Day 8: The First “Zero”

My original plan for Hiawasee was to come into town early on day 7 and then head out Sunday to restart my trek. The weather had different plans. With a forecasted 3-4 inches of rain Sunday, I decided to extend my stay and take my first zero day. In retrospect, this was the best thing I could have done, both because of the weather but also because my body needed the day off. 

My day off in Hiawasee was mostly spent at Stanimals Around the Bend hostel. All-you-can-eat pancakes, reading, stretching, and various phone activities (scrolling, blogging) occupied the majority of the day. Using Day 7’s grocery run, I snuck in veggies for lunch and dinner. Honestly, a 10 out of 10 day. 

The hostel is run by two former AT thru hikers.  Within this transient world, they’ve managed to create a balanced experience: community with other hikers moderated by individual privacy for a mental recharge. With the storms of the day, I witnessed in the hosts an earnest passion to help each hiker—despite being sold out, they attempted to accommodate each traveler as best they could, eventually taking some hikers into their personal home to free up space for others. 

As I left the next day, I struck up a conversation with one of the hosts. Their Hiawasee hostel is their second location, so I asked how it compares to the Virginia space. 

• Host: It’s different. The hikers are all new, so they’re still picking up the knowledge they need. Of course, it means they haven’t picked up the bad habits yet. 






• Me: What kind of bad habits do they get? 






• Host: Oh you know, washing dishes in their underwear. Farting in the middle of a group. That sort of thing. 






• Me: Ha! I got you, so less considerate. 






• Host: Really, it’s just them becoming feral. 

Feral. Wildness in those previously domesticated. The perfect word to describe our slow descent into hiker trash-dom. Like house cats escaped from their air conditioned life then ingratiated to the dumpster cats living in the neighborhood, the trail slowly picks away at the habits we formed as part of civilized society. Whether it’s sitting on the ground eating tortillas with hands filmed by dirt or unabashedly searching for charging outlets in any building with electricity. City-smoothed edges are being chipped away. 

Then again, perhaps we were all a little feral to begin with. Perhaps that’s the unifying personality trait of the 2000+ individuals who willingly choose this an experience like thru hiking the Appalachian Trail. Either way, I’m good with it. 

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