Date: 2011-03-29
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Hello from Hot Springs! Today is a glorious rainy day, which makes taking a zero day seem entirely worth it!Well its been a while since my last update at Fontana Dam and much has happened since then. Such as my first day over 20 miles! Which was glorious! In fact it may have been my favorite day thus far, but more on that later. The first two days after leaving Fontana were sunny and hot! It was not at all the weather I was anticipating for the Smoky Mountains, but I loved it. I took long breaks through out the day just basking in the beautiful weather and scenery. The horse graded trail made for relatively easy assents and descents that didn't leave your knees screaming. It was really nice. The shelters were also a very nice change. They had ample room in them and were in really good condition. I really enjoyed hanging out with everyone at night as hikers are forced to shelter rather than tent. It made for pockets of people around us each night which I loved. The third day in the Smokies was slightly cooler with a threat of sever afternoon showers. I made it over Clingman's early in the morning while it was still clear which was really nice. I was pretty excited to have a view from there. On the way to Newfound Gap I ran across a Ridge Runner who said the rain would be rolling in around 3. This forecast was enough to push me into Gatlinburg with a few other hikers I had been yo-yoing with through out the day. The group consisted of Butter, The Diva, Homer, Steve(his trail name is boarder line inappropriate.) and myself. It was a fun night of Pizza, Ice Cream and a short walk in the rain. Haha People dislike Gatlinburg for its theme park feel and it is true it definitely has that feel about it, but it is still the only city I have been to with an opened ice cream shop. Therefore I love Gatlinburg and am not ashamed to say so. hahaThe next morning we took the shuttle from the Grand Prix Motel, which for the price is the best place around, up to Newfound Gap. I had been thinking about pulling a 23 mile day (as mentioned before) in order to catch up with everyone that had skipped over Gatlinburg. I had never done a 20 mile day in fact the most I had ever done was a 16 mile day. I was kinda intimidated by the prospect, but I am quite competitive and I was not about to let those mountains beat me. We arrived at the Gap at 8 and I set off towards Icewater Springs Shelter located 3 miles up out of Newfound Gap. I arrived at the Shelter by 9. I was pretty stoked about that three miles up hill in an hour?! HELL YEAH! I stopped and had a snack, because I figured I deserved it and I didn't want to have an afternoon crash from not eating enough calories. The weather was cold, but I love hiking in cold weather. You don't have to worry about getting hot and it ensures you take shorter breaks. The view from Charlie's bunion was awesome! I was kinda nervous being on that rocky edge all by myself, so I didn't climb around too much... From that point on things began getting foggy... The wind picked up and the fog moved in and the views disappeared. I had already hiked this section once before, so I knew that there were many views to be had, but unfortunately none that day. I stopped every hour for a snack and water just to ensure hydration and stay fueled up,with a longer breaks for first and second lunch(20ish min at both Pecks Corner and Tri-Corner Knob). I made it to Cosby Knob Shelter by 4:15 pm. It was awesome! It was such a great feeling rolling in and catching up with everybody. My body was tired, but even when I reached the shelter I knew I could have kept going. It was quite the confidence boost. Now the big miles don't scare me. It was a cold night, but everyone was in good spirits. The next day was a short 10 miler into Standing Bear. That was a really neat place. I was actually given my trail name there. I know I finally have one how exciting! haha So now my trail name is Sky Peach. The Peach part comes from the fact that I'm from Georgia. Everybody has a comment and opinion about that. The sky part comes from the fact that I wear Sky Blue clothing nearly all the time. All of my clothes are either Sky Blue or Black... I like matching... even out here. I know it's silly, but what can I say?? hahaThe next day we headed out again and ran across Apple who is a trail angel. I ate a 600 Calorie honey bun and felt absolutely no guilt. haha It was truly magical. We also crossed Max Patch that was such a cool spot! If rain hadn't been in the forecast I may have just stayed there. It was a very relaxing day. I took an hour lunch break then took nearly an hour break at Apple's trail magic site, and took yet another long break on top of Max Patch, it was nice kicking back and smelling the flowers. Thin Mint, Lizard, Blue Sky, Disco, Six String and I all hiked down off Max Patch to Roaring Fork Shelter together that was pretty cool. We have all been crossing paths for a while now, but had not actually ever hiked together. It was fun. We arrived at camp just as the rain was starting it was perfect timing. It was actually the latest I had ever arrived at camp which was all of 4:45... haha I could probably hike longer days if I wanted...The next day was gray and rainy, but Hot Springs was waiting for me at the end of the day, so I got going fairly early (8:35ish). I hiked the 17ish miles to town alone with my Ipod. It was a karaoke kinda day. haha Got to the road right around 2:20 and waited for everyone I had pasted to catch up, but alas a creepy guy on a bike pulled into the parking lot, so I decided it was time to move on. I checked into Elmer's Sunnybank Inn, which is a cozy place and called it a day. I had both the dinner last night and the breakfast this morning. It was really nice to have so many veggies. For those of you that don't know they have an organic vegetarian menu. My insides feel so clean! haha It was definitely a nice change from all the crap I have been eating. Speaking of eating I think it's lunch time, so that's all for now folks! Next stop Erwin!