It was a cool starlit night, day 4 of hiking the Appalachian Trail, and I was curled into a ball in a bed of leaves. Holly and Terry were sleeping in a tent inside the Maupins Field Shelter because they heard rain was coming. Instead, what arrived that night was a strange waddling creature sniffing for bugs under nearby logs. It was a hairy black animal shuffling low to the ground with a distinct odor. Ever alert, as every border collie is, I gazed at this strange fellow and caught sight of a white stripe down his back. He proceeded to walk under the shelter, and I stealthily moved forward to track his progress. That’s when he stamped his paws and emitted a spray with a peculiar odor that hit me in the face. The nerve! I’ve herded lots of cats and had some hiss at me or throw a paw, but I’ve never had one turn his back and spray me. At this point, I heard Holly yell my name and the dreaded words “leave it!” Apparently, she had been awakened by the odor of the spray and the scurrying of the shaggy striped animal. Frankly, I didn’t think the odor bad at all, but then again I enjoy the smell of rotting fish. After about an hour of the creature rooting around for bugs underneath the shelter, Holly and Terry came out and called me over to the outhouse. (I thought this was odd, but I was thrilled to check out that area for other smells and animals.) The food bags were hanging from the bear pole – over 12 feet in the air – and no bears had wandered in. The squirrels and chipmunks were tucked in for the night, but other dog and people smells were abundant even though no one else was around. Not long after that, Holly and Terry went back to the tent complaining about the smell left by Skunk (I guess that’s the creature’s name). But I couldn’t see skunk any longer; I guess he moved from under the shelter and into the woods. It was interesting that Holly said it was 1:30 in the morning and not long after that three guys came hiking into camp looking to sleep in the shelter. Terry told them Skunk had just been under the shelter so they chose a camp site near the outhouse and slept on the ground in their sleeping bags. (I don’t think they liked Skunk’s scent.) |
We hiked out on a short-cut trail back to our car. It was only a five-mile hike but was full of new scents with a cool stream and waterfalls running nearby. I was off leash (because it was my birthweek) and enjoyed running down the hills and over the rocks, tasting the water. At one point, Holly stopped to take a photograph of a waterfall and while her phone was turning on, we heard the sharp crack of a rifle shatter the air. That’s when I wanted to bolt, but Holly made me heel behind her as we quickly scrambled out of the area – she never got that picture. It wasn’t long before we were back at our car after a wonderful five days of hiking the AT. This was the best birthday present ever. You see my birthday was Sunday and instead of one special day of hiking and ice cream (Frosty Paws made for dogs), Holly and Terry let me have a birthweek celebration! I was so happy to be out on the trail meeting people, chasing squirrels, eating new protein treats, and even encountering Skunk. The only bad part of the whole birthweekwas the bath I got when we returned to Nanny’s (my grandmother’s) with something called Skunk Off. I’m not fond of baths, but I do enjoy getting dried off and having my face rubbed. I spent the rest of the afternoon by the wood stove, dreaming of all the trails and places I’ve been. Can’t wait to see what my next birthday brings! |