Miles Hiked: 6.6
Miles Left: 1362.1
Ending Location: The Priest Sheltet, Mile 823.2

I woke up this morning with a bad stomach bug. It was really disheartening since I had been feeling so good the night before. My insides were iffy but after taking some medicine it solidified enough for Owl and I to start hiking to the next shelter. The idea was we’d then be closer to the road if I needed to get into town. We made progress but I was very unsteady on my feet and I had to take several breaks. We also bypassed the side trail to Spy Rock. It was a little annoying when all the other hikers walked past us talking about how awesome it was, but I was not in the mindset to appreciate scenic views.

When we finally made it to camp I was completely spent. There was no way I was going to be able to continue on to the road so I set up my tent and crashed for the day. By that point my main problem wasn’t intestinal distress but a bad fever that pretty much knocked me out. I briefly considered taking ibuprofen to tone the fever down, but I wanted it to do its thing and kill whatever was infecting my gut. So that was pretty much my day, lying in my tent feeling sick. One strange thing though. That night a couple hikers broke out banjos and fiddles and started playing. Owl backs me up on the fact that it really happened and wasn’t me hallucinating, but I’ve now heard banjo music in the south. They were pretty good too!