This morning we actually got up and out of camp at a good time. I was out by 7:50. Gilly and Dark Star were gone even earlier than that. The first 5 miles were easy cruising to a shelter. I think I made it in a little over an hour and a half. After the shelter we had 3 miles until we hit Roan Mountain. I think all of us had been dreading climbing up the mountain.
The mountain is almost two mountains on top of each other. On the way up I met a group of 4 guys just out for the weekend. I spoke with them for quite awhile. The top of the mountain was pretty cool. Most of the mountain were covered in fur and spruce. The top is also the location of the former Cloudland Hotel. You can still see some of the foundation. The TN and NC state line ran through the center of the ballroom. I read a sign noting that in the late 1800's and early 1900's it was illegal to drink in NC. Therefore the ballroom had a line painted on the floor to help guest know which state they were in. Rumor is that the local sheriff would try to catch those drinking on the NC side...crazy, huh? The resort was demolished in 1915 when loggers harvested the furs and spruce. Rhododendron has now flourished there creating gardens and are known for their blooming around late June.
I met Dark Star at the top. We debated eating lunch there, but it was way to windy. Wind + sweaty shirt = cold hikers. We hiked on to the Roan High Knob Shelter which is actually the highest shelter on the trail at 6,275 feet. The shelter is an old firewarden's cabin. I would rank it as the 2nd coolest I have seen so far. The cabin has a loft which allows 15 to sleep in the whole cabin. The others soon joined us at the shelter where we all ate lunch.
On the way down from Roan, Gilly came across some great trail magic. (Disclaimer - I got here permission to tell this story.) I was a few minutes behind her when I came across her pack on the trail. This is usually a clear sign that someone is using the bathroom somewhere away from the trail. As I approached, I could hear her heading back to the trail. I made some comment that she was a bear. She responded with, "the greatest thing just happened to me." Now the good part of the story. Needing to go number two, she headed into the woods. She was actually without toilet paper which is something we all dread at points. Knowing this, she looked for the perfect spot. (Yes, some spots are far better than others). The first spot she came to was more in the open so she headed further into the woods. That is when she noticed a concrete building through the trees. She headed toward it, and of all things it turned out to be a bathroom WITH toilet paper. I myself had to go and when she told me this story, I stomped through the woods to verify and make use of the facilities. It was great. Turns out the bathrooms were for a parking lot of those walking around Carver's Gap and Roan Mountain. If anyone is looking for some good hiking with views, this is a perfect place. I am adding this to my list of places to come back to and offer trail magic to future thru hikers.
After Carver's Gap, the trail heads toward Grassy Bald and Round Bald. The USFS is actually using goats to help keep the bald clear of briars and brambles. No goats were around while we passed through. Scientist also don't know the origins of the balds in this area. Some say grazing, some say Indian religious ceremonies, and some say aliens.
The end of the day brought us to Overmountain Shelter. It is an old barn converted into a shelter. This is my number one so far. It can sleep over 20 and has an awesome view of a valley. There are about 10 others here including former thru hikers, VA Tech students out for the weekend, and App State students performing trail maintenance. I promise pics to come.
Have a good one and TGIF even though days of the week don't matter anymore.
BT
Showing posts with label TN/NC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TN/NC. Show all posts
Friday, April 16, 2010
Thursday, April 15, 2010
April 15 - 16.2 / 361.3 miles
I got off to another late start today. I was planning to get going by 8, but when I woke up I didn't want to get out of my sleeping bag. It was 9:30 by the time I left the shelter.
Nothing was too exciting for the first 8 or so miles. I was talking to Michelle about this the other night. I would have thought hiking all day would give my mind plenty of time to think about things and life. However, I get through the days and realized how I didn't really think about much. I think I spend most of the day recalculating how far it is to the next shelter, water stop, road crossing, etc. I also try to figure what rice and tuna combination I will be eating. Any time left over is spent singing the same line over and over again of no particular song. I think I just make up the words anyway.
We did go over Beauty Spot which was a nice open field. I thought I was going to get some trail magic from a car that had parked across the field. By the time I started to get close though, the vehicle pulled away. DS, Gilly, and I were the first to stop for lunch. It was a nice campsite that had a really good water source. When I say good, it was coming out of the ground about as strong as my bathtub at home. For some reason, DS and I were so amazed. Skywalker and Super Mike (probably going to be called Speed Stick now) joined us shortly after. I think all but SS ended up taking a nap.
Right after lunch, we had a 1,000 foot climb over Unaka Mtn. It wasn't that bad even though we had heard some stories about it. On the way up, I stopped and spoke with two gentlemen. They were out for a couple of days. At first, I saw the first guy just sitting on the trail. I thought this was going to be my first chance to really use my Wilderness First Responder training. He was just resting though. He asked if I could help carry his stuff up the trail (jokingly), but I told him I wasn't certified at that. I gave my blog to those guys. I hope they will take some time and check it out.
The top of Unaka was spectacular. The summit was covered in red spruce and the ground felt like I was walking on a trampoline. The spruces were perfect and were a snapshot of what New Hampshire and Maine will be like. Coming down Unaka I met an older couple. They were day hiking with their dog. I spoke with them for a few minutes and headed on. The five of us (all less SB and DM) met back up at the Cherry Gap shelter. We rested there for a short time. We planned to hike 4 miles, eat supper, and then hike 4 more before it got dark. However we stopped at the four mile mark, in an old apple orchard, to eat dinner and decided this was it for the night. We wanted to do more in order to get closer to Roan Mountain. Roan is about a 2,000 foot climb and the last time I will be above 6,000 feet until N.H. It is known as being the coldest spot year round on the southern part of the AT. All say don't send the winter clothes home until you cross over. I will have more history about Roan Mtn tomorrow. Tomorrow night we are planning to stay in the Overmountain shelter. Dark star has been talking about this one since the day we started. It is a converted two story barn that sleeps 20.
Ending the night, Danger Mouse and Stickerbush were able to catch up to us. They stayed in Erwin last night and didn't hike the as miles in. Therefore, the whole crew is together.
Finally, I did purchase some new trekking poles yesterday. My friend Elizabeth W. had given me another pair to start with. They were great, but I just felt like they were going to break at any second as the tips were getting pretty beat up and bent. I am letting DM use my old ones to figure out if she wants to have hers sent to her or not. So it all works out.
Have a wonderful evening. Keep the comment coming. They are a joy to read and also let's me know who is actually living through my feet as I live through His.
BowTie
Nothing was too exciting for the first 8 or so miles. I was talking to Michelle about this the other night. I would have thought hiking all day would give my mind plenty of time to think about things and life. However, I get through the days and realized how I didn't really think about much. I think I spend most of the day recalculating how far it is to the next shelter, water stop, road crossing, etc. I also try to figure what rice and tuna combination I will be eating. Any time left over is spent singing the same line over and over again of no particular song. I think I just make up the words anyway.
We did go over Beauty Spot which was a nice open field. I thought I was going to get some trail magic from a car that had parked across the field. By the time I started to get close though, the vehicle pulled away. DS, Gilly, and I were the first to stop for lunch. It was a nice campsite that had a really good water source. When I say good, it was coming out of the ground about as strong as my bathtub at home. For some reason, DS and I were so amazed. Skywalker and Super Mike (probably going to be called Speed Stick now) joined us shortly after. I think all but SS ended up taking a nap.
Right after lunch, we had a 1,000 foot climb over Unaka Mtn. It wasn't that bad even though we had heard some stories about it. On the way up, I stopped and spoke with two gentlemen. They were out for a couple of days. At first, I saw the first guy just sitting on the trail. I thought this was going to be my first chance to really use my Wilderness First Responder training. He was just resting though. He asked if I could help carry his stuff up the trail (jokingly), but I told him I wasn't certified at that. I gave my blog to those guys. I hope they will take some time and check it out.
The top of Unaka was spectacular. The summit was covered in red spruce and the ground felt like I was walking on a trampoline. The spruces were perfect and were a snapshot of what New Hampshire and Maine will be like. Coming down Unaka I met an older couple. They were day hiking with their dog. I spoke with them for a few minutes and headed on. The five of us (all less SB and DM) met back up at the Cherry Gap shelter. We rested there for a short time. We planned to hike 4 miles, eat supper, and then hike 4 more before it got dark. However we stopped at the four mile mark, in an old apple orchard, to eat dinner and decided this was it for the night. We wanted to do more in order to get closer to Roan Mountain. Roan is about a 2,000 foot climb and the last time I will be above 6,000 feet until N.H. It is known as being the coldest spot year round on the southern part of the AT. All say don't send the winter clothes home until you cross over. I will have more history about Roan Mtn tomorrow. Tomorrow night we are planning to stay in the Overmountain shelter. Dark star has been talking about this one since the day we started. It is a converted two story barn that sleeps 20.
Ending the night, Danger Mouse and Stickerbush were able to catch up to us. They stayed in Erwin last night and didn't hike the as miles in. Therefore, the whole crew is together.
Finally, I did purchase some new trekking poles yesterday. My friend Elizabeth W. had given me another pair to start with. They were great, but I just felt like they were going to break at any second as the tips were getting pretty beat up and bent. I am letting DM use my old ones to figure out if she wants to have hers sent to her or not. So it all works out.
Have a wonderful evening. Keep the comment coming. They are a joy to read and also let's me know who is actually living through my feet as I live through His.
BowTie
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
April 14 - 4.2 / 344.1 miles
Towns...you want to leave them but for some reason you can't. None of us planned to hang around the hostel and Erwin today; however, we did.
I didn't get too much sleep last night. I expected the snoring. I didn't expect the guy sleeping in the bunk above me to be so loud. Normally when people roll over while sleeping they are somewhat quiet. This guy on the other hand would roll over and then plop himself into his new position. I was waiting for the bunk to break and have a 250 pound guy crash on top of me. I got out of bed around 7ish and made some oatmeal thinking we would hit the trail soon after. As the others slept under a bridge by the Nolichucky, Stickerbush and Danger Mouse strolled over to the hostel first. We discussed going to get breakfast in town and concluded it sounded like the best idea. At 9, all of us were in the hostel's bus heading into town. We were dropped off at a local gas station/deli/convenient store. I got a tenderloin biscuit with eggs and cheese, onion rings, and a sweet tea. All of that was less than 4 dollars and delicious.
The shuttle took us back to the hostel. We figured we would spend some time sitting by the river and then get on the trail around lunch. Well, lunch turned to 1, then 2, then 4, etc. Around 4 we ordered pizza. Five of us polished off 3 healthy large pizzas without a problem. DM and I then continued our chess game which we started earlier in the day. Wanting to get on the trail, Gilly was the first out around 5. DM and I finished our game (with me winning but DM gave me some moves back). Myself, Dark Star, Skywalker then got on the trail around 6. Currently we are waiting on SB and DM, but they said they might wait until the morning.
The four miles in were a pretty tough climb uphill. Sitting in the sun all day drained me so I was ready to quit as soon as we got to the first shelter. Gilly and Super Mike, who left around 4, were both at the shelter waiting. All of us snacked a little and are getting ready for bed.
Smile and introduce yourself to someone new. You never know what kind of impact it will have.
To the three of you who might actually still be reading this blog, have a good night.
I didn't get too much sleep last night. I expected the snoring. I didn't expect the guy sleeping in the bunk above me to be so loud. Normally when people roll over while sleeping they are somewhat quiet. This guy on the other hand would roll over and then plop himself into his new position. I was waiting for the bunk to break and have a 250 pound guy crash on top of me. I got out of bed around 7ish and made some oatmeal thinking we would hit the trail soon after. As the others slept under a bridge by the Nolichucky, Stickerbush and Danger Mouse strolled over to the hostel first. We discussed going to get breakfast in town and concluded it sounded like the best idea. At 9, all of us were in the hostel's bus heading into town. We were dropped off at a local gas station/deli/convenient store. I got a tenderloin biscuit with eggs and cheese, onion rings, and a sweet tea. All of that was less than 4 dollars and delicious.
The shuttle took us back to the hostel. We figured we would spend some time sitting by the river and then get on the trail around lunch. Well, lunch turned to 1, then 2, then 4, etc. Around 4 we ordered pizza. Five of us polished off 3 healthy large pizzas without a problem. DM and I then continued our chess game which we started earlier in the day. Wanting to get on the trail, Gilly was the first out around 5. DM and I finished our game (with me winning but DM gave me some moves back). Myself, Dark Star, Skywalker then got on the trail around 6. Currently we are waiting on SB and DM, but they said they might wait until the morning.
The four miles in were a pretty tough climb uphill. Sitting in the sun all day drained me so I was ready to quit as soon as we got to the first shelter. Gilly and Super Mike, who left around 4, were both at the shelter waiting. All of us snacked a little and are getting ready for bed.
Smile and introduce yourself to someone new. You never know what kind of impact it will have.
To the three of you who might actually still be reading this blog, have a good night.
April 12 and 13 - 25.0, 13.5 / 326.4, 339.9 miles
Sorry, I was too tired the other night to get this one out and I didn't have service...
The longest day yet, and it seemed like it was. I wasn't sure the day was going to end. We made some really going timing this morning as we headed into the first shelter. I will say I was incorrect on the graves yesterday as we passed the Shelton graves this morning after the first 5 minutes of hiking. Someone definitely takes care of the graves though.
After the first shelter we got about 6 miles in and just past Rector Laurel road to a little creek. We decided to eat lunch and snack here. Gilly was the last one to the spot and mentioned seeing a snake just a few 100 yards back. Instantly, Dark Star was up and running looking for it. Him and Gilly returned a few minutes later, and Gilly was holding the snake in her hands. I can't remember what it was. DS and I also spent some time taking pictures of a newt in the water. Some of the pictures turned out pretty well.
I felt like we had to hike forever to find the next water source. I kept waiting to find a road knowing the next shelter was 1.5 miles past the road. Well, the road never came, but the shelter finally did. Red Hat was also at the shelter. She looked pretty exhausted. She said she was going to hike I-26 and then get a hitch to Erwin to slack pack for the next few days.
We went across Big Bald late in the day and got to see a great sunset. I think we all took some pictures. I took a cool self shot and one of Skywalker standing on a blaze post. At some point of hiking up the Bald, someone got the idea to hike a few more miles in the dark in order to have a shorter day into Erwin, TN. I wasn't too keen on hiking more, but I wasn't going to shelter or tent by myself. We ended up hiking for 3 or so more miles and stopped around 10:45. I tried to blog, but ended up falling asleep 5 minutes into it.
Yesterday, we finished the hike down into Erwin. We all hiked at our own pace. The first place you get to at the trail head is Uncle Johnnys Hostel. I ended up staying at the bunkhouse while the others cowboy camped near the river. Quite a few others were also at the hostel including Dr. Beef stick, Long Haul, and Donner. Super Mike was also able to catch up with us by the end of the day. He had to do a couple of 30 milers to do so though.
I was also able to switch out jackets while here. Michelle sent my lighter down jacket. I hope it doesn't get cold again or that we see more snow. They say to not send winter stuff home until after Demascus, VA.
Last night I got introduced to Dr. Evil. I had heard about him. He walks up to the hostel and takes a beer out of a cooler. The guy who bought them was shocked. Dr. Evil said that someone had drank his last night and now he was going to drink someone else's. We couldn't believe it. Eventually, Dr. Evil came back and apologized. He said it was out of character and gave the guy money for taking his beer. Dinner last night was at a Mexican joint. I did not have any problem finishing my fajitas. I probably could have eaten two orders.
Last night I got a chance to talk with my parents and Michelle.
Aight, time to pack up and hit the trail for the afternoon. I'll try to get a blog out tonight for today.
The longest day yet, and it seemed like it was. I wasn't sure the day was going to end. We made some really going timing this morning as we headed into the first shelter. I will say I was incorrect on the graves yesterday as we passed the Shelton graves this morning after the first 5 minutes of hiking. Someone definitely takes care of the graves though.
After the first shelter we got about 6 miles in and just past Rector Laurel road to a little creek. We decided to eat lunch and snack here. Gilly was the last one to the spot and mentioned seeing a snake just a few 100 yards back. Instantly, Dark Star was up and running looking for it. Him and Gilly returned a few minutes later, and Gilly was holding the snake in her hands. I can't remember what it was. DS and I also spent some time taking pictures of a newt in the water. Some of the pictures turned out pretty well.
I felt like we had to hike forever to find the next water source. I kept waiting to find a road knowing the next shelter was 1.5 miles past the road. Well, the road never came, but the shelter finally did. Red Hat was also at the shelter. She looked pretty exhausted. She said she was going to hike I-26 and then get a hitch to Erwin to slack pack for the next few days.
We went across Big Bald late in the day and got to see a great sunset. I think we all took some pictures. I took a cool self shot and one of Skywalker standing on a blaze post. At some point of hiking up the Bald, someone got the idea to hike a few more miles in the dark in order to have a shorter day into Erwin, TN. I wasn't too keen on hiking more, but I wasn't going to shelter or tent by myself. We ended up hiking for 3 or so more miles and stopped around 10:45. I tried to blog, but ended up falling asleep 5 minutes into it.
Yesterday, we finished the hike down into Erwin. We all hiked at our own pace. The first place you get to at the trail head is Uncle Johnnys Hostel. I ended up staying at the bunkhouse while the others cowboy camped near the river. Quite a few others were also at the hostel including Dr. Beef stick, Long Haul, and Donner. Super Mike was also able to catch up with us by the end of the day. He had to do a couple of 30 milers to do so though.
I was also able to switch out jackets while here. Michelle sent my lighter down jacket. I hope it doesn't get cold again or that we see more snow. They say to not send winter stuff home until after Demascus, VA.
Last night I got introduced to Dr. Evil. I had heard about him. He walks up to the hostel and takes a beer out of a cooler. The guy who bought them was shocked. Dr. Evil said that someone had drank his last night and now he was going to drink someone else's. We couldn't believe it. Eventually, Dr. Evil came back and apologized. He said it was out of character and gave the guy money for taking his beer. Dinner last night was at a Mexican joint. I did not have any problem finishing my fajitas. I probably could have eaten two orders.
Last night I got a chance to talk with my parents and Michelle.
Aight, time to pack up and hit the trail for the afternoon. I'll try to get a blog out tonight for today.
Monday, April 12, 2010
April 11 - 20ish / 302ish miles
Since I am really not at a well defined spot, I am not sure how far I actually am. I know we made it over Big Butt Mtn (300.1) and past by a grave stone. I didn't stop to read this one, but I am assuming it was the Shelton Graves which are at 301.7 miles. If not, then it was someone else's. We have probably seen 3 or 4 head stones over the last two days. The Shelton Graves are those of an uncle and nephew. Both joined the Union Army and were ambushed by Confederate soldiers while returning for a family gathering. See this is an educational trip also.
We were sluggish getting out of camp again this morning. We planned for 8, but didn't make it out until after 9. The stay in the city still has us going slow. The first few miles flew by. We made it to Allen Gap (NC 208/TN 70) in a little over an hour. That was almost a 4 mph pace. I had read about Fal and Hercules in another blog a few years back. They are a couple who opens up their house to thru hikers and offers them free food no matter the time of the day. This has been one of the places I have been looking forward to most. All I knew is that it was around the road crossing and expected to see a note beside the trail telling us where to go. We split up and went both directions down the road. We came up with nothing after about 20 minutes. I ran into some guys who have been hiking these woods for some time now. One of the guys thought he had heard about them too, but wasn't sure exactly where to go. They were very friendly gentlemen and we spoke for some time. I gave one of them my blog. I apologize for not getting their names, but I hope they take the time to follow me. They mentioned that the people we were looking for my be at the next road which was about another 1.5 miles down the trail. We put our packs on and headed on.
The next road was a dirt road. We headed for the only house we could see. We were met by a nice guy who had his baby in a thing in front of him and what appeared to be whiskey. This looked to be a vacation home for him, and he had a pretty sweet setup. We asked him about the couple, but he didn't know either. Therefore we went the other direction toward a hostel we knew was 0.6 miles down the road. As we walked into the building (which also has a lot of potential even though it was a little walk), we were met by an older gentleman. I asked if he happened to be who we were looking for. He said he was not. Well crappo. Since we were now at his place/store we figured we would eat lunch. I grabbed a frozen hamburger, a snickers, and a Dr. Pepper. This and a freeze dried meal cost me almost 14 dollars. These people can rip you off. We took our tome eating our lunch, playing with some dogs, and laying in the sun. I did start to get on the computer to reread about Fal and Hercules when than man spoke up and told me they were out West taking care of their parents. I don't know why he waited 30 minutes to tell me this when he could have told me as soon as I asked about them. Maybe he was afraid we would leave before buying stuff. The guys wife eventually came into the store. She didn't seem to happy. Most people we encounter who help hikers are some of the coolest/nicest people in the world. This couple was the exception. After a while of being there we were ready to get away from them. We got in the back of their son's pick up and hitched back to the trail. I think we all felt the effects of lunch soon after.
As we were approaching Little Laurel Shelter, a trail maintenance guy warned us of a guy further down on the trail who was asking for food and water. He said the guy seemed out of place with no pack or anything else. We made it to the shelter and informed the others. We sat at the shelter relaxing and refilling some water out of the spring. Shortly after, the guy matching the description walks past. It ended up just being a local. We all laughed cause the trail main. guy made it sound like this guy was going to be freaky...not even close. A couple who had moved her from India also stopped by. They go hiking every Sunday. They were awesome to talk with and were more grateful to be speaking with us.
The rest of the day brought about some pretty spectacular views. The first was from Whitestack Cliffs. The next came from Blackstack Cliffs. Blackstack was a ridge line with few to little trees. It did take some maneuvering over and around boulders to make it across. At points the cliff dropped off a few 1000 feet. It offered pretty sweet views though.
We made it down the cliffs and to Jerry Cabin Shelter. We just stopped to eat dinner since all of us wanted to push on a little further. At the shelter was "Greatful" and his dog, a three year old golden lab. We spoke with him until he headed off toward his tent. In the shelter were some nice trekking poles. DS went to go ask whose they were so no one would forget them. He came back and left them in the shelter. For dinner tonight was the freeze dried meal I bought at Hemlock Hollow. It was not too bad for Jamaican BBQ Chicken. I didn't taste the bbq part though.
We finished out meals and headed on with about an hour of light. We crossed over Big Butt Mtn and ended up at this camp site along the trail. The last one to arrive in the dark was "Skywalker" (aka Skylar). As he walked up he made a comment about the new poles he got at the last shelter that Will had put back. Will was dumbfounded and then said they were Greatful's. He was just leaving them in the shelter until the morning. Now Skywalker has to figure out how to return them.
The saga will continue...
BT
We were sluggish getting out of camp again this morning. We planned for 8, but didn't make it out until after 9. The stay in the city still has us going slow. The first few miles flew by. We made it to Allen Gap (NC 208/TN 70) in a little over an hour. That was almost a 4 mph pace. I had read about Fal and Hercules in another blog a few years back. They are a couple who opens up their house to thru hikers and offers them free food no matter the time of the day. This has been one of the places I have been looking forward to most. All I knew is that it was around the road crossing and expected to see a note beside the trail telling us where to go. We split up and went both directions down the road. We came up with nothing after about 20 minutes. I ran into some guys who have been hiking these woods for some time now. One of the guys thought he had heard about them too, but wasn't sure exactly where to go. They were very friendly gentlemen and we spoke for some time. I gave one of them my blog. I apologize for not getting their names, but I hope they take the time to follow me. They mentioned that the people we were looking for my be at the next road which was about another 1.5 miles down the trail. We put our packs on and headed on.
The next road was a dirt road. We headed for the only house we could see. We were met by a nice guy who had his baby in a thing in front of him and what appeared to be whiskey. This looked to be a vacation home for him, and he had a pretty sweet setup. We asked him about the couple, but he didn't know either. Therefore we went the other direction toward a hostel we knew was 0.6 miles down the road. As we walked into the building (which also has a lot of potential even though it was a little walk), we were met by an older gentleman. I asked if he happened to be who we were looking for. He said he was not. Well crappo. Since we were now at his place/store we figured we would eat lunch. I grabbed a frozen hamburger, a snickers, and a Dr. Pepper. This and a freeze dried meal cost me almost 14 dollars. These people can rip you off. We took our tome eating our lunch, playing with some dogs, and laying in the sun. I did start to get on the computer to reread about Fal and Hercules when than man spoke up and told me they were out West taking care of their parents. I don't know why he waited 30 minutes to tell me this when he could have told me as soon as I asked about them. Maybe he was afraid we would leave before buying stuff. The guys wife eventually came into the store. She didn't seem to happy. Most people we encounter who help hikers are some of the coolest/nicest people in the world. This couple was the exception. After a while of being there we were ready to get away from them. We got in the back of their son's pick up and hitched back to the trail. I think we all felt the effects of lunch soon after.
As we were approaching Little Laurel Shelter, a trail maintenance guy warned us of a guy further down on the trail who was asking for food and water. He said the guy seemed out of place with no pack or anything else. We made it to the shelter and informed the others. We sat at the shelter relaxing and refilling some water out of the spring. Shortly after, the guy matching the description walks past. It ended up just being a local. We all laughed cause the trail main. guy made it sound like this guy was going to be freaky...not even close. A couple who had moved her from India also stopped by. They go hiking every Sunday. They were awesome to talk with and were more grateful to be speaking with us.
The rest of the day brought about some pretty spectacular views. The first was from Whitestack Cliffs. The next came from Blackstack Cliffs. Blackstack was a ridge line with few to little trees. It did take some maneuvering over and around boulders to make it across. At points the cliff dropped off a few 1000 feet. It offered pretty sweet views though.
We made it down the cliffs and to Jerry Cabin Shelter. We just stopped to eat dinner since all of us wanted to push on a little further. At the shelter was "Greatful" and his dog, a three year old golden lab. We spoke with him until he headed off toward his tent. In the shelter were some nice trekking poles. DS went to go ask whose they were so no one would forget them. He came back and left them in the shelter. For dinner tonight was the freeze dried meal I bought at Hemlock Hollow. It was not too bad for Jamaican BBQ Chicken. I didn't taste the bbq part though.
We finished out meals and headed on with about an hour of light. We crossed over Big Butt Mtn and ended up at this camp site along the trail. The last one to arrive in the dark was "Skywalker" (aka Skylar). As he walked up he made a comment about the new poles he got at the last shelter that Will had put back. Will was dumbfounded and then said they were Greatful's. He was just leaving them in the shelter until the morning. Now Skywalker has to figure out how to return them.
The saga will continue...
BT
Saturday, April 10, 2010
April 9 and 10 - 11 / 282.8 miles
The rest of the day on the 9th was spent sitting around in Hot Springs. We all visited the shake place again to have 2nd to 5th shake. Yes, SB had five. My second one was a combo of German Chocolate and Black Cherry. After the shake stop, some went to the hardware store and others went to the outfitters. We all met back up again in order to go get a camp site. We ended up have to pay 20 dollars for a spot that wasn't even on the French Broad. I think we were all a little disappointed. Super Mike and is girlfriend, who is in town, ended up meeting up with us. we sat around talking about the trail and then went to a local place to hear live music. On the stage was suppose to be a bluegrass band; however it was more just country. It was still pretty good though.
We all went expecting to also eat dinner. We soon found out they closed the kitchen at 9 and it was just 9:15. I find it funny that it was a restaurant with live music until 10 or 10:30 and they stopped serving food. Luckily there was another table of thru-hikers. As they were leaving, one of the guys gave us a full bag of doritos, some Hostess cupcakes, and other goodies. We did not take too long cleaning it all out. Once the music was over, we asked if Gilly could play one of the guitars. The guy ended up letting her play while they took down their equipment. So for the next hour or so, Gilly, DM, and SB treated us to different songs. It definitely made the evening. The band and others in the restaurant joined in on the singing.
I thought I was going to die during the night. At some time in the morning hours a train came right by our tents. I must have been in the middle of a dream or something, but I literally thought I was on the tracks or something.
We took our time getting up this morning as we had planned a short day of 11 miles. We walked back into the town to get last minute things from the outfitter and then hit the trail around 11:30. We soon realized that there were tons of free camping spots on the other side of the river along the trail. I think that is the last time we will pay to camp. The hike today was really laid back, but we did get our fair share of excitement when it came to snakes. I was walking along the trail and right in the middle of the path was a 4 plus long black snake. DM and I waited for a few seconds to let him move off the trail. I didn't mess with it even though it wasn't poisonous. I told DM that Dark Star would be upset since he is our nature and animal guru. He gets it from his mom who is a science teacher (and now an awesome second mom to us on the trail).
All of us ended up stopping at a little pond for lunch. We ended up spending the next two or so hours swimming, resting in the sun, eating, and watching DS prepare for his future role as Steve Irwins replacement on the Animal Channel. DS caught a newt, tried to fish with a hook and bobber we found in a tree, told us about the different fish in the pond, and even took multiple attempts at catching snakes swimming through the pond. Eventually it paid off when we caught a two foot long Northern Water snake. I caught one of the attempts on film and will have it along with the black snake posted some time in the future.
We ended our travels today by checking out another fire tower on Rich Mtn and stopping at Spring Mtn Shelter. The shelter and tent area are pretty full with those who rolled out of Hot Springs. We can see the lights of Greeneville, TN down in the valley. DS again make a great concoction for a meal. It was a mix of instant potatoes, a real potato, wild onions he found, spices, part of a cheese log, cut up sausage stick, and cheesy mushroom ramen. I need to have him prepare my meals.
Tomorrow we are hoping to stop by a house owned by Fal and Hurcules. I read about them in a blog I followed of 2008 thru hikers. They open up their house to hikers for free meals all day long. It is about 4 miles from where we are right now so we are planning to stop for breakfast. They might be at church, but we are still going to check.
I hear others snoring so it is definitely past my bed time. I hope all are doing well.
BT
We all went expecting to also eat dinner. We soon found out they closed the kitchen at 9 and it was just 9:15. I find it funny that it was a restaurant with live music until 10 or 10:30 and they stopped serving food. Luckily there was another table of thru-hikers. As they were leaving, one of the guys gave us a full bag of doritos, some Hostess cupcakes, and other goodies. We did not take too long cleaning it all out. Once the music was over, we asked if Gilly could play one of the guitars. The guy ended up letting her play while they took down their equipment. So for the next hour or so, Gilly, DM, and SB treated us to different songs. It definitely made the evening. The band and others in the restaurant joined in on the singing.
I thought I was going to die during the night. At some time in the morning hours a train came right by our tents. I must have been in the middle of a dream or something, but I literally thought I was on the tracks or something.
We took our time getting up this morning as we had planned a short day of 11 miles. We walked back into the town to get last minute things from the outfitter and then hit the trail around 11:30. We soon realized that there were tons of free camping spots on the other side of the river along the trail. I think that is the last time we will pay to camp. The hike today was really laid back, but we did get our fair share of excitement when it came to snakes. I was walking along the trail and right in the middle of the path was a 4 plus long black snake. DM and I waited for a few seconds to let him move off the trail. I didn't mess with it even though it wasn't poisonous. I told DM that Dark Star would be upset since he is our nature and animal guru. He gets it from his mom who is a science teacher (and now an awesome second mom to us on the trail).
All of us ended up stopping at a little pond for lunch. We ended up spending the next two or so hours swimming, resting in the sun, eating, and watching DS prepare for his future role as Steve Irwins replacement on the Animal Channel. DS caught a newt, tried to fish with a hook and bobber we found in a tree, told us about the different fish in the pond, and even took multiple attempts at catching snakes swimming through the pond. Eventually it paid off when we caught a two foot long Northern Water snake. I caught one of the attempts on film and will have it along with the black snake posted some time in the future.
We ended our travels today by checking out another fire tower on Rich Mtn and stopping at Spring Mtn Shelter. The shelter and tent area are pretty full with those who rolled out of Hot Springs. We can see the lights of Greeneville, TN down in the valley. DS again make a great concoction for a meal. It was a mix of instant potatoes, a real potato, wild onions he found, spices, part of a cheese log, cut up sausage stick, and cheesy mushroom ramen. I need to have him prepare my meals.
Tomorrow we are hoping to stop by a house owned by Fal and Hurcules. I read about them in a blog I followed of 2008 thru hikers. They open up their house to hikers for free meals all day long. It is about 4 miles from where we are right now so we are planning to stop for breakfast. They might be at church, but we are still going to check.
I hear others snoring so it is definitely past my bed time. I hope all are doing well.
BT
Friday, April 9, 2010
April 8 and 9 - 13.1 / 271.8
Yesterday, I woke up after not getting too much sleep. The shelter was one from the 1930's. Every bit of wind went straight through the walls and shook the whole shelter. Also, Lab Rat, a gentleman in his 50's, kept making noises and kicking the wood. Even when he isn't sleeping, he will just yell "whooo!" I was planning to get up at 6, but since I couldn't sleep, I went ahead and started getting ready around 5:30. Sherlock, who was also in the shelter, kinda mumbled and complained when I started to get out of my sleeping bag. I spent the next 30 minutes packing my stuff and eating breakfast. I thought I was pretty quiet and considerate. However as I went back into the shelter, Sherlock said some choice English words and told me to "hurry up already." He said I was being inconsiderate for those still in the shelter. I really don't know what he was so upset about other than he thought I had been up for longer than I was. Bonnie Boy got up about 45 minutes before me, and I guess he thought it was me too. Plus, I made sure it was ok with everyone in the shelter that I got up so early.
A little frustrated with Sherlock, I finished putting my stuff together and headed out before the sun came up. I spent about the next hour hiking in the dark. At one point, something caught my eye on the trail. I stopped and that is when I looked about a foot in front of me and noticed a barb wire fence. Luckily I noticed it before it took out my legs. My eyes adjusted fairly well to the darkness.
I hike for about 5 or so miles until I saw the first person on the trail. He was putting in his pack and heading uo towards the trail. We said our good mornings. It wasn't 20 seconds later that we realized we both knew of Will. Will had actually thought about starting out hiking with him, but the timing didn't work out. We hiked for the next few miles together.
With about 3.5 miles left for the day, I could hear the rain coming. It is a pretty cool sound other than knowing you are about to get soaked. I started to put on my rain gear and that is when it started to pour. Ready to get to town and out of the rain, I kicked it into another gear I didn't know I had. I was even jogging down the trail at some points. I think I knocked out the last 3.4 miles in about an hour. The rain lightened up just as I was walking out of the woods and into town.
Wilson, a section hiker I had met the day before from Clarksville (just outside of Nashville), was at the trailhead. He owns/works at Beachaven Winery and is just on the trail for a month. I yelled for him, and he waited for me to catch up. I told him I was heading to the Smokey Mtn Diner to meet up with Will's parents, SB, and DM. Plus I had been craving a milkshake for the last few days and figured that would be the place to find one. SB and DM had already made it into town. They hiked through the night from the shelter. It gave them a 31 mile day. That is pretty impressive. Wilson and I entered the diner to find out they didn't have shakes. Upset, I jokingly gave the waitress a hard time. She was quick to give me a hard time right back. I ordered a hamburger and tater tots. Before it even got to the table, Super Mike called saying him and Will's parents were a few minutes out. They were dropping him back off in Hot Springs to meet up with his girlfriend. I finished my lunch, said later to Wilson, and headed down the main street of Hot Springs.
I found Will's parents at the outfitter. I said my hello and walked a little further down to a place that had milkshakes. I got a chocolate and strawberry shake. It met all expectations. Soon after, DM, SB, Will's parents, and I were off to the house they had rented. Also there was Will's grandparents, his younger brother and friend, some cousins, Will, Skylar, and Gilly. We relaxed for the rest of the evening, told stories, laughed about some of the people we had met since we all split, and ate a wonderful southern style dinner.
This morning we woke up to breakfast which included eggs and pancakes. For lunch, it was tacos...all was excellent. Throughout last night there were some fierce games off ping pong and card games. Not bragging, but I must say I won most. Ok, maybe I am not telling the full truth. Oh yeah, we also had an impromptu talent show last night. I started it off with juggling oranges. We also told jokes, played signs, and played my favorite game, Brain Fry. Finally, I showed Mr. Rhyne and the others how to pull an egg through a door. I can show you if you ever want to know.
We are currently on our way back to Hot Springs, NC. For the rest of the day we plan to resupply, do some laundry, and catch a bluegrass concert in town. Some also plan to visit a music room at the hostel to just mess around with what instruments are there. SB and I plan to get a few milkshakes too. We might hike out tonight, but only time will tell. Stay turned.
A little frustrated with Sherlock, I finished putting my stuff together and headed out before the sun came up. I spent about the next hour hiking in the dark. At one point, something caught my eye on the trail. I stopped and that is when I looked about a foot in front of me and noticed a barb wire fence. Luckily I noticed it before it took out my legs. My eyes adjusted fairly well to the darkness.
I hike for about 5 or so miles until I saw the first person on the trail. He was putting in his pack and heading uo towards the trail. We said our good mornings. It wasn't 20 seconds later that we realized we both knew of Will. Will had actually thought about starting out hiking with him, but the timing didn't work out. We hiked for the next few miles together.
With about 3.5 miles left for the day, I could hear the rain coming. It is a pretty cool sound other than knowing you are about to get soaked. I started to put on my rain gear and that is when it started to pour. Ready to get to town and out of the rain, I kicked it into another gear I didn't know I had. I was even jogging down the trail at some points. I think I knocked out the last 3.4 miles in about an hour. The rain lightened up just as I was walking out of the woods and into town.
Wilson, a section hiker I had met the day before from Clarksville (just outside of Nashville), was at the trailhead. He owns/works at Beachaven Winery and is just on the trail for a month. I yelled for him, and he waited for me to catch up. I told him I was heading to the Smokey Mtn Diner to meet up with Will's parents, SB, and DM. Plus I had been craving a milkshake for the last few days and figured that would be the place to find one. SB and DM had already made it into town. They hiked through the night from the shelter. It gave them a 31 mile day. That is pretty impressive. Wilson and I entered the diner to find out they didn't have shakes. Upset, I jokingly gave the waitress a hard time. She was quick to give me a hard time right back. I ordered a hamburger and tater tots. Before it even got to the table, Super Mike called saying him and Will's parents were a few minutes out. They were dropping him back off in Hot Springs to meet up with his girlfriend. I finished my lunch, said later to Wilson, and headed down the main street of Hot Springs.
I found Will's parents at the outfitter. I said my hello and walked a little further down to a place that had milkshakes. I got a chocolate and strawberry shake. It met all expectations. Soon after, DM, SB, Will's parents, and I were off to the house they had rented. Also there was Will's grandparents, his younger brother and friend, some cousins, Will, Skylar, and Gilly. We relaxed for the rest of the evening, told stories, laughed about some of the people we had met since we all split, and ate a wonderful southern style dinner.
This morning we woke up to breakfast which included eggs and pancakes. For lunch, it was tacos...all was excellent. Throughout last night there were some fierce games off ping pong and card games. Not bragging, but I must say I won most. Ok, maybe I am not telling the full truth. Oh yeah, we also had an impromptu talent show last night. I started it off with juggling oranges. We also told jokes, played signs, and played my favorite game, Brain Fry. Finally, I showed Mr. Rhyne and the others how to pull an egg through a door. I can show you if you ever want to know.
We are currently on our way back to Hot Springs, NC. For the rest of the day we plan to resupply, do some laundry, and catch a bluegrass concert in town. Some also plan to visit a music room at the hostel to just mess around with what instruments are there. SB and I plan to get a few milkshakes too. We might hike out tonight, but only time will tell. Stay turned.
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
April 7 - 18.0 / 258.7
Another 18 miler today. Last night was a pretty nice night even though it is getting warm. It's tough to complain about the warm evenings this time of the year, but I know extremely hot nights are just right around the corner.
The plan was to get up and out of the camp site around 7. However, we didn't make it out until 8...still not that bad. We said our goodbyes to Eric and Nicole. The first few miles were uphill to the top of Snowbird Mtn. At the top of the mountain was a few camp sites and an airplane beacon thingy. We strolled past that pretty quickly.
At 7.8 miles, we reached Brown Gap and had lunch. Sherlock, Donner, Wilson (a section hiker), and D@?# in a Box (now the name I am calling the guy who isn't afraid to show the package and short shorts) passed us. We played leap frog with the first three for the rest of the day. D in a Box kept trucking all day. We heard word at the end of the day that he was going to do 30 plus miles into Hot Springs.
We got to Max Patch today. This is one of the top places on the trail. It is old homestead and logging camp that was later turned graze land for cattle and sheep. It has also been used as a landing strip for smaller planes. Anyway, it is at 4,629 feet with 360 degree views. It was pretty amazing. Donner and Sherlock ended up taking a nap on Max Patch and getting trail magic twice.
The trail got really nice after Max Patch. It was a lot of rhoderdendran (sp?) tunnels and creeks. It was also a gradual downhill. Normally downhills give my shins problem, but this afternoon was not a problem. Eventually, we got to Walnut Mtn Shelter. At first it was empty; then quite a few people showed up.
During dinner, DM and SB started to contemplate on hiking on. They made a decision an hour later to go on. They were going to try to get the 12 miles knocked out tonight or they will stop when they get tired. I like the idea of a challenge, but I am going to rest the legs. I will catch up with those two in Hot Springs tomorrow. We will then get picked up by Dark Star's family.
I am craving a milk shake so I plan to get one at the Diner tomorrow. I need to get up early to get going before the rain gets here. So I am off to bed.
Night, fellow hikers not actually hiking the trail.
The plan was to get up and out of the camp site around 7. However, we didn't make it out until 8...still not that bad. We said our goodbyes to Eric and Nicole. The first few miles were uphill to the top of Snowbird Mtn. At the top of the mountain was a few camp sites and an airplane beacon thingy. We strolled past that pretty quickly.
At 7.8 miles, we reached Brown Gap and had lunch. Sherlock, Donner, Wilson (a section hiker), and D@?# in a Box (now the name I am calling the guy who isn't afraid to show the package and short shorts) passed us. We played leap frog with the first three for the rest of the day. D in a Box kept trucking all day. We heard word at the end of the day that he was going to do 30 plus miles into Hot Springs.
We got to Max Patch today. This is one of the top places on the trail. It is old homestead and logging camp that was later turned graze land for cattle and sheep. It has also been used as a landing strip for smaller planes. Anyway, it is at 4,629 feet with 360 degree views. It was pretty amazing. Donner and Sherlock ended up taking a nap on Max Patch and getting trail magic twice.
The trail got really nice after Max Patch. It was a lot of rhoderdendran (sp?) tunnels and creeks. It was also a gradual downhill. Normally downhills give my shins problem, but this afternoon was not a problem. Eventually, we got to Walnut Mtn Shelter. At first it was empty; then quite a few people showed up.
During dinner, DM and SB started to contemplate on hiking on. They made a decision an hour later to go on. They were going to try to get the 12 miles knocked out tonight or they will stop when they get tired. I like the idea of a challenge, but I am going to rest the legs. I will catch up with those two in Hot Springs tomorrow. We will then get picked up by Dark Star's family.
I am craving a milk shake so I plan to get one at the Diner tomorrow. I need to get up early to get going before the rain gets here. So I am off to bed.
Night, fellow hikers not actually hiking the trail.
April 7 - 18.0 / 258.7
Another 18 miler today. Last night was a pretty nice night even though it is getting warm. It's tough to complain about the warm evenings this time of the year, but I know extremely hot nights are just right around the corner.
The plan was to get up and out of the camp site around 7. However, we didn't make it out until 8...still not that bad. We said our goodbyes to Eric and Nicole. The first few miles were uphill to the top of Snowbird Mtn. At the top of the mountain was a few camp sites and an airplane beacon thingy. We strolled past that pretty quickly.
At 7.8 miles, we reached Brown Gap and had lunch. Sherlock, Donner, Wilson (a section hiker), and D@?# in a Box (now the name I am calling the guy who isn't afraid to show the package and short shorts) passed us. We played leap frog with the first three for the rest of the day. D in a Box kept trucking all day. We heard word at the end of the day that he was going to do 30 plus miles into Hot Springs.
We got to Max Patch today. This is one of the top places on the trail. It is old homestead and logging camp that was later turned graze land for cattle and sheep. It has also been used as a landing strip for smaller planes. Anyway, it is at 4,629 feet with 360 degree views. It was pretty amazing. Donner and Sherlock ended up taking a nap on Max Patch and getting trail magic twice.
The trail got really nice after Max Patch. It was a lot of rhoderdendran (sp?) tunnels and creeks. It was also a gradual downhill. Normally downhills give my shins problem, but this afternoon was not a problem. Eventually, we got to Walnut Mtn Shelter. At first it was empty; then quite a few people showed up.
During dinner, DM and SB started to contemplate on hiking on. They made a decision an hour later to go on. They were going to try to get the 12 miles knocked out tonight or they will stop when they get tired. I like the idea of a challenge, but I am going to rest the legs. I will catch up with those two in Hot Springs tomorrow. We will then get picked up by Dark Star's family.
I am craving a milk shake so I plan to get one at the Diner tomorrow. I need to get up early to get going before the rain gets here. So I am off to bed.
Night, fellow hikers not actually hiking the trail.
The plan was to get up and out of the camp site around 7. However, we didn't make it out until 8...still not that bad. We said our goodbyes to Eric and Nicole. The first few miles were uphill to the top of Snowbird Mtn. At the top of the mountain was a few camp sites and an airplane beacon thingy. We strolled past that pretty quickly.
At 7.8 miles, we reached Brown Gap and had lunch. Sherlock, Donner, Wilson (a section hiker), and D@?# in a Box (now the name I am calling the guy who isn't afraid to show the package and short shorts) passed us. We played leap frog with the first three for the rest of the day. D in a Box kept trucking all day. We heard word at the end of the day that he was going to do 30 plus miles into Hot Springs.
We got to Max Patch today. This is one of the top places on the trail. It is old homestead and logging camp that was later turned graze land for cattle and sheep. It has also been used as a landing strip for smaller planes. Anyway, it is at 4,629 feet with 360 degree views. It was pretty amazing. Donner and Sherlock ended up taking a nap on Max Patch and getting trail magic twice.
The trail got really nice after Max Patch. It was a lot of rhoderdendran (sp?) tunnels and creeks. It was also a gradual downhill. Normally downhills give my shins problem, but this afternoon was not a problem. Eventually, we got to Walnut Mtn Shelter. At first it was empty; then quite a few people showed up.
During dinner, DM and SB started to contemplate on hiking on. They made a decision an hour later to go on. They were going to try to get the 12 miles knocked out tonight or they will stop when they get tired. I like the idea of a challenge, but I am going to rest the legs. I will catch up with those two in Hot Springs tomorrow. We will then get picked up by Dark Star's family.
I am craving a milk shake so I plan to get one at the Diner tomorrow. I need to get up early to get going before the rain gets here. So I am off to bed.
Night, fellow hikers not actually hiking the trail.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
April 5 and 6 - 20.3, 12.7 / 228.0 and 240.7
Watch out...I am over a 10th of the way done and have hiked further than Bill Bryson (A Walk in the Woods author). If he can have a book, then I can too. Mine will have more stories.
So I was too tired to blog yesterday since we hiked all day and didn't make it to the shelter until a little after 8. That gave us enough time to rest, claim a spot in the shelter, and get settled before hiker midnight (9 pm). We got off to a late start compared to earlier days in the trip. It was after 9 before we got going. I woke up at a fairly decent time and enjoyed one of the most amazing sunrises ever. I have seen many sunrises, but they always seem to stun me. I am speechless when it comes to God's wonders and how beautiful He can make things.
Yesterday's breakfast was sandwich thins and peanut butter. I'm already on my third breakfast type after already trying oatmeal and pop tarts (and power bars but those don't count). We were about to head out when DM started to worry about missing a part of the trail. The day before two guys were talking about how each of them had come to the shelter on different trails. I tried convincing her that we came in on a white blaze (the AT) and there was another white blaze leading away from the shelter. Also the book I have, which gives distances, shelter and water locations, what is in a town, etc. also noted the shelter was right on the trail (as compared to a side trail) and mentioned the water source was 50 yds north on the AT. However, DM was still convinced she skipped a section. In order to verify that she hadn't, SB and I waited for her to retrace her steps. Soon enough, we were on our way and had caught up to three guys who had also stayed at the shelter. I am going to refer to them as the Three Wise Men. This is only because one brings with him a "gift." He wears these very small very tight shorts which makes his package noticeable. Let's just say, if I had kids, I would not want them to see this guy. I know the reference of Three Wise Men is not the best choice, bit they hike together and that is what keeps popping up in my mind.
I used my lunch time to call River Sports, an outfitter in Knoxville. It took multiple calls, but I was eventually able to get through to them in order to have some compression socks overnighted to the next hostel. I have heard quite a few people talk about these things and how they do wonders when it comes to shin splits.
We continued to hike on and came across some spectacular vistas/views during the day. Charlies Bunion, Bradley's View, and Mt. Chapman are a few of the named ones. We arrived at Tri-Corner Knob Shelter and that put us at 13.4 for the day. Knowing we wanted a shorter day today to relax at the next hostel, feeling good after the miles we had already put in, and hearing there was no more snow north of the shelter, we decided to hike the next 7.7 miles to Cosby Knob Shelter. Before rolling out, we all decided to go ahead and cook dinner to give us energy to finish the day. Shortly after, the TWM arrived at the shelter. It wasn't long until the guy mentioned above changed and started to bathe in the creek. This isn't something normally looked up upon if it is close to drinking water. I'll give him a pass since he was at least downstream. Either way, it was not a sight I wanted to see.
We finished up dinner and headed on. It wasn't 100 yards down the trail that I came across a guy and two little kids. He asked if I knew about the snow. I told him that I had heard it was clear north of the shelter. He laughed and told me he just spent the last 40 plus minutes trying to get his kids through it. We had dealt with snow all day already so I grunted and headed on. To the guy that told us no snow, I know you probably didn't mean any harm, but at least make sure you say the correct thing especially to hikers who already endured going over Clingman's Dome in multiple feet of snow. We conquered the snow and the miles of downhill. At some points along the trail, I didn't think my shins were going to hold up anymore. Going downhill is the hardest thing on them, and going downhill for miles is no fun.
We made it with little daylight to spare. There was enough room in the shelter so none of us had to put up our tent. This day also awarded us our longest day yet at 20.3 and our official first 20 miler.
This morning every was woken up by a phone alarm going off at 5. That was everyone except for the guy who had the phone in his pack. Eventually, a lady in the shelter grabbed his pack and went and threw it in the woods after no one claimed the pack. The alarm could be faintly heard for the next 30 minutes. As we were all getting up, the last guy out of his bag was the alarm guy. He asked where his pack was and we told him somewhere in the woods. He didn't believe us when we told him about the alarm.
We spent the rest of the morning making our way to Standing Bear Farm Hiking Hostel in Hartford, Tn. It is located just north of I-40. We say all the signs still saying the interstate was closed due to the rock slide which happened some time back. Rumor has it, it is going to be months before they can open 40 back up. As we were approaching the hostel, I come around the corner and SB is just standing there. He looks at me and says "bear." We waited for DM to catch up. All of us proceeded together but no second sighting. He said it was a cub which means momma is somewhere near by. We stopped by the hostel for some time. It is just on this country road, but the guy has a pretty good set up. He has a bunkhouse, tent sites, laundry, internet, and food resupply. He even has frozen pizzas and a pizza oven. The three of us split that and pringles for dinner. We resupplied with two days worth of food to get us to Hot Springs.
If Dark Star's parents are reading this, try to get a hold of me so we know what the cabin situation is.
We spent a few hours sitting outside talking to other hikers. My socks arrived via FedEx. They seem to work so far, but time will tell. We moved on to a camp site about 3 miles past the hostel. When we first got to the site, we only saw "package" man. He said there was no room so we hiked on. A few yards down we came across some more sites. I'm cool with that since that guy scares me. Here we met Eric and Nicole. Nicole (trail name Persistent) thru hiked in 07. They are just out enjoying a few days of hiking.
18 miles tomorrow and 12 the following. We are trying to beat out a T-storm coming in on Thursday.
Night, blog followers. I will soon have yall brain washed.
So I was too tired to blog yesterday since we hiked all day and didn't make it to the shelter until a little after 8. That gave us enough time to rest, claim a spot in the shelter, and get settled before hiker midnight (9 pm). We got off to a late start compared to earlier days in the trip. It was after 9 before we got going. I woke up at a fairly decent time and enjoyed one of the most amazing sunrises ever. I have seen many sunrises, but they always seem to stun me. I am speechless when it comes to God's wonders and how beautiful He can make things.
Yesterday's breakfast was sandwich thins and peanut butter. I'm already on my third breakfast type after already trying oatmeal and pop tarts (and power bars but those don't count). We were about to head out when DM started to worry about missing a part of the trail. The day before two guys were talking about how each of them had come to the shelter on different trails. I tried convincing her that we came in on a white blaze (the AT) and there was another white blaze leading away from the shelter. Also the book I have, which gives distances, shelter and water locations, what is in a town, etc. also noted the shelter was right on the trail (as compared to a side trail) and mentioned the water source was 50 yds north on the AT. However, DM was still convinced she skipped a section. In order to verify that she hadn't, SB and I waited for her to retrace her steps. Soon enough, we were on our way and had caught up to three guys who had also stayed at the shelter. I am going to refer to them as the Three Wise Men. This is only because one brings with him a "gift." He wears these very small very tight shorts which makes his package noticeable. Let's just say, if I had kids, I would not want them to see this guy. I know the reference of Three Wise Men is not the best choice, bit they hike together and that is what keeps popping up in my mind.
I used my lunch time to call River Sports, an outfitter in Knoxville. It took multiple calls, but I was eventually able to get through to them in order to have some compression socks overnighted to the next hostel. I have heard quite a few people talk about these things and how they do wonders when it comes to shin splits.
We continued to hike on and came across some spectacular vistas/views during the day. Charlies Bunion, Bradley's View, and Mt. Chapman are a few of the named ones. We arrived at Tri-Corner Knob Shelter and that put us at 13.4 for the day. Knowing we wanted a shorter day today to relax at the next hostel, feeling good after the miles we had already put in, and hearing there was no more snow north of the shelter, we decided to hike the next 7.7 miles to Cosby Knob Shelter. Before rolling out, we all decided to go ahead and cook dinner to give us energy to finish the day. Shortly after, the TWM arrived at the shelter. It wasn't long until the guy mentioned above changed and started to bathe in the creek. This isn't something normally looked up upon if it is close to drinking water. I'll give him a pass since he was at least downstream. Either way, it was not a sight I wanted to see.
We finished up dinner and headed on. It wasn't 100 yards down the trail that I came across a guy and two little kids. He asked if I knew about the snow. I told him that I had heard it was clear north of the shelter. He laughed and told me he just spent the last 40 plus minutes trying to get his kids through it. We had dealt with snow all day already so I grunted and headed on. To the guy that told us no snow, I know you probably didn't mean any harm, but at least make sure you say the correct thing especially to hikers who already endured going over Clingman's Dome in multiple feet of snow. We conquered the snow and the miles of downhill. At some points along the trail, I didn't think my shins were going to hold up anymore. Going downhill is the hardest thing on them, and going downhill for miles is no fun.
We made it with little daylight to spare. There was enough room in the shelter so none of us had to put up our tent. This day also awarded us our longest day yet at 20.3 and our official first 20 miler.
This morning every was woken up by a phone alarm going off at 5. That was everyone except for the guy who had the phone in his pack. Eventually, a lady in the shelter grabbed his pack and went and threw it in the woods after no one claimed the pack. The alarm could be faintly heard for the next 30 minutes. As we were all getting up, the last guy out of his bag was the alarm guy. He asked where his pack was and we told him somewhere in the woods. He didn't believe us when we told him about the alarm.
We spent the rest of the morning making our way to Standing Bear Farm Hiking Hostel in Hartford, Tn. It is located just north of I-40. We say all the signs still saying the interstate was closed due to the rock slide which happened some time back. Rumor has it, it is going to be months before they can open 40 back up. As we were approaching the hostel, I come around the corner and SB is just standing there. He looks at me and says "bear." We waited for DM to catch up. All of us proceeded together but no second sighting. He said it was a cub which means momma is somewhere near by. We stopped by the hostel for some time. It is just on this country road, but the guy has a pretty good set up. He has a bunkhouse, tent sites, laundry, internet, and food resupply. He even has frozen pizzas and a pizza oven. The three of us split that and pringles for dinner. We resupplied with two days worth of food to get us to Hot Springs.
If Dark Star's parents are reading this, try to get a hold of me so we know what the cabin situation is.
We spent a few hours sitting outside talking to other hikers. My socks arrived via FedEx. They seem to work so far, but time will tell. We moved on to a camp site about 3 miles past the hostel. When we first got to the site, we only saw "package" man. He said there was no room so we hiked on. A few yards down we came across some more sites. I'm cool with that since that guy scares me. Here we met Eric and Nicole. Nicole (trail name Persistent) thru hiked in 07. They are just out enjoying a few days of hiking.
18 miles tomorrow and 12 the following. We are trying to beat out a T-storm coming in on Thursday.
Night, blog followers. I will soon have yall brain washed.
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