Date: 2016-05-21
From: Captains

To: Kelly's Knob
Miles today: 16.1
Weather: light rain

I slept great on the Captain's porch even though there were 11 of us crammed in like sardines. It seemed like it rained all night long, but not very hard. By morning the rain had stopped and there were just overcast skies. The four section hikers got up first while it was still dark and headed out. I got up and gathered my gear quietly as everyone else was still asleep. As I packed up my gear, Tarzan came out and did the same. I had a quick cold breakfast and ziplined across the creek. Back on the AT I met Spirit, a woman in her sixties. She had camped in the shelter before and had already hiked the 1.2 miles. She was obviously an experienced hiker and I learned she had thru hiked in 2012 on her fourth attempt. She had started at Springer three previous times and gotten part way before injury or family situation forced her off the trail. That is dedication! She was now hiking with a friend from Minnesota, but only "half way"!The trail was extremely muddy and slippery from the rain, and progress was slow. As we climbed Tarzan passed us, and then we met up with Uncle Spider and Reptar who had camped near the next shelter. I stopped in at the shelter and saw that Down Under had overnighted here so I was a few hours behind him. No sign of Homer yet. Slinger stopped in as well and then was off. The trailed leveled out some paralleling a ridge and became very rocky. Rocks are my nemesis, they kill my feet. I stopped for a water break and Pharmacist and Gingko came along and stopped to tank up as well. We had 6 miles to the next water. A whole group of young girls passed us southbound, Girl Scouts we presumed, and then we continued on. I finally got to Wind Rock, the top of this climb and Pharmacist and Gingko were already eating lunch. A great view and a perfect spot for lunch. Hey Girl, Fish, and Little Sister (and Glacier) then showed up and the six of us enjoyed lunch with a view. After lunch the trail leveled out and crossed over to Lone Pine Peak. It was pleasant walking as the sun had come out and the trail was relatively flat. After Lone Pine Peak the trail descended steeply 2000 feet down to War Spur shelter and Jones Creek. It sprinkled a bit on the way down, but overall remained a good hiking day. When I got to the shelter, there were several hikers there, including Spirit. Hikers were deciding whether to stay or push on, and I had already planned on pushing on. I probably should have reevaluated that decision, it was 4 pm and I would face a 1700 foot climb and 6 miles to the next shelter. I knew I would be in late, but thought it worth it to get some more miles in. Besides, there will always be another mountain.I pushed on and started up the mountain. It started out benign with easy switchbacks and pine covered trails and I made good time. As I climbed higher it turned rocky and considerably steeper. I kept climbing and stopping to get some snacks, my energy running low. It started clouding over and raining so I stopped again to put on my rain jacket and pack cover. I continued up an finally got to the top, but the shelter was still 2.4 miles across the peak and down the other side. I continued on as quickly as I could until I got to a side trail to Kelly's Knob. It was supposed to have a good view and I never pass up a good view. I got over to the knob and it had some nice rock outcropping with a good view, though the clouds made it less cheery than it could have been. There was a couple camped out here so I decided to give in and pitch camp as well. I didn't need to get to the shelter, and if it was crowded when I got there I might have a difficult time finding a good tent site. So Kelly's Knob it was, I set up my tent, ate a cold dinner on the rock outcropping, and saw the lights of Daleville and Troutville far in the distance. Just as I climbed into my tent it started raining again, and I was glad I had stopped.