Today is the first day of a changed trail for us—Dancing Dog and Trail Runner have joined the expedition. With a few false starts downstairs to load the car, and only one return trip to the cabin (not even 5 miles down the road) to retrieve a forgotten phone—thank you Dancing Dog, that was a pretty valley worth another look. We actually made it to the trailhead by just a little after 9. We were actually on the trail before 9:30. Greg was given the chance of carrying his wife’s pack one last time, but she hit a milestone and actually donned her own pack.
Today can best be described as a perfect hiking day—all sunshine, not a drop of rain, mid 50s, and predominately downhill. We have successfully lured them into a false impression of what hiking the AT is like. In 21 days, we have had only 2 days and nights without rain with this being the second one. Fontana Dam is the best last chance for an early exit, but all systems are pointing to go (combined with the fact that Greg and Mac have flat out refused to return for a MINIMUM of two weeks—interestingly enough, they didn’t give a maximum return date other than the sky’s the limit).
Other than a few pack adjustments and an interrupted bathroom break, there were no problems at all. I still think that the bear mace that the two new ladies are carrying is completely unnecessary. There is no way they are going to accidentally sneak up on a bear. I had to get 1/4 mile out front around the next curve to have the illusion of silence in the woods. They make enough noise to let all life forms (bears, squirrels, deer, snails, and turtle) know of our approach. The voices carry so clearly that not only is the wildlife aware, there is enough time for them to get 100 yards off of the trail (including the snails).
Tonight’s destination, the Fontana Hilton, also includes the only shower and flush toilets at a shelter on the entire trail. We will have to wait at least another day before Dancing Dog drops some necessary personal item down the open latrine—trust me, it will happen. Unfortunately, we won’t be partaking of the shower since we just had a shower and did laundry yesterday. We have a 3 night minimum between showers with the next anticipated one is in 8 days.
One other key fact about the Fontana Hilton is that there are no bear lines or trees nearby suitable for hanging bags. The consensus with everyone is that we are close enough to roads that there will be no bear activity this evening although Bunny Tracks just read of a bear sighting near Dicks Creek Gap last night, but that is a Georgia bear and we are in North Carolina.
We are all set up and ready to make supper at 5. The temperature is starting to drop and concerns of clothes changing in front of strangers is on the rise. With 2 hours of daylight left, Dancing Dog and Trail Runner are venturing to the shower house to change clothes in order to protect their modesty (even though Dancing Dog has already mooned two young men today).
Supper tells me we might have a few skills to work on: opening the bear-proof trash cans, not starting stoves until your pot is ready, taking rubber bands off pots before putting them over heat, and some basic pack organization. No worries—tomorrow we enter the Smokies.
EFG