Date: 2013-04-09
From: Fontana Hilton

To: Mollie's Ridge Shelter
Miles today: 11.0
Weather: overcast clouds

The climb SUCKED. Here¢s how it went down.Nova¢s alarm went off early, and the shelter slowly came to life. When I started to pack, I realized I already stunk, despite having showered just the day before. I pulled my deodorant from my bag and slathered it on. Shaman (a girl from Sheboygan, Wisconsin) saw me pull the deodorant (an odiferous item) from my bag, and she said, ¢Oh, that¢s why the mice were rummaging through your bag all night.¢¢What? Are you serious? I didn¢t hear a thing.¢¢Yup. They were just checking it out.¢Thankfully, they didn¢t take anything, nor did they touch my food. Actually, they may have left hantavirus. I¢ll tell you in a few days.Nova left first, and I followed about 30 minutes later. She was attempting a 17-mile day, which is still beyond my reach. I¢m not worried, though, because I¢m still keeping up with the Warrior Hikers, and they started the same day as me. They¢re on a schedule with a 9/15 finish, and they¢re supposed to start the ¢big miles¢ after Damascus, Virginia. I said good-bye to the gang, then stopped at the privy to brush my teeth. I looked at my phone, and it was only 8:00 a.m., an early start.I joined Wales, and we walked across Fontana Dam. We chatted and took pictures of the scenery. Once on the other side, we dropped our permits in the designated box and took off up the hill. The climb was steep, and the first few miles were the toughest. Wales pulled out in front of me because he¢s 6¢5¢ and has 4¢ legs. When we made it to the stone throne, I snapped a picture of Shaman. By 11:00 a.m., I made it to the fire tower and joined Mr. Rodgers and RainbowBrite for lunch. Having lived in Minnesota for, I¢ve become fond of fire towers, so I dropped my pack and huffed up the tower. It was old and rickety but the view was incredible (see picture).After lunch, the heat cranked up. I stopped to refill both H2O bladders at the next campsite, just 2 mere miles down the trail. There, I met Wales, and he said he had a very satisfying lunch of bread, mayo, sliced eggs, mustard, and sprouts (he¢s a vegetarian). Since the hike was tough, I seriously wanted some meat, and I told him I was so very tempted but that I wouldn¢t have an opportunity until the next town. Wales left to maintain pace with Mr. R and RB, and I said good-bye to them all.By then, it was afternoon, and I had about 6 miles until camp. The bugs were thick and swarmed around your head. There is still no shade from the trees. I had to take it very slow and take frequent breaks to get my core body temp lower. It was miserable. I finally made it to the shelter at 4:30, and despite earlier promises to push the 2.8 miles to the next shelter, I called it quits. The heat was too much, and I was exhausted. I immediately filtered H2O and grabbed a spot in the shelter. Later, the Warrior Hikers showed up, and everyone started dinner around 5:00 p.m. The camp filled up with about 20 hikers. I had to get even more water to rehydrate and met Smalls. She introduced herself and recognized me from the Hilton the night before. She proudly showed me a picture of what appeared to be an iguana she saw on the trail today. I was shocked because I didn¢t know there were lizards here, and all the native North Carolinians said, ¢Of course there are lizards here!¢I plan to get an early start tomorrow to beat the heat. I¢m going 12 miles and hopefully the terrain will be easier. I¢ll let you know how it goes!Item of note: We all saw tiny, tiny crickets or grasshoppers on the trail today. They scattered beneath your feet and sounded like raindrops on the dry leaf litter. I hope they don¢t grow into a swarm.Bear sighting! Several of the Warrior Hikers saw a mama bear and three tiny cubs. I¢m excited for my first bear sighting.