Day 35 - Campsite before Campbell Hollow Rd. to White rocks Mtn. - 16 miles (408 miles total)
Aside frm the kid riding the ATV down the trail right past our tent last night before we went to bed, it was a quiet night/morning. Eventually the people who we saw at the shelter the night before caught up to us as we were taking our time breaking camp, and we had a chance to fully explain to them what had happened with the dog. It turns out that they thought he was just a drunk local scoping out the area looking for trouble, so they were weary of everyone involved. Most of the day felt to mike like we were just wandering around a viewless labrynth in the woods. Some really cool highlights of the day were Jones Falls and Mountaineer Falls, as well as relaxing on the bank of Upper Laurel Fork. We really appreciated the sheer awesomeness and almost modern look of Jones Falls and are looking forward to seeing more waterfalls up the trail. Later, we passed some unfamiliar thru-hikers who were staying at the Moreland Gap shelter, but because it was still light we opted to look for a secluded spot on White Rocks Mtn.
Friday, April 30, 2010
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Day 34
Day 34 - Ash Gap to campsite before Campbell Hollow Rd - 21 mi - 392 total
What a crazy day! Hiked through snow and ice to reach the top of Roan mtn. this morning, took a break to hang out where the old Cloudland Hotel used to stand (a late 19th century resort for ailing urbanites), then popped out of the woods and onto the road crossing at Carvers Gap. There we met "Reverend" a past thru-hiker who lived in Hampton TN (41 trail miles away). He was a little drunk and taking a 100 mile bike ride. He offered to take any trash of ours that could fit in the back of his bike shirt but we declined and dumped our trash off at the restrooms. From there it was up the well-used gravel walkway to the top of the first bald. 5 in total, the balds of the Roan Highlands stretched for about 9 miles and were very unique. We'd already been to a couple of balds on this trip but to hike over so many in a row was a neat experience. We took the time to hike a blue-blaze up to Grassy Ridge, the only natural 360* view above 6000' on the trail. It was nearing the end of our day, just after we had stopped for snacks past an old barn-turned-shelter, when we started noticing a jingling noise as we walked. Laura kept turning around and looking at Mike thinking it was him and Mike thought it must be something on Laura's pack. Eventually Mike turned around to find that the jingly noise we'd been hearing for the past half hour was a little dog following us. Apparently she'd been back there for a while. She was young looking and mostly white with a few black spots, a tiny bit skinny. Thankfully she had a collar on her and we were relieved to find a phone number on it. At a loss (we are definitely not dog people), we thought the right thing to do would be to try and contact the owner. Since it happened to be Laura's mom's b-day, we'd been going from peak to peak anyway looking for phone service. Once we found a bit of signal Laura called her mom and we watered the thirsty dog. Mike then dialed the number on the collar, unsure of what to expect or who would answer. After a number of rings, thankfully, someone answered. It was really hard for Mike to understand the guy on the line and he apparently didn't even know which dog of his was missing. When Mike described the dog to him he seemed confused and kept asking what color the collar was. The guy offered to come meet us where we were on Hump Mountain, but since meeting strangers in the woods wasn't what we'd had in mind, Mike convinced the man to meet us at the next road crossing where the dog could be exchanged in a more public setting. Hanging up, it all felt somewhat surreal realizing we were now responsible for this dog until we gave it back, that the owner didn't seem to care about the dog or he'd know which dog of his was missing, and that we now had to tack on another 5.5 miles onto our day and it was already late in the evening. Despite these things we hurriedly set out to cover the ground and return the dog. Initially, the dog, who we then began calling Green Collar, was well-behaved walking behind and alongside us as we trekked up and over the last of the highlands. Green Collar's cuteness powered us for a couple of miles and we embraced the novelty of hiking with a borrowed pet. As it started to get darker and the miles added up, the cuteness wore off as the dog became fatigued and increasingly moody. First it whined. Then it started throwing child-like tantrums where it refused to walk any further. At this point we jerryrigged a leash using a carabeaner and our bearbag rope which proved to be an excellent idea when little Green Collar turned crazy when she saw some deer up on a ridgeline above us. (So very) Tired and ready to say goodbye to our foster pet, we finally reached the Apple House Shelter which was only .5 miles from the road. At this point we could hear someone down the trail yelling and whistling and it was confirmed with the people at the shelter that it was the guy looking for his dog. Rudely, they told us to go and not let the guy come back, so off we went, annoyed at the lack of understanding with the shelter people, to return this darn dog. Not a quarter mile down the trail we found the owner, Mack. To our surprise it was immediately apparent he had been distraught about the dog because he became a bumbling fool as soon as he saw her. It also didn't help that he was completely tanked. Thru slurred speech and a very thick southern accent, he introduced himself ("Mack" was pronounced exactly the same as "Mike"), thanked us many many times, and handed Mike a can of Bud Lite from his pants pocket insisting that he'd "been able to tell from his voice over the phone that he'd be wantin' a beer". The three of us and his girlfriend (the sober one whodrove him to meet us, but unfortunately we never got her name) walked to the road where she told us how he'd been loosing sleep over this, and they actually had 3 dogs that had run away which explains why he didn't know which dog I had found when I called. They said they were headed to the convenience store and offered to give us a ride to get some snacks. On the way back to the trail, she stopped at a drive-thru bar and bought us a 12 pack of cheep beer to split with Mack as payment for our good deed. As they drove away in their Jeep that was about to fall apart, we checked the time (it was almost 9:30pm and completely dark), so we agreed to camp at the first available spot we found. Too bad that wouldn't be for a few miles- all uphill and in the end the spot we found was no even close to being called 'flat'. By now it was 10:30 and we were both completely exhausted so we drank the spoils of our day and sat in disbelief of what had happened before falling asleep.
What a crazy day! Hiked through snow and ice to reach the top of Roan mtn. this morning, took a break to hang out where the old Cloudland Hotel used to stand (a late 19th century resort for ailing urbanites), then popped out of the woods and onto the road crossing at Carvers Gap. There we met "Reverend" a past thru-hiker who lived in Hampton TN (41 trail miles away). He was a little drunk and taking a 100 mile bike ride. He offered to take any trash of ours that could fit in the back of his bike shirt but we declined and dumped our trash off at the restrooms. From there it was up the well-used gravel walkway to the top of the first bald. 5 in total, the balds of the Roan Highlands stretched for about 9 miles and were very unique. We'd already been to a couple of balds on this trip but to hike over so many in a row was a neat experience. We took the time to hike a blue-blaze up to Grassy Ridge, the only natural 360* view above 6000' on the trail. It was nearing the end of our day, just after we had stopped for snacks past an old barn-turned-shelter, when we started noticing a jingling noise as we walked. Laura kept turning around and looking at Mike thinking it was him and Mike thought it must be something on Laura's pack. Eventually Mike turned around to find that the jingly noise we'd been hearing for the past half hour was a little dog following us. Apparently she'd been back there for a while. She was young looking and mostly white with a few black spots, a tiny bit skinny. Thankfully she had a collar on her and we were relieved to find a phone number on it. At a loss (we are definitely not dog people), we thought the right thing to do would be to try and contact the owner. Since it happened to be Laura's mom's b-day, we'd been going from peak to peak anyway looking for phone service. Once we found a bit of signal Laura called her mom and we watered the thirsty dog. Mike then dialed the number on the collar, unsure of what to expect or who would answer. After a number of rings, thankfully, someone answered. It was really hard for Mike to understand the guy on the line and he apparently didn't even know which dog of his was missing. When Mike described the dog to him he seemed confused and kept asking what color the collar was. The guy offered to come meet us where we were on Hump Mountain, but since meeting strangers in the woods wasn't what we'd had in mind, Mike convinced the man to meet us at the next road crossing where the dog could be exchanged in a more public setting. Hanging up, it all felt somewhat surreal realizing we were now responsible for this dog until we gave it back, that the owner didn't seem to care about the dog or he'd know which dog of his was missing, and that we now had to tack on another 5.5 miles onto our day and it was already late in the evening. Despite these things we hurriedly set out to cover the ground and return the dog. Initially, the dog, who we then began calling Green Collar, was well-behaved walking behind and alongside us as we trekked up and over the last of the highlands. Green Collar's cuteness powered us for a couple of miles and we embraced the novelty of hiking with a borrowed pet. As it started to get darker and the miles added up, the cuteness wore off as the dog became fatigued and increasingly moody. First it whined. Then it started throwing child-like tantrums where it refused to walk any further. At this point we jerryrigged a leash using a carabeaner and our bearbag rope which proved to be an excellent idea when little Green Collar turned crazy when she saw some deer up on a ridgeline above us. (So very) Tired and ready to say goodbye to our foster pet, we finally reached the Apple House Shelter which was only .5 miles from the road. At this point we could hear someone down the trail yelling and whistling and it was confirmed with the people at the shelter that it was the guy looking for his dog. Rudely, they told us to go and not let the guy come back, so off we went, annoyed at the lack of understanding with the shelter people, to return this darn dog. Not a quarter mile down the trail we found the owner, Mack. To our surprise it was immediately apparent he had been distraught about the dog because he became a bumbling fool as soon as he saw her. It also didn't help that he was completely tanked. Thru slurred speech and a very thick southern accent, he introduced himself ("Mack" was pronounced exactly the same as "Mike"), thanked us many many times, and handed Mike a can of Bud Lite from his pants pocket insisting that he'd "been able to tell from his voice over the phone that he'd be wantin' a beer". The three of us and his girlfriend (the sober one whodrove him to meet us, but unfortunately we never got her name) walked to the road where she told us how he'd been loosing sleep over this, and they actually had 3 dogs that had run away which explains why he didn't know which dog I had found when I called. They said they were headed to the convenience store and offered to give us a ride to get some snacks. On the way back to the trail, she stopped at a drive-thru bar and bought us a 12 pack of cheep beer to split with Mack as payment for our good deed. As they drove away in their Jeep that was about to fall apart, we checked the time (it was almost 9:30pm and completely dark), so we agreed to camp at the first available spot we found. Too bad that wouldn't be for a few miles- all uphill and in the end the spot we found was no even close to being called 'flat'. By now it was 10:30 and we were both completely exhausted so we drank the spoils of our day and sat in disbelief of what had happened before falling asleep.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Day 33
Day 33 - Low Gap to Ash Gap - 18 mi - 371 total
We awoke to blue skies and frigid temps so we took our time packing up and laying our wet clothes in the sun to dry. Josh and his dog passed us as we were drying out. He told us how he had spent the night on top of Unaka Mtn and was miserable with all the snow and hail. We didn't see him again until we reached Iton Mtn Gap and then again as we were taking lunch at Apple Orchard Gap. Today was a quiet day, not a lot of other hikers on the trail around us as we made our climb up the neighboring ridgelines (with little or no views) on Roan Mtn. In the late afternoon we were finally rewarded with a view from the top of Little Rock Knob and could see that Roan Mtn was still covered with snow fom the previos nights storm. Excited to reach the top, we set off on our final steep climb. We made camp just as daylight was fading at Ash Gap, about one mi from the top. Looking forward to the highlands coming up.
We awoke to blue skies and frigid temps so we took our time packing up and laying our wet clothes in the sun to dry. Josh and his dog passed us as we were drying out. He told us how he had spent the night on top of Unaka Mtn and was miserable with all the snow and hail. We didn't see him again until we reached Iton Mtn Gap and then again as we were taking lunch at Apple Orchard Gap. Today was a quiet day, not a lot of other hikers on the trail around us as we made our climb up the neighboring ridgelines (with little or no views) on Roan Mtn. In the late afternoon we were finally rewarded with a view from the top of Little Rock Knob and could see that Roan Mtn was still covered with snow fom the previos nights storm. Excited to reach the top, we set off on our final steep climb. We made camp just as daylight was fading at Ash Gap, about one mi from the top. Looking forward to the highlands coming up.
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Day 32
Day 32- Erwin to Low Gap - 13 miles (352.8 total)
On the way out of town we were lucky enough to get another ride back to the trailhead, this time from Uncle Johnny's shuttle. In the van we met a few new people and saw our acquaintance Josh and his dog Marius, who were also headed out. We gave the driver a few bucks for the ride, and then headed out of gown on Josh's heels who we chatted with briefly at a railroad rossing as we waited for a train to pass. Just after that we stopped to hard boil some eggs we bought, and didn't happen to see anyone else the whole day. We ducked under a tree, ate snacks, and had a beer as we waited for the eggs to cook. Afterwards, we hiked our way up to Beauty Spot from he river- the only hike that the emo kid (who gave mike a ride) had ever done. As we hiked the threat of rain loomed, but we seemed to be avoiding it. At one point the temperature read 80* and we were cooking in the sun in our short sleeves. In very little time as we were reaching Beauty Spot the clouds rolled over us and the temperature dropped. From there we could see our next climb, Unaka Mtn, shrouded in clouds which were being whipped thru the gap by winds. Deciding to continue, rain started which quickly turned into hail. The hail piled up and as we climbed further the hail eventually turned to snow. By the time we reached the summit everything was under a blanket of white - it was the storm we had expected earlier (most likely in the Smokies) but thankfully we still had our winter gear. We love the groves of red spruce that covered the summit. It felt like a winter wonderland and reminded us of the northwest simultaniously. Although we were tempted to spend the night right there, we chose to do another couple of miles and head for lower ground in search of a campsite not covered in snow. By the time we reached Low Gap it was getting dark, the snow had turned back to hail, then rain, and we were ready to call it a night. We made camp there and warmed up in our tent.
On the way out of town we were lucky enough to get another ride back to the trailhead, this time from Uncle Johnny's shuttle. In the van we met a few new people and saw our acquaintance Josh and his dog Marius, who were also headed out. We gave the driver a few bucks for the ride, and then headed out of gown on Josh's heels who we chatted with briefly at a railroad rossing as we waited for a train to pass. Just after that we stopped to hard boil some eggs we bought, and didn't happen to see anyone else the whole day. We ducked under a tree, ate snacks, and had a beer as we waited for the eggs to cook. Afterwards, we hiked our way up to Beauty Spot from he river- the only hike that the emo kid (who gave mike a ride) had ever done. As we hiked the threat of rain loomed, but we seemed to be avoiding it. At one point the temperature read 80* and we were cooking in the sun in our short sleeves. In very little time as we were reaching Beauty Spot the clouds rolled over us and the temperature dropped. From there we could see our next climb, Unaka Mtn, shrouded in clouds which were being whipped thru the gap by winds. Deciding to continue, rain started which quickly turned into hail. The hail piled up and as we climbed further the hail eventually turned to snow. By the time we reached the summit everything was under a blanket of white - it was the storm we had expected earlier (most likely in the Smokies) but thankfully we still had our winter gear. We love the groves of red spruce that covered the summit. It felt like a winter wonderland and reminded us of the northwest simultaniously. Although we were tempted to spend the night right there, we chose to do another couple of miles and head for lower ground in search of a campsite not covered in snow. By the time we reached Low Gap it was getting dark, the snow had turned back to hail, then rain, and we were ready to call it a night. We made camp there and warmed up in our tent.
Monday, April 26, 2010
Day 31
Day 31 - Erwin, TN - 339.9 miles total!
Another cloudy morning with on again/off again drizzling. We made good time as we descended down to the river. When we reached the valley and the road, we saw the hostel we'd been hearing about right across the street. We saw soda machines on the porch, so we decided to check it out. Took a look around after a chat with "Uncle Johnny" and decided we'd head on into town and fend for ourselves. While walking what we thought would be an easy couple-of-mile jaunt to town, an SUV pulled over an the guy driving asked if we wanted a ride. He was very friendly, and offered to take us around town to wherever we wanted to go. He said he has a rafting business (USA Raft) and since he was his own boss he could be late to work if he wanted- very convienent for us. Also, he and his wife hiked the AT as their honeymoon in 2004. After a quick tour of half the town, we hopped on the 'highway' and headed to Wal-Mart (which the hostel said would cost us $15- but we got there for free-awesome!). Mike was in need of a Wally World to find a new pair of hopefully adequate shoes (his were falling apart at 100 miles & only Super-Glue to repair them + 240 more miles= totally worn out). We were also looking to get a new camera since ours died halfway through the Smokies. Our new friend waited in his car and worked on his laptop while we shopped (got a new camera but no shoes) and afterwards he was even nice enough to drop us off at the CHEAPEST motel in town. We settled in, got our chores done (Mike did the laundry at an eatery/gas station/carwash/laundromat next door) and had some time to relax. Aside from the shouting between the owner and a disgruntled match Laura overheard, it was a quiet afternoon. Strangely enough, eventhough we were surrounded (kind of, but not really) by a Grocery store, a dollar store, and a convience store, the only place to buy beer was at another convience store which a little over a mile away. So at about 5pm Mike walked there (and saw a dejected looking Uncle Johnny) and was lucky enough to get a random free ride from some 16 or 17 emo kid. It was starting to rain harder so he was thankful for the ride back to the motel. We ate junk food, ordered a pizza, watched dome trashy TV (i.e. Wife Swap), and went to bed in one of the junkiest beds we've slept in a while. (For the record, the room had limited outlets; the microwave was stacked on the mini-fridge in the bathroom- hilarious)
Another cloudy morning with on again/off again drizzling. We made good time as we descended down to the river. When we reached the valley and the road, we saw the hostel we'd been hearing about right across the street. We saw soda machines on the porch, so we decided to check it out. Took a look around after a chat with "Uncle Johnny" and decided we'd head on into town and fend for ourselves. While walking what we thought would be an easy couple-of-mile jaunt to town, an SUV pulled over an the guy driving asked if we wanted a ride. He was very friendly, and offered to take us around town to wherever we wanted to go. He said he has a rafting business (USA Raft) and since he was his own boss he could be late to work if he wanted- very convienent for us. Also, he and his wife hiked the AT as their honeymoon in 2004. After a quick tour of half the town, we hopped on the 'highway' and headed to Wal-Mart (which the hostel said would cost us $15- but we got there for free-awesome!). Mike was in need of a Wally World to find a new pair of hopefully adequate shoes (his were falling apart at 100 miles & only Super-Glue to repair them + 240 more miles= totally worn out). We were also looking to get a new camera since ours died halfway through the Smokies. Our new friend waited in his car and worked on his laptop while we shopped (got a new camera but no shoes) and afterwards he was even nice enough to drop us off at the CHEAPEST motel in town. We settled in, got our chores done (Mike did the laundry at an eatery/gas station/carwash/laundromat next door) and had some time to relax. Aside from the shouting between the owner and a disgruntled match Laura overheard, it was a quiet afternoon. Strangely enough, eventhough we were surrounded (kind of, but not really) by a Grocery store, a dollar store, and a convience store, the only place to buy beer was at another convience store which a little over a mile away. So at about 5pm Mike walked there (and saw a dejected looking Uncle Johnny) and was lucky enough to get a random free ride from some 16 or 17 emo kid. It was starting to rain harder so he was thankful for the ride back to the motel. We ate junk food, ordered a pizza, watched dome trashy TV (i.e. Wife Swap), and went to bed in one of the junkiest beds we've slept in a while. (For the record, the room had limited outlets; the microwave was stacked on the mini-fridge in the bathroom- hilarious)
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Day 30
Day 30 - Spring past Sam's Gap to campsite N of Temple Hill Gap - 21 mi - 337 total
We were glad to be alive this morning and not squished under any downed trees. Thankfully the rain had stopped and as we packed up we were able to hang our raingear up on nearby branches and mostly dry it out. Just before we were ready to go a little old lady came hiking up the trail towards us. "Grandma", as we so affectionately dubbed her, stopped as she got to us and insisted that we go ahead of her since we were "most certainly faster than she was". Still in morning-mode, we weren't totally prepared yet for the mile or two of uphill climbing ahead of us, but we weren't going to argue with Grandma and we started hiking anyway. A good 15 minutes later, after a good loooonnggg uphill battle and lots of huffing and puffing, we looked back to find Grandma practically on our heels. Damn! That lady was moving! Now feeling even more pressured than before (and with our egos at stake) we found it in ourselves to ramp it up and leave Grandma behind in the dust. The rest of the day was spent looking over our shoulders, pretending she was after us. Our hard uphill climb eventually took us to the top of Big Bald but it was too windy to hang out for too long so we headed down the north side and up the grassy slope of Big Stamp to the "treeline" where we stopped. After a while of sitting and eating we noticed people on top of Big Bald so we took off so we wouldn't get caught up talking to them. About 6.5 miles later we crossed US 19W at Spivey Gap and took another break at the Ogelsby Branch (a stream) to rest and have a snack out of the sun- it was hot: in the 80's. Refueled and re-energized we set off in hopes of getting close to Erwin to make it easier to get into town in the morning. We found a great spot on a ridgeline overlookng the town as dusk approached. Mike set up the tent while Laura built a small fire and hung the bear bag (and she did an awesome job!). We sat by the fire and eventhough there weren't really any stars out because of the clouds, we're dry for now. Tomorrow looks like rain, and hopefully we'll dodge in by going into Erwin, but who knows after that!
We were glad to be alive this morning and not squished under any downed trees. Thankfully the rain had stopped and as we packed up we were able to hang our raingear up on nearby branches and mostly dry it out. Just before we were ready to go a little old lady came hiking up the trail towards us. "Grandma", as we so affectionately dubbed her, stopped as she got to us and insisted that we go ahead of her since we were "most certainly faster than she was". Still in morning-mode, we weren't totally prepared yet for the mile or two of uphill climbing ahead of us, but we weren't going to argue with Grandma and we started hiking anyway. A good 15 minutes later, after a good loooonnggg uphill battle and lots of huffing and puffing, we looked back to find Grandma practically on our heels. Damn! That lady was moving! Now feeling even more pressured than before (and with our egos at stake) we found it in ourselves to ramp it up and leave Grandma behind in the dust. The rest of the day was spent looking over our shoulders, pretending she was after us. Our hard uphill climb eventually took us to the top of Big Bald but it was too windy to hang out for too long so we headed down the north side and up the grassy slope of Big Stamp to the "treeline" where we stopped. After a while of sitting and eating we noticed people on top of Big Bald so we took off so we wouldn't get caught up talking to them. About 6.5 miles later we crossed US 19W at Spivey Gap and took another break at the Ogelsby Branch (a stream) to rest and have a snack out of the sun- it was hot: in the 80's. Refueled and re-energized we set off in hopes of getting close to Erwin to make it easier to get into town in the morning. We found a great spot on a ridgeline overlookng the town as dusk approached. Mike set up the tent while Laura built a small fire and hung the bear bag (and she did an awesome job!). We sat by the fire and eventhough there weren't really any stars out because of the clouds, we're dry for now. Tomorrow looks like rain, and hopefully we'll dodge in by going into Erwin, but who knows after that!
Friday, April 23, 2010
Day 28
Day 28 - Campsite north of Log Cabin Drive to spring past Big Butt - 12.6 mi - (301 total)
Today was exceptionally beautiful and hard hiking and we were in a bad mood despite it being our 300 mile day. Highlights of the day included: neat cliffs! Walking over a section of cool exposed ridgeline! Rocks! Great views! Hikng to a place actually named Big Butt! We found a really nice campsite that night close to water which passing hikers seemed jealous of. Mike was unsucessful at building a fire (everything was damp from showers the night before) but Laura used her Survivorman knowledge and got one going later. Went to bed as wild dogs made jungle noises in the night.
Today was exceptionally beautiful and hard hiking and we were in a bad mood despite it being our 300 mile day. Highlights of the day included: neat cliffs! Walking over a section of cool exposed ridgeline! Rocks! Great views! Hikng to a place actually named Big Butt! We found a really nice campsite that night close to water which passing hikers seemed jealous of. Mike was unsucessful at building a fire (everything was damp from showers the night before) but Laura used her Survivorman knowledge and got one going later. Went to bed as wild dogs made jungle noises in the night.
Day 29
Day 29 - Spring past Big Butt to spring past Sam's Gap - 14.5 mi - 316 total
Hard morning. Passed the Shelton Graves, unfortunately took a snack break right next to the largest pile of human bowel movement in history, and then a lot of uneventful trail. At Devil Fork Gap (NC 212) road crossing we were elated to find a big bright red cooler full of soda, oatmeal cream pies (which, by the way, are now starting to wear on Mike), snickers, apples, and a bag for the trash sitting right next to it! Shoved and chugged, then ran across the road and over a little fence ladder, through the corner of a cow pasture, and up back into the folds of the mountains. Followed a stream for a while past the remnants of some old log cabins and other structures that had fallen apart a long time ago. Stopped again to snack and recharge and smartly chose to preemptively put on our raingear before the skies opened up. For the previous few hours we could feel the humidity in the air and noticed the clouds slowly moving in to block out the sun. The rain started almost immediately. For the next 5 mi we wandered up the forested ridges along old forest roads next to ancient looking barbed-wire fences. We were completely engulfed by clouds, dealing with occasional hard rain but mostly fog and light drizzle in what felt like a dream. We crossed under the Interstate bridge at Sam's Gap in what must have been late afternoon. The rain stopped, we could see the clouds hugging the mountains surrounding the gap, and the wind picked up. We climbed up onto a ridgeline and after 2 miles the rain was coming down, the wind was getting very strong, and we came upon a small flank of the ridge that was flat and had a spring so we called it a day. Laura pumped water as Mike attempted to dry out and set up in the tent. It sounded like a hurricane as Mike wiped up the water on the tent floor and made a place for all the soaked clothing in the vestibule. We sat and ate and listened to the storm getting stronger and moving over us. The tent was shaking - a lot. Overnight there were a few times we woke to the sound of branches cracking and falling. Really extreme wind. We are once again assured of the quality of our tent - thank you North Face!
Note: We found out later that this storm was the same one that produced the tornado that whipped through Mississippi. Crazy!
Hard morning. Passed the Shelton Graves, unfortunately took a snack break right next to the largest pile of human bowel movement in history, and then a lot of uneventful trail. At Devil Fork Gap (NC 212) road crossing we were elated to find a big bright red cooler full of soda, oatmeal cream pies (which, by the way, are now starting to wear on Mike), snickers, apples, and a bag for the trash sitting right next to it! Shoved and chugged, then ran across the road and over a little fence ladder, through the corner of a cow pasture, and up back into the folds of the mountains. Followed a stream for a while past the remnants of some old log cabins and other structures that had fallen apart a long time ago. Stopped again to snack and recharge and smartly chose to preemptively put on our raingear before the skies opened up. For the previous few hours we could feel the humidity in the air and noticed the clouds slowly moving in to block out the sun. The rain started almost immediately. For the next 5 mi we wandered up the forested ridges along old forest roads next to ancient looking barbed-wire fences. We were completely engulfed by clouds, dealing with occasional hard rain but mostly fog and light drizzle in what felt like a dream. We crossed under the Interstate bridge at Sam's Gap in what must have been late afternoon. The rain stopped, we could see the clouds hugging the mountains surrounding the gap, and the wind picked up. We climbed up onto a ridgeline and after 2 miles the rain was coming down, the wind was getting very strong, and we came upon a small flank of the ridge that was flat and had a spring so we called it a day. Laura pumped water as Mike attempted to dry out and set up in the tent. It sounded like a hurricane as Mike wiped up the water on the tent floor and made a place for all the soaked clothing in the vestibule. We sat and ate and listened to the storm getting stronger and moving over us. The tent was shaking - a lot. Overnight there were a few times we woke to the sound of branches cracking and falling. Really extreme wind. We are once again assured of the quality of our tent - thank you North Face!
Note: We found out later that this storm was the same one that produced the tornado that whipped through Mississippi. Crazy!
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Day 27
Day 27 - Hot Springs to Campsite north of Log Cabin Drive - 17 miles (289 miles total)
We woke up to a beautiful morning by the French Broad River, and decided to walk back to town to use the Post Office and get some stove fuel from the outfitter. We packed up but left our packs inside our tent on the river bank, so we didn't have to carry them around with us. We were at the Post Office mailing postcards by 8:40am, and had 20 min. to kill until the outfitter opened so back to the dollar store we went. Once again the register lady reminded us why we'll never live in the South ("Obama's not even an American Citizen. He don't even have a birth certificate. Impeach him!"). It was time to go. Over the brige again and up the mountainside with good views of the town below from Lovers Leap Rock. Eventually we decided to stop, to give the guy in front of us some space, and eat a snack. There we saw H^2 (Kristy) who informed us of the crappy weather forecast for the rest of the week (a couple of days of rain). We got some unexpected trail magic (cans of coke) from a former thru hiker as we crossed the major road that lead out of town. Took a blue blaze to see another fire tower where we spent some time talking with some guys from Alabama. It was a pretty quiet and normal day, and we're looking forward to hitting the 300 mile mark tomorrow. We made camp and our stuff sack for bear bagging got stuck in a tree and will probably stay there until the distant future, so we'll figure something else out- but it's not a problem.
We woke up to a beautiful morning by the French Broad River, and decided to walk back to town to use the Post Office and get some stove fuel from the outfitter. We packed up but left our packs inside our tent on the river bank, so we didn't have to carry them around with us. We were at the Post Office mailing postcards by 8:40am, and had 20 min. to kill until the outfitter opened so back to the dollar store we went. Once again the register lady reminded us why we'll never live in the South ("Obama's not even an American Citizen. He don't even have a birth certificate. Impeach him!"). It was time to go. Over the brige again and up the mountainside with good views of the town below from Lovers Leap Rock. Eventually we decided to stop, to give the guy in front of us some space, and eat a snack. There we saw H^2 (Kristy) who informed us of the crappy weather forecast for the rest of the week (a couple of days of rain). We got some unexpected trail magic (cans of coke) from a former thru hiker as we crossed the major road that lead out of town. Took a blue blaze to see another fire tower where we spent some time talking with some guys from Alabama. It was a pretty quiet and normal day, and we're looking forward to hitting the 300 mile mark tomorrow. We made camp and our stuff sack for bear bagging got stuck in a tree and will probably stay there until the distant future, so we'll figure something else out- but it's not a problem.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Day 26 (updated)
This morning was cloudy and cold, with a lot of moisture in the air, but no real rain. We made a quick cup of coffee and took off for Hot Springs which was only 1.5-2 miles away. We walked down out of the mountains and into a REALLY small southern town, but we felt welcomed by the blazes which were in the sidewalk and crosswalks. Now strolling down main street towards "downtown", we decided to stop for breakfast at the Smoky Mountain Diner. The porch was full of hikers packs, and although we're a little sceptical about leaving our stuff we were hungry for breakfast so down are packs went and in we went. After we ate, it was off to the Doller General and then the landromat. Next, we treated ourselves to a couple of beers at the only pub as we filled out postcards and wrote more in our journal. Once we felt up to it, we headed to the library to use the free computers to post some journal entries, and after some frustration Mike decided it was taking too long so we headed back toward the trail. Now it was after 6pm, and almost everything in town was closed for the night, so we went to the 'warm springs resort' (as we dubbed it after reading a historical marker that said that was the original name) which was near the river at the edge of town where we read we could get a shower. From there, we were sent across the road to the campground where we each paid $5 to use the COLD "hiker" showers (outside located next to an actual indoor shower building). Laura was very peeved by this and made it know to any unlucky stranger within earshot because it was not even close to $2 hiker friendly special that was listed in our guidebook. Now cold, and very awake, we were ready to be done with Hot Springs so we grabbed our stuff and walked to the trail. Through town, over the bridge, and down the side we came across a hiker named G-hippie from NY who we had an awesome conversation with about the local wildflowers. Walking along the trail by the river, we found a bunch of campsites and decided to claim a discreet one for the night. We built a small fire and sat until dark listening to the river.
Day 26
Hot Springs Library (270 miles)
Had a little bit of time to update some earlier entries but the majority of them will have to wait for the next town to be posted online. We're here in Hot Springs, NC right now - just passing through, we're not staying the night, just in town to re-supply and shower. We're really enjoying ourselves and we'll tell you more about it as soon as we can. Next stop is Erwin, TN.
Had a little bit of time to update some earlier entries but the majority of them will have to wait for the next town to be posted online. We're here in Hot Springs, NC right now - just passing through, we're not staying the night, just in town to re-supply and shower. We're really enjoying ourselves and we'll tell you more about it as soon as we can. Next stop is Erwin, TN.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Day 37
Day 37 - Side trail to US 321 to campsite past Vandeventer Shelter - 15.5 mi - 431 total
Our hike today started straight up. From the river it was a steep climb 1700' up over 2.5 miles to Pond Flats, our last big up and over until VA. On our way up we passed what might have been more than a dozen hikers who were staying at Kincora and taking the opportunity to slackpack that difficult section (they hiked the opposite way so it wouldn't be so steep and left their packs at the hostel). They all warned us about how steep it got, and as per usual, all the hype made the hike seem easier- by the time we reached the top we wondered what all the fuss was about. We quickly made our way down the other side a couple of miles to Watuga lake, then around the (very big) lake, and over the Watuga Dam. It was a hard climb up Iron Mtn. in the heat and suffocating humidity (this is how it's been recently), so we made camp at a really cool site past the Vandeventer shelter. The site had a small rock outcropping behind it which dropped down to the lake and valley below. Once it got dark out, we could see all the tiny lights from the towns beneath us. We decided to have a small fire again (because there was a nice pit and someone had gathered wood and left it stacked) and then slept well.
Our hike today started straight up. From the river it was a steep climb 1700' up over 2.5 miles to Pond Flats, our last big up and over until VA. On our way up we passed what might have been more than a dozen hikers who were staying at Kincora and taking the opportunity to slackpack that difficult section (they hiked the opposite way so it wouldn't be so steep and left their packs at the hostel). They all warned us about how steep it got, and as per usual, all the hype made the hike seem easier- by the time we reached the top we wondered what all the fuss was about. We quickly made our way down the other side a couple of miles to Watuga lake, then around the (very big) lake, and over the Watuga Dam. It was a hard climb up Iron Mtn. in the heat and suffocating humidity (this is how it's been recently), so we made camp at a really cool site past the Vandeventer shelter. The site had a small rock outcropping behind it which dropped down to the lake and valley below. Once it got dark out, we could see all the tiny lights from the towns beneath us. We decided to have a small fire again (because there was a nice pit and someone had gathered wood and left it stacked) and then slept well.
Day 25
Day 25 - Max Patch to Campsite past Deer Park Mountain Shelter- 17 miles (269 total)
We woke up to grey overcast skies, but the rain had stopped (for now). We broke camp, mike convinced laura to let him re-hang the food/cache our packs so that we could go back up Max Patch for a look in the daytime, and up we went again. Awesome dramatic views from the summit- 360* with rain on some distant ridgelines and beautiful orange sunlit clouds to the NE. The rain finally begain to fall, and we headed back to grap our stuff. We hiked as the rain fell, then stopped, then started again. We really enjoyed the meadows feel of the area north of Max Patch, and the interesting anti-livestock gates throughout the area. We took a break near a road for lunch and to put on our rain paints (finally). Overall, it was a nice rainy day- good hiking weather for two people who got used to light(er) but constant rain in the Pacific NW. We stopped for water at the stream by Deer Park Mountain Shelter, which apparently used to be an old homestead. We were slightly surprised to find so many people stopping there for the night and not doing the last couple of miles to get into town early. We moved on, so that we could get as close to town as we could for the night, before it got dark. Immeadietly past the stream, we found 2 graves- maybe the former homesteaders. Found a nice spot, and called it a night.
We woke up to grey overcast skies, but the rain had stopped (for now). We broke camp, mike convinced laura to let him re-hang the food/cache our packs so that we could go back up Max Patch for a look in the daytime, and up we went again. Awesome dramatic views from the summit- 360* with rain on some distant ridgelines and beautiful orange sunlit clouds to the NE. The rain finally begain to fall, and we headed back to grap our stuff. We hiked as the rain fell, then stopped, then started again. We really enjoyed the meadows feel of the area north of Max Patch, and the interesting anti-livestock gates throughout the area. We took a break near a road for lunch and to put on our rain paints (finally). Overall, it was a nice rainy day- good hiking weather for two people who got used to light(er) but constant rain in the Pacific NW. We stopped for water at the stream by Deer Park Mountain Shelter, which apparently used to be an old homestead. We were slightly surprised to find so many people stopping there for the night and not doing the last couple of miles to get into town early. We moved on, so that we could get as close to town as we could for the night, before it got dark. Immeadietly past the stream, we found 2 graves- maybe the former homesteaders. Found a nice spot, and called it a night.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Day 24
Day 24- Campsite near Davenport Gap to Max Patch- 15 miles (252 miles total)
We had a slow morning since we were partly celebrating Mike's B-day by being lazy, and also because part of the reason that we stopped where we did last night was due to Laura getting her first blister! Ouch! We enjoyed the scenery when we got going since the trail followed a busy creek with beautiful little cascades. In no time, we were crossing I-40 (which was kind of creepy since it was completely deserted due to a rockslide that happen last fall. This was actually the highway we took from Arizona to Tennesee on our drive back from Seattle so it was interesting to see the stretch of road that had been closed. A mile past the road was the hostel, Standing Bear Farm, where we stopped to possibly find some birthday beer and some snacks. Turns out they usually make a daily beer run... but later in the day and it was still technically morning when we arrived. Oh well. We got some sweet microwaveable food (a burger, breakfast sandwiches, and a chicken sandwich) and as we were eating, Hawk, one of the 4 caretakers gave us each a birthday beer from his personal cache. We spent a while hanging out with Vinny, another caretaker who gave up a life of high profile fashion in FL (he worked for the Vercace who was murdered in the mid-nineties and Valentino among others) to hang out with AT hikers in the middle-of-nowhere TN. We wandered around the property looking at the old barns and shed which were 100 years old, and stopped to see the 2 resident hogs which were very excited to see us- they were snorting and dancing around. We didn't quite now how to interact with them so Mike let them rub their wet snouts on his hand and tried to pet them as they circled around in their pen. Grabbed some more snacks, said goodbye, and hit the trail again by 1pm. Walking back down the gravel road to the trail we were pleasently surprised to finally meet up with Beth and David, our friends from Seattle. We talked for a minute or 5 and made plans to hang out in Hot Springs before saying goodbye. Next, we stopped for water at Painter Branch where we met Josh and his dog, and a couple of ladies who are section hiking each year. The ladies told us they hike for 1 week a year, and the younger one remarked that if they continue at that pace she'll be 84 by the time they finish. We are continually overwhelmed by the diversity of people that hike the AT, either as a thru or section hiker. After a long upward haul, we made it to the top of Snowbird Mtn. which was a bald and had some sort of futuristic space tower which turned out to be some sort of air traffic control tower. About 2.5 miles later we found ourselves at the intersection with Groundhog Creek Shelter, and true to form we decided to hike on. We passed Brown Gap as it got dark, and noticed some other hikers camped there, so we chose to move on further. By now it was completely dark and while having a snack at the junction with Cherry Creek Trail we decided to set our sights on Max Patch, with the goal being the summit. We arrived there (Max Patch, 4629ft.) around 10:20pm and enjoyed the summit all to ourselves. In the dark, the lights from all the neighboring cities and towns were easily visible and made up for the lack of stars (clouds from an impending rainstorm were approaching in the distance). We ate snacks (which was to be our dinner) and reveled in the view and lack of other hikers. Less than a mile down off of Max Patch, we found a campsite where the first trees began to grow below the bald and made camp there. It took Mike almost a million years to hang the bear bag, but he finally got it and we fell asleep listening to the start of pitter-patter against our rainfly.
We had a slow morning since we were partly celebrating Mike's B-day by being lazy, and also because part of the reason that we stopped where we did last night was due to Laura getting her first blister! Ouch! We enjoyed the scenery when we got going since the trail followed a busy creek with beautiful little cascades. In no time, we were crossing I-40 (which was kind of creepy since it was completely deserted due to a rockslide that happen last fall. This was actually the highway we took from Arizona to Tennesee on our drive back from Seattle so it was interesting to see the stretch of road that had been closed. A mile past the road was the hostel, Standing Bear Farm, where we stopped to possibly find some birthday beer and some snacks. Turns out they usually make a daily beer run... but later in the day and it was still technically morning when we arrived. Oh well. We got some sweet microwaveable food (a burger, breakfast sandwiches, and a chicken sandwich) and as we were eating, Hawk, one of the 4 caretakers gave us each a birthday beer from his personal cache. We spent a while hanging out with Vinny, another caretaker who gave up a life of high profile fashion in FL (he worked for the Vercace who was murdered in the mid-nineties and Valentino among others) to hang out with AT hikers in the middle-of-nowhere TN. We wandered around the property looking at the old barns and shed which were 100 years old, and stopped to see the 2 resident hogs which were very excited to see us- they were snorting and dancing around. We didn't quite now how to interact with them so Mike let them rub their wet snouts on his hand and tried to pet them as they circled around in their pen. Grabbed some more snacks, said goodbye, and hit the trail again by 1pm. Walking back down the gravel road to the trail we were pleasently surprised to finally meet up with Beth and David, our friends from Seattle. We talked for a minute or 5 and made plans to hang out in Hot Springs before saying goodbye. Next, we stopped for water at Painter Branch where we met Josh and his dog, and a couple of ladies who are section hiking each year. The ladies told us they hike for 1 week a year, and the younger one remarked that if they continue at that pace she'll be 84 by the time they finish. We are continually overwhelmed by the diversity of people that hike the AT, either as a thru or section hiker. After a long upward haul, we made it to the top of Snowbird Mtn. which was a bald and had some sort of futuristic space tower which turned out to be some sort of air traffic control tower. About 2.5 miles later we found ourselves at the intersection with Groundhog Creek Shelter, and true to form we decided to hike on. We passed Brown Gap as it got dark, and noticed some other hikers camped there, so we chose to move on further. By now it was completely dark and while having a snack at the junction with Cherry Creek Trail we decided to set our sights on Max Patch, with the goal being the summit. We arrived there (Max Patch, 4629ft.) around 10:20pm and enjoyed the summit all to ourselves. In the dark, the lights from all the neighboring cities and towns were easily visible and made up for the lack of stars (clouds from an impending rainstorm were approaching in the distance). We ate snacks (which was to be our dinner) and reveled in the view and lack of other hikers. Less than a mile down off of Max Patch, we found a campsite where the first trees began to grow below the bald and made camp there. It took Mike almost a million years to hang the bear bag, but he finally got it and we fell asleep listening to the start of pitter-patter against our rainfly.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Day 23
Day 23- Tri-Corner Knob shelter to campsite past Davenport Gap (+ Mt. Cammerer fire tower) - 17.9 miles (237 total)
It was a very cold morning again with frost covering the tent, and the thermometer read 22* at 6:45am. We packed up, mike spilled the water he was boiling for coffee 2 times, and we hung out and waited until everyone else left the shelter- it's always nice to have it all to ourselves. Laura was surprised by a brazen shelter mouse who was looking for a snack (who mike tried to scare away) which made for a good laugh while we ate and read the shelter log. The temperature was near freezing (31*) as we finally headed out and it was looking lime it was going to be a nice clear day with good views after the 'rain' yesterday. We started our climb down out of the Smoky Mts. from 6400ft to 1400ft at the Pigeon River which is 1.5 miles past the eastern boarder of the park (Davenport Gap). We took a blue-blaze to the Mt. Cammerer fire tower. There we met Eugene and his son Duncan, who were out for the day from Asheville visiting local fire towers. He took our picture, since we didn't have a working camera, and offered to email it to us. They left us alone with the amazing view from the stone tower. Next stop was the Davenport Gap shelter for water, then out of the park. As we crossed the road at Davenport Gap we were surprised to find no sign marking the park's boundry. We headed toward the river only to find a cache of Gatorade by a tree! We eached chugged a bottle, ate a snack, then found an old forest service road to camp on away from the trail. We ate well and called it an early night. Tomorrow is Mike's birthday and we hoping to hit the nearby hostel in the morning for some snacks/birthday beer.
It was a very cold morning again with frost covering the tent, and the thermometer read 22* at 6:45am. We packed up, mike spilled the water he was boiling for coffee 2 times, and we hung out and waited until everyone else left the shelter- it's always nice to have it all to ourselves. Laura was surprised by a brazen shelter mouse who was looking for a snack (who mike tried to scare away) which made for a good laugh while we ate and read the shelter log. The temperature was near freezing (31*) as we finally headed out and it was looking lime it was going to be a nice clear day with good views after the 'rain' yesterday. We started our climb down out of the Smoky Mts. from 6400ft to 1400ft at the Pigeon River which is 1.5 miles past the eastern boarder of the park (Davenport Gap). We took a blue-blaze to the Mt. Cammerer fire tower. There we met Eugene and his son Duncan, who were out for the day from Asheville visiting local fire towers. He took our picture, since we didn't have a working camera, and offered to email it to us. They left us alone with the amazing view from the stone tower. Next stop was the Davenport Gap shelter for water, then out of the park. As we crossed the road at Davenport Gap we were surprised to find no sign marking the park's boundry. We headed toward the river only to find a cache of Gatorade by a tree! We eached chugged a bottle, ate a snack, then found an old forest service road to camp on away from the trail. We ate well and called it an early night. Tomorrow is Mike's birthday and we hoping to hit the nearby hostel in the morning for some snacks/birthday beer.
Saturday, April 17, 2010
Day 22 (updated)
Day 22- Newfound Gap to Tri-Corner Knob Shelter - 15.6 miles (220.3 total)
We both woke up early without the assistance of an alarm as we were both really anxious to get back on the trail. Laura packed up while Mike updated our journal on the computer in the motel's lobby. After some free coffee & doughnuts we walked back over to the NOC store to catch the free hiker shuttle back up to the gap, about 15 miles away. Brian, the driver who dropped us off, took our picture at the TN/NC state line sign, and then we set off north again weaving through tourists by 1pm. We stopped at Charlies Bunion, and our camera finally decided that it was gonna stop working for good, but we were lucky that a few guys from SC were photographing the landmark and Mt. LaConte and they offered to take our picture and email it to us later. The landscape was now looking more dramatic as the clouds in the valleys were lifting and swirling around the peaks of the Smokies and we couldn't help but feel nervious about climbing out on the rock(s) for the photo- very very steep drop to the valley floor below. We had a great afternoon taking in the best views (and most clear) that we've seen yet in GSMNP, and we both agreed that it was only fitting that today would be the day that the camera broke... haha! This was a paricularlly neat section of the trail because most all of it was on the high ridgeline. We hiked into the night and arrived at Tri-Corner Knob shelter after 9pm. As we approached there were scary signs about bear activity all over, and standing there in the darkness with our headlamps illuminating the signs, we hoped our decision to keep hiking wouldn't be something we regreted later. The shelter was full, and everyone was asleep (or trying to be) so we pitched our tent next door on the flatest spot we could find (which was still on an incline), hung the food, and went right to bed (Mike fell asleep right away, while it took Laura almost an hour....)
We both woke up early without the assistance of an alarm as we were both really anxious to get back on the trail. Laura packed up while Mike updated our journal on the computer in the motel's lobby. After some free coffee & doughnuts we walked back over to the NOC store to catch the free hiker shuttle back up to the gap, about 15 miles away. Brian, the driver who dropped us off, took our picture at the TN/NC state line sign, and then we set off north again weaving through tourists by 1pm. We stopped at Charlies Bunion, and our camera finally decided that it was gonna stop working for good, but we were lucky that a few guys from SC were photographing the landmark and Mt. LaConte and they offered to take our picture and email it to us later. The landscape was now looking more dramatic as the clouds in the valleys were lifting and swirling around the peaks of the Smokies and we couldn't help but feel nervious about climbing out on the rock(s) for the photo- very very steep drop to the valley floor below. We had a great afternoon taking in the best views (and most clear) that we've seen yet in GSMNP, and we both agreed that it was only fitting that today would be the day that the camera broke... haha! This was a paricularlly neat section of the trail because most all of it was on the high ridgeline. We hiked into the night and arrived at Tri-Corner Knob shelter after 9pm. As we approached there were scary signs about bear activity all over, and standing there in the darkness with our headlamps illuminating the signs, we hoped our decision to keep hiking wouldn't be something we regreted later. The shelter was full, and everyone was asleep (or trying to be) so we pitched our tent next door on the flatest spot we could find (which was still on an incline), hung the food, and went right to bed (Mike fell asleep right away, while it took Laura almost an hour....)
Day 22
About to leave Gatlinburg, TN to finish the Smoky mountains section. Mike's looking forward to celebrating his 27th birthday (this monday 4/19) and has even gotten his birthday wish (his poison is finally clearing up and going away!). Next stop is Hot Springs, NC about 70 miles away. Drizzling today. Thanks for reading!!!
Friday, April 16, 2010
Day 21
Day 21 - Double Spring Gap Shelter to Newfound Gap (to Gatlinburg, TN) - 11 miles - (205 total)
Woke up early to a chilly and cold morning. To be clear, there are no late mornings in shelters - often the earlybirds start getting up waaayyy before first light - so it's virtually impossible to sleep in later than 6am. We were hiking by 7 or 7:30 and it was a really nice hike up to Clingman's Dome aside from the fact that it was all upwards. Near the Clingman's area it was cool to watch the trees change from predominantly deciduous ones to a majority of conifers- something we hadn't really seen for the past 200 miles. Although it was still really hazy from the lack of rain and over-abundance of pollen in the air, we got some pretty good views to the south as the trees began to thin out on our climb up. We soon reached the summit, and found it to be deserted except for the thru-hikers we had stayed with at the shelter because the road leading to the top was closed. It was evident that it was a bad winter up there; there were tons of downed trees and it looked like a hurricane had rolled through the already hurting summit (there is the obvious problem of the conifers dying off en masse above 6000 ft. from pollution and pests). We stopped at the observation tower, said hello to the first ranger we've seen, and went to check out the view. It was really hazy from the pollen- only 30-40 miles visibility when on a clear day you can 'normally' see up to a 100 miles on a clear day. After a snack, we headed down to Newfound Gap so that we could hitch a ride into Gatlinburg to re-supply. After awkwardly looking for a hitch, with no luck, we were lucky to catch a ride from the new NOC's Gatlinburg Outpost shuttle. Kevin, the driver, had just moved from Seattle (he lived in Wallingford and worked at REI)- what a small world. He gave us a ride to the Grocery store, then back to town to get a room, which saved us a full day of riding the 'trolley'. Checked into the Grand Prix Motel, showered, walked to Burger King for some good greasy food, and too a quick look around town. Afterwards, we headed back to the room for a beer and to write some journal entries. Around 10pm we went for a walk around town and laura loved the tackiness of Gatlinburg on a friday night. Bought fudge and ice cream, which we took back to our room. We fell asleep way after our bedtime and hiker-midnight (it was actual midnight!) watching the local tourism channel after a nice sugar overdose.
Woke up early to a chilly and cold morning. To be clear, there are no late mornings in shelters - often the earlybirds start getting up waaayyy before first light - so it's virtually impossible to sleep in later than 6am. We were hiking by 7 or 7:30 and it was a really nice hike up to Clingman's Dome aside from the fact that it was all upwards. Near the Clingman's area it was cool to watch the trees change from predominantly deciduous ones to a majority of conifers- something we hadn't really seen for the past 200 miles. Although it was still really hazy from the lack of rain and over-abundance of pollen in the air, we got some pretty good views to the south as the trees began to thin out on our climb up. We soon reached the summit, and found it to be deserted except for the thru-hikers we had stayed with at the shelter because the road leading to the top was closed. It was evident that it was a bad winter up there; there were tons of downed trees and it looked like a hurricane had rolled through the already hurting summit (there is the obvious problem of the conifers dying off en masse above 6000 ft. from pollution and pests). We stopped at the observation tower, said hello to the first ranger we've seen, and went to check out the view. It was really hazy from the pollen- only 30-40 miles visibility when on a clear day you can 'normally' see up to a 100 miles on a clear day. After a snack, we headed down to Newfound Gap so that we could hitch a ride into Gatlinburg to re-supply. After awkwardly looking for a hitch, with no luck, we were lucky to catch a ride from the new NOC's Gatlinburg Outpost shuttle. Kevin, the driver, had just moved from Seattle (he lived in Wallingford and worked at REI)- what a small world. He gave us a ride to the Grocery store, then back to town to get a room, which saved us a full day of riding the 'trolley'. Checked into the Grand Prix Motel, showered, walked to Burger King for some good greasy food, and too a quick look around town. Afterwards, we headed back to the room for a beer and to write some journal entries. Around 10pm we went for a walk around town and laura loved the tackiness of Gatlinburg on a friday night. Bought fudge and ice cream, which we took back to our room. We fell asleep way after our bedtime and hiker-midnight (it was actual midnight!) watching the local tourism channel after a nice sugar overdose.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Day 20
Russell Field Shelter- Double Spring Gap Shelter - 16.5 miles (193.9 total)
We woke up early, and it was still dark when others began packing their stuff and getting ready to leave. We were hiking by 7am. We took a quick stop at Spence Field, for a snack and to take in some views, then headed onto Rocky Top. From there we had great views, even though it was a little hazy. It was from there that we finally got our first good views of Clingman's Dome in the distance. We took a short break and enjoyed time alone on the top. Paused for lunch at Sugar Tree Gap, where everyone we had stayed at the shelter with the previous night passed us, then headed back on and passed the Derrick Knob Shelter where they we're all taking a break for lunch. Along the way we saw more beautiful white wildflowers on the ridge lines. Stopped for water at Silers Bald Shelter where we met Jaybird. Next was the short climb up to Silers Bald where we got another great view of Clingman's Dome (the highest point on the AT at over 6,600 ft) and the once again changing environment with the new addition of conifer at higher elevations. We tented at Double Spring Gap Shelter, and were joined again by the 'dude' crew (as we had dubbed them) as it was getting dark. We were lucky, as the shelter was full so we could pitch our tent, and have some semblance of privacy. We saw 3 deer before bed by the food hoist cables, and Mike saw his first wild turkey this morning... he thought it was the most ridiculous looking thing when it flew.
We woke up early, and it was still dark when others began packing their stuff and getting ready to leave. We were hiking by 7am. We took a quick stop at Spence Field, for a snack and to take in some views, then headed onto Rocky Top. From there we had great views, even though it was a little hazy. It was from there that we finally got our first good views of Clingman's Dome in the distance. We took a short break and enjoyed time alone on the top. Paused for lunch at Sugar Tree Gap, where everyone we had stayed at the shelter with the previous night passed us, then headed back on and passed the Derrick Knob Shelter where they we're all taking a break for lunch. Along the way we saw more beautiful white wildflowers on the ridge lines. Stopped for water at Silers Bald Shelter where we met Jaybird. Next was the short climb up to Silers Bald where we got another great view of Clingman's Dome (the highest point on the AT at over 6,600 ft) and the once again changing environment with the new addition of conifer at higher elevations. We tented at Double Spring Gap Shelter, and were joined again by the 'dude' crew (as we had dubbed them) as it was getting dark. We were lucky, as the shelter was full so we could pitch our tent, and have some semblance of privacy. We saw 3 deer before bed by the food hoist cables, and Mike saw his first wild turkey this morning... he thought it was the most ridiculous looking thing when it flew.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Day 19
Fontana Dam to Russell Field Shelter - 13.5 mi - (177.5 total)
Used the restroom at the shelter (the Fontana "Hilton" as the hikers call it) to get water and brush our teeth before crossing the dam (again) to go into the Smokies. Took a quick break to eat something right inside the park boundary and then set off to tackle the ~12mi up into the park. It was interesting to enter the park in such a unique way; the only way to know we were entering the park was a single unassuming sign that read "Great Smoky Mountains National Park". It was another beautiful sunny day (can you sense our sunburnt exasperation yet?) and we were soaked in sweat immediately as we put in the next 5 or 6 miles up into the park. Took a break at the campsites at Birch Spring Gap and ate lunch before a big group of hikers behind us caught up. The first wildflowers we've seen in the Smokeys were popping up and we enjoyed walking through fields and fields of them on the ridgelines before and after Mollies Ridge Shelter. Stopped for the night at Russell Field Shelter at about 5:00 pm, much earlier than we usually stop because the Smokies have strict regulations and insist that all AT thru-hikers stay at shelters (or face BIG fines). Since we couldn't hike any further that night we went for a short walk to a grassy patch on the mountainside and ate our dinner in peace. After we ate we walked back to the shelter, which by the way had a front entrance made of chain-link fence (which former hikers used to feed the bears through), and made our beds on the second tier of the sleeping platform. As dusk was approaching, the hikers we had spent time drinking and socializing with the day before showed up and decided to go against the rules and set up their tents instead of pile into the partially full shelter. They built a huge fire, and invited us to join them, but we took another walk instead to once again enjoy our time in the park. We returned to the shelter at dark, entered the 'cage', then listened to the younger hikers talk and tend to their raging fire as we fell asleep.
Used the restroom at the shelter (the Fontana "Hilton" as the hikers call it) to get water and brush our teeth before crossing the dam (again) to go into the Smokies. Took a quick break to eat something right inside the park boundary and then set off to tackle the ~12mi up into the park. It was interesting to enter the park in such a unique way; the only way to know we were entering the park was a single unassuming sign that read "Great Smoky Mountains National Park". It was another beautiful sunny day (can you sense our sunburnt exasperation yet?) and we were soaked in sweat immediately as we put in the next 5 or 6 miles up into the park. Took a break at the campsites at Birch Spring Gap and ate lunch before a big group of hikers behind us caught up. The first wildflowers we've seen in the Smokeys were popping up and we enjoyed walking through fields and fields of them on the ridgelines before and after Mollies Ridge Shelter. Stopped for the night at Russell Field Shelter at about 5:00 pm, much earlier than we usually stop because the Smokies have strict regulations and insist that all AT thru-hikers stay at shelters (or face BIG fines). Since we couldn't hike any further that night we went for a short walk to a grassy patch on the mountainside and ate our dinner in peace. After we ate we walked back to the shelter, which by the way had a front entrance made of chain-link fence (which former hikers used to feed the bears through), and made our beds on the second tier of the sleeping platform. As dusk was approaching, the hikers we had spent time drinking and socializing with the day before showed up and decided to go against the rules and set up their tents instead of pile into the partially full shelter. They built a huge fire, and invited us to join them, but we took another walk instead to once again enjoy our time in the park. We returned to the shelter at dark, entered the 'cage', then listened to the younger hikers talk and tend to their raging fire as we fell asleep.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Day 18 (updated)
At Fontana Dam - 0 miles today - 164 miles total
Woke up and walked down to the bathrooms where we met a bunch of other hikers, fresh out of the woods, who were waiting for the shuttle into town. Caught a ride with them and were dropped off at the general store/laundromat/post office. There was some confusion as to where our mail drop was sent, so as we were simply milling around in our rain-gear waiting for our laundry to be done, Mike walked up to the lodge and found our box there. We got everything together and went to use the ATM at the general store only to find it broken so off we walked to the gas station to use theirs. Across the street from the station was a pavilion where a bunch of other hikers were sitting - we left our packs there as we went inside (found no ATM) so we cut our losses and sat with the other hikers and had a couple beers. It was getting to be the late afternoon now, and we still wanted to hit the trail so we headed back down the road towards the dam (walking of course...) where we went over our gear and food supply one more time, made some phone calls (there were no pay phones and only one spot in a 5+ mile radius where you could get a signal for cell phone service- all resort employees used walkie talkies), and headed across the dam to the park boundary. We immediately realized that in all the excitement we had forgotten to really eat anything substantial, and mike noticed that the camera had been misplaced. We had a snack, checked the time (it was now 6pm), and thought it would be a good idea to just head back to our campsite for the night (and hopefully find the camera hidden in our packs or at the general store where we thought we might have left it...). Also, because in the Smokys you are required to stay only at shelters and designated campsites or face big fines, we would have had to hike almost 6 miles straight up (in the dark through 'bear infested territory') before would could set up camp for the night. So we set up our tent, found the camera stuffed in the bottom of mike's pack, and went to bed by 10pm looking forward to a fresh start tomorrow.
Woke up and walked down to the bathrooms where we met a bunch of other hikers, fresh out of the woods, who were waiting for the shuttle into town. Caught a ride with them and were dropped off at the general store/laundromat/post office. There was some confusion as to where our mail drop was sent, so as we were simply milling around in our rain-gear waiting for our laundry to be done, Mike walked up to the lodge and found our box there. We got everything together and went to use the ATM at the general store only to find it broken so off we walked to the gas station to use theirs. Across the street from the station was a pavilion where a bunch of other hikers were sitting - we left our packs there as we went inside (found no ATM) so we cut our losses and sat with the other hikers and had a couple beers. It was getting to be the late afternoon now, and we still wanted to hit the trail so we headed back down the road towards the dam (walking of course...) where we went over our gear and food supply one more time, made some phone calls (there were no pay phones and only one spot in a 5+ mile radius where you could get a signal for cell phone service- all resort employees used walkie talkies), and headed across the dam to the park boundary. We immediately realized that in all the excitement we had forgotten to really eat anything substantial, and mike noticed that the camera had been misplaced. We had a snack, checked the time (it was now 6pm), and thought it would be a good idea to just head back to our campsite for the night (and hopefully find the camera hidden in our packs or at the general store where we thought we might have left it...). Also, because in the Smokys you are required to stay only at shelters and designated campsites or face big fines, we would have had to hike almost 6 miles straight up (in the dark through 'bear infested territory') before would could set up camp for the night. So we set up our tent, found the camera stuffed in the bottom of mike's pack, and went to bed by 10pm looking forward to a fresh start tomorrow.
Monday, April 12, 2010
Day 17
Campsite before Cody Gap - Fontana Dam
We rushed the last 10 miles or so to get to Fontana by late afternoon with the hopes of taking advantage of the free showers at the Dam (which are operated by TVA). We crossed the road to the marina, we were pleased to find a bathroom and a soda machine- oh yeah! After a break to wash our hands, take hobo-style sink showers, and drink a coke, we headed the last mile to the shelter. We found the showers in a seperate building like 75 yards before the shelter, so we never even had to stop at the shelter. We got cleaned up, put our dirty clothes back on, the set off walking down the road toward the resort 'town'. We were thankful when a pickup truck with 2 section hikers stopped and offered to give us a ride up to the resort (it was 2 miles almost all up hill). Once there, we realized that everything had closed at 5pm except for the gas station. We walked there to grab some snacks, and since they had draft beer on tap (what the ....?), we had one. Soon it was 6pm, the gas station was closing for the night, so we headed up to the Lodge to spoil ourselves with a good dinner. The burgers we had were huge, and awesome, and after we were full of food and drink we walked the 2 miles back to the Dam and found a secluded campsite away from the shelter. Laura crashed out early while Mike sat under the stars looking across the lake to the Smoky mountains in the distance.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Day 16
Swim Bald- campsite before Cody Gap
Today was really tough. After a climb up Cheoh Bald, and a nice break looking at the Smokys and Fontana Lake in the distance, we were once again cooked alive by the sun and shown no mercy by the decidious forests of the South which still have no leaves to offer any protection. Although nothing was really different about the terrain, everything just seemed harder to do. We sat for a late lunch (around 5pm) on a ridge before Stecoah Gap (?) then crossed the road like scared deer up into the mountains again. Passed the shelter, enjoyed the cool rocks and eastern tree beards on the narrow ridgeline past it, the found a spot just before Cody Gap as it was getting dark.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Day 15
Wesser Shelter- Swim Bald
Woke up fairly early with the intention of making it to the "NOC" by noon or shortly after. Stopped for a quick snack at Rufus Morgan Shelter where we had a laugh at a past thru-hiker's misspelled rantings written on the wall and plenty of clever bible tracts. Walked the last mile to the NOC (the Nantahala Outdoor Center which is a whitewater rafting/outdoor activity hotspot). When we arrived we were surprised to find that the Wesser General Store (our resupply point) sold mostly candy, soda, beer, and flies (for fishing). We left with a small bag of junk food and a 12-pack of Yeungling lager, in cans of course, and sat by the bathrooms to repack or bags. There we witnessed a number of strange interactions between people (bikers clad in leather, yuppies, girls wearing only bikini tops who shouldn't, young men without shirts carrying kayaks and rafts) and because we saw other people drinking beer openly in public, we did too. One beer and twenty strange minutes later we were crossing the Nantahala River on a foot bridge, walking through a parking lot, across train tracks, and once again up into the mountains. We found a small bridge over a dried up spring about half a mile up the trail, and since we didn't spend nearly as much time at the NOC as we had planned, we sat and killed some time (and that 12-pack). We left in search of water a couple of hours later, still wanting to put a dent in the 8 mile climb out of the Nantahala River Gorge. We eventually came upon a spring and decided to take a break and fill up. While there, a young kid from Florida who looked like the 4th Jonas brother ('Baywatch') and two early 20-something's from CT (Laurel & ???) stopped to do the same. We talked, they left, and we headed up Swim Bald to a campsite just off the trail in a Rhodedendron thicket. Set up camp as it was getting dark after hiking with headlamps. Another hot sunny day and clear star filled night.
Friday, April 9, 2010
Day 14
FS road 69 to near Wesser Bald Shelter - 14 mi - 129 mi total
By morning the rain had completely stopped. Opening our eyes, the first thing we saw were big raindrops sti sitting on the outside of our rainfly. We opened the tent and fly doors to look outside and got a showering of ice down the backs of our necks. Sure, It wasn't raining, but our thermometer read near 20 degrees and everything wet had frozen overnight. Took us a few hours to get out of camp because we wanted to wait for our stuff to thaw out (pants, jackets, shoes). We were on the trail by noon and around 1 we were up at the stone obervation tower on Wayah Bald. Awesome view of Clingman's Dome and more of the Smokys in the distance. We're getting really close! Couple of miles later at Burningtown Gap we met a trail maintainer who told us we just missed free hamburgers at the gap. As we were leaving he said "Oh yeah, there's someone coming up behind you". We just sort of looked at him and he continued matter-of-factly "There's radar up there, that's what I'm going up to fix". Alrighty then. We didn't really know what to make of that and walked on. Took a cool blue-blaze trail up to the top of Rocky Bald. Good views and a neat hidden campsite. Heading north again, we crossed Tellico Gap, saw some teenagers getting out of their monster truck and head up the trail just ahead of us. We paused to give some space between us. At the top, we were surprised to find a group of college kids from U. of Florida on spring break who said they were freezing to death (the sun was setting and it was probably around 45*), but no sign of the teenagers- weird. Or not. Stopped at a nice spot on the ridge right before the Wesser Shelter. Quiet night under the stars again, just the two of us.
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Day 13
Winding Stair Gap to FS road 69 - 8 mi
Woke up excited to get out of town. Mike's hands feel better, he says, although they still look pretty rough... but we're both feeling like it's time to leave. The weather seems to have broken - today it was super cloudy as we got up and the fore ast was for thunderstorms all day. Before we left town we walked to the grocery store again and as we were inside the skies opened up. Lots of rain. Stopped next door at the Dollar General to get our last few items and the really heavy rain seemed past as we walked back to the hotel. We rushed to get all of our stuff together in time and we *just* caught the 11am shuttle back to the trailhead. Talked to some nice hikers in the van on the way up into the mountains and got pumped up to hike. The higher we got the rainier it got - but we were prepared wearing our raingear! The shuttle dropped us all off at the pass, and after some confusion about where the trail picked up again, we started hiking. The rain was coming down in sheets and it just kept coming. The miles started to pass and our enthusiasm started to wane as we realized we were getting slightly wet despite our tried and tested west coast raingear. After 4 miles we considered stopping in at a shelter to get out of the rain for a little bit, but we reconsidered when we found the shelter to be way off trail and downhill. Onward we trudged, eventually stopping 4 miles later, not even having found a good water source, and tried not to get our tent too soaked as we set up. As we peeled off our soaked raingear we began to realize just how wet our clothes had gotten... completely wet. We put on our only other bottoms - our thin, silk long underwear - and dry tops and prepared to hunker down for the rest of the day.
It was still really early (about 3:30) so we wrote some log entries and made some phone calls since we had service. A few hours later the rain had stopped it's downpour and we had the opportunity to push on if we'd wanted, but the idea of putting on those soaking wet clothes again was totally unappealing. We called it an early night.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Day 12
Franklin - 0 miles - 107.7 miles total
Decided today that we would take a full zero day here in Franklin since it seems that Mike has a ways to go with his hands. We have him drugged up on Benadryl and covered in Calamine lotion. Didn't really do anything today - watched TV, went to the post office, and ordered a pizza. It feels super luxurious to be able to be just lazy all day and not have to walk but we're actually getting itchy (haha) to get back on the trail. I think we'll take off again tomorrow or we might go crazy in this (very) small (and southern) town.
Decided today that we would take a full zero day here in Franklin since it seems that Mike has a ways to go with his hands. We have him drugged up on Benadryl and covered in Calamine lotion. Didn't really do anything today - watched TV, went to the post office, and ordered a pizza. It feels super luxurious to be able to be just lazy all day and not have to walk but we're actually getting itchy (haha) to get back on the trail. I think we'll take off again tomorrow or we might go crazy in this (very) small (and southern) town.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Day 11
Rocky Cove Knob-Winding Stair Gap - ~1.5 miles
Woke up very early and rushed to catch the shuttle. Got there 5 min. early and sat with the various other hikers until it came. Everyone climbed into the big white van and former thru-hiker Solace gave us a guided tour into and through town, then dropped us off at the Sapphire Inn where we would be staying. We checked in and then went immediately to tend to mike's hands. A mile walk through town to get to the grocery store proved to be exciting since I guess a lot of people don't walk very much in these small towns, so there are few sidewalks, and crosswalks mean nothing. Anyway, we bought like 5 different types of medicines for mike, some snacks, and made our way back to the motel. At 4pm was the famous hiker shuttle around town driven by local hiker hero Ron Haven in his old school bus. Ron drove us around, our stop was the local outfitter where we got new insoles and underwear. Went back to the room, relaxed, and waited for mike to start feeling better.
Monday, April 5, 2010
Day 10
Beech Gap to Rocky Cove Knob - 17 miles
Pushed out a crazy 17 mile day today in order to get us as close as possible to Frankin. Once again slathered on the sunscreen and set off. Today was our 100 mile day. We made it to Carter Gap Shelter first, which marked our 100th mile walked on the trip (including the approach trail). The shelter itself was dilapidated and falling apart and covered in signatures and graffiti including this gem: "Welcome to the Hell of Rodents, Skunks, and other Tazmanian Devils". It wasn't until we ate and left that we realized we were at the OLD shelter and the new nice one was just up the trail. Oh well, we had already eaten, so we walked on to tackle Albert Mtn.- one of the steepest uphills yet. The last 3/10 of a mile was pretty much straight up. At the top was an awesome lookout tower that was a tuqlly some sort of research lab, so we couldn't go in, but we could still climb the stairs. We said hi to the dude that was sprawled out resting on the on the rocks beneath the tower. We climbed up to take in
the most spectacular 360* view yet, took some photos, and climbed down. Next we hiked to Glassmine Gap which marked us having passed our official AT 100th mile. This was where we had originally planned to stop but there weren't any flat spots and although a helpful sign said there were excellent spots ONLY 2 something miles down a blue-blazed trail, we decided to go on further. Eventually we got to Rock Gap Shelter, which seemed really full, so we ended up going all the way to Rocky Cove Knob, the last mtn before Winding Stair Gap. Almost at the top we saw 'Postcard', who we met the day before on Standing Indian Mtn. He told us about the hiker shuttle to town the next morning. We pushed on a little further until we found a flat enough spot to camp then settled in for the night. We were a little surprised by our milage for the day, and it kinda seems like in North Carolina the climbs may be bigger, but they're longer so you can do longer days easier- hopefully that makes sense. We were tired, mike's hands were burning, and the shuttle was at 9am the next day, but we're loving every moment of it. Hung the bear bag and went to bed. Strond wind gusts all night.
Sunday, April 4, 2010
Day 9
Bly Gap to Beech Gap - 12mi
Today, again, was super hot and with lots of strenuous uphill climbs. Woke up late and checked out the cool oak tree that sorta marks the state line. Then we went uphill for a looong time. Took a break at Sassafras Gap where a past AT thruhiker and a past PCT thruhiker (they now do trail maintenance in GA) talked to us as we ate. Pushed on for another 5 miles and stopped to get water at Standing Indian Shelter. There we talked to some more section hikers who were surprised to see us hike on and not stay at the shelter. The top of Standing Indian Mtn. was awesome. It had a nice little grassy clearing and a great view towards the south. We spent a little while up there admiring the view and the tiny little wildflowers just starting to emerge. Afterward, on the way down to Beech Gap, we were surprised to see signs that read "North Carolina Wildlife - Bear Sanctuary"... which was a little unsettling. After 3 miles we were at the gap, saw that a number of the campsites were full so we went for water and ended up finding a spot to spend the night. We made camp and relaxed until it got dark. It was that night that it aS really apparent that Mike's hands were getting pretty bad and we should probably get to Franklin sooner than later to get some more medicine and figure out how to get it to go away for good. Clear skies again with plenty of stars, beautiful night.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Day 8
Dicks Creek Gap (US 76) to Bly Gap- ~9.5 miles
Woke up, had breakfast at the local place (Georgia Mtn. Restaurant) while we wrote out thank-you cards, went grocery shopping, then checked out of the motel and remained in their yard packing our backpacks for a good 45 min. Hitching out of town was easier than on the way in- two guys in a pick-up truck pulled over in no time and told us to climb in the back. Enjoyed the unobstructed scenery until we were back at the gap. After a quick call to Ma (just checking in) we walked off into the wood again. It was a strenuous uphill to get out of the gap and it was HOT. At this point Mike's "rash", which by now we had deduced to be poison ivy, oak, or sumac, started to really itch and spread across his hands. Decided to keep a close eye on it and Mike was determined to not let it ruin his hike. As evening came we reached the state line- HECK YEAH! -which provided much motivation. Took some pictures, swatted the (so far constant) bugs, and headed to nearby Bly Gap where we made camp. Had a good fire and slept on a very uncomfortable incline after listening to loud and rowdy SoBo section hikers on the other side of the gap hoot and holler all night.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Day 7
Deep Gap Shelter to Dicks Creek Gap (US 76) - 2.5 miles
We woke up at 6am to the voices of the other hikers eating breakfast and getting ready to get back on the trail. After a half hour of listening to them talk about sports, they finally left, and we were feeling more awake than we wanted to be at that hour. Yet another reminder why we aren't too fond of shelters. Eventually we got up, had breakfast, checked out the shelter log, and broke camp. It was an easy couple of miles to the road and it was obvious that we both had town on our minds (not to mention that Mike had the start of some kind of poison ivy, oak, or sumac that was in need of some treatment). At Dicks Creek Gap we began our attempt to hitch a ride into Hiawassee (13 miles away?) and were failing miserably until we spotted a day hiker and his daughter returning to their car after a morning hike on the AT. Mike asked if they were headed into Hiawassee and if the two of us could catch a ride with them. Luckily they were headed that way for a quick lunch, and took pity on us because 'he could tell by our accents that we weren't from the area' (what accents?) . We all piled into the car and took off for town. After a quick greasy meal (Laura ate her first triple cheeseburger- Mike was totally impressed) we checked into the Hiawassee Inn, did some laundry, made some calls, had some beers, then called it a night. Showers expected for tomorrow but we're ready to hit the trail again tomorrow afternoon, and we finish the GA section in ~10 miles. North Carolina here we come!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Day 6- Blue Mtn to Deep Gap Shelter- 14.5 miles
Long, hard day but filled with trail magic. We awoke to another clear, beautiful morning on Blue Mtn. ready for the hard downhill to the road crossing then back up Rocky Mtn. (1000 ft. down then 1000 ft. back up in a 2 mile span= not an easy start to the day). When we reached Unicoi Gap we were suprised with some trail magic (turkey sandwiches, chips, cookies, and coca-cola from Linda and Dwayne-thanks guys- best breakfast on the trail yet!!!). Next, we headed out of the gap and 'ran' up Rocky Mtn. (Laura even jogged in place, punching the air and shouting 'Adrian' to get in the spirit)- it was awesome. At about the summit we met Tortuga, a past thru-hiker from GA, who we hiked and chatted with for about a mile until around Indian Grave Gap. He decided to break for lunch there, but it still felt too early for us (and we were still full from the sandwiches we had ~2.5 miles earlier). Before no time we reached the 'Old Cheese Factory Site', where we were once again suprised to find EVEN MORE trail magic. This time it was hot dogs, chips, fruit, and... 2 COLD BEERS from past thru-hikers Mary and Lou, the roman noodles, and their friend Jim. We have to say we've been pleasently surprised with how generous people have been down here in GA, and hopefully someday we'll be able to return the favor by providing our own trail magic to hikers. Next was Tray Mtn, which we reached in no time but couldn't stay at the summit for long- thermometer read 90*, and there was no wind and no shade. Spent the rest of the day taking our time and being sure to take breaks out of the sun when we could find shade. Finally, with the day coming to a close, and after a hard climb up and over Kelly Knob (where we saw a gorgeous sunset), we reached the blue blazed trail to Deep Gap Shelter- our stopping point for the day. At the shelter we had some interesting conversations with a couple in their late 30's from Virginia, and a section hiker from Knoxville who told us a lot about the Smoky Mountains. Soon it was way past hiker midnight (9pm) so we said goodnight, pitched our tent (shelters are for mice!), and went to bed. The best part was we didn't have to hang our bear bag because the shelter had cables- mike was pleased.
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