Date: 2009-03-23
From: Hike Inn

To: Russel Field Shelter
Miles today: 13.5
Weather: overcast clouds

My trail name is Nice LensesWe got dropped at the Fontana Dam and began walking across the Dam at 8:30, it was 40 degrees. The damn was interesting and it took a little while to cross it.We are now in The Great Smokey Mountain National Park, the most often visited national park in the country, 10-11 million people per year. Way more rules and regulations to deal with while in the park. You must use the shelters. If the shelter is full you must camp in sight of the shelter. There ar four spots reserved in the shelter for thru hikers. The rest of the spots are for hikers who must have a reservation for a particular shelter on a particular night. If you are the fifth thru hiker to get to a shelter and the hikers with reservations show up you must surrender your spot to the other hiker if the shelter is full. This puts a lot more planning into the hiking process. How many thru hikers ahead of you who will not hike as far as you, how many thru hikers at your shelter who will go the same distance as you...are they faster? How many really fast hikers behind you likely to get to the same shelter as you. No guarantee on shelter space. We have tents but it is so much faster to get out in the morning if you don't have to pack a tent. This will be interesting.Lefty and I were hiking together until I had to stop and adjust my sock. I was getting a hot spot and didn't want a blister. Now I was hiking by myself which I also enjoy. Suddenly, I was shocked out of my reverie by a loud howelly growelly bellow a short distance behind me. What the heck was that! I didn't go back to investigate since bear and wild hogs were in the area and I wasn't sure I wanted an encounter with either. Well I was sure I did but not brave enough to actually go back, what a sissy, at least my shorts were still clean.I caught up with Lefty in a lttle while and he had not heard the noise. We continued on together to Shuckstack Mountain which has a fire tower .2 mile off the AT. I went to the tower, Lefty continued on. 91 steps up to the top. While at the tower, Tech-La showed up. He was the next hiker through the area where I heard the noise. he saw three wild pigs and got some video and pictures that he showed me. We determined that it was those pigs that had crossed the trail, caught my scent and roared their displeasure at me for being there. Cheeese, you'd think I was going to Huff and Puff (actually I was climbing so I was huffing and puffing) and blow their house down or something. Mystery solved.Lefty was at the first shelter and planning to stay there for the night. I decided to move on to the next shelter as I knew the storm was a couple days away and I was trying to get to Clingmans Dome for some pre storm pictures. This is the highest point on the trail. I hated to leave Lefty after traveling with him for a lot of days but I had to, as they say, hike my own hike. I figure I will see him again fairly soon anyway.I got to Russel Field Shelter first so I knew I was going to have shelter space. This was the first shelter I had seen that had a protective heavy guage cyclone fence across the front of the shelter for bear protection. A sobering sight to be sure. The shelter filled and everyone sorted out who was in and who was tenting. There were three tents in the area when all was said and done. Very dark in the shelter. Not sure what the fence was for since no one closed it all night.Fixed dinner and did my chores and was ready for bed. Day hiker Greg Hooper and his son Alexander, 8th grade, I think, made dinner from a can of chili, package of hot dogs and a bag of buns, fresh, soft, hot dog buns. Sadly, they could not eat it all so scored a chili dog for a bed time snack. Special thank you to the Hoopers...Yummy.The camp fire was going strong when I went to bed.See you on the trail.John