Date: 2010-11-13
From: Unicoi Gap, GA

To: Helen, GA
Miles today: 0.0

I¢m in Helen GA at the library and now have access to a computer and high speed internet. So¢¦ there¢s a lot of catchup with this report:Milestones:Passed NC-GA state line a few days agoBroke the 100 miles to Springer milestoneNC-TN state report ¢ since I couldn¢t really tell whether I was in TN or NC during a lot of the recent hiking, I¢ve decided to provide a joint state hiking report. The fall hiking season in this area has been gorgeous. Because of a dry summer, the fall foliage has not been as spectacular as normal; regardless it was pretty good for me. I really enjoyed my stay at the Overmountain Shelter and my night at Max Patch has to been one of my best. The Great Smoky Mountain National Park was fabulous. And I enjoyed Fontana and the NOC> I did get a real snow fall, probably 4¢ at Sassafras Gap Shelter. The trails were well maintained and despite the early lack of switchbacks in TN, future trails were well placed as I proceeded SOBO.   I didn¢t get to see as much of Hot Springs ,NC, as I would have liked and if I ever do decide to come back to the AT, Hot Springs will be #1 on my to-do list. And I must say thanks again to St Thomas; because my hike certainly would have been significantly more challenging without his assistance.Ol¢ Faithful ¢ has really been a non-issue since getting back on the trail. However, my primary care physician received my medical treatment report and wants to see me when I get back home.Siler(s) Bald Shelter ¢ there was a Siler and a Silers Bald Shelter on the AT which I wanted to stay overnight. However, circumstances were such that I passed both these shelters. I wanted to stay there for my good friend from high school, Bull Moose, who passed away suddenly last year. So here¢s to you Bull, as well as Donna (Sue), Martha Jean and Joe Ben.Photos note: Mrs P&B is my photo editor and does a great job of posting my images. Typically, there is a month lag from the time I capture an image, until it is posted. P&B has no real instructions from me, she reviews all the images and then posts on average 4 or 5 a day of the ones that she likes. Sometimes, she is unsure of the image and the caption will have a number of question marks. Then when I get high speed internet access, I¢ll review the captions, add names and then address the questions. During a recent lag, there was an image of an apple press, powered by a human operating a recumbent bicycle, as correctly identified by a loyal reader.Also, a reader from Media, PA, accurately notes that I¢ve been spending a good number of nights in a bed lately. This is planned. Its like the rehab for astronauts, particularly those on long-duration space station missions, when they return to Earth¢s 1-g environment, after spending time in orbit in near 0-g. So to avoid the ¢cold turkey¢ effects from sleeping in the woods to a nice comfy bed, I¢ve taken the opportunity to gradually adjust to my future comforts.I¢m going to enjoy the tourist sites here in Helen. Looks like they have plenty here. Hope I don¢t OD on the German brewskies. Then I hit the trail again tomorrow for hopefully a leisure hike to Springer. Wx forecast has rain projected for the early parts. Life is Great!