Date: 2002-09-10
From: Fontana Dam & Village

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 16.0

Tuesday Sept 10 I eat a big breakfast at the hotel¢s restaurant then the shuttle takes me back to the Fontana Dam Visitor Center at about 9:20. Walking across the top of the dam is a good morning eye opener. The placid lake is to one side. It must be low as a small island sticks out of the water. On the other side the dam falls steeply. It¢s a long way down. Then I am back on the dirt AT. It¢s d©j vu.   I am soon huffing and sweating profusely as I ascend a couple of thousand feet. I reach the well known and seen-from-a-distance Shuckstack Fire Tower. Gee those narrow steps look a long way up there I think. But since I am here, I decide to make the climb to the top. Going up those steps is a heart stopper moment and I use my hands like a monkey climbing the stairs. Whatever that word for fear of heights is, I think I have a case of it. But the reward is lovely 360 degree view for miles around except for the fog and unfortunately some kind of man-made haze. Back on the AT, I come upon several small groups of hikers and some Park trail maintenance guys. The trail is excellent in the Park. The hikers are all friendly and give me more good advice on what to expect ahead. Then, just after Doe Knob, a hundred yards ahead of me I see a small bear running like hell away from me on the trail. It¢s only the second bear I have seen while out hiking. It¢s a thrill. Mollies Ridge Shelter has a cyclone fence across the front of it. I will find several more like that in the Park. I wonder if it would actually keep a determined bear out. At about 5 PM, I heed the Park¢s advice and cook my supper by the trail a few miles before Spence Field Shelter. That¢s a way of not having a lot of food and smells around the shelters. It¢s also a nice way to break up the late afternoon and get a little energy for the last few miles. Soon I arrive at Spence Field and find three other people staying there too. Two are cooking their supper. Oh well, cooking on the trail was a good idea. They are all friendly folk and readily tell of their hiking day. Jane and Sherry are hiking together and Jane just hates it and can¢t wait to finish while Sherry loves every minute of it. The fellow, Russ, is an amateur photographer. In the early evening, about 7:30 as we sit by the fire ring talking, Jane starts babbling and pointing as we all look at her to see what the matter is. Quickly we see, about 20 yards away, a large black bear looking at us and sniffing the air. It must weigh 350 lbs. It isn¢t aggressive, and while we are ready to sprint into the cyclone fence protected shelter, we sit there in awe as it just stays there. Russ grabs our cameras from the shelter. Finally after 5 minutes, the big bear decides that since we aren¢t moving that it will amber off. Wow! What a moment. It couldn¢t have been scripted any better. A little while later, we are just settling down in our sleeping bags when Jane shrieks ¢he¢s back again¢. The big bear is right outside the shelter checking out the fire pit for food scraps. He is oblivious to us as we flash lights and take pictures. Finding nothing there, he is off again after a minute. That was a real close up encounter! Too exciting. Unfortunately, the storybook evening is ruined at about 10 PM when a Colorado couple arrive. They loudly stomp into camp, wake us all up and continue talking and making lots of noise until after 11. Dumbshits without any consideration for those in the shelter. Oh well a little rain on otherwise great parade today.SUMMARY SEPTEMBER 10: FONTANA DAM VISITOR¢S CENTER TO SPENCE FIELD SHELTER, 16 MILES, CUMULATIVE 179 MILES.