A Real Hiker Plague

4/11/2013


A Real Hiker Plague


Where is everybody?   Where the hell is everybody?   We are a group of six people who have stayed at the same campsite/shelter every night for four days now....(we don't all hike together... but we do all stop for the day at the same place) and we have only seen 1 other thru hiker on the trail.........one! This is erie......downright spooky.   Usually, I am passed by about 10 people every day.......sometimes more.  We have only seen one other thru hiker.....in more than 4 days!  There are just no people on this trail.
It is a Star Trek Episode come to life. Kirk, Spock,Scotty, Chekov,Ovhura,  and the rest of the landing crew have just beamed down to the planet and find it deserted......signs of humanity everywhere,  but no people.  We had stopped at a shelter to rest and get water on Saturday,  and saw warning signs, two hand written notices...... one for hikers arriving from either direction....warning fellow hikers to stay away from the shelters, and tables because everyone that had stayed there was sick.  Of course,  we checked it out.  And there was puke all over the place....puke....puke....yes, and more
puke.
Every shelter was piled high with puke....a regular vomit fest which instantly made me think of the Barforama, at the Blueberry Pie eating contest, portrayed in the movie "Stand By Me".  Simply put,  people had been heaving their guts out at every shelter.  But there were no people at any of the shelters!   A viral plague had come down apon the thru-hikers,  the likes of which has not been seen. Now there were no thru-hikers, just the 6 of us,  and "Maverick" who had zoomed on bye. Then "Oz" got violently sick,  right after supper and we five who still were not stricken, watched and listened.....and hoped we would not be next.  The next day "Oz" was still sick,  but is young and strong , so we all kept going.  That night "Oz" felt a little better .
Earlier that sunny warm day,  I came across a kid from the film crew. (They are making an AT Movie).  He was laid out on the side of a steep hill....... wrapped in a space blanket....the contents of his pack laying all about the hillside.  There was a small box of Rice Krispies laying on that hillside......a strong choice of hiker fare,  I thought....and wondered if he had any milk.  Jeez a cold glass of milk would be great right now!
Where was I?  Oh yeah.....puke and vomit and barf.....piled up everywhere.  Be careful not to step in it.....sit in it.....just look out.....it's everywhere.  By text,  and day hikers,  we were warned to stay away from the hostels.  The Puke Plague is piling up hikers all along the AT, Hot Springs
behind us,  and in Erwin ahead of us.  We are surrounded by puke.  
I stayed a bit above Erwin last night,  in my tent.  I  saw a friend...."Wolfgang"....the second hiker in 5 days to pass.  "Wolfgang" had slept between me and "Whistle", the night of the Ice Storm.  "Whistle",  as noted earlier was the first stricken, and she had heaved all night,  the night of the Ice Storm .
"Wolfgang" said he was sick two days,  but better now, that he thought a lot of people were getting better.  Then he passed on bye.  Last night,  two hikers came by my impromptu campsite,  in the dark , wearing headlamps.  They had been sick....were better...and had done an amazing 25 miles yesterday.  They are again......... on their way to Maine.