Category: 2018 Appalachian Trail

Last night was the coldest we had experienced to date. It was already below 20 when we got in our sleeping bag around 6ish (and that was after a day where the high never broke 30 inside the shelter where we kept a fire going all day). When Stickers got in, he started helping me collect wood while Bunny Tracks, Dancing Dog, and Trail Runner broke and cut the wood to usable size. Mac had insisted that Trail Runner bring a folding saw (which I wouldn’t have carried on a long hike) but it did make life easier and keep the operator warmer.

Everyone in the shelter (Stickers, Lady Bug, Patches, Finnegan, Ringo, Reboot, and the four of us, a young local couple Sobo’s, and two more outside) were up and moving by 7:20. Surprisingly, the two camping were the first to hit the trail. We were in a bit of a cold haze and moving slow. Even so, we made a huge improvement getting ready, but we were still the last ones out at 9:30. I can’t complain about that because that is an entire hour of improvement over our previous start the day before yesterday which had us arriving at the shelter well after dark. At this rate of improvement, we won’t even be sleeping in shelters by the time we make it up to Hot Springs.

It was an overcast and cold day, but at least it wasn’t snowing. With all the people that jumped ahead of us yesterday and the people who left before us today, the trail was pretty packed down and easy to follow (which is great because the trail through the Smokies doesn’t have a lot of blazes on it). When Timeout had broken the trail to get to us yesterday, he said he had to pretty much walk with the “Guthook” app open to even find the trail. We are not ready nor do we have any desire to hike that way. I kept watching my thermometer all day—it never got above 20 the entire time we were on the trail.

Durwood had told us he hikes with bread bags on his feet in this weather. I had extra bags I gave to Bunny Tracks, Stickers, and Lady Bug. Trail Runner had bags for herself and Dancing Dog. I was actually afraid to try out the bags because my feet already sweat so much that I was afraid I’d be swimming in my socks all day. Stickers was the only one using trail runners in this group so he definitely needed the extra layer to stay warm. When we did get to the shelter, he told us that the bags were a big improvement for him.

We all kept together better today. Occasionally, Trail Runner and I got out front but then we’d wait for the other two to catch up. It was hard to wait long because if you stopped moving, it didn’t take long to get cold. Trail Runner’s hands were so cold that she didn’t grip her poles but kept her hands folded in her mittens to try to get them to warm up. Dancing Dog had some hand warmers.  She shard a pair with Bunny and it seemed to help them both.  I was OK as long as I kept on the go, but if I stopped, I almost immediately lost feeling in my feet and hands.

Silers Bald Shelter was just under 6 miles down the trail and was our target to take a lunch break out of the wind. Bunny and I are running a little low on lunch food, so it doesn’t take us long to eat. We split a protein bar and had a “pick up” each and were ready to go. The other two had a tortilla roll: peanut butter for Trail Runner and frozen tuna for Dancing Dog. One thing Bunny and I do to save time, is get our meals all lined out for the next day when we cook supper. That way, I have my lunch made up and the place it in the top of my pack brains—I just grab it, eat, and go. Dancing Dog hasn’t learned this trick yet and keeps all of her food together inside of her bear bag (for ease at night). It’s something she will eventually start to do naturally the longer she hikes. I’m learning my lesson in giving her suggestions—she is just like Bunny’s daughter, Sarah. She doesn’t like to be told how to do things and prefers to figure things out for herself. It’s the mark of a strong woman but can be frustrating to watch the learning process.

It didn’t take me long to loose all the feeling in my feet and hands at lunch. While Dancing Dog was packing back up, I was freezing. I said I was moving on and they could catch up. When I get that cold, I push on hard and fast to try to get my core temperature to rise which will eventually spill over to my feet and hands. It was only 1.7 miles to the next shelter. I covered the ground in about 45 minutes without realizing it and I never got warm. I tried to leave a few “signs” along the trail just like Stickers does when he gets ahead. I just drew some initials in the snow where he builds snowmen (sometimes with M&M eyes which leads to their being “blinded” by the first hiker to pass).

It wasn’t like I was the only one moving fast after lunch. The three ladies were only about 10-15 minutes behind me. We were the last of the known people to arrive with Stickers, Lady Bug, Finnegan, and Patches already there. Stickers was out collecting firewood so I dropped my pack and started to help. Lady Bug had a fire going and was thawing and drying everyone’s stuff for them. Patches was out surveying the area to find water and the biggest joy to all—an actual latrine at this shelter. When the ladies arrived, they started breaking up firewood and sawing some bigger stuff. If was not even 3 and we were a well oiled machine.

Eventually, 3 more young thru-hikers came in but they just kept to themselves. They all had hiked over 20 miles today and planned on doing the same tomorrow so we will probably never see them again. It was bitterly cold to me. Bunny took care of the inside stuff while I got water and cooked supper. I didn’t bother filtering water because it was so cold. I was afraid the filter would freeze. We haven’t been drinking enough yesterday and today so I know we are getting a little dehydrated. We drank less than a liter between us today.

Stickers had spent a couple hours collecting wood and never even sat by the fire. He got in his bag to warm up before he made his and Lady Bug’s supper. Bunny and I were in bed with our hot water bottle while it was still light out. It’s going to be another cold night, tonight, but the last forecast we saw for tomorrow has temperatures in the 50’s. The 8 of us that were together last night and tonight all agree that we want to get down to Gatlinburg tomorrow if the road gets opened up at Newfound Gap, a little over 10 miles ahead.

I had to get up 3 times last night and when I was ready for my fourth, it was already past 7 and no one else was up yet. This is quite strange for a shelter. I stuck my head out of the sleeping bag and it looked very bright—snow bright. I said as much to Bunny and she told me to put on my glasses. I did and it was snow. Not only had it snowed, it was still snowing and blowing strong.

We decided to sleep in until the weather started to look better. People started moving around below and there was a lot of groaning. Dancing Dog and Trail Runner both got up to go to the bathroom and that started the guilt streak in me. I started getting dressed for my fourth as well. Bunny had zero issue with staying in the bag.

Durwood had already retrieved our bear bags, so I thought I’d go down and get water since I had been down there last night. I headed to the trail but couldn’t even begin to recognize it in the blowing snow. I gave up. When I went back in, Purple Haze was getting ready to leave and trying to convince the two Kaitlins to go, too. I put in my two cents worth that I thought travel was a bad idea until conditions got better. Purple Haze was pretty cavalier about nothing bad would happen—extremely cavalier considering she was bumming food off of people and didn’t have any gloves.

Timeout finally got to our shelter about 11:30 and said it wasn’t too bad out. He was going to continue on once he had a bite to eat and warmed up. I had built a fire and Eric, Durwood, and I had gathered a little firewood. Once Timeout arrived, everyone other than the four of us decided to move on. I blazed a trail down to the water source with Trail Runner and Eric. Trail Runner and I agreed that we didn’t want to chance it.

Not too long after Timeout got here, so did Sandals. Sandals got his name because he sent his boots home in Franklin and only hikes in sandals. His feet were solid clumps of snow but he claimed it wasn’t bad. The Kaitlins and Purple Haze took off first. Bunny Tracks and I admonished them on behalf of their parents to not go, but everyone knows women below the age of thirty don’t listen to any advice from older people while women over thirty don’t listen to advice from anyone. Mom and Dad, we tried—our conscious is clear. Hopefully we don’t find any Kaitcicles on the trail tomorrow.

Not long after the girls left, Eric followed. Then Timeout. A little later, Durwood said that they should have the trail beaten down well enough by now, so he followed. In the mean time, I tried to collect as much firewood as I could find in the snow because Timeout told us that Patches, Stickers, Lady Bug, and Finnegan were on their way. In the end, about 5 others arrived including Ringo and Reboot whom we had camped with at Locust Cove 5 nights ago.

I think we will probably have enough food and fuel to absorb this unexpected zero day. We might see if we can get a ride into Gatlinburg when we get to Newfound Gap the day after tomorrow. We are the only four who didn’t advance today, but I feel even more justified after seeing what has become of Dancing Dogs blister on her heel.

The worst part of it all was that there isn’t a latrine here. I had to dig my first hole for peanut butter. My hot water bottle trick is proving quite popular tonight.

EFG

This morning reaffirms that there is definite room for improvement in the morning preparation routine. We were the last ones out, and how! It was 10:30 before we managed to emerge from the shelter for the fifth and final time. As the picture below demonstrates (my pack on the left—completely packed) and Bunny’s on the far right (also completely packed) are not the issue. The double pack explosion in the middle might arouse some speculation as to the cause.

The two VA Tech boys offered to help me get water to help get us on our way. As we were hiking down there, they asked me if the other two women hiking with us were married. When I said they were, they asked where their husbands were and what they are doing. I replied      they are probably sitting at home in their recliners realizing that after 20 years, there still is color commentary with sporting events. I asked them if they had girlfriends and they surprised me with their honesty. “No, we are mechanical engineers and will probably never have girlfriends like all those MEs who have come before us.”

Kaitlin and Kaitlyn are section hiking through the Smokies. They met in college at UNC Wilmington. Kaitlin has a dream job where she promotes marathons all over the country while Kaitlyn has an amazing social conscience. She wants to work in international relations and raise social awareness to American youth and get them excited about helping others. They were two very sweet girls and helpful. Since this was their first night out, they, too, were a little slow getting ready in the morning. They only left an hour before us.

As we were getting ready this morning, Dancing Dog starting canvassing everyone in the shelter if she should take her long underwear off since she was cold. The two Kaitlins said yes. The two VA Tech guys said yes. Durwood said yes. Trail Runner, Bunny Tracks, and I said yes. The couple from Minnesota who camped outside said yes. The young guy who cowboy camped outside said yes. Two bears who were rummaging for food said yes. That’s 13 yea’s to 1 nea. Clearly the Nea’s carried. 40 minutes down the trail, we had to take a 15 minute break for Dancing Dog to strip off her long underwear because she was overheating.

I did my Tim Conway old man stroll up the trail to give DD some privacy. After about 10 minutes and 1/4 mile of trail, I found a stone I could sit on. As soon as I sat down, I cupped my head in my hands knowing that a long wait was in store for me. Amazingly, two little squirrels with bulging cheeks came up and left their nuts at my feet. They looked up at me with sympathy and understanding in their eyes. We had a silent connection in which I knew they were telling me to hang tough with the women. They made little fists and we butted knuckles before they left.

It was now that the most incredible thing of my life happened to me.  A deer, a young buck, came up to me with a tear in his big, dark eye. He lowered his head and nuzzled under my arm. After a couple of minutes, we could hear the woman finally approaching. He lifted his head and we gently bucked heads as he turned off the trail, but that wasn’t the amazing thing. He turned back to me and said “I cant stand the noise. It’s no accident that we young bucks hang alone. Keep strong—YOU are a good man.

It was still raining when we got moving again. Bunny Tracks and Dancing Dog kept telling us to “be careful, it’s slick” whenever we came to a rock, stick, root, wet leaves, or patch of mud. Normally, this would be a very sweet and conscientious gesture, but anyone who has ever set foot on the Appalachian Trail knows that it exists entirely of rocks, sticks, roots, wet leaves, and patches of mud. Trail Runner and I picked up our pace to get a break.

Eventually, we were so far ahead that we felt guilty and waited. When Dancing Dog caught up with us, she told us that she had had to stop to poop in the woods. Normally, a hiker will drop their pack to accomplish such a feat, but not DD. She asked us if we wanted more details. I replied “the brown streaks on your leggings tell us enough of the story.”

Trail Runner tried to get us to pick up the pace. I am impressed with how well she has adapted to hiking. When we got to the top of Rocky Top, all we could hear behind us was two voices that kept saying “it’s so peaceful” “it’s so peaceful.” Which it was actually peaceful when the two women would quit saying it.

After Rocky Top, we still had 5 miles to go and it was already past 4. When we have long miles left in the day, I usually start harassing Bunny and tell her that we’re not going to get into camp until 6:30 (aka “hiker midnight” aka “sunset” aka “bedtime” aka “when the street lights come on”) and that usually motivates her to walk faster. The problem today is that there is absolutely no way we will be to the shelter before dark.

We picked up our pace, but it was apparent that DD was having some problems. She is a very strong willed woman and physically strong and will normally push on through any physical challenges. Today, she kept dropping behind more and more. It turns out that her previous brown blaze was not an isolated event. She has gotten sick (diarrhea; a hereditary disease—it runs in your genes). We had also stopped once for a blister which has developed on her heel. To her credit, she doesn’t complain at all (an example Bunny could learn from).

We donned head lamps and marched the final 1.6 miles into camp in the dark. The sky was clear and it was getting cold. We had 700’ to lose and 1,000’ to gain in that final stretch. I was a bit off in my prediction of 6:30—we didn’t get to the shelter until 8. Everyone was already in their sleeping bags. We did the minimum we had to do to eat and get in bed. Bunny and I finally hung our bear bag when we finished eating at 9. We went inside and everyone else was already asleep.

EFG

This is our first day getting ready with our new trail companions and I can see a few areas we might be able to improve upon. I also notice it’s fortunate that Dancing Dog is not a man as she is unable to slide the stem of her French press through her pot lid. She just gave up and said it wouldn’t fit. This is the type of attitude that leads to declining birth rates in populations.

Overall, I thought we were doing well. Yes, we were the last ones out of the shelter, but it was only 8:40. Not too bad for the first day. And then we passed the bathroom. I mistakingly thought we were talking a quick pee break and heading on (after all, they had each visited at least twice already since getting up). I said I’d walk the 1/8th of mile and wait up in the parking lot. After 20 minutes of waiting in which I could hear the constant gaggle, even when they were inside the stone building with the steel door closed, I could hear the flock approaching. During that time a shuttle driver came up to me and asked if I was waiting for a ride, he said I didn’t look like I was just observing nature for the joy of it. I replied “I’m hiking with 3 women.” He gave me a sympathetic look, lowered his head, said “Brave man,” and drove off into the morning. I shed my first tear of the trip.

In all the books I’ve read about the AT and even on the Smokies thru-hiker permit, it says to drop your permits in the Fontana Dam entrance to the Smokies. We walked past the visitor center, but clearly, it was closed so we walked across the dam. I wanted to observe the engineering greatness which is the Fontana Dam, but I was hounded to get going from the same gaggle of geese that just spent almost 1/2 hour “peeing.” Not too far after the dam, we came to the official boundary of the Great Smokey Mountain National Park—but no permit drop box. We must have missed the box at the visitor center. I gathered the permits and ran back across the dam yet couldn’t find the drop box. Luckily, a dam worker drove up and was able to tell me the box is at the trail head almost a mile in the park. He also said “welcome to your federal government at work” (and didn’t offer me a ride back).

I was a little peeved but when I got back across, the women folk had not been wasting time. In the 40 minutes I had been gone, they had managed to attach two Velcro strips to Bunny’s boots for her dirty girl gators. In the process, Dancing Dog (who doesn’t like to take her pack on and off because she is still working on developing that skill) managed to fall over backwards and “turtle” herself. It took all three of them to right her again.

I knew this would be a rough day of hiking in the Smokies. We have to go 12 miles and gain almost 4,000’ of elevation. Trail Runner lived up to her name and was up the mountain like a shot. Dancing Dog morphed to Dragging Dog on the uphill climbs and was unnaturally quiet. One of Greg’s last words of advice to me was “beware when she’s quiet, and always make sure she gets her morning coffee before attempting to engage.” We had already allowed extra time for her coffee, so this was serious shit with her being quiet. After a couple hours of nature sounds only, we discovered she was having a low sugar moment and stopped for some food.

Our lunch spot was near the base of the Shuckstack Fire Tower. While we were deciding whether to go up or not, Durwood showed up and decided to join us. We climbed the 0.1 mile to the tower when all three of the women looked up and said “hell no.” There were at least 6 flights up to the top and the first flight was missing a handrail. The three of them went up the first flight and stopped. I went all the way up by myself and was rewarded with exceptional views of the Smokies and Fontana Lake. I was rewarded with all three of the women ditching me on the tower. Normally, this might bother me, but the silence was a golden moment.

After the tower was downhill and level for a bit. Dancing Dog was her normal self and I ended up pulling up the rear. Since it was afternoon, my left knee felt like it had a slight “twitch” so I like to take it easy on it. I don’t want to push it. We still had almost 7 miles to go today (plus a little more than 2,000 on the trail) so I don’t mind listening to my body. If Bunny ever gets strong in the morning and I can stay strong in the afternoon, we might be able to start making some miles.

At about 6, we finally caught sight of the tower after a long uphill climb to finish the day. We waited until we could all get together before we headed into the shelter as a group. Durwood, two girls from NC Wilmington, and two guys from Virginia Tech were already there. It’s a 12 person shelter so there was plenty of room for us. 3 more people came in after us, but they opted to camp outside and one wanted to cowboy camp. I tried to get everyone to come in because I knew rain was expected.

The girls offered to move to the upper level so Dancing Dog and Trail Runner didn’t have to risk falling off in the night. Dancing Dog does have a few coordination  issues at time and can just be forgetful at times. I could imagine her forgetting she was up top and just stepping off and falling. I didn’t point out that the rats and bears go for the folk on the lower level. The guys offered to go fetch water for us. DD and TR heard “filter water” which I told them they would have to do themselves. Today will also involve filter instructions.

After our beds were all set up, we cooked supper. I was very relieved that DD made a big supper and ate most of it (I was there to keep her from throwing food out to attract bears). I still light her stove for her most of the time, mainly to make sure she takes the instructions off before firing it up—that’s still a skill that hasn’t been mastered.

All that was left was hanging the bear bags and getting ready for bed. The two Kaitlin’s were describing the procedure to Dancing Dog and this thoroughly confused her. She’s doesn’t seem to have the ability to “listen” to instructions and then put them into practice (or maybe she doesn’t listen—I’ll leave that to Greg to decide). I showed her what to do with her bag (I’m just talking hanging and not figuratively “do” with it). We all got into bed and then the rain started. Welcome to the Smokies.

EFG

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

I was ready to get up at 4:30 since we were in bed before 7.  I suggested it to Bunny and she threatened violence. At 6:30, I just made a mad dash out the tent. I got the bear bags, fetched water, made hot tea, cooked breakfast, and approached Bunny with hot food and tea. It was still below freezing so I was scared for my personal safety trying to get her out of the warm sleeping bag.

She grabbed the food from my hand and screamed for her tea. I placed them at her feet and kept bowing as I crept backward away from her. Until the tent flap was latched, I didn’t feel safe. I made small talk with everyone else in camp and did what I could do to get things ready. Naturally, we were the last ones to pack up and leave, but, (and this is a big butt), but we were out of camp and on the trail 5 minutes before 8. Houston, the eagle has landed. Bunny Tracks and Easily Forgotten have made a pre 8a trail start.

It was cold. The cold makes Bunny move fast IN camp but not so much on the trail. By 11, we still hadn’t made 3 miles (the vast majority of which was downhill). Since it is a weekend, there were lots of people out hiking. As soon as we got out of the shadows and into the sun, the temperature shot up to a comfortable 35. I got the feeling back in my toes and fingers in no time.

We ran across a couple of trail crews out doing maintenance work. In fact, we sat and had lunch while watching Beaker and Ox surgically remove a tree that had fallen across the trail and was suspended a few feet off the ground. I was afraid Bunny might have to use some of her nursing skills if things went awry, but Ox knows how to use a chainsaw. I had some questions for him and got some pointers. I was particularly interested because one time with a similar fallen tree on my property, I managed to pin my legs beneath the trunk. I promptly threw the chain saw out of reach to remove the option of cutting off my legs (I think I had just watched “127 Hours” before hand).

There was a mixture of nature on the trail today. Rhododendrons with blooms about to burst open, ice crystals forming in the trail, waterfalls with icicles, and Bunny’s screaming in pain because of coldly climbing hills. In all fairness, we did have the worst climb we encountered so far—Jacob’s Ladder. It may only have been 1/2 mile in length and 600’ of gain, but it would have felt right at home on the GR10.

As we were dropping down into Stecoah Gap, a hiker I have never seen before came up to me and said “I know you.” It turns out Zen is showing the video interview he made of Bunny and me to all of his guests. I’m wondering how many more people will recognize us in the future. The further we get up the trail, I wonder how many of those people will be too embarrassed for us to say they know us when they figure out how slow we are going. Turtles catch flies as well.

The original plan was to get picked up at Fontana Dam by Pam, Joyce, Mac, and Greg. With all of our hiking experience, we decided it would be best for Pam and Joyce to have a “warm up” day of hiking before tackling the Smokies (at least that’s the choice we presented to them instead of just saying “we can’t make it to Fontana in time”).

We got picked up 1/2 hour early. We were impressed that we were early, instead of late which was the hiking trajectory of the day, and they were impressed that they found the place so easily. We were whisked away from the drudgery of the trail. Joyce even offered to sit in the trunk (allegedly out of kindness, but the air flow (i.e smell) from us couldn’t make it back that far with the open windows up front. When we got to the cabin, we were presented with the closest shower and washing machine as soon as we entered.

Pam and Joyce made us a smorgasbord of fresh veggies, meats, cheeses, dips, fruits, mead, wine, and beer. We ate our fills before doing pack shakedowns and ending up in the hot tub. They even offered to let me have one of their facials. I declined, I had just taken a shower and gotten the mud off of my face. I prefer to get mud on my face in the normal hiker fashion—bobbing for M&Ms in the mud puddles.

EFG

The girls next door started talking loudly about 6a. I almost got up to say something but Patches pointed out that maybe they didn’t want to stay up as late as we did last night. 9p is the equivalent of 2a for normal people. It did help get us rolling. We managed to hit the trail by 8:30.

In reality, we only had one meal yesterday, but we still managed to consume a large amount of calories. Hikers believe that calories are all that matter, but not all calories are equal. Beer might have calories to fuel your body, but it is not a zero emission fuel.

The first shelter was 7 miles away and 3,000’ up. 3,000’ on the AT is not the same as 3,000’ on the GR10. Through the power of switchbacks, the trail flew by. We made it up to the shelter in time for lunch. We checked the shelter log and saw that Lucky 59 and Pepper Pot was there two days ago and Hot Sauce was there the day before that (and left some artwork on the wall).

Ideally, we wanted to make it 16 miles to Brown Fork Gap Shelter which would leave us just 13.6 miles to make Fontana Dam tomorrow. By 3, we were certain that Fontana Dam is out of the question for tomorrow. With the additional climbing in the afternoon, we were just plain beat before we made it up Cheoah Bald. We met a young solo hiker, Powerhouse, at the summit that told us about a camping spot in just a couple more miles.

By the time we caught up with her at Locust Cove Gap, she already had her tent set up. We tried to call ahead to see if we could stay at a hostel in a couple more miles, but couldn’t get an answer. In the end, we decided to camp. I set up the tent, threw up a bear bag rope, and went to fetch water. What did Bunny do? Good question. She made the bed and pre-warmed it.

When I got back up from getting water, two more guys had shown up: Ringo and Reboot. It was getting cold. There is an inverse mathematical relationship with Bunny and temperature. As the temperature drops, complaints go up. But now that I’m thinking about it, as the temperature increases, complaints increase. I guess there’s just a sweet spot at 62.3 deg F where complaints drop (excluding rain—that’s the complaint wild card).

As the sun started setting, the temperature started dropping, the complaints started increasing. I hung up the bear bag and boiled a quart of water to make me a hot water bottle. Rumor has it that we are going to get down into the teens tonight. I made sure Bunny was in bed and under cover before the sun went down.

EFG

It rained all night long. The same bone chilling rain that got us yesterday, but with one difference—it got much more intense. Bunny decided that she was too warm on the top bunk (after all the complaining I have heard of cold the last few nights) and crawled down to the lower bunk for the night. In the process, she “accidentally” bumped the thermostat down 5 degrees. I awoke with chills and a moderately full bladder which necessitated a trip down before I could fall back asleep.

We had set the alarm for 8, but extended it to 9 when the rain still hadn’t let up. At 9, we decided to pack up and check out at 10, make extended use of the porcelain facilities, then have lunch at the restaurant when it opens at 11. We were giving Mother Nature every possibility to chill. I went to the hiker kitchen to fill my bladder (the drinking one in my pack and not getting coffee) when guess who is sitting there eating a box of macaroni and cheese…Patches! We shared our delaying plans with her and she agreed to meet us at 11.

By the time we got all of our morning chores done it was only 10:30. We headed down to the restaurant. We ran into Stickers and Lady Bug as they were just getting in. They showed us a video of the overflowing streams they had to cross to get down to the NOC. This added another level of doubt for us. We found Patches with Mizman sitting across from the Outfitter. Mizman has already been honing his Yogiing techniques for later up the trail. Today, he had gotten a large coffee from the outfitter by displaying his sad eyes and tales of woe from the last day.

They let us in the restaurant 5 minutes before opening. We ordered our food, but when Mizman ordered his, he also ordered a beer—an ominous sign. The rain just wouldn’t let up. We watched the Nantahala River continue to rise and rise. Everyone started hemming and hawing about taking a zero day. I said I would do whatever as long as it was unanimous. I’m pretty sure it was Patches who said “Can I see a beer menu?” The die has been cast.

Several other thru-hikers came in and out the rest of the day. Stickers and Lady Bug came in and had lunch with us. During all this time, the rain never let up. Around 4, I decided to go secure our cabin reservation for the night. When I got back, it was just the four of us left. Stickers came back in to pick up a pizza for supper. We had a Ferris Bueler moment when he came over to the table; “What are you still doing here? The restaurant is closing—go home.”

Truth of the matter is that we are not quitters. We opened the restaurant and by gawd we will close it down. Our legs, feet, and hips have been carrying the load for the last few weeks, it’s time for our livers to step up and do their share.

We headed up to our cabin to get settled in. Bunny decided that she needed food. I remember going to bed and sleeping soundly. The only problem was that this happened on a bench in the hiker kitchen. Mizman got me back into my own bed and left me a full liter of water. I don’t know if this was the kind of rest I needed or if I slept well, but I was out for the night.

EFG

Ket and Maximus left before us at about 8:30. Maximus thru-hiked in 2014 and has section hiked many different areas. He only lives less than an hour from Amicalola Falls so he has definitely been bitten by the AT bug. He’s been hiking with Ket for over 3 weeks. He is worried about how little she eats. He knows from experience that not eating enough is the number one reason why people fail at thru-hikes. No matter how much extra fat you may believe you have, your body still needs incoming fuel to operate. He’s afraid Ket has already given up. I was going to leave her a note to try and get her motivated—“get an ‘AT Class of 2018’ tattoo on your right butt cheek and then show everyone you meet when they ask if you’ve hiked the AT.”

When we left around 9, Mizman was still eating breakfast. Even though we have almost 12 miles to go today, it doesn’t look that bad because it is predominately downhill. The challenge today is the 45 deg F air temp and the constant rain. Fortunately, Bunny and I have learned to like hiking in the rain from our rain time on the GR10. Walking in fog can be quite mystical and other-worldly.

Wesser Bald had a fire platform on top of it. Bunny was hurting once again on the early morning climbs. She had a combination of tight hips and calves which takes a few hours of walking to work out yesterday’s lactic acid build up. In spite of what she says, she doesn’t stretch much or drink enough which causes her more pain than she needs to face, but tell a woman with a higher degree that you disagree with her. She will only respond when an expert tells her the same thing (definition of expert: random stranger who is not her husband.

When we got to Tellico Gap, we saw a bucket and a cooler. This was trail magic. Inside were an assortment of sodas, chips, and sweets. I took a nutty bar and an RC Cola. The nutty bar didn’t stand a chance and was consumed in seconds flat. The RC was for my lunch when we got to the shelter. I paid the price for taking the RC Cola—the rest of the day, the Kinks “Lola” was my ear bug.

It was less than two miles to the summit and shelter. Bunny was going very slow uphill (as usual in the morning). I climbed to the top of the fire tower at the summit, took some pictures, and got back down just in time for Bunny to arrive at the summit. The views from the tower were astounding. We are definitely at the gateway to the Smokies.

We thought the next shelter was on the summit close to the tower, but it was actually about a mile past. We wanted to stop at the shelter to get out of the rain and have some lunch. When we were walking, I was warm but soaked thoroughly. When we stopped, it didn’t take long for me to start shaking from the cold. Bunny was already cold while walking, so I was worried about hypothermia. As soon as we got in, I got her to take her wet outer layer off and put on her dry fleece. I started heating water for tea but took the pot off for us to warm our hands. I wanted to use what little fuel I had left in the canister.

Before we were done, Maximus and Ket got in the shelter. They are planning to spend the night there rather than push on to the NOC. When we passed them on the way up to the summit, Ket said she wasn’t having any fun. I know Maximus’ girlfriend is coming out this Friday to join him on the trail and I’m afraid that will spell the end of Ket AT aspiration. Maximus has been a trail angel for her for over three weeks and she couldn’t ask for a better mentor. He has been the epitome of Southern Gentleman. Ket will have to start doing more for herself and I just wonder if she has the drive left.

Still no sign of Mizman. We still had 6 miles to go to the NOC. Maximus thought they were open until 7 but didn’t know for certain. We wanted to make it to the outfitter to get more fuel and an inflator bag for our sleeping pads. Since it was only a little after 1:30, we thought we’d make it in plenty of time. The only problem being is that we have 3,000’ to drop and there might be some step spots that will slow us down. Also, we were both shaking from the cold so we had to get moving or get dry to keep hypothermia at bay.

The rain let up after a bit, but never stopped. We were actually looking forward to a few climbs to get our bodies to generate some heat. After about 20 minutes, our core temperatures started to rise and we started to get our hands to warm up, but if we stopped for any length of time, we got cold almost instantly.

We got down to the NOC outfitter at 4:55 and noticed the closing hour was 5. We rushed in and enquirer about the bunkhouse and gear we needed. He told us the place we needed to make a reservation for the bunkhouse closes at 5, but not to worry because the restaurant stats making reservations until they close at 6. He also told us we could take our time that he wouldn’t kick us out since we were there before 5. We got what we needed and headed to the restaurant.

We ordered our food and made reservations for the bunkhouse. We still didn’t know where Mizman was or if he was coming down the mountain. We asked what happens to people that get there after hours and the response was “too bad.” While we were debating about getting Mizman a room or not, he showed up. So did another hiker we have met briefly a couple of times, Nor’Easter. Now we could relax and have some food since we knew Mizman wasn’t going to spend a night in the cold and rain without a tent.

EFG

With my fourth (yes, fourth) nocturnal excursion, I decided to just stay up. It was already 6:45 and I could see the sun rising in the east. I decided to let Bunny Tracks and Mizman keep snoring away blissfully. I got dressed, retrieved the bear bags, boiled water for coffee, boiled more water for oatmeal, took pictures of the sunrise, and then decided to end my blissful morning—I served Bunny breakfast in bed.

If I could use one word for last night, it would be cold and miserable. I guess that’s two words—cold, miserable, and sleepless. OK, three words, but you get the point. When we went to bed, Bunny didn’t want to use the new $100 sleeping pad we had bought yesterday, so we ended up not setting the bag up properly. Our Big Agnes bag has sleeves for the pads but she decided she would use the old, damaged pad instead because we didn’t have the proper inflator for the new ones which made it a two person job to blow them up. After about a half hour of trying to sleep, she decided the new one was worth the effort, but not worth the effort to put in the bag. As a result, we suffered a night of Bunny hogging the bag and accusing me of hogging the bag. In reality, Bunny is the hog. It doesn’t matter, we were both cold and sleepless.

Today was my best chance for a solid with the AYCE buffet yesterday, the 3 hamburgers at lunch today, and a salad for supper. Once again, peanut butter. Am I drinking too much? Not enough crap in my diet? I’m mystified.

We said our goodbyes to Mizman a little before 9 and said we were going to Cold Sping Shelter this evening. He said he’d try to join us, but up to this point, he has been hiking shelter to shelter afraid to get caught between shelters because the friend he was supposed to hike with bailed on him at the last minute and he was the one with the tent. I didn’t get a lot from Mizman other than he had some health problems a few years back and he seeems generally happy to be alive. He seems very upbeat and positive and he’s fun to talk with. I hope to see more of him up the trail.

We’d only been hiking a few miles when we actually saw some people we know NOT hiking the trail. It was the older couple with the Teddy Bear dog that stayed at the hostel we were at the night before last. They have been traveling around North America from coast to coast for the last two years exploring anything they find interesting. Their dog is 17 years old and the cutest little guy imaginable. Once he passes, they plan to try some longer trails, but right now, they are out picking up trash along the AT trying to “pay back” the luck they have had.

As we were approaching Wayah Bald, Stickers passed us up. We had met him and Lady Bug at the Leapfrog Cafe yesterday. We expected her to pass us soon, but she hadn’t by the time we got to the top of the mountain. The forest fire last year really torched this area. There were great views to be had, but the forest service has hired some contractors to rebuild the tower at the summit so they had a generator running which spoiled the peacefulness of the place. We talked to Stickers a bit, but decided to move on because of the noise.

About a mile past the summit was the Wayah Bald Shelter. Bunny and I stopped for lunch there knowing that Stickers and Lady Bug were on their way. I also taunted Mizman a little trying to get him to push on and catch up with us. It was 2:30 before we left with no signs of anyone approaching, but it was a beautiful hiking day with clear blue skies. We still had almost 5 miles to make it to the next shelter and Bunny was hurting a bit on the uphill sections. Truth is, we were both dragging from lack of sleep last night.

Burningtown Gap gave us a nice surprise. We had just gotten passed by a young guy that started from Rock Gap this morning (he already had close to 20 miles in). He just blew by the gap and didn’t look around. As soon as we got in the open, Bunny noticed a grocery bag hanging from a tree—could this be magic? It was a bag of chocolate covered donut holes, a tangerine, and a bottle of Gatorade. We were only going to eat a few donut holes a piece, but I was having a low sugar moment and needed the energy to climb the final mile and a half. Bottom line, I carried an empty box and bottle up to the campsite.

When we got to Cold Creek Shelter, there was someone sleeping inside. Ket, an older woman, has been hiking shelter to shelter since February 7.  She kept comparing herself to everyone passing her up and feeling left behind.  She also hadn’t eaten anything since she arrived a few hours ago. I tried to convince her to eat, but she said she wasn’t hungry.  She’s been traveling with Maximus for a few weeks. Mizman arrived while we were talking. He wasn’t 10 minutes behind us and he had an extra mile to travel plus, he didn’t leave the shelter until 11; 2 hours after us. He is a much faster hiker than we are.

It took all of the daylight left for us to cook supper, filter water, hang bear bags, properly set up the bed, and change into bed clothes. When we got in bed, I looked over at Mizman and thought he was smoking before I realized I was just seeing my own breath. It’s going to be another cold night.

EFG