Date: 2007-04-03
From: Rufus Morgan Shelter, NC

To: Locust Cove Gap, NC
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: overcast clouds

I woke up at the normal 7:30 a.m., and it was a warm 51 degrees in my hammock. I should note that this doesn't mean it was 51 outside, but my body heat raisesthe temps in my hammock if I have everything set up right. And on the note ofwarmth, I have found that for me,the colder it is, I tend to stay warmer if I donot velcro my JRB Nest underquilt to the hammock closure velcro. I seal up theunderquilt and then let the Hennessey velcro snap shut like normal. Otherwise, Ifind that a bit of air can enter the opening because I can't always get it toshut tightly.The only other thing I have happen from time to time, is the hammock materialturns under me sometimes when I am trying to position myself on my ccf pad. Inother words, I am almost laying on the bug netting. I'm still working onremedying that, but it does not happen very often, maybe 3 times so far.Oh, and speaking of using closed cell foam pads inside a hennessey, seriously,it's not a deal after a few nights. My pad is starting to form automatically,and there have only been a few times when I just couldn't seem to get it in theright place, so all I did was get out, reposition and get back in. I now believethat all of the discussion on how much of a pain it is to use a ccf pad inside ahennesey hammock is not necessary. It just takes a little repetition.Last nite, I kept waking up and thinking it was morning because the moon was sobright. I was toast warm and used my bag as a quilt. If not too cold, I use myMontbell Down jacket as a pillow, which also helps retain my head heat.We got going at 9:15 a.m., which is 15 minutes faaster than normal! LOL We onlyhad .8 miles of downhill till we were at the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC),which offers rafting and kayaking rides. There's a pretty nice outfitters and afew rstaurants too. A really cool place, and the AT crosses the Nantahala Riveron a bridge.Nicole and I took some pics, and sat down to enjoy the view. We were talking toShalome and Step and a Half and his wife. We knew what awaited us, so we got allrested up.See, the 6 miles going out of the NOC takes you up, straight up, nonstop from1,740 feet to 4,710 feet. It is known for being quite grueling. So, at 10:30a.m., we started the ascent. We hiked up and up and up. It got into the low80's today, so sweat was just puring off my face. We were both sucking down water like crazy, and there were some spots so steep Ihad to grab trees or big rocks with my hands to pull myself up the hill. Up, up, and up some more. It was deinitely exhausting to get little relief fromthe steep incline. We finally stopped for lunch and the temp was 83 degrees. Thank god there was aspring, because we had both sucked all our water down, and we were only 2.5miles into our climb!We got back to hiking at 1:30 p.m.We took several shoes\socks off breaks, because our feet were sweating so badly. These drying out sessions are really key in blister prevention.On the climb, there were many things said today such as, "Make it stop!""Seriously?" "I don't wanna go up anymore" and then the normal cussing. LOL Atone point, Nicole bent at the knees and flung her arms straight out in front ofher, as if she could take off and just fly to the top. She was so serious aboutit, and that of course made me laugh so hard, my stomach muscles were sore.I dabbled in some hking meditation today. I used 4 syllables, per a discussionI had with Hangman, in Franklin. I repeated "Ma Na Sa Ta" one syllable for eachfootstep. Pretty cool, it kept my mind busy and not focused on the pain, plus Iwas able to get a more rythmic breathing pattern down. Very helpful.At one point today, the up finally opened up to this incredible view. We hadobviously reached the other side of the mountain range (you go up severalmountains on this climb).We just sat there and took it all in. It was a windy clear day, and I swear Icould see forever. At one point I was in a flatter spot, and I just stopped andclosed my eyes. I used my other senses to really feel the wind, smell the freshair, and enjoy the cooling affect the air movement had going over my body. Itwas a perfect moment in time.It took us 6.5 hours to get to the top of this climb! It was pretty grueling attimes. It was 5:09 p.m. when we made to Spring Bald, the top of this monsterousuphill.So we had a decision to make. Go to the next shelter, and only do 7.7 miles, ortry to hike on to our oiginal destination. even though it would mean an 11.3mile day.We both decided we would go to Sassafrass Shelter, eat dinner, get water, restour feet, and keep going.When we got there, Driftwood was there, Wonder(who gave us a chocolate bar!)showed up, as did Step and a Half and his wife. They were all staying, as itwas now about 6:30 p.m.We cooked dinner, chatted a bit, and packed up everything. We left the shelterat 7:00 p.m., and we still had 3.6 miles to go. This would be our firstexperience with night hiking!I felt like a switch flipped for me phsically today. Although I had hiked atough 7.7 mles, all but .8 straight up, I still had energy and legs. I waspretty excited about that. So we had another mile up again, to the top of Cheoha Bald. As hoped, we got tothe top as the sun was setting, and got some great pics of that. It wasexhilerating and absolutely gorgeous! The sun setting over the mountains is oneof the best views!And now it was down again. I took the lead and we hiked as long as we couldwithout our headlamps. Finally, they became necessary.It is really cool night hking. You feel like you are really going fast, but weweren't. I saw beetles, a leech, and these weird worms crawling on the trail. Only other wildlife were moths, who loved our headlamps. I also walked thru afew strings of spiderweb that was strung across the trail.This was a pretty long downhill, and eventually, we just wanted to be done. Finally, at 9:30 p.m., we found the campsite. Surprisingly, there were a lot oftents here. Right now, it is super windy, I just saw lightening, and I hear thunder. It is11:40 p.m Wondering if I'll go thru my first thunderstorm tonight.A cold front is suposed to be moving in...boo hoo. Well, it was an amazing day. Hiked for 12 hrs and 15 minutes, and I'm not beingcarted off in an ambulance. Progress is being made physically for sure. ~Certain