7/8/16  – Poplar Ridge Lean-To  –  11 miles

We hiked up Saddle Back today and were both super glad we didn’t pay the hostel to slack us as this section was relatively easy. The hostel owner and a few Southies had warned us that Saddle Back was a beast and there were re-barb hand holds for climbing. HaHa!

When we arrived at the re-barb Darwin and I looked at each other, smiled, and giggled. There were maybe eleven handholds made of re-barb and they were totally not needed, we simply walked around them. Even though it was drizzly and foggy the terrain itself wasn’t bad. We could have covered the trail even faster if it was dry. I busted my ass a few times but no hardcore damage. (Beware the green shit on the rocks!)

We stopped for lunch at Poplar Ridge Lean-To and of course discussed the tragedy of Inchworm. We took a full hour lunch and enjoyed the break from the drizzle and fog. The more we talked about moving the longer we sat. The longer we sat the colder we got and the more it seemed to drizzle. After mindlessly eating half my supply of Trix Cereal we officially called it quits and started to set up the tent.

We found what we believed to be the only flat tent spot, pitched the tent, changed into dry clothes, and then took a nap. I woke to the sound of arriving hikers and dressed in all my warm gear to avoid the chill that had came over the mountain. We ate dinner amongst at least twenty Southies. I enjoyed watching them unpack their insanely heavy gear and drooled over their extra food they didn’t have the hiker hunger to eat.

After enjoying our dinner and the free entertainment, we headed back to the tent and fell asleep to the sound of a steady rain. A nice small day on the trail.