Date: 2013-10-27
From: Four Pines Hostel

To: Niday Shelter
Miles today: 16.8
Weather: scattered clouds

I got a relatively late start from the hostel this morning, leaving about 8:30. I had waited until about 7 before getting up, not wanting to wake up the other hikers. It was about a mile walk back from the hostel to where the AT crossed the road, and almost immediately the trail began its relentless climb to the top of Cove Mountain. I remembered this section to be a pretty rough, rocky and up and down day. The climb up to Dragon's Tooth was just as rocky and steep as I had remembered. The views from the tooth were excellent, just as I had also remembered. When I arrived at the tooth, there were a number of day hikers and one person who had camped there last night. He said it was windy and cold and his hammock was rocking pretty good as the trees he had tied it to were swaying in the wind. I ended up climbing nearly to the top of the tooth and stayed for quite a while enjoying the view. Back at my pack, after eating second breakfast, I finally headed up the trail about 11:15. The walk along the crest of Cove Mt to Pickle Branch Shelter was rocky and slow going, especially since the trail was pretty much covered up with fallen leaves making it hard to see the smaller rocks. I was frequently stumbling over some smaller rock I hadn't seen hiding in the leaves. However, the lack of leaves in the tree canopy made for better views through the tree tops and off over the neighboring ridges. I ended up walking the half mile down off the AT to the water source at Pickle Branch Shelter because I wasn't sure if I could make the spring at Niday Shelter after having left Dragon's Tooth so late in the morning. There didin't appear to be any other good water sources before Niday Shelter. The spring at Pickle Branch was a nice little creek with lots of small fish swimming around in it. Foot was at the shelter, having arrived just ahead of me from the hostel. He was already settled in to spend the afternoon and night there. After a quick conversation I headed back up to the AT and pushed on southbound. There was a pretty good downhill run to the crossing of Trout Creek near a few homes, then a pretty long and continual uphill to the Audie Murphy monument on the crest of Brush Mountain. I had somehow missed the monument on my '07 hike, so I took the time to stop and visit before heading on. Audie Nurphy was the most decorated soldier in WWII and had died near this spot in a small airplane crash in 1971. The bench at the southern end of the mountain on the fire road looked very familiar, and seemed just as out of place to me this time as it had when I saw it in '07. By the time I finished the long downhill from Brush Mt to the crossing of Craig Creek my feet and ankles were getting sore. The day of rocky ridges had taken a toll. It was also 5:45 with less than an hour of daylight left. I decided to pitch my tent on a small ridge line about a mile short of the shelter, rather than arrive at the shelter after dark and risk disturbing other hikers, if any were there. Overall, it was a much warmer day than yesterday. The high temp I saw was 59, and it was already 45 when I left the hostel. The temps were perfect for hiking and there was little wind most of the day. Another fine fall day on the AT!