Date: 2019-04-12
From: Hot Springs 

To: Stealth Camping
Miles today: 7.0
Weather: overcast clouds

I got on the trail a bit after 10:00. I thought I¢d miss the crush of thru hikers by leaving later. I was soooooo wrong. The first part of the day was a lovely walk along the French Broad River, which was roaring. Then the climb began. I quickly realized how much of a struggle today was going to be. I¢d hoped that a big dinner and a long sleep would leave me ready for the day, but I was mistaken. Physically I was exhausted from the long hike yesterday.  The initial climb up was sloooooow. And exhausting. I was passed so many times. Most people didn¢t talk, but I enjoyed chatting with No Rush. I also was in no rush today. There were three lookouts on the cliff overlooking Hot Springs. I took my time at each. The second has the disturbing name of Lovers Leap Rock which is related to an old Cherokee Indian love story gone wrong. Really I took my time all day as I shuffled along. It was warm today, probably in the low 80s. With the exertion due to the unending climb I was soaked in sweat. It was almost a relief when it started raining on me, really just a brief shower. My pack was covered and the rain wasn¢t too cold. It helped briefly cool me off. Though this didn¢t increase my pace any as I continued to be passed throughout the day.  I met Mr President twice and he took my picture both times. He also wanted to me listen to this looooooong song Alice¢s Restaurant which i hadn¢t heard before. There was a W Bench at the hotel he stayed at and apparently that bench was for young men that didn¢t have the appropriate moral compass to be allowed to serve in the Vietnam War. I saw some of the people I¢d met last night at the Alpine Hotel. One thing I forgot to write about yesterday was that the couple who was helping me score a room were hiking with a dog. A vicious creature that was biting lots of people, myself included. I¢d worked with this dog a bit and thought we were friends but when I went in their room to tell them I had a room the dog lunged at me and nipped my private parts. Let¢s just say that I¢m thankful I¢ve already had children. Both Zippy (who¢d visited the public library and bought some books) and Peanut (who was slack packing today) went by while I was having lunch. Peanut was just carrying a day pack and had arranged a shuttle to bring her back to Hot Springs tonight. And one for tomorrow morning to where she finished today in the morning. Slack Packing is a way to do some miles without a pack. That¢s what I should have done today!I really took a lot of breaks today and did a lot of reading (and sweating, and resting of fatigued muscles). I met Lucky Penny and Blue Shoes at a dammed pond while listening to the Alice¢s Restarant song with Mr President. They are in their mid 20s from Kentucky. They were pleasant and encouraging, but not willing to carry my pack. I met an English couple doing a day bike and they seemed a bit lost. They were on (or wanted to be on) a trail that crossed the AT. I hope I steered them the right way. I did ensure they had water in case I sent them off into the wilderness.  I was light headed a lot today and late in the day when i tripped on a tiny root, I knew I needed to get off the trail. I found a place soon afterwards and am stealth camping off the trail in one of the few places I had cell service today.  Steps:20,000Floors: 191Total Miles: 104.6 miles