wet socks and shoes in the cold morning isn’t a whole lot of fun either. Fortunately I started the day out with the remainder of a fairly steep climb, so at least I was heating up while hiking.
Today I would see no familiar faces on trail. There were a couple of hikers that I leapfrogged with, but everybody was pretty much minding their own business. During the morning, with the cold and the wet brush surrounding me, there was no chance for my clothes to dry out, and was experienced general discomfort for most of the time. In agreement with the weather prediction, it hardly rained today, for which I was grateful, but the accumulated rain in the forest had a thoroughly soaking effect nonetheless.
This truly is a rain-forest. It was very foggy, but I did catch a glimpse of some blue skies in the distance.
I listened to some podcasts and when I stopped for a break, I would pack up my stuff quickly again, because my body would cool down too fast. The campsite I had in mind would make for a 27-mile day, which I thought to be a decent effort. I was hoping to run into some familiar hikers at said campsite. Occasionally the sun would peek through the clouds, and I happily let the small amount of sun warm me up for me a brief moment, before it would get hazy again. 
Today was a rough day.
The solitude, constant wet feet, and worry for more rain made it exhausting. In hindsight I realized that the mental aspect was probably more taxing than the physical part. I hiked again for an hour in the dark today, and honestly I’m totally over hiking through the night. I told myself today would be the last time. I’ll have to get up earlier, or accept just doing less miles since pitching my tent when it’s still light out, just makes for so much more peace of mind. And that’s worth it. Something to take seriously.
I hiked onto the national forest campsite around 2100 in the pitch black. After checking the message board, and figuring out which sites would be free to use, I filled up some water for the night and pitched my tent.
I’m pretty shattered and look forward to a good nights sleep.
Even if I were somebody else
I’d chase the same song
Could be near, far, or beyond the stars
I’ll find where I belong
If I don’t let go
I may never know
Cause there’s gotta be something out there
If I fly high enough, I’ll find it somewhere
So I’ll hold my breath ‘til I float away
Maybe I’ll come down someday
Someday – The Summer Set
