Date: 2014-04-01
From: Mollies Ridge Shelter

To: Derrick Knob Shelter
Miles today: 12.0
Weather: few clouds

4/1/14 Derrick Knob(I have not been timely with my blogs due to lack of good chance to recharge batteries and lack of data signal.)Broke camp at Mollie Creek Shelter about 10 am after a hot breakfast of oatmeal and coffee. Long Bow and I hit trail about the same time. Eventually he left me on the hills but I passed him at his rest break. It was afternoon before he passed me again so I mostly hiked alone.Among those in camp whom I have been seeing often are Jo Cool, Forest, B-Man, Long Bow, and Lobsta. It rained about 1 minute at night and stayed above freezing. Today was the warmest day of hiking I have had.My legs and lungs started out strong, but with the wearing on of the day and getting back above 5000 feet, I had to do more frequent rest breaks on the hills. This makes the 8th day in row I have seen snow and/or walked in snow. Snow is better than mud for walking as long as it is not too much. I can't image how difficult it may have been just 2 days ago in Smokies due to the amount of snow. Down side is the melting snow drains onto trail that becomes mushy mud or a small running stream. Had fun splashing through those streams today. And the mud is more manageable than farther south because has gravel and other things beneath it as opposed to two inches of mud on top of layer of clay. Up side of snow banks along the way is supply of fresh cold water. Just reach down and grab a hand full after scraping leaf debris off top layer. Snow and Nutella treat of the day. [My Grandson Elijah would have loved eating snow and Grandson Angelo would have loved splashing in the mini creek. ]I surprised a wood thrush in the trail or she surprised me. I waited to get a better view as she hid in a rhododendron bush just like in my Ray Harm print I have hanging on wall at home. I continued to see Dark-eyed Juncos who were ignoring me as they engaged in their spring mating rituals.Jo cool, big b and forest are traveling together at this time. They passed me an hour after I started but I caught up with them at Rocky Top. I thought later it made the experience more special for me to share with the others. We spent several minutes just talking about the awesomeness of the view. We picked out landmarks such as Clingman's dome¢the tallest peak which was also snow covered. A couple out day-hiking from upper peninsula of Michigan also shared the view. As they were asking me about my thru hiking experience, I shared that the random people like them I encountered out in the wilderness was part of what made my hike special.Part of my hike today retraced the path of my son Jeremy and his Boy Scout troop in Oct of 2000. My wife of nearly 30 years, Wilma had just passed from cancer a few days before. I helped drive the troop down to Cades Cove but didn't feel up to undertaking the backcountry adventure with them. Today, I got to expericene first hand the beautiful sights and tough hiking the Troop had told me about nearly 14 years ago. My, how time flies.Wilma and our family used to take a vacation in Great Smoky Mountain National Park every year. During her struggle with cancer we made a trip to Cades Cove where she found healing of her soul by watching and listening to the stream that tumbled over the rocks and boulders at the picnic ground. So this revisit to the Cade¢s Cove area with the scouts gave me the opportunity to spend time alone seeking healing of my grieving heart. It was a place to reconnect with Wilma in spirit. The intersection of these memories with my location in the hike today made me feel that Wilma's spirit was again with me. I have believed her prayers have been supporting me all along the way, but today I sensed a special connection.I arrived at my shelter tonight after almost 9 hours hiking the 12 miles. Since the shelter is nearly full of backpackers doing short hikes most of us thru-hikers scattered around the hillside in our tents. The weather is so nice I am tempted to just lay out without a tent tonight but put it up anyway. Cool and the Gang--as I have dubbed the threesome of Jo Cool, Forest, and B-Man¢actually did sleep out under the stars. I listened from my tent as they talked aloud about the constellations and later B-Man related his first long hike on the A.T. Seems that the story of the Battle of Gettysburg sparked an idea for him to hike into the Gettysburg Battlefield Memorial ground from Georgia to experience first hand what it may have been like to walk there during the Civil War.