Day 22-4/1-Cosby Knob Shelter to Davenport Gap-8 miles

My knee felt fine in the morning so I got a decent start and was looking forward to making the Standing Bear Hostel in the evening; I thought it would be an easy 10 miles of mostly downhill. A couple miles in I hit the split for the Mt. Cammerer trail, which I was assured would lead me to a firetower worth the half mile of hiking not on the AT. This stone tower awaited me, apparently one of the last in the East. It was restored fairly recently, and was more elusive than firetowers previous. Most of the ones I have climbed so far have been tall steel structures, but this was a short masonry lookout which climbed not so far above the surrounding rocks. The views were impressive, despite the haze that limited visibility. They don't call it the Smokies for nothing. I spent about an hour lounging around in the sun, and took advantage of the elevation to text some April Fool's pranks, which were well received. Then it was off for what I had hoped would be another three hours free of knee pain. I was wrong.
The trail continued downhill for what seemed like an eternity. I have never prayed for an increase in elevation like I did then. The brief respites of level ground quickly gave way to more downhill and excruciating left knee pain. I was bummed about the pain, but more bummed that I would have to take more zero days ahead for some time to heal up. I get very anxious when I am not moving. I made it to Davenport Gap, with a few miles to go before reaching the hostel, but decided discretion was the better part of valor and called for a pickup. The owner met me within twenty minutes and took me the 15 minute drive down gravel backroads to the hostel. I grabbed a bunk at what was an empty house and checked out the accommodations. A bunkhouse with 20 beds, an old school outhouse, and even older school laundry with a washboard and rollers, and a resupply room all on the honor system. I am typing this on a desktop that might as well reside outdoors with a dial up connection at one dollar for every 15 minutes. The people are definitely relaxed and a creek runs right through the middle of the property. I even have the choice between indoor and outdoor showering.
It wasn't long until a beer run was discussed, involving an 10 minute one way trip up to the next exit and a gas station. They also sell fried chicken. My main reason for going was to get some ice for my knee, but the beer was an ancillary benefit. I gathered some cash from the others interested and we were off. After dodging a rock slide on I-40 we were quickly there, and my choices of beer had enthralled me. My driver, a temporary employee of the hostel, had struck up a conversation with a local he knew in the parking lot. Before I could decide on a brew that was both cheap and tasty the local, a middle aged woman with a wrinkly face and quick smile, had approached me in the store. She asked if I would buy her beer. I was stunned, not knowing if she was really asking charity for alcohol. After some questioning she handed me six dollars, the cost of the six-pack. This confused me even more, as she was clearly of drinking age. Assuring myself this wasn't an attempted straw purchase, my curiosity was piqued. She quickly explained herself by leaning in and whispering, "I need to get out of her; I have a possum on my head." At first I assured myself by assuming a diminished mental capacity, being very familiar with the issue given my previous profession. Then I actually looked at the top of her head.
I cannot make this stuff up, people. There was a possum on her head. It was small, and considering its eyes were closed I couldn't be sure if it was real, but it had blended in with her graying hair. After a brief movement that could only be attributed to either a living creature or animatronics, I admitted to myself that she might have been truthful in her previous statements. Either way I had her money so I couldn't see the downside on my end.
A few cases of beer and some fried chicken later, I had made it to the parking lot. My new friend quickly took her beer. She informed me that she was a mammal rehabilitator and that she would be over to the hostel shortly to hang out. I stopped asking questions and just went with it. Once returning to the hostel the beer helped settle my nerves and the chicken my stomach. The rest of the night could only be downhill from here.

Day 21-3/31-Tri-Corner Knob Shelter to Cosby Knob Shelter-7.7 miles

After the knee problems of the day before I wanted to see if a short day would help. With the rains of the previous day and overnight, none of the clothes on our makeshift clotheslines inside the shelter had dried. I decided on the wet socks since my fresh pair would most likely just become soaked again from the inundated trails. Most everyone was out early as usual, but since my short day should have only entailed three hours of hiking at my usual pace, I decided to hang about in the morning and relax a bit. The sun fought the fog and mist all morning, but had not yet been victorious by 11:30 AM. I had reached my breaking point for sitting around, so I headed out.
After about thirty minutes the fog had receded and an easy day of hiking and some lovely views were ahead of me. Less than five miles in my knee was at it again, and any hopes of pushing farther for the day were shelved. Cosby Knob Shelter came early. I found Bogey and Hat, roommates from the night previous, there already, both having left much earlier than me. Dinner was early (mac and cheese) and then the waiting game for darkness and bedtime. Many more people came in during the evening, with a shelter designed for 12 soon holding 17. More girls than I have seen in a while had stopped there for the night, with almost half our numbers being female, definitely unusual for the average gender make-up of the thru hiking crowd. We had a fire going in the fireplace all evening, and all the socks were quickly dried with special attention paid to the prevention of unfortunate ancillary fires. With such a late start and early finish, I was stir crazy by the time nature turned the lights out.

Day 20-3/30-Newfound Gap to Tri-Corner Knob Shelter-15.6 miles

I packed and headed out to the outdoor store around 9:00 AM, knowing they had a shuttle leaving for the Gap at 11. I don't know many hikers who want to start the day at 11:30 AM, but I'm sure they have their reasons for the schedule. Reaching the outfitters I found all four spots on the shuttle reserved, so after a breakfast biscuit, chocolate milk, and root beer at the store across the street my next order of business involved finding a ride. I met another hiker, Bomber, who was also heading out, so we set up at a couple strategic locations hoping to hitch. Within 20 minutes I had a car stop, and convinced the driver to also pick up Bomber just up the street. It turns out the driver was a Ridge Runner, a paid position funded by the Appalachian Trail Conference who was on his way to work for the day. He is a previous thru-hiker, and had landed one of three spots in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park after working further north for the ATC over previous seasons. He stays in a house in Gatlinburg provided by the ATC for his position as well as the trail maintenance workers.
The half hour trip was spent swapping trail stories as is so often the case when other hikers are involved. I found out Bomber is a former EMT from New York who is joining the Air Force after his thru-hike is finished. I saw Loophole and Sleeping Beauty when we arrived at Newfound Gap and did some catching up with them. They had gone with some friends to Asheville, NC from the NOC when I had last seen them, and spent two zero days there. They were just now getting into the Gap and were about to get a ride into town for at least the night. Mission, and his buddies Dundee and Knuckles who had joined us at Hiawassee, were also going to be there. I then took off for 15 miles on what I hoped were fresher muscles and a healed knee.
Four miles into the trail I hit Charlie's Bunion. A great opportunity for pictures as you can see, it is in my opinion one of the highlights of the trail so far for natural views. As I mentioned earlier, some of the best views previously have been from firetowers, which don't really have the same spacious feel as being on top of an exposed rock. This section north of Newfound Gap would become highly recommended for anyone with only a few days of hiking available on the AT. Rain had been predicted for the day, and it didn't take a degree to see that it was indeed coming from the West. At about ten miles in the rain was reaching me and I was very near a shelter, but I wanted to put the five miles to the next shelter behind me before stopping for the night. It was a deliberate decision to get wet. It started slowly but built quickly and soon I was soaked. My knee was feeling the pain again and it was slightly chilly, but I made the shelter in about two hours as expected, and quickly changed into a dry top. Bomber set up a mouse trap for the night, which I was a fan of, and dinners were cooked. Everyone was in their sleeping bags early, which was fine with me. Maybe an hour and a half after we were all asleep I hear the sound of more hikers coming in. Unpacking bags and cooking dinner are a necessarily noisy affair, but the three hikers were making no attempt to keep it down. Bomber informed them of the fire which could use some more wood and the clotheslines which had extra space they were welcome to. Then I tried to get back to sleep. As some context I brought earplugs on this trip initially at the recommendation of others for shelter sleeping. Snoring and other noises were reportedly unbearable. I sent them home quickly thereafter realizing that my ability to sleep through anything at home conveniently carried over to the trail. These guys were loud enough that I couldn't sleep for an hour. Finally another in the shelter asked them to whisper, which I think got the message across.
In the morning, I was the last of the thru-hikers to leave. The three section hikers were still there, cooking breakfast and complaining about the previous night. They were in agreement that they had hiked ten miles yesterday too, and that they didn't know there were listed quiet hours for the shelter. They seemed to miss the point that no one was begrudging them cooking dinner or unpacking, but outside voices with seven people clearly asleep next to them was less than courteous.

Day 19-3/29-Gatlinburg, TN-Zero miles

Gatlinburg was entirely as touristy as I remembered and then some. The day consisted mostly of trying to find a legitimate local restaurant to ravage. Crawdaddies sounded the most appetizing for lunch, but surprising a list of about five different types of po' boys did not have a crawfish variety among them. I was informed that they did not stock peeled crawfish, and in fact the only item on their menu worthy of their name was broiled crawfish. A grouper po' boy, seafood gumbo, and lobster mac and cheese rounded out the ordering, and I was saddled with an overly friendly waitress for the entire length of the meal. After gathering enough information about me to write a small biography, I was able to chew enough to finish  my food. I went back to the hotel, did some laundry, and took a nap. The best I could manage for dinner was Johnny Rocket's, but the staff was entertaining enough to make the food bearable. I neglected to visit one of the 17 different variations of museums Ripley's has been kind enough to contribute to the local culture, and went to bed early. Don't go to Gatlinburg unless someone is paying you.

Day 18-3/28-Double Spring Gap Shelter to Newfound Gap-10.8 miles

The start of the day brought Clingman's Tower, a concrete ramp that takes many tourists up to an overlook. The ramp isn't on the AT, but a short hike off trail. The trail also reaches it's highest point as it crests Clingman's Dome. When I reached the top the views were minimal due to cloud cover and the wind was very strong and quite cold. No tourists had reached the top yet. I had noted that some of the best views that I had seen so far had all come from man-made structures. I hoped for something more natural, and I wouldn't have to wait long.

(Just in case you were wondering, no, I didn't take this picture.)

Obviously it's got to be downhill from here, and as I dropped down 1500' my knee began to hurt. It wasn't far until Newfound Gap, which is where hikers who need to resupply in Gatlinburg can hop off the trail and hitch a ride. I hadn't planned on stopping in Gatlinburg, having been there multiple times before, the first being enough. I decided to stop, though, because my fuel bottle had been leaking meaning I didn't have enough to cook for the next several days, and because I felt my knee could use the rest. The forest had a different feel through this section, being primarily evergreen and very enclosed compared to most other parts. Due to the recent rains the trail was quite wet, and it looked like a similar problem had caused many of the trees in this section to uproot at some point. You can see how small my pack is in the lower-left for scale. I also crossed some strange-looking grates near some of the only fences I had seen on the trail. Signage informed me that the grates kept the invasive wild hog out of a protected area. No hogs were seen.


When I hit Newfound Gap I caught several of the hikers that I had stayed with the night previous. They were going to continue hiking out of the Smokies, while I hitched a ride the 15 miles into town with a couple from Alabama. I called Squatch when I arrived to see if he was still in town. He was, and he already had a room for the evening so we agreed to split it. We caught the trolley out to the only grocery store around for a resupply and hit up dinner at the Brewery. Apparently it was a popular spot because the waitress let me know they were out of everything I attempting to order. Dollar beers after nine made up for it.

Day 17-3/27-Spence Field Shelter to Double Spring Gap Shelter-13.5 miles

The day started normal enough, but I quickly realized I had absolutely no energy. The day before had been a big one, and I'm convinced I simply didn't eat enough, even though I forced down two dinners before bed. I spent the entirety of the day attemting to catch up on food, eating bars much more often than usual and even stopping at Derrick Knob Shelter to cook lunch, something I have not done much. Mac and cheese with 800 calories plus a whole roll of summer sausage was on the menu, and I hoped that would get enough energy into my system to get me back up to speed. It didn't.
The six miles to that shelter had been harder than the entire previous day, and others that I talked to were feeling the same way. The day had no long ups or downs, but it was a series of many shorter ones. Dinner conversation turned to politics. I seemed to be alone in my stance that smaller government was better, with what seemed like a consensus developing that all social programs needed to be more effective was more funding. I enjoyed the debate for sure. Dan, you would have been all over that one, though I think I did a good job without you. 

Day 16-3/26-Fontana Dam to Spence Field Shelter-17.9 miles

The hike out of Fontana was long, starting at 1700' elevation and climbing all the way to 4800'. Initially you walk across the dam itself and then follow the road to reach the woods again. I felt pretty strong and did the entire climb without much of a break. There was a firetower about 6 miles in that I skipped, as it was not directly on the trail. I heard from others later that it was in disrepair and those that had climbed it were scared it would fall at any time. This is the day when you hit the TN/NC border. The trail will follow that border for quite sometime, with views to your left in TN and views to your right in NC. Coming off the zero day I decided to skip a couple of the shelters and push to Spence Field Shelter, making for a long day. I still reached the shelter with plenty of daylight, and met a couple section hikers. One was a teacher from Chicago. He said his students could not understand why he would spend his spring break in the woods.

Day 15-3/25-Fontana Dam, NC-Zero miles

Since Rhiannon was in town and because I had a few things to do I zeroed in Fontana. Not much of a day, but I worked on completing my online driving school to get that out of the way. Thanks again THP. At least it wouldn't go on my record, but I'm not sure if that gave me much consolation considering the dent in my wallet. No complaining though. Three hundred dollars amortized over seven years (since my last ticket) of daily traffic infractions isn't bad. After an hour and a half and completing the review material I found I couldn't take the test until I had stared at the screen for at least another two and half hours. Apparently it doesn't matter if you make a 100% on the test, you better have sat you butt in front of that computer for four hours at a minimum.
All three meals of the day were again at the lodge restaurant, and dinner was especially fun with one server in the entire place. I would say "Poor lady," but I'm sure everyone felt so sorry for her she made out like a bandit in tips. Rhiannon left that night to return to work in the morning, and I decided to stay at the lodge for the night. I confirmed the shuttle was available early in the morning and intended to make an early start to enter the Smokies.

Day 14-3/24-Cody Gap to Fontana Dam, NC-8.7 miles

Rain pounded hard early in the morning, but slacked off before sunrise. I got packed up knowing it would be a short day into Fontana Dam where Rhiannon would be meeting me. I planned to be there by noon, and got in about half past. Though the day was short, it was scenic. Elevation slowly dropped by about 2000 feet, and the dam and lake were in sight for the last several hours. It makes the decent seem especially slow when you can see your destination for that long but haven't yet reached it. Just across Highway 28 there are restrooms, a phone, and park maps/shelter sign-up sheets. I availed myself of the latter two, calling for a shuttle into the resort and signing up for the shelters I thought I would be hitting through the Smokies. The sign-ups aren't technically necessary for thru-hikers, but if you don't sign up someone with a reservation can kick you out of the shelter even if you reached it first.
I waited on the shuttle with two fellow hikers. Cell service was non-existent, so I couldn't call Rhiannon and let her know it was there. Nevertheless she pulled up within 20 minutes. The shuttle driver had been at lunch, so we all piled in and rode up to the main office. After dropping off the other hikers we headed to the cabin Rhiannon had reserved. We grabbed lunch, laundry, and a resupply of food. Rhiannon had also brought some goodies with her. I was excited to get some pretty mundane items I had asked for earlier. I sorted through some gear changes and cleaned all my items. We had dinner at the lodge restaurant, pretty much the only game in town.
After falling asleep later the night we were awoken by a rather loud frat party nearby. I'm not sure, but I'm going to put the blame on UGA. Might not have been them, but whoever they were they brought enough kegs to make a small blockade of one of the roads. After a trip up to the lodge to complain (no phones in the cabins) nothing had changed 45 minutes later. The amplified music was too much for Rhiannon to sleep (I could have slept through the test detonation of the first atomic bomb) so another trip to the lodge yielded us accommodations there for the evening. It was a late night for someone who had been going to bed at 7:30 PM.

Day 13-3/23-Nantahala Outdoor Center to Cody Gap-18.6 miles

There was 3000 feet of climbing out of the gorge to start the day. It began to rain as predicted maybe halfway up, and it increased with my altitude. My feet seem to stay dry even in light rain with the shoes I'm wearing, but it had quickly picked up enough to soak my feet. I did not see many people I knew throughout the day, in fact I didn't see many people at all. I passed a couple from Switzerland, Boots and Melody, who are also thru hiking. They are slow and steady, putting in lower mileage days and emphasizing pictures and meal preparation. I did dinner at a shelter at about mile 15, grabbed some water, and hit the trail again. Boots and Melody had caught up with me during my break, and we discussed staying at Cody Gap, maybe an hour away. There was a shelter about an hour past the gap which would have been possible to reach, but we all surmised it would be full as the last shelter had been empty late in the day. The gap offered tent sites and a water source. I reached it first and set up my tent only to find this little salamander(?) right next to it.I was told bright colors usually mean poisonous. Anyone know what it is?

Boots made some cous-cous with seasonings and tomato paste that he shared with me. It was delicious. We discussed Switzerland a bit and he reignited my interest in a trip to Europe. I went to bed around 8 and sometime in the middle of the night we received a big storm. The lightning did not seem to be close, but it was bright enough to light the inside of my tent and pound it with heavy rain. I slept fitfully the rest of the night.

Day 12-3/22-Nantahala Outdoor Center-Zero Miles

I hitched a couple rides to get back to the NOC from Bryson City in the morning, and Squatch, Loophole, and Sleeping Beauty were in around 11. When I had seen them yesterday they had talked about a Zero Day and rafting. I had agreed to join. I broke the tip of one of my trekking poles yesterday and wanted to make some other gear adjustments at the outfitter. My convertible pants were out and two pairs of light running shorts were in. I also purchased a map of the Joyce Kilmer Slickrock Wilderness Area, the first such map I had been able to find. As one of the last old growth forests in the east, with an interesting story as to how it was able to remain such, it has been an area I have wanted to visit for quite some time. But with a reputation for being quite wild and no reliable information on trails or water sources I have not yet explored it. Finally, some new tips were in order. It was quite the ordeal to get the broken tips removed, involving more than one phone call with the manufacturer. Howard, a member of the NOC staff, finally volunteered to take my poles to his home for his lunch break where he had some more tools that might have been of assistance. They were, and I finally had a fully functional set of trekking poles. Clutch.

I boxed up the map and the gear I had replaced to send back to Rhiannon, and snuck into the extra bunk with the Three Muskateers. Loophole and Sleeping Beauty had taken advantage of the rafting while I had to deal with the pole issue. I wish I could have gone. A pint of Ben and Jerry's attempted to console me, and several beers succeeded. We loafed around all day as the rain came and went. We had dinner with my friend David, who I had met much earlier in the trip, and settled on a trail name of Whitewater for him. He is a lifelong kayaker and it seemed appropriate. Even with a nap before dinner, I was in bed early and anticipating the rain which was rumored to be strong tomorrow.

Day 11-3/21-Winding Stair Gap to Nantahala Outdoor Center-28.1 miles

What a day. I started by taking the shuttle from the Budget Inn back to the gap where I had left off yesterday. I intended to hike 15-20 miles depending on how I felt. I climbed up to the top of Siler Bald. I am not sure if the terrain of these mountains have changed since their naming, but I have been to several "balds" that have yet to be treeless. Siler had a large clearing but it was clearly tree lined. I pressed on without many breaks, and reached a shelter for dinner around 4:30. I ate some not-so-tasty rice and tuna quickly, and spoke with a few of the other hikers who were there. Animal is an older gentleman, seemingly not bothered by the hoard of flies who congregate around him. I have heard about him several times since my start, as he is the only hiker that carries a five-gallon plastic bucket with him. He is panning for gems in this area. I am not sure if he intends to thru-hike, but forward progress is not high on his list. I ask if he has found anything good, and he is quick to assure me he is not looking for items of value but items of interest. My question did not ask anything about striking it rich, so I take his defensiveness to mean he has been prodded on this topic many times before.
I also meet Coffee Bean(?) who has brought a very pretty Vizsla along with him. A good looking dog and well tempered, I consider all of the pros and cons of bringing a dog on a thru hike. The cons seem to outweigh the pros during logical thought, but right now he sure seems like a bunch of fun. He carries his own backpack, but I'm assured he only carries a few pounds of food and his owner carries the rest. I feel a little better, and hope to make it to Wesser Bald Shelter, many more miles and climbs later. I try not to think about it. As I press to the top of Wesser Bald I see a firetower that appears to have open access to the top. It does, and I enjoy the views and make a few calls with the good cell service. I meet another hiker who came up the firetower about ten minutes after me. He has come to take a few pictures of the pending sunset and meet with some friends who have not yet arrived. I get the impression he is a former thru hiker from the conversation he is trying to strike up, but I am too tired to oblige the words necessary to give him the opportunity to speak about it. I can't take my eyes off the Mountain Dew peeking out of his backpack. Again, I don't even like Mountain Dew. He does let me know that I only have a short distance to the next shelter and a short day tomorrow to the Nantahala Outdoor Center. I'd already traveled about twenty miles today, so the upcoming shelter was welcome news.
In planning this leg I had planned to press on to Fontana Dam directly, and had not considered the NOC as a stop. This meant that I had again brought too much food, fast becoming a perpetual sin for me on this trip. As I reached the next shelter I saw quite a few people. Loophole, Sleeping Beauty, and Squatch were all there. I had stayed with all of them in Hiawassee. It was good to catch up with them since they hadn't gone into Franklin. I relaxed by the fire and chatted for a while, but it became apparent the shelter was full and all of the decent tent sites were already taken. I figured I deserved at least some level ground after such a long day, so I decided to press on in an attempt to find a site just off trail without having to go too far. The sun had just set, so I donned my headlamp and set off. About 6 miles and two hours later I had not found anything, and had traveled much farther than I had anticipated. The next shelter was only a mile before the NOC, and I figured if I attempted to set up there I would just succeed in waking everyone. Another mile had me down on pavement at 10:30. A thirteen hour day I had not at all anticipated. My previous long day was about 17 miles, and that had about killed my feet. I had finally gotten my "trail legs" underneath me, and while I was certainly tired, I felt reasonable. I'm sure I was running on adrenaline for the last 7 miles, with the realization that I had completed my first marathon, with the slowest finishing time in history.
I grabbed a soda from a nearby machine whose mesmerizing glowing light could not be ignored. I found someone who worked for the center as she was leaving in her vehicle. Asking for a room for the night, she explained that they were closed for the night. Asking for any ideas on what I could do for lodging in the area, she simply suggested camping by the river. Knowing I wasn't in the woods anymore, and that small town police have a distaste for squatters, I decided to attempt to hitchhike the twenty miles into Bryson City and the nearest hotel. In the dark. In the middle of nowhere. With minimal vehicle traffic. With an odor the drivers could probably smell on approach. Not the easiest task. Finally a van stopped with a barefoot man exiting to take a look at the river which runs right through the various buildings of the Center. I asked for a ride, and after a quick interview as to my possible possession of drugs or weapons my stuff was in the back and I was in the passenger seat. Pink was his name, and he is an aircraft mechanic for Cessna. My backpack shared the back with two jet engine shrouds. We spoke about demanding clients who own jets and his children as I made my way to the Sleep Inn. After some forms were filled out and the box for a king bed checked, I was quickly in a room and more quickly in the shower. Sleep was not difficult.

Day 10-3/20-Glassmine Gap to Winding Stair Gap-7.3 miles

I woke earlier than usual and hit the trail by 8 AM. The upsides to an early start are an early finish, more time without bugs, and cooler temperatures. The downsides are being the kind soul that clears the night's spider webs from the trail. I hiked with a trekking pole in front of my face for a good bit. I hit the next shelter still fairly early and some of its occupants were still cooking breakfast. One of them, You Again, was a familiar face. He had stayed in my room at Hiawassee and had been with us for several days. His name comes from the fact that he hikes fast and stops often. He will often come up from behind after he's already passed you once or twice earlier in the day. He let me know that Switchback, another common face, had already hit the trail, and that they would be pushing through the stop at Franklin, NC. I could not, as Rhiannon had sent me a package containing some gear that I needed and some homemade beef jerky. I also saw two girls whom I had seen two days earlier at the shelter we had passed up to reach Standing Indian. That means they put in an approximately 25 mile day, big business.

The contraption you see here is some more trail magic, not the Wile E. Coyote booby trap it appears to be. It was hung like this by a ranger to avoid bears stealing all the goodies. It contained two or three different types of cake, and lots of it. Still, Gingersnap had to refill it often. I talked to one or two hikers who had run out of food at this point, and the cake was just the calories they needed. 

Another few hours on the trail had me out to Winding Stair Gap early, and it was about a mile walk along the road before my thumb proved its usefulness. The kind souls that picked me up were happy to take me into the Budget Inn where my mail drop waited. The passenger was a thru hiker class of '98, Huff and Puff, and he related some stories from his hike. The driver was a retired nurse who had just received a grant for making a goat cheese factory on her farm. My arrival at the Budget Inn had me staying alone, a nice change of pace from the last town stop, and I went about my usual resupply tasks. I gathered food and fuel with various other sundry item (Vitamin I being a crucial component) and made a special effort to not bring double the food I needed. My appetite still hasn't matched my output, and the postal scale has me approximately 6 pounds lighter in 10 days. I feel fine, so I can't really complain, but I need to put in more effort to getting some more food in me. At this rate I'll make Maine at the weight of a small child.

I also stopped by the barber, as the length of my beard was bothersome and I wanted a trim up top as well. Apparently a number 1 guard on the clippers is different in North Carolina than it is elsewhere in the country, as when she turned me around to the mirror I was almost hairless. The red beard isn't completely gone, but it would take a razor to get it any closer. I'm sure it'll be too long again in no time. I'm off to dinner at the steakhouse and then to bed. Shuttle is at nine in the morning, and I've got another 2100 miles and 13 states to go.

Day 9-3/19-Standing Indian Shelter to Glassmine Gap-16.2 miles

My feet felt fine as I set off and I was hoping they would stay that way. Some oatmeal for breakfast and we were off, a few leaving before me and still more behind. The day was easy for about the first 10 miles, with a climb right out of the gate mitigated by some wonderful trail grading and switchbacks. I wanted to thank the fellow who implemented that section. The big event of the day was Albert Mountain, and another milestone, 100 miles. The climb was the toughest yet, with sections that the trekking poles had to be stowed and hands used to traverse the rocks. It only consisted of about 700 feet elevation change, but my seat of the pants estimate put that over about 700 horizontal feet. Tough stuff.
The top of Albert Mountain rewarded with a firetower, which I climbed with my pack on out of spite.

As you can see the views were great, even without being able to actually enter the tower. With some cell coverage I was able to make a few calls and rehydrate, then it was off toward Long Branch Shelter, only about two miles away. When I had hit Glassmine Gap I knew I had gone too far but hadn't seen the shelter. I went down a side trail for a bit and found a nice quiet campsite with a strong creek nearby for some feet soaking. No one else joined me the rest of the night. Speaking with several people the next day, the general consensus was Long Branch Shelter has not yet been constructed. Good to know I'm not blind.

Day 8-3/18-Dick's Creek Gap to Standing Indian Shelter-16.7 miles

Today was the first big milestone of the trip, the Georgia/North Carolina border. These are of a few of my friends taking a break at the spot. Who knew a little wooden sign could make people so happy.

Just after the border was a big climb up to Courthouse Bald. A good "Welcome to North Carolina, don't come back," kind of climb. The day was a long one, and the rest day didn't do as much for my feet muscles as I had hoped. I met two National Guardsmen who were out for an extended trek (but not thru hiking). One was having backpack trouble, which I tried to help with a quick adjustment, and the others boots began to fall apart on him. Bad luck for sure on some crucial gear, so it was off the trail for a trip to the outfitter for them. At about mile 11 I started to feel the pain again, but a few others and I pushed past Muskrat Creek Shelter at 11.8 miles in to continue on to Standing Indian Shelter another 5 miles. The running joke was it was all downhill. It wasn't.

There was a strong creek next to the shelter, so I quickly cooked my dinner and went down to soak my feet in the icy water. Between that and some Vitamin I (ibuprofen) my feet actually began to feel better. The pain was manageable, but I worried about the swelling. Still no blisters or anything other than muscle soreness though, so I feel lucky. We got the first chance to hang a bear bag without cables at this shelter, which was an adventure in itself. After about 25 minutes and some good laughs we had our food bags hung well enough that a it was perfectly safe from any bears without the use of their arms. It made us feel better anyway. This was my first night sleeping in a shelter (up until this point I had always used my tent at the sites) and it was an enjoyable experience. The two most common complaints of shelter sleeping were absent, mice and snoring, so I guess I lucked out.

Day 5-3/15-Low Gap Shelter to Tray Mountain Shelter-15.4 miles

This was to be my biggest mileage so far in one day, and I was looking forward to the challenge. We had a series of pretty large climbs, which ended in a climb of 1300 feet to the top of Tray Mountain. The shelter would be just on the other side. The day was uneventful, but I carried extra water as the lesson from the day before. About halfway through the day I met up with Sasquatch again and we hiked together for the remainder. As we were entering the gap and about to begin our climb of Tray Mountain I verbalized to him that I hoped for some rain to knock the bugs down and cool us off. Approximately 1.75 seconds later the first raindrop hit my head. As we started to climb the thunder picked up along with the rain. Fifteen minutes later we had hail. The rain was so strong that we were quickly soaked and as the hail increased it began to hit so hard it was physically painful.

We reached a false summit and had hoped a side trail would take us to the shelter. The lightning was still striking with practically no delay between flash and roar, and the hail had not let up. The trail ended up being a side trail to water (which we certainly did not need at this point) so we returned to the main trail and pushed on. We were walking in a river by this point and my feet were beginning to chill. My muscles were tightening up and we still had not reached the top. I suspected the shelter would be full by the time we arrived at the campsite, meaning I would have to attempt to erect my tent in these conditions. I was not the happiest of campers at that moment. As we rounded a bend in the trail I thought I saw a pop-up sunshade erected to the left. I told Sasquatch it must be a mirage, but when I saw the grill and smelled the meat I knew I was wrong, it was Trail Magic.

Trail Magic is the term given to any acts of kindness given to thru hikers by others. Most of the time it comes in the form of a former hiker who has come to a point on the trail bearing gifts of food or drink. This time it was Bill and Steve(?) cooking what looked to be half pound plus burgers and handing out Mountain Dew. IN THE MIDDLE OF A FREAKING HAIL STORM. After consuming three burgers and two Mountain Dews ( I don't even like Mountain Dew) the storm had passed somewhat and the sun was trying to shine. A fire had been made by another dear soul who had his camper at that location and I was warming and drying myself. It took every ounce of strnegth I had to get myself out of that lawnchair and put my pack back on for the rest of the trip to the shelter. I arrived to beautiful views and a great campsite to pitch my tent.
Easily the best day on the trail so far, despite the monster elevation change, the long distance, and mother nature. Probably moreso because of it.

Day 4-3/14-Neels Gap to Low Gap Shelter-11.5 miles

There was a strong climb immediately out of Mountain Crossings, which gave way to a day of ups and downs that was by this point becoming familiar. I had left with about a liter and a half of water, but this being a clear day unlike the previous one I had neglected to account for the heat. I ran out of water right at a stream, but the flow was not strong enough for me to be able to refill without debris. Since I am not using a mechanical filter the debis will remain even though my chemical filtration will mean the water is clean. It is not a big deal, and it can be worked around by using a bandana to filter out the debris, but being four miles from the shelter I elected to push on.

I arrived a Low Gap Shelter fairly early, another common theme from my previous days of hiking. While I seem to have one speed that is higher than average for most of my fellow hikers, I am not yet in shape enough to put in the really long days. Hiking at 2-2.5 miles per hour allows me to cover this day's hike in 4-5 hours, for example. This is obviously a short day that could be extended easily, except for my muscles. While I have been without blisters or any other real injury, my feet and calf muscles have been letting me know all the work they have been doing. I am looking forward to the 7-8 hour days when I can cover some real ground, but I'm not there yet.

We had a good group of people at the shelter. I cooked some dinner and made some new introductions (I still did not have a trail name) and decided to sleep in my tent instead of the shelter. I could not find a campsite I was very fond of, but eventually settled on one that was less than level. I would slide around all night, but managed reasonable sleep. When I awoke for breakfast we found a mouse had chewed through Sasquatch's food bag overnight and (ironically) ate his cheese. It was designer cheese from the outfitter, which I think would have cost approximately $20 per pound if it were sold in those quantities, so the mouse at least had good taste. One of my purchases had been a food bag that is made from the same material as prison guards' vests (stabproof) so that small rodents cannot chew through it. I found my food unperturbed. I was also informed that the shelter had a pair of visitors overnight, and that several people had pictures of the bat with whom they slept. Some dried soup mixed with too little water was a very warm and tasty way to start the day, and I was off by about 9 AM.

Day 3-3/13-Woody Gap to Neels Gap-10.5 miles

The Hiker Hostel staff was kind enough to pick both David and I up from the Super 8 while Bryan stayed behind to sort gear and ship items home that he no longer wanted to carry. This was my first chance to see the Hiker Hostel while we stopped to pick up other hikers on the way back to the trail. A very nice place for sure if anyone is looking to stay in the North Georgia mountains for a few nights. It took three vehicles to get everyone where they needed to go, and as ours climbed toward the trail head the rain started again, heavier as our altitude climbed. Once we were on our way down the trail the rain was light enough to keep me cool and not be bothersome.

 

Blood Mountain had a reputation for being very difficult,
but I was at the top before I knew it. The view was wonderful. I stopped at the beautiful shelter at the summit for a bit of reading, but the bugs wer already out in full force due to the unseasonable heat.

Decending Blood Mountain was more challenging for me, each step seeming to beat me up more and more. The payoff at the end was Mountain Crossings. The structure was built in the thirties by the CCC as far as I understand, and the trail actually crossing through a breezeway in the building. It is the only point along the trail that passes under a roof. The breezeway separates what it now an outfitters on one side and a hostel on the other.

The outfitters is famous for "pack shakedowns," where they will disassemble everything in your pack and tell you where you can save some weight. They are in the perfect location for this, catching hikers after several days on the trail and a relatively large climb, people are known to spend a thousand dollars to reduce their load. Though I did not do a lot of trip planning, my pack weight was where I spent most of time doing research. I was very happy with what I had and did not opt for the shakedown, already being about 10 pounds lighter than most people. I did resupply on some food and picked up a few items. My favorite piece that I got was a Buff (apparently of Survivor fame). It is basically a cylindrical synthetic bandana, but it is so versatile I've really fallen in love with it. I believe Bates owns one and had mentioned it to me before, but I am really sold on it now. Especially with the amount of sun we have been getting it allows me to cover my forehead, ears, and neck and prevent sunburn.

A stay at their hostel totalled $20 including a dinner for donations and breakfast. I did laundry again and got some stuff sorted. I determined that I had a leak in my inflatable sleeping pad but couldn't find it so it was replaced the next morning. This was my first hostel stay and others were really seeming to come together as a group. More and more trail names and less and less real names were being passed around. It really was a diverse group of people, a lot young but some older, with names like Wrongway UK, Dirty Girl, and Misplaced Moose. Sleep was not easy that night but early the next morning I shipped a few cold weather items I no longer need to McDugle and hit the trail.

Day 7-3/17-Hiawassee, GA-Zero Miles

I'll get the previous days' entries up as soon as I can. Today the group decided to take a rest day, and being the good friend that I am I caved. I didn't take much convincing, trust me. Obviously my muscles needed the break, but I wasn't counting on where my mind would wander without the strain of the trail to focus it. I feel like I've been on the verge of crying all day, and I don't know why. I think of where I am and where I want to be. The latter being vague, the path between even more amorphous. I have nothing to complain about. I am in a wonderful position, with almost limitless options on where I go from here and so many great people around me. I am having a wonderful time at my current adventure. But I still have this sense of pain. My past feels unresolved and my regrets are eating at me.
I wonder what could have been different. How things would have changed if I had applied myself more in college, prioritized others in my life, and cared as much about the present as the future. I wonder what I have given up because of my decisions. I know I need to resolve these issues. I don't know how. One of my friends that I am staying with here has had his parents in town for the day. I was speaking with his father who expressed his desire to hike the trail after his retirement. I could see the excitement in his eyes, a love for his son, a pride and vicarious joy. I miss my dad. I wish I could see that in his eyes.
Anybody out there have any good reading material? Maybe something to help in this personal improvement, maybe just something to take my mind off of it.

Day 2-3/12-Hawk Mountain Shelter to Woody Gap-13.1 miles

The rain had slacked off by the time I got up at 8 but it was still coming down. A quick breakfast and I was out by 830. Hiked mostly by myself until lunch. I was well ahead of schedule for a hostel shuttle that was picking up at Woody Gap at 5 PM, so I stopped at Gooch Mountain Shelter to get out of the rain and cook.

Some fresh salmon and Ramen noodles really warmed me up. It was there that I met a few guys taking a zero day (no mileage along the trail) and another getting a late start. His name was Bryan, and the guys were giving him a hard time for having one of the largest and heaviest packs around. Lightweight packing is key to success on the trail, but some hikers can be less than courteous about the subject. Bryan slowly packed up, while David, a hiker that started from the same spot as me that morning arrives. I spoke of my plans to catch the shuttle to the hostel, and both Bryan and David thought it sounded like a good idea. Bryan headed out first, with David and I out about 15 minutes later.

David and I happen to hike at a similar pace, so we struck up a conversation. He has been an outdoorsman all his life, living in Yellowstone when he was younger so he could kayak regularly. He had taken time away from a construction company he owns near Atlanta to thru hike. We passed Bryan soon. We arrived at Woody Gap with an hour and a half to spare.

There we met a nice older gentleman who is section hiking the trail and hid under a small kiosk at the trailhead to avoid the rain. We called the shelter and they were full, no doubt due to the popularity of the start date that weekend for many thru hikers. They kindly offered to take us into Dahlonega for a stay at the famous Super 8. While we waited for 5 to roll around we wondered if Bryan was ever going to make it off the trail. Three minutes before 5 he emerged from the mist on the other side of the road. He said he had stopped looking at the time because it was playing games with his mind, so he had a huge smile on his face when he heard he had best the shuttle. He agreed to split he room with us three ways, making it about the cost of the hostel. Right on cue our driver pulled up.

The Super 8 had "FREE INTERNET," consisting of a desktop in the lobby that I believe was running DOS. We laid out all of our wet items on every available space in the room. I took the laundry for the three of us and walked a quarter mile down the hill to the laundromat. It was there that I met Brad(?) who owned the place. Reluctant to let me enter as I was his last customer, I had to entice him with the promise of how quickly all our synthetic clothes would dry. He caved, and I got to keep him company wearing nothing but boxers and a rain jacket (a hikers wardrobe is limited and everything else was in the washing machine). He seemed not to mind, but he did ask if I was hiking the trail. Not sure how many other customers he gets in his establishment with a similar wardrobe that wasn’t hiking. I proceeded to have a 15 minute long conversation about the exorbitant cost of water in Dahlonega (he owns the car wash next door too). He was kind enough to drive me back up to the motel, where Bryan and David had kindly purchased pizza and beer. It didn't last long. Bryan sorted out things from his pack to send back home, such as a keyboard for his phone and a full size umbrella. I might speak more about Bryan later, as he is a very interesting fellow.

Day 1-3/11-Black Gap Shelter to Hawk Mountain Shelter-9.5 Miles

Day 1 started fairly early with a quick mile and a half to the official start of the AT. Rhiannon hiked out with me to take pictures and send me off. We met a Trail Guardian who was signing people in for the start and helping with general info. He gave me a matchbook, which he asked I carry all the way. Apparently there might be some surprise in exchange at the end. We'll see. 

The view from the top was unobstructed and beautiful, as you can see. I set out ready to get the show on the road. With this much prep and build-up, I just wanted to get started. Day 1 was as beautiful as Day 0, something I was sure would come back to bite me. Rhiannon had quite the hike back to the car herself.

Most of the day was uneventful, getting familiar with my trail guide and putting in some miles. The terrain reminded me of a mix between North Carolina and Tennessee. I made good time and got into the shelter for the night quite early. I would estimate over 40 people at the shelter, which was obviously way over capacity. Tents and hammocks were everywhere, so I set mine up as well. I hung out at the shelter for a while getting to know everyone. I met one person who is actually from Bellevue as well, and he is taking a semester off from Tennessee Tech. It was fun to watch everyone figuring out how to work new gear and generally get in the swing of things.

I attempted to cook using the wood fire capabilities of my stove but couldn't get it lit, so I cheated a bit and used solid fuel to get the wood going. Had a good dinner and talked with everyone some more. The shelter had a loft, and it wasn't long before the marijuana appeared and the migration up the steps began. I called it a night. About 4 AM the rain began to pelt my tent.

 

Water

As you can see, streams like this one cross the trail every few miles. This is where I get water sometimes. Alternatively there is usually water access near the shelters. I gather it from whichever source into my water bladder which holds two liters. It is not usually full.

For purification I use Aquamira, a product made from stabilized chlorine dioxide. It is a two part solution and very simple to use. I mix 10 drops of part a and 10 of part b per liter of water in the little cap. After letting it sit for a few minutes I pour it into my bladder. After 30 min my water is safe to drink, and it doesn't leave a nasty taste like iodine.

Day 0-3/10-Approach Trail

Rhiannon and I arrived at Amicola Fall State Park in North Georgia after a few stops along the way. The Approach Trail is about 8 miles and is not technically part of the Appalachian Trail, it is simply where you hike to the start. Some people also use dirt roads to get dropped off closer to the start.

I signed in at the office (I was the 249th person to start with the intention of finishing in Maine) and we headed off for the almost entirely uphill trip. It was a beautiful day but it was certainly slow going. The trail starts at the base of the falls and climbs 604 steps to the top. Then we took more traditional trails to our campsite at Black Gap Shelter,1.5 miles from the start.

We had a great dinner consisting of Lenny's Subs (amazing foresight on my part) supplemented with some trail food. We stayed in a tent to avoid the mice in the shelter. It was Rhiannon's choice, but I think it probably had something to do with a Chatty Cathy in the shelter. He is a nice guy who has a lot to say. I'm sure I'll see him again. My sleeping bag is rated at 20 degrees due to predicted temperatures but as it has been unseasonably warm I slept ridiculously hot. Not my best night's sleep for sure.

Leaving Nashville

I am heading to Alabama today. Rhiannon will drive me to the start of the trail this weekend. I am looking forward to the trip. A lot of people have asked about how I'm feeling to start. I am mostly just curious. I really haven't put any pressure on myself to finish in a certain amount of time, or finish at all for that matter. If it gets boring, which I think it might, I am not going to hike for 5 months just to say I did it. I've pushed myself like that before (police academy as one example) with only the goal in mind. This time the journey is the goal, and I will find another adventure if this one proves to be monotonous. The nervousness or apprehension seems to be absent. I'm hoping it stays that way.

As I leave, I want to thank all my friends who have been there through my resignation and the preparations for this trip. McDugle is at the top of this list. He always has a positive outlook, even through rocky times for us both, and has been a great friend throughout. I really appreciate him allowing me to stay with him for the months between leaving my apartment and this trip. I also want to thank Drake for joining me for a few warm-up trips before the real thing, and generally always being up for an adventure. I really hope you all can join me for a portion of the trip. While I don't know anyone who has the opportunity to complete the entire trail with me (I'm the only unemployed person I know), I do want to share some fun times along the way. I expect that to be the main things that breaks up the routine of 2200 miles of hiking and makes it more enjoyable.

Finally, I will attempt to use this forum to update everyone along the way. Unfortunately, I have not done any test runs to make sure this is possible through my phone. My goal is to update every few days along with pictures and maybe the occasional video. Whether this is realistic will depend on cell service, internet availability, and phone capabilities. We will see.

Appalachian Trail

I just added a new tab to the top of the page with an interactive map of the Appalachain Trail. I hope to complete the entire trail in approximately 5-6 months this year. Preparations have been progressing steadily and I believe I am almost ready to leave. Work is slowly but surely coming to a close, and I now have almost all my equipment needed. The departure date has yet to be determined, but Leap Day has been considered. This has attracted me solely for its rarity; the weather may likely be poor and it is generally considered an earlier than normal start date.

I am excited about the addition of this map and it should help anyone who is hoping to join me for a section of my hike.

In The Beginning...

Red Beard Times starts today. My immediate hope is that this becomes a convenient outlet for my friends and family to follow my upcoming travels. My broader hope is that this becomes an outlet for my own development during an uncertain time in my life. I received word today that my first job after college, my job of three and a half years, has accepted my resignation. That brings with it mixed emotions.

I left because my employer placed little value on its employees. Working for my father throughout my teens meant I was entirely unfamiliar with this attitude. While I loved my father for many reasons, I worked hard for him because I always knew he not only needed me but valued me. My work ethic was formed by my own a personal desire to please, not fear. It is obvious that an adult has less innate motivation to please an employer than a child has to please a parent. However, my employer failed to realize how close those two drives are, or can be nurtured to be. I have seen so many colleagues who begin a career full of hope, only to end bitter. Mine was an accelerated version of this trend. Perhaps it is a blessing that it took me three years instead of thirty.

As an solitary example, my former precinct commander sent me and all of my co-workers a magazine article in an email. No body text, just an attached pdf file with the title "interesting article [sic]." The full article can be read here, and it is well worth the five minutes of reading. The opinions reflected in this article were and are endemic of the department for which I worked. Ignoring the fact that they dismiss out of hand what I judge to be the most appropriate solution to the problem, simply allocating "paid days off," the authors base their entire argument on one premise: fear trumps incentive. The simple fact is less employees will call in sick inappropriately if they enjoy their job. An employer who cannot recognize this, along with admitting that they have a huge influence over their employees' job satisfaction, gets exactly the quality and quantity of work they deserve from their people.

I will never work for another employer who does not value me. And the more I think about that, the more obvious it is to start my own business...