wrote. On Sunday, had an early rise to get my pack together and then
downed a lot of biscuits and gravy. Tenderfoot was kind enough to give
me a ride to the Dick's Creek Gap and save me the ten dollars a
shuttle would have cost. Thanks again Tenderfoot for all the help. It
was rather easy going out of the gate, as the first nine miles were
done by noon. I was really excited to cross from Georgia into North
Carolina. However the terrain immediately got much steeper and
snowier, making me think Georgia wasn't so bad. I got to Muskrat Creek
Shelter at 1:30 and contemplated going the extra 5 miles to Standing
Indian Shelter, but once I sat down for a snack there was no moving
me. Interestingly there are no bear pulleys for food in North
Carolina. The shelter could sleep 8 and by 4 it was full. Two guys,
Nickel and Vish, who I have seen on the trail since Neel's Gap, showed
up along with a couple of people I didn't know including Bean, Two
Rings, Gandalf, and Steve. It was a great crowd. Had some soupy pasta
for dinner and hit the hay when it got dark.
On Monday, I got up at first light. I only planned to do the twelve
miles to Carver's Gap Shelter, but Nickel and Vish were planning to do
the 19.3 to Big Spring Gap. Nickel is carrying around an extra 15
pounds of camera equipment as he is doing a trail documentary. I
figured if he could do 19.3 with that extra weight I could do it. So
after an oatmeal infused with excessive Parkay margarine I headed out
a 8 back into the snow. The miles went quickly in the morning. After a
series if gentle switchbacks I summited my first 5000' peak, Standing
Indian Mountain. From the summit things began together a little harder
as the snow was very deep and slushy. By Carver Gap I was beat and
still had 6.8 miles to go. I downed a log of cheese, protein bar, and
a summer sausage and still felt lousy, but there was nothing for it,
my competive juices were flowing and I was going to be the firs one to
shelter. The first 3 miles were easy and downhill, but after Becky
Creek Gap things got steep and slippery. With a mIle left I was
confronted with the vertical stone wall that is Albert Mountain, the
second 5000' climb of the day. It was brutal and that last mile took
me almost an hour to complete. The view at the top was awesome though
and there was a research fire tower you could climb partially up to
get an even better view. I rolled into camp at 5:45, followed later by
Bean, Vish, Nickel, and Camp Chair. Everyone was tired but really
happy about the miles they had made in such lousy conditions. Did not
sleep well, however, as I slept next to a nice guy named Bill who had
had enough of the trail and was getting off and who also happened to
be a very bad snorer.
Today I woke up tired and did not feel like cooking so I had poptarts
and a Clifbar dipped in peanut butter. Left camp first and cruised the
first 6 miles which was mostly downhill to Wallace Gap. Waited there
for the others to show up. Somebody had kindly left a bag of oranges
hanging from a branch over the trail just past the gap, another case
of Trail Magic. The last 3 miles went quickly and by noon we were at
Winding Stair Gap where we were promptly picked up by one of the nicer
people I have met, Ronnie Haven. Ronnie is a native of Franklin, NC
and owns three lodges there. He is also a hiker and gives hikers good
prices on lodging. This afternoon he drove six of us around in his
school bus to the outfitter and the grocery store. Ron could rake
hikers over the coals because he has a virtual monopoly of the lodging
in Frankin, but instead he has fostered a friendly relationship
between the town and the hiking community. The hikers get a relatively
cheap respite from the trail, and the town gets a lot of hiker
business. Ron is running for county commisioner on the Republican
ticket and I for one hope he wins. Five of us went to Domino's for
lunch and each got a $6 large pizza and ate it on the curb of the
street in whatever clothes we had that were not washing; it was quite
a sight. I had pretty good Mexican food for dinner and am now in bed
getting ready for tomorrow. I should make the 30 miles to the Natahala
Outdoor Center in two days and I will post an update there. Thanks for
your continued reading about my hiking and how much food I am consuming.
Sent from my iPhones
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