Mile 509.0
Elevation 4,075
Miles Hiked 11.9
This day was vastly better than yesterday, despite the cracked eye glass lens. The hike had very little elevation gain. I hiked through several meadows.
One meadow was in Grayson Highlands National Park. This is where wild ponies live. The forestry service keeps them in the park to control vegetation growth. Without the horses. The meadows would revert back to forest. I only saw one pony while walking through and he moved off before I could get my camera out.
Next came the Scales. Cattlemen kept cattle in the meadow to graze. When the cattle were ready for market, they were weighed right in the meadow. If the cattle were driven to market and then weighed, they weighed less. That’s why the meadow is called “Scales.”
The rest of the day was uneventful and I arrived at the shelter early. I’m the only one here, so I have the place to myself and all the strange noises around the shelter. (I think some squirrels are out there playing.)
BTW – Went over 500 miles total and 175 miles since October 2nd.
