Date: 2005-03-23
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Rock Gap Shelter
Miles today: 19.7
Weather: light rain

Miles hiked today : 19.7Yesterday's storm lasted all night and there were more lightning flashes and thunder claps around 4:00 a.m. People in the shelter began waking up around 5:45 a.m. and I was on the trail just before 7:00 a.m.I wasn't sure what the weather was going to do, but as I began climbing the remainder of Standing Indian Mountain, I saw patches of blue sky peeking out from behind the clouds. Thankfully, the weather held all day.I think about many things while hiking, though it would take too long to list them all. Sometimes I think about what I'll be doing in the future, other times I'm laughing about something that somebody said to me back home. Recently, Amanda and Ryan are the ones that make me laugh the most.Thinking while hiking makes the miles pass by quickly. Sometimes I wish I had a radio, as the same thoughts often repeat themselves again and again.I was definitely hiking faster than normal today. Perhaps it was the short day yesterday, but I was very motivated to get in some extra miles. Perhaps it's that I knew that I need to get food tomorrow or I'll be eating a dinner of raw almonds and oatmeal.At my first stop, I was surprised to see that I'd gone 4.4 miles in less than two hours. A litle while later, I came to a inclined stream crossing that had a wet log at least two feet above the water. I carefully stepped onto the log and was positioning my trekking poles for balance, and, the next thing I knew, I was laying in some bushes on the right side of the log. Fortunately, I didn't fall on the other side, or I might have been hurt. As it was, I believe my trekking poles helped to slow down my fall. I got up, brushed myself off, smiled and continued on. My first fall took ten days to occur. If I fall again, I hope that it's as inconsequential.I made the 7.3 miles to Carter Gap Shelter in under 3.5 hours and was extremely pleased. I stopped for a quick lunch, but ended up staying for an hour, as some of last night's companions showed up.I thought that Carter Gap Shelter was pretty run-down, as it was apparent that the roof was leaky and there were holes in the wall. Joe and I left at the same time and about 100 feet down the trail, we saw another shelter, which was much newer and was a more modern design, complete with a picnic table.At the viewpoint 1.7 miles later, Joe and I snapped photos of the view, and then I continued on without him. I figured he'd catch up to me, as he's a fast hiker, though I didn't see him the rest of the day. We had talked about doing a long day to Rock Gap Shelter, so he may show up while I'm asleep.Hiking on, I stopped just past Mooney Gap to filter water and continued on toward Big Butt Mountain, though something felt strange. My hands felt empty and I quickly realized that I'd left my trekking poles about 100 feet back. I ran back to get them and continued on, feeling a litle silly. Big Butt Mountain wasn't too difficult, though there were some tricky rocky parts that required me to use my hands and knees to descend.As I continued on toward Albert Mountain, which was rumored to be a tricky rock scramble, I saw a permanent sign post that said "Trail Magic." Curious, I followed the short side path and found a mobile home and a small camp setup with a tarp, only twenty feet off the AT. I greeted the lady in the campsite, though she didn't acknowledge me. I waited a moment and greeted her again, but still no answer. I tried waving, thinking that maybe she couldn't hear me, though this also had no effect. As such, I turned back to the AT and began climbing Albert Mountain.Steep. That's the best way to describe the Northbound approach, which has 500 feet of vertical gain over 0.3 miles. Closer to the top, it was indeed a rock scramble, requiring me to carefully choose footholds and handholds. I reached the summit at 3:00 p.m. and was greeted with an amazing view, as well as a firetower. I climbed the three flights of stairs to the observation room and quickly remembered that I am somewhat fearful of heights and the high wind level wasn't helping any. I stopped just short of the hatch door to the observation deck, as I still had my pack on and didn't want to try to take it off in the narrow confines of the staircase. I returned to the ground, snapped photos of the view and continued on.Big Spring Shelter was only 0.5 mile further and I stopped long enough to sign the register. The next 5.3 miles were uneventful and I arrived at Rock Gap Shelter at 5:30 p.m., which means that I traveled 19.7 miles in roughly 9.5 hours, not counting my lunchbreak. Not bad, considering I'm wearing a forty pound pack.Upon arriving tonight, I asked the people at the shelter whether they'd encountered the "trail magic." Their experience was different than mine in that they were fed a meal. Hmm, maybe I should have walked up to her or made more of an effort.After pitching my tent, I made dinner out of the remainder of my foodbag: ramen noodles, instant mashed potatoes, and a packet of pasta sauce mix. Believe it or not, it tasted fairlt good after a long day of hiking. It's not, however, something I'd serve to my girlfriend.I could have made it into town tonight, though that would have meant the expense of a hotel or a hostel, which I'd rather avoid. Tomorrow, I've got a 3.8 mile hike to the road where I'll hitch into Franklin, though I'll probably take the 1.0 mile roundtrip side trail to check out the Wasalik Poplar. I have yet to determine why it's unique.In town, I'll be gathering mail, making phone calls, resupplying, showering, and laundering before continuing another 3.7 miles to the next shelter. It looks like I might make it to the Great Smoky Mountains on Monday.Bedtime at 9:00 p.m.