Date: 2013-04-05
From: Hogpen Gap

To: Unicoi Gap
Miles today: 14.3
Weather: clear sky

Wow, today was rough, for me. As I sit here typing, clean from my shower with my hair still wet, I feel like I could just fall asleep right now (it's not even 7:30 PM yet!) My feet and legs are stiff and sore. This was my longest day yet, and I can tell it. It wasn't a particularly hard day, as far as the terrain goes. No huge mountains. It was just so long, Starting out early this morning, it was very cool and very foggy, with a light misty rain. The woods looked mysterious in the early morning fog. But by late morning the sun was out, the air was warm, and it was an extremely beautiful day from then on. The sky was the bluest blue I have ever seen. I could not get over how pretty the color was. The clouds were fluffy and white, like the way a little child would draw the sky. The trail was very gentle for most of the day, what we call PUDS (pointless ups and downs). Not mountains, certainly, but not flat. There was only one real mountain, and it was late in the day. Blue Mountain was not bad going up, it wasn't terribly steep. Steep enough to put me out of breath, but not too bad. The descent however! Was a mile and a half of down, down, down, Quite steep, rocky, and muddy. I don't think steep and muddy make a good combination. I am so cognizant of not wanting to turn an ankle, and trying to protect my knees, that the last mile and a half took me forever. I could hear the road traffic at the bottom, but I just couldn't get there. My feet were barking at me the whole time, and then my knees started complaining too. But we all made it, and are feeling a little bit proud of ourselves, I must say, although every single other person in this hostel could have made it in half the time.Here's how slow I walk: about halfway through I met a young couple, probably early 20's. She had hurt her knee, maybe seriously, and was using her trekking poles as crutches, and hopping on one foot. Her boyfriend or maybe husband, was carrying two fully loaded packs, hers and his, one on his front, one on his back. THEY passed me!I didn't take any pictures today. There were some lovely places, but I was a woman on a mission, with 14 miles to hike, and I didn't ever feel like digging the camera out of the pack. There will be plenty of time, and plenty of scenic places, to come.Tomorrow I fly solo! Here is my tentative plan for the next few days. It is 16 miles from Unicoi Gap to Dick's Creek Gap, where I plan to get off and go to Hiawasee and take a night and day off from the trail to rest, called a "zero" (zero miles for the day). Even God took a zero on the seventh day, so I guess I am entitled to one! For my first day, tomorrow, I plan to hike only 5 miles, to Tray Mountain Shelter. That's short, but I will be carrying a much heavier pack than I have been carrying, and there are two good sized mountains in that 5 miles. So it may take me all day. I predict that hiking will become an entirely different experience for me when I don't have the hostel to come to at night, and start actually camping out. I am looking forward to it, to being on my own schedule, and not have my times and distances planned out for me. But I will miss the comfort of it. Last night when I got back to the hostel after the day in the ice and hail, everything I had was sopping wet and muddy, or frozen. The frozen part was me. I got to the hostel, took a nice hot shower, put my muddy boots on the boot dryer (something I didn't know existed) and all my wet muddy clothes in the washer. By bedtime, everything was clean and dry. Had I been camping out, none of that would have been possible, and the clothes would not have dried overnight. I don't carry many extra clothes, so it would have been difficult. So that part I will miss. But it has to happen sooner or later, I can't stay here forever, and I am really ready to spread my wings, even knowing they will be soggy and muddy at times.