Date: 2013-04-21
From: Cold Spring Shelter

To: Grassy Gap, NC
Miles today: 14.1

I broke camp early. It was chilly, but my clothing had at least not frozen like the night before. The plans were to take a NERO at the Nantahala Outdoor Center (known to most as the "NOC"). The NOC was primarily a location for white water enthusiasts. The Nantahala River Gorge flowed eastward of the NOC, entering the vast dendritic reservoir of Fontana. The AT climbed to the top of a few scenic balds along the way; Copper Ridge Bald (EL 5,080-ft), Rocky Bald (EL5,030-ft), and Wesser Bald (EL 4,627-ft) before dropping nearly 2,000-ft into the Nantahala Gorge, where the NOC was established at the junction of US 19 and US 74. I hiked along with a few other hikers that were hanging out with Dr. Spice as well: Sprouts (a young Swiss woman), Little Spoon and his girl friend Chuckles, Genie, and Shanks. Sprouts, I learned, had planned to meet her boyfriend somewhere north of the Smokies. Her boyfriend did not want to make the expensive commitment of flying for Switzerland until he was more certain that she was committed to completing the trail. Shanks, perhaps the antithesis of Doc Spice, seemed more of an introvert. He was closest to my age, in his early 40s, working as an accountant in Phoenix, AZ. He apparently had just gone through a divorce, which I had long since forgotten about 12 years ago. We all rendezvoused at the NOC by late morning, where we enjoyed relaxing in the warm sun while purchasing some supplies at the outfitter, charging our electronics, and consuming carnivorous meals like a pack of wolves at the River's End Restaurant, located on the river bank just upstream of the NOC. Before wandering over to the restaurant next door, I purchased an expensive cylinder of electrolyte tablets and a few snacks at the NOC. The NOC was definitely not a place to resupply, and equivalent to the Outfitters at Neal's Gap, with 300% mark-up. Spice, Spoon, Chuckles, Sprouts, and myself, sat at two separate tables across from each other, and toasted to our adventures over a pitcher of beer, followed by delicious burgers and fries. It would be difficult acclimating to dehydrated food after today. As a group, we decided to camp at Grassy Gap about 2 miles up the AT above the Nantahala River Gorge. Before we headed up, the kind Dr. Spice ran across the intersection of Silvermine Rd. the Nantahala River Rd to the Wesser General Store to purchase a case of beer. A few moments later, he marched across the street with a case of Yeungling on his shoulder. Yeungling, which I later discovered to be a Pennsylvanian logger similar to the mass produced Coors of Golden, CO, was the ubiquitous hikers choice of beer on the AT, which I could only guess was driven by the price. Dr. Spice proudly carried the case on his shoulder along with the weight of his pack, crossing the foot bridge of the Nantahala, then the rails, before climbing steeply up the flanks of the river gorge. The group made it to Grassy Gap by dusk and set up tents on the sloped grounds around a large rock fire pit. After filling up water at the spring down slope, and cooking dinner amongst good company and cold beer, Dr. Spice built a fire, which he had also gathered most of the wood for. If that was not enough, he told some hilarious stories about his past employment in an adult toy store that made us laugh to tears! Somehow the twisted sex toys stories were folded in with religion, about the time that Doc Spice was dragging a fifteen-foot large diameter branch over his shoulder while holding a smaller, perhaps four-foot branch orthogonal to it. It appeared that he was dragging a cross to the fire pit, oblivious to the religious context of the discussion. It was one of those amusing conversations that would likely not be forgotten.