SEGMENT 10 (Northbound) On most nights, I'd been able to fall asleep and stay asleep quite easily. But during the early hours of July 22nd, I woke up like it was the middle of the day. I was neither rested nor tired - I was simply done sleeping for this particular day. I was pleased that the "tub" in my Tarptent "Protrail" single person tent kept me completely dry all night. One thing that a hiker doesn't want, is a wet sleeping bag or tent. I had neither, so I was optimistic for another productive day on the trail. I laid in my tent for quite some time, noting how loud the mosquitoes were outside my tent. Feeling content, I was happy that the mosquito netting on the Protrail worked so well. I finally emerged from my shelter around 8:00, not in any particular hurry, knowing that I only had 27 miles to cover today. Once moving on the trail again, I sent a text message to my friend Kalid Arabie to find out his location on the trail. Unfortunately, I somehow missed him just hours earlier around the Twin Lakes area. Kalid is hiking the entire trail and I was hoping to meet him for an adult beverage in one of the small mountain towns along the trail. We had been tracking each other's progress for some time, but were headed in opposite directions, so we were not able to meet. I arrived at my lunch site near the Timberline Lake trailhead around 10:00 for a very quick break. SEGMENT 9 (Northbound) Back on the trail by 10:30, I was blessed by the unbelievable beauty of the mountain wild flowers that had been with me much of the way, but failed to recognize. I paused briefly to take note of them and thanked the higher powers for their presence. I was on a roll this day, and all systems were "go." I ran about seven miles above 10,000' and similar to last week, I felt that I was not just on the trail, but part of it. While at the Tennessee trailhead, I reflected at the 10th Mountain Division memorial that sits proudly at 10,000' above sea level. The memorial honors the fallen heroes of World War II, who fought and gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. Another 27 miles in the books, and I'm more ready than ever to finish this run and go home. End of Day 9