Date: 2005-03-31
From: Cable Gap Shelter

To: Hike Inn, Fontana Dam
Miles today: 6.6
Weather: moderate rain

It rained over night, but as usual I was warm and dry in my Big Agnes. And, as usual, it stopped raining long enough for me to get my tent down and packed up.Since it was a short day (under 7 miles), we took our time getting breakfast and only set out for Fontana Dam around 8:30. I had already decided to hike very slowly and deliberately, hoping that might make a difference to my knee. I reached Walker Gap - 2.6 miles down the trail - in about two hours. I was ok with that pace, 1.3 miles an hour, as it was at least a viable day-long pace that would allow me to keep up with my hiking friends. Unfortunately, the remainder of the day's hike was almost all down hill--steeply down hill, and rocky as well, with a lot of roots, wet leaves and mud. Did I mention that the rain picked up again as soon as we started hiking, and continued throughout the morning? As a result, my pace dropped to about one mile an hour. Everyone else was much faster, so I was the last to reach the visitor's Center at the Dam and the pay phone from which to call for a shuttle to the Hike Inn.There was one thing striking about the trail today, besides the rather hazardous 3.5 slippery-slope miles down hill to the dam: From the last summit before the descent, you catch your first glimpse of the dam and the lake. And then, every so often on the way down, you catch another glimpse, tantalizing in what it represents - a shower, clean clothes, an all-you-can-eat buffet of some kind - in short, the good things in life for an AT hiker. From certain vantage points the dam didn't seem to be getting much closer, but other times it was encouraging to see the progress in getting closer to the water level.Finally, after hiking for almost 5 hours, I crossed the main road and arrived at a small marina area. The boats were about 25 yards further down the road to the right. I looked round for the white blazes to see where the trail led, and didn't see any. I consulted my guide book pages and was informed I should go to the left a few yards, toward the swimming pool, cross the parking lot, and reenter the woods."What is this?" I asked myself. Surely I should just follow the road for the last 1.4 miles around the lake to the dam. But, NO! Instead, the trail not only entered the woods, it started back up. And up. And then it went - up some more. It was really diabolical, clearly a plot to destroy the morale of those who thought, if only for a few brief moments, that the worst was behind them. I learned later that the final 1.4 miles into Fontana Dam is one of the most despised sections of the whole AT. I was not surprised.I finally reached the visitor center and put in my call to the Hike Inn for a shuttle. It had been less than a seven mile hike, but it had taken me almost six hours. When Jeff Hoch - who, with his wife Nancy, owns and operates the Inn - picked me up, I could barely stand up, and had to hobble over to his truck.Jeff said that my hiker friends were all at the Inn already, and were worried about me. We also discussed the condition of my knee, and the advisability of my starting through the Smokey's tomorrow morning. Jeff voiced the point already in my mind that it was not wise to take on that section of the trail if one is not pretty much 100% fit. It's the usual five miles straight up from the dam for north-bounders and a total of 72 miles to the other end of the park. There is a bailout point to Gatlinburg about halfway through, at Newfound Gap, but the risk there is that the roads into the park are often closed to traffic if it snows.Jeff pointed out that someone who gets into trouble and has to be brought out endangers not just himself but a lot of other people as well. I told him I was a member of the Shenandoah Mountain Rescue Group, and knew exactly what he meant. I assured him that I would be making the right decision, but would wait until tomorrow morning before making it.I arrived at the Inn, showered, got clothes cleaned (thanks, Nancy!), and a ride into town for dinner at a Mexican restaurant. Overall, I felt good except for the dang knee, and just decided to take things one day at a time. After diner, we stopped at Ingles to resupply for an estimated seven days through the Smokey's, and a pharmacy to restock our med kits. Most everyone is suffering from aches and pains. It's just a matter of what part or parts hurt the most and whether or not you can still keep going through the pain. I have counted my blessings that at least my feet are still in good shape. One of my hiker buddies, Phoenix, has two bad knees and wears matching heavy-duty leg braces, and we are hardly the only ones out here with knee problems. At the same time, the 162 miles we have traveled so far are supposed to be some of the toughest of the trail until we reach the northeast. If my knee recovers, there may yet be hope!Today's hike is dedicated to the manufacturers of knee braces...Stay tuned, Longhaul(Editor¢s Note)Dang, Longhaul¢¦there¢s just too many manufacturers of knee braces to list. So, I¢ll just give one really great web site that I found¢¦ http://www.kneeshop.com/Tenacious Tanasi (Shelly Hale)