Stokes State Forest, 5/28-30/2005

Four of arrived at Stokes on Saturday before the rain started. The skies were grey and the predictions were for rain, so we put up the tarp. As I pulled on one of the ropes to raise the tarp higher, one of the grommets tore out of the corner of the tarp. Both the tarp and I went down. I was OK, but the grommet could not be repaired. We tied the rope to another grommet, but we’ll soon have to buy a new tarp.

It rained steadily for several hours. We stayed dry under the tarp and the campfire I had started continued to burn. Late in the evening, the rain stopped and the stars came out. We heard a rustling noise and Lana thought it was a ranger; it turned out to be a raccoon under the picnic table. We chased him/her away.

On Sunday, Ken, Denise and I drove to Sunrise Mountain. Lana stayed behind to ride her bike. We walked on the north on the Appalachian Trail to the Cartwright Trail. There we turned left and walked down to the Sunrise Mountain Road. We walked along the road to the Parker Trail, and took it to Howell. We intended to take Howell to the Appalachian Trail, but the Stokes trail map and the signage were deceptive: we ended up back on Sunrise Mountain Road. So we hike back to Cartwright and retraced our steps to the Appalachian Trail.

We drove to the Ocquittunk campground and dropped Ken off. He wanted to hike back to our group site. He found a waterfall on his way back.

I made a quick dinner and sawed up several down trees. Five more friends joined us, although only one stayed overnight. It was clear and cool, but we were warm if we stayed near the campfire. Most of us went to bed late.

On Sunday we packed up. Around noon, as I was taking down the tarp, a truck passed by and came to a halt. The driver asked me if I wanted some freshly caught fish. I gladly accepted his offer and his son gave me two trout. Denise and I built a charcoal fire, and we cooked and ate the trout. Yum!

David Levner