Date: 2017-03-18
From: Hawk Mountain Shelter

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: scattered clouds

Another glorious day on the trail as we hiked 12.5 miles from Hawk Mountain Shelter to Woody Gap. We woke this morning to a heavy fog after some overnight rain. Thankfully the temps stayed in the mid 40's overnight which made for a very pleasant start. The initial part of today's hike was downhill with lots of rocks and mud. We had the first climbs of the trip up Sassafras Mountain and Justus Mountain. Sassafras had an elevation gain of 700 ft over 1 mile and Justus was straight up over .5 miles. It wasn't nearly as touch as the 1900 ft climb in the Smokies last month on my final shakedown hike. Thankfully the fog burned off just before noon and it turned out to be a splendid day. We stopped for lunch at Gooch Mountain Shelter where I set up my tent to dry out. Two new thru hiker friends that we met last night at Hawk Mountain Shelter rolled in just after lunch (See Pic under photos tab on left). Carla and Sprinkle are from Scranton, Pa. and appear quite delightful. Cindy and I had the distinct pleasure of giving Sprinkle her triail name last night. Trail names happen by chance on the trail when a certain event occurs or story is told. It can't be forced, but happens organically. She loved the name and from now on will be called Sprinkle on the trail. These girls are very positive and good to have around.The coolest thing today was walking into a huge trail magic gathering at Gooch Gap. For friends and family who are new to hiking, trail magic is a single person or group that comes together on the trail and provides food, drinks, snacks and moral support. It is usually done by former thru hikers or church groups. It truly is magical and so appreciated. Today's trail magic was hosted by Geek and Boudain who through hiked the AT in 1990. Since 2002 they come back every St. Patty's Day weekend to host this event. Cindy an I really enjoyed all the good eats and beverage. Awesome!More funny stories from the trail...I ran into a group of Boy Scouts who were on an overnight backpacking trip. One young man who was probably 12 was very curious about my journey. After answering the usual questions of distance, how long it takes, etc., he finally said, "are you going to see Travis Pastrana? Do you know who he is? I said that I remember him from the X Games years ago and all his triicks on a dirt bike, but still not sure where this conversation was going. The scout then told me that this guy lives in Maine and he has broken 53 bones. In the moment, it was so funny and unexpected on the trail. The second funny story was when I ran into a 20 something guy on the trail and asked about his trail name U-Turn. It turns out that he started a thru hike last year and went the wrong way on the first mile of the trail. That would be very hard to do.Spending the night at the Hiker Hostel which is 7 miles east of Woody Gap. They offer a free pickup at the trailhead and back to the trail tomorrow along with a big hiker breakfast. You can't beat that? Total of 23 people staying here tonight. It is a 5 star hostel for sure. Hiking up Blood Mountain tomorrow and up to Neel Gap.Until next time....Keith