Date: 2004-05-28
From: Miss Janets

To: Cherry Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.5
Weather: overcast clouds

Unidentified Ugly BugStart: Miss Janet¢s @ 1221Finish: Cherry Gap Shelter @1843Miles: 15.2Weather: Very overcast, breezy, cool temps, occasional sprinkles.Breakfast: Eggs, bacon, biscuits w/ strawberries, O.J., milk.Lunch: Snickers, Oat n Honey, Famous Amos cookies, water.Dinner: Bacon cheeseburger Hamburger Helper, FPG, Mr. Goodbar Bites.Trail Conditions: Very rocky, lots of roots the whole way. Some of the steepest climbing since the Nantahallas.Animals: Ugly beetle thing. I took a pic of it.People: K-bear, Doosie, Sparepocket, Belle, One Thing, Miss Janet, Bookworm, Jacob, Ean, Snatchy & Monk, Mercury & Gingerbear, Section & Dayhikers, Utah Mike.I had another wonderful nights sleep at Miss Janet¢s. I did not want to get up this morning, but the incentive of another delicious breakfast was all it took! It was rainy all morning which lowered my desire to return to the trail, but I refused to be drawn into the vortex that is Erwin, TN.I need to give a huge thank you to Miss Janet. She is truly the most patient and amazing women for opening her house and caring for so many hikers. She truly goes the extra mile to help you out and see that everything is taken care of. I have come to the conclusion that the hostel operation is a perfected system of orchestrated chaos. People are always coming and going, projects being worked on, etc¢¦. My time at your hostel was another big highlight of my trip. I look forward to returning in the fall with Ben when we retrieve my trekking pole from the ledge on the mountainside. Thanks again Miss Janet, you¢re great!Miss Janet shuttled me to the trailhead at the Nolichucky. As we arrived there several hikers came out of the woods. It was none other than Snatchy and Monk! Oh man I have not seen them since Franklin. We quickly caught up on our adventures. They are spending the night in town with some family and hitting the trail tomorrow. I figured they¢ll catch up when I zero at Kincora¢s and we¢ll get to hike together again.I hit the trail a bit later than I would have liked, but all was well. The rain had stopped, but ominous thunderclouds lingered over the mountains I was to hike. I made great time on my hike today, largely motivated by not wanting to be caught in another thunderstorm. The climb out of the Nolichucky was good and steep. Also, Unaka Mountain was a good pull. By far some of the hardest climbs since the Nantahallas. There were several nice balds, but my views were only several hundred feet due to the storm clouds I was walking through. The pine forest atop Unaka Mountain had a very spooky feel to it as it was so foggy and dark. It would have made a great setting for a horror story. I was expecting some critter to pop out from behind a tree, but one never did. Which was fine with me. More importantly, however, the storm clouds never produced a storm! I survived the day with no crazy tales and consider myself fortunate for that. Tree atop Unaka MountainI am spending the night with two section hikers and two other thru hikers. We have a nice campfire going and we shot the breeze for a while. We¢ll all be pushing to Roan tomorrow. I hope the skies clear for good views. I¢ll keep my fingers crossed.One Year Reflection