Date: 2015-03-10
From: Dicks Creek Gap

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: overcast clouds

For the first time in what felt like forever, I slept straight though the night. I was so comfortable, warm and dry. With no fear of bears eating me at all. It's very easy to see why so many people can get caught in the trap of trail towns and never want to leave. It's 50000x more comfortable than camping will ever be. Hiawassee was my first real trail town. It was cool to see the small little town layout and see some actual Georgian people in their natural habitats. It's pretty much exactly how I imagined small town America would look (like the town in Cars), but with a lot more religious signs everywhere. I'm looking forward to seeing more trail towns, and not just for the food and comfy beds. I stopped by the outfitters next to the hotel and got an emergency bivvy to stop my sleeping bag from getting wet all the time, a new headlamp, more blister plasters, and some gas. I couldn't get the replacement valve that I need for my Camelbak, so that will have to wait until the next town, Franklin. We got a shuttle from the hotel back to Dicks Creek Gap and started walking about 11.15. We met a man called Skunk, who carries an external frame pack, that we had briefly encountered the day before. We passed him/were passed by him multiple times throughout the day. Today was another one of those humid foggy days. Had to roll up my trousers. Later it got cold, windy and rainy, but still not enough to even wear a coat. With my 5 blisters, including 2 directly on the soft padding of my foot, every step was painful today. At least my calf muscles didn't ache until about 2pm. Obviously, this made for very slow going. Uphills, downhills, flats. All of it was painful. Mikayla was far ahead, as is usual now, and I just plodded along in the fog. Listened to music to try to forget the pain. Didn't work.After 2 hours and 4 miles, we stopped for lunch and met Greywolf. After that, Mikayla and Greywolf were speeding ahead and I kept slogging along as usual. Eventually we got to the border to North Carolina and took some photos. North Carolina quickly got very steep, but has a lot more white blazes. However, we discovered that the shelters do not have bear hangs and so every night you have to throw the rope yourself. It's incredibly annoying for a badly aiming person like myself. Eventually made it to the shelter about 10-20 minutes after Mikayla and Greywolf. The shelter was full, since it only takes 6 people. We set up our tents. The normal routine for me goes: get to shelter, set up tent, lay out all sleeping stuff, unpack bag, get water for dinner, go make and eat dinner whilst chatting the others in the shelter, (now) hang bear bag, get water for tomorrow, use privy, into the tent for bed. By 8pm, the whole area is quiet with hikers trying to sleep or already asleep. I can hear Greywolf snoring right now.Today at dinner, Mikayla finally decided on her trail name. She's now called Brightside. This is because she kept singing 'always look on the bright side of life' throughout the trail so far. I think it fits her well, and everyone else in the shelter agreed. She also considered Jukebox since she's always singing or whistling or humming. Meanwhile, I still don't have a trail name but have been considering some. I've vetoed a few suggestions so far, but I'm going to see if anything else comes up tomorrow. We're doing about 12 miles then, with similar weather. Once again, I hope my blisters will magically repair themselves over night. My toes are currently more plaster and duct tape than actual skin.