May 12 Day 18 Getting to Pie Town!

It was a relatively monotonous day actually.  A LOT of road walking!  I was very antsy to get to Pie Town around 3pm, which is when the storm was supposed to start coming in, so I plowed ahead of Wide-Angle and Ratna and was doing a good 3mph on that road.  

(Montana Mike a south bounding section hiker)

(Omg we have the same shoes! Only other person with my shoes out here. It's all Altras and Brooks Cascadias)

It looks like I would have gotten into Pie Town around 4 if I had actually kept walking, but 9 miles out a car stopped to chat and rain started falling.  I totally scared myself into the hitch thinking "THIS IS IT! THE STORM!"  So, yah.....Ended up catching the ride into town and, of course, it stopped raining after I got into the car.  Oh well.  I'm not a purist about this, so I really didn't mind.

(Awesome electrical well water source I didn't filter this yum!)

The guy was really chill and had grown up around these parts his whole life.  He had no desire to be anywhere bigger or more populated.  At one point another truck was passing and they both stopped and chatted for like 20 minutes with very long, quiet breaks between points.  They had no sense of urgency, no feeling of time wasted.  It was beautiful and frustrating to this city girl.  I was also in no rush really, but I felt this urge to get on with it and get to town.  It'd be nice to have that sense of relaxation these guys had.

(Food at Pie Town Cafe- Patty Melt and a Blueberry pie a la mode!)

I got dropped at the Pie-O-Neer restaurant, which was closed, so I found my little map of the place and made my way toward the Toaster House, a hostel for hikers and bikers.  The Pie Town Cafe was on the way and I noticed it closed at 3:00!  I wasn't going to miss an opportunity for a hot meal and pie!  As I walked in I got the usual stares, looking like a weird creature human with a giant pack, but then I got a "Hello over there!"  It was Dutch and Pacer!  Thank goodness!  HoJo showed up not too long after and we all enjoyed food and wifi!

(The Toaster House- hiker hostel)

(Hiker packages being held :)

I eventually made it to the Toaster House where a substantial amount of hikers were.  It is such a cool spot!  The donations in the donation box go to filling the fridge with food and beer and soda.  I settled into the living room with a couch as my chosen bed spot.  I didn't even make the effort to check if there were any beds available.  Showers at the RV park next door happened and laundry, wash only hang dry, in the Toaster House.  The community was amazing and Lint and Patches showed up soon, followed by Grim and Spoonman.  Hot Springs was there too along with a biker named Dylan, who looked like a fit version of Jared Leto. The Warrior Hikers, veterans, were in the RV Park with their support vehicle, a large RV full of good things.

(Showered and laundered. Wearing borrowed clothes as my clothes line dry)

(Lint showing off his choice of the perfect thru-hiker underwear to Dylan a thru biker)

(Dutch wearing his seatbelt)

We all enjoyed a fair few beers, delicious food, music, and lots of trail stories.  It was definitely one of my absolute favorite town days!  Ratna and Wide-Angle showed up in the late evening, and found a bed upstairs.  Planning a zero tomorrow!  Time to relax.