Date: 2012-04-08
From: Mt Collins Shelter

To: Pecks Corner Shelter
Miles today: 14.9
Weather: scattered clouds

I tried to wake up early, but it was a little cold and I knew the terrain was relatively easy to get to Newfound Gap so I ended up being one of the last out of camp. I passed some of the older hikers in the morning which was becoming more common as they would leave before me and I would hike faster than them. Eventually I caught Soho and walked and talked with her the last couple of miles to the road. When we got there the Moving Village was congregated, but no Papa Bigfoot, so we waited. I saw Wiffle, Hawk, and Fastback with a 'Hiker to Town' sign and they were lifting their shorts and flexing so cars could see more leg. They had tried to convince me to go into town with them as they seemed determined to hit every town and/or bar on the trail. I had decided to hike my own hike, and by doing this was leaving all of the people I had been hiking and camping with for the past two weeks. I was completely OK with this and knew that I would see them up the trail and was excited to continue on my own, even if it only be for a day.Papa Bigfoot and his wife soon showed up and we had cookies and brownies covered with icing. They even gave us Easter candy and it was then, about 11am that I remembered it was Easter Sunday.   I exchanged contact information with Soho Halfway Overdrive and Mr Fabulous before they fit about 12 people into the large SUV and headed towards the interesting town of Gatlinburg. I then noticed a truck parked right next to me that had a husband and wife opening the hatch and organizing coolers! It hasn't taken me long on this trip to get excited when I see a cooler. These usually contain trail magic such as sodas, beers, waters, candy or snacks. There are people that live by the trail, hike the trail, know somebody who has hiked the trail or just want to help out hikers. These people are known as Trail Angels and I was just about to meet some of the most extreme trail angels there are.I noticed that Firewalker and Biscuits had seen the coolers and began introducing themselves to the couple so I followed suit and was greeted with a smile and a soda. The coolers were not only filled with soda, but vegetables, lunchmeat, cheese, bread!, condiments!, chips and brownies. We all made sandwiches and started talking to the couple. This wasn't their first rodeo. It sounded like they did this just about every weekend during peak thru hiker season. They lived 15 minutes away, had a guestbook to sign, business cards to give out, and knew approximately what time hikers would arrive at the Gap based off of which shelter they had stayed at the night before. By doing this, they were able to feed the hikers from the closer shelter in the morning, shuttle hikers to and from town after the first rush, and then get back in time to feed the hikers from the shelter that was further south. This wasn't all. Mark Booth's trail name is Godspeed. He attempted a thru hike about ten years ago with his son. They made it to Connecticut before Godspeed was forced to get off trail due to injury. His son had a choice, to get off trail with his father and end the hike together, or to continue on his own as he was almost 2/3 of the way there.   He chose to end his hike with his father and it was a good thing he did. When his son returned to the working world he went to the eye doctor and the doctor noticed a tumor. They gave his son a 10% chance to live and he did. If he hadn't had gotten off trail when he did he may not have survived. Not only did he survive, but him and Godspeed returned to the trail and finished a few years later. These are the kinds of stories you don't hear everyday and this is one of the reasons I am enjoying this journey so much.After a few sandwiches brownies and sodas I thanked the couple and began to pack up. Firewalker was getting a ride with them into town, so Biscuits and I began the hike out of Newfound Gap together. I didn't realize how great the trail was going to be today. We gained elevation after the Gap, and before I knew it we were at Charlies Bunion which is one of the more popular areas in the park. It is a giant rock sticking up off the side of the mountain with spectacular views. After that it was mostly ridge running and whenever there was a break in the pine trees you could see mountains for miles. I had cell service for the first time in days, so I spoke w/ Kaitie and my parents a few times in the afternoon and went slow and enjoyed the views. The next shelter was Pecks(no, not Ben Pecks) Corner Shelter. It was a half mile off the trail, and when I got there I saw Biscuits and Dundee who was Australian. I also met Master Splinter who was a disgruntled old man who claimed to have hiked the PCT and a lot of other stuff, but from what some of the others were saying he tended to exaggerate, or just flat out lie. There were no tent sites available, so I had to stay in the shelter. It was my first time and the worst time. I slept next to a man who I thought was sure to die at any minute. His snoring sounded like he would choke and then stop breathing and my ear plugs did nothing to extinguish the noise that billowed from his throat. Biscuits and I were planning to do a 20 mile day tomorrow in order to get away from some of the people that were doing a 13 and the terrain looked reasonable for me to be comfortable making the decision. Of course I would see how I felt throughout the day, but I was looking forward to the challenge. If only I could get some sleep!