Date: 2005-05-20
From: Tri-corner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Farm Hostel
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: moderate rain

My fifth and final day in the Smokeys!Not long after everyone turned in last night, it started to rain. Really hard. And the wind commenced to blow. Really hard. In fact, I don't think I've ever experienced such a powerful deluge, even discounting for the fact that the sound was amplified by the tin roof over our heads. The next morning, several of us noted that we had wondered just how securely the roof was attached to the rest of the shelter, it was that strong a storm.I had earlier wondered how well I would sleep, what with the mice and the snoring, and what not. I needn't have worried. The rain, which lasted most of the night, beat so loudly on the shelter roof that it drowned out every other sound, and I ended up sleeping like a baby. I woke up early - about 5 am - and was tempted to let the rain lull me back to sleep. Then I remembered that I was planning on an 18 mile day - my second longest ever - and thus would need as early a start as I could manage. At that point, I was really happy I had not tried to tent last night, both because I'd have to take it down in driving rain for the first time and because of the time savings in getting my stuff packed up and ready to start hiking.With the rain covering the sounds of my early departure preparations, I was happy not to disturb my shelter mates, though a few of them were starting to stir by the time I was ready to go. Base was also heading for Standing Bear Farm Hostel, but he's a lot faster and doesn't need such an early start. I said I'd see him down the trail, pulled my hooded wind shirt over my head, took a deep breath, and stepped out into the pouring rain.I had several reactions to this turn in the weather, the first of which was to count my blessings that I'd had four perfect days in a row, so I couldn't complain on that score. And the best vistas (like Clingmans Dome) were already behind me. I also don't mind the rain, unless it's a really cold one, since climbing always makes me sweat, so my clothes are wet anyway - what's a bit more water? When you're wet, you're wet - period.I wasn'y sure if my wind shirt would make me too hot once I started climing, but the temperatures were low enough that I was able to keep it on all morning. I took it off during my lunch break, and the rest of the day was one of gradually clearing skies.Unfortunately the overnight deluge, with continued rain during the morning, had turned the trail into a series of small - and some not so small - streams. At first, one tries to stay out of the water and the mud, but before long one recognizes the absolute futility of that effort, and simply slogs though the rivers and bogs with abandon. Eventually my boots will dry out, and I'll get my socks, gaitors, and pants laundered when I reach my intended hostel. Avid readers of this journal will recall yesterday's description of the trail in this section of the park - often so badly erroded that it consisted of a trench several feet deep, the bottom of which was a layer of rocks. Add to that 3-6 inches of water, rushing down the hill toward me. At various intervals, it would cascade off the trail down a "waterbar", thus lessoning the depth temporarily. In general, however, the uphill climb seemed more like I was wading up stream than hiking the AT.All of my gear performed wonderfuly, as did my knee, and I made pretty good time all day - much better than the 1.5 mph I use for planning purposes. At that rate, an 18 mile day would require 12 full hours of hiking, to which one must add occasional rest stops in order to calculate one's ETA. I started hiking at 7AM, and got into Standing Bear at 6:15, so I was really pleased. (Did I mention that this little walk in the woods requires a bit of stamina and perseverence?)The end of the Park is at Davenport Gap, and the hostel was another 2-3 miles beyond that - the last one mile being really tough, kind of a test of character in a way. But character or not, you've got to make the climb or you aren't going to get there!In one of those strange and wonderful coincidences, who should drive by just as I was coming down to route 40 near the Gap but Nancy Hock, my buddy from the Hike Inn at Fontana Dam! It was a happy reunion, and we were both glad to note how well my knee was doing, especially after 17 miles already that day.She offered me a ride to the hostel, but knew the answer before I said it. She had come up to shuttle a section hiker back to the Inn (actually, a through-hiker from last year who was catching up one last missing piece.) I offered him my congratulations, and he wished me good luck. Nancy gave me a hug despite my hiker stink, and then we went our separate ways.Once I reached Standing Bear I was ready for a break, but was not really exhausted - a good sign! I got a shower, a pizza (frozen, but baked in only 15 minutes in the toaster oven, and it was great!) I also got laundry done, and managed to get onto the internet long enough to post my journal entries directly for Tuesday and Wednesday.It was a bit of a late night, since I'd gotten in so late, but I decided to do an easy day tomorrow of only about 7 miles. I was ready to give myself a break after cruising through the Smokeys in just five days.Today's hike is dedicated to my Mom - just because she was on my mind a lot She passed away almost 18 months ago, but she is with me in spirit as I hike up and over these wonderous green mountains day after day. Stay tuned, Longhaul------------------------------Sent via PocketMailEmail Anywherewww.pocketmail.com