All But The Final 3

Too tired to write too much tonight so just a few highlights.....it was a very rough, rocky downhill for the most part today. Last year's fallen leaves on the rocks were akin to ice in places. My right knee began to be increasingly painful about 1:00 and our pace slowed considerably. Downhill was a killer on them, while I could clip along at a reasonable pace on the flats. I was even thankful for the uphills which did not affect that knee as much. Peg was my good Samaritan a couple times, carrying her pack down the slick steepness and then returning for mine to alleviate the pressure on my knee. She makes great time on the hills! When the front pack reached the RPH Shelter, Greg turned back, met with Jim and hiked back up a long descent to meet us near the summit of the last hill. The other girls went ahead. My kind husband took my pack, which according to him was light, and both he and Greg provided company down the painful last mile and a half. I nearly ran out of the extra water that Peg had provided on the summit. This would have meant drinking from someone else's bottle, which I have managed to avoid.....I was very thirsty but I made it last! We arrived only about an hour behind the girls, in time to enjoy some nice mashed potatoes and packaged chicken. Some fresh chives that we harvested earlier in the day along the trail provided a nice taste. Some of the crazy boys went across to a stream for a chilly dip, and then later cooking up a frog they had caught earlier in the day. Peg finished the night with devotions and now the tents are quiet as most of the group will finish up the final three miles tomorrow mornimg before we head home. Liz will stay back with me, while Greg gets the van to pick up the group at the end of the trail.

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