Date: 2014-04-16
From: Unicoi Gap

To: Addis Gap
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: clear sky

Today was another tough day for various reasons. The free shuttle from the motel didn't leave until 11 and we didn't arrive back at Unicoi Gap until 11:30 which is a real late start for a day of hiking. We all decided that we would meet at Addis Gap and camp there for the night, it was a 11 mile hike and wasn't a piece of cake, we had to go up and down both Rocky and Tray Mountains and then there were a lot of little up and down hills that slow you down.    Right off the bat, Rocky Mountain was a pain, no switchbacks, just straight uphill, I took a lot of breaks going uphill, the downhill wasn't too bad but when I got to the base I realized I didn't have too much water and there wasn't much around so I had to conserve for awhile. I met Cruise at the base of the mountain and then we went up a continuous uphill before hitting Tray Mountain. Cruise is a good name for him because that man flies down trail, I had no shot to keep up with him, I knew I would see him down trail and some point. I stopped at Tray Mountain Shelter to get some water and a couple who go Smokey and Bandit were there and he offered me water instead if having to walk down the hill to get my own, he was a real nice guy. I think what made the day so tough was a) starting so late, you don't see many people on the trail, everyone starts out so much earlier in the day that you only see a few people out there, I saw 3 people in the 6 hours I hiked b) the woods were dead, not a single sound on Tray Mountain, it was so eerie, we're in the midst of spring and not a single bird chirping or anything rummaging in the woods, it was me and my thoughts and that can be a scary thing and c) my pack is about 4-5 pounds heavier because I went into town early and now have to carry extra food before I head in for another resupply.My knees were aching in the downhills again, I'm trying different ways to approach it, instead of taking smaller steps, I'm trying to increase the steps to try to alleviate some of the pressure. In the mornings they feel fine, it's just during the hike and sitting at camp, haven't reached for the Ibuprofen yet.   So at the last mile, I saw A Bear and talked to him for awhile, he was going to the next shelter 3 miles down the trail. I'm not sure if we're behind or in front of the pack,everyone is so spread out. He came to the campground to talk to me and Cruise who got there way before me. There was also three people from Florida who were spending some nights on the trail and were waiting for a another person in their group before heading out to a hostel. The guy gave us his water he had and I was so appreciative because I didn't want to walk the mile round trip to the water source after walking for 11 miles. Delaware came into camp about 20 minutes later and Mouse (formerly known as Shelly) came in an hour later. It was just us for the night.   So we set up camp and got a fire going, the temperature is dropping down to the low 30's tonight. I have all my cold winter gear on and hoping this quilt lives up to its potential, there's a steady 10-15 mile per hour wind for the rest of the night. So we hung around the fire for as long as we could and then bear bagged our food. We're only about 14 miles from the Georgia/North Carolina border so I think we're all going to go for it, tomorrow, the terrain doesn't look too bad, few initial uphills but the weather is suppose to be beautiful for awhile so we have to take advantage of it while we can. I hope we make it to the border, I have a tallboy of Pabst Blue Ribbon I carried in to celebrate and it's just adding weight to this already heavy backpack so I would love to drink it and be done with it.                                                                                                                         Keepin' it Steady