Byrds Nest #3 Hut

22.4 miles, 928.7 total.
Not sure what's up with the name of this hut. It was previously a day use picnic table shelter and the added walls and a platform for sleeping...and now it's a hut. AND there's no water within a mile - which is a detail the maps and guidebooks got wrong. ugh. lucky for me I filled up a little before I got here so I have enough for tonight and tomorrow morning.
Now it has been 4 days of rain. Everything is wet. Only my sleeping bag and night clothes are dry. Shoes, socks, undies, pants, shirts, pack...all wet and starting to get smelly. Hung everything on a line inside the hut, but it all just soaks up more moisture.
Let the hut this morning at 7:00 because one of the Germans was up at 5:30. What's that all about???
Passed a couple more car campsites that were full of tents and RVs. Took a break at the first shelter/hut around 11:30 and then another break at the horse stable of a resort that the trail passed. They had chairs that were under a canopy and out of the rain...and next to a vending machine. Got a grape soda and a snickers bar. mmmmm. By the way, even in the rain the horses were very smelly. kinda like my shoes. :)
About a mile before I got to this hut it began to pour. Heavier than any rain I've had so far on my trip. This time it was a true thunderstorm. There was lightning and thunder. I found a picnic area with open bathrooms so I hid in the men's room for a little bit to get out of the storm. When it let up I started again. The bathroom was very nice. :)
Here with a NOBO section hiker from Richmond, VA. He's a retired firefighter who knows a lot about the park and this area. Very cool.
later,
L