Date: 2005-05-30
From: Deep Gap 

To: Clyde Smith Shelter 
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: overcast clouds

The road to Damascus - Day 2!I slept very well last night! So well, in fact, that I over slept a bit. Still, I did manage to get rolling by 7:45, and had a shot, or so I thought, at doing an 18 mile day. From my guide book, I figured I should be able to go about 3 miles beyond the Clyde Smith Shelter to a camp site with water listed as Ash Gap. I thought, mistakenly it turned out, that it was the last place to sleep before starting up the famously steep and long climb known locally as "Roan Mountain" some 6,300 ft. high. (Remember yesterday, when I left Erwin, at 1,700 ft?.) Unfortunately, a little mountain called Unaka, started my morning with 1,220 feet of uphill slog over really rocky trails, followed by steep hills down that are murder on my knees and really slow my pace. At lunch time, I went through my pack, especially my food back, and managed to get a few more pounds out of my pack, and I decided that rather than carry four liters of water, I would drop back to three, even though this means stopping at least once a day to pump more water The afternoon hiking section was more favorable, and I arrived at the Smith shelter at about 4PM, thinking I'd take a short break and push on the extra three miles to Ash Gap. That was when I rechecked my map and discovered I'd miscalculated: Ash Gap is NOT the last stop before Roan Mountain - it's half way up the dang thing! And, it turns out that both the map and the trail guide are both over ten years old, and thus out of date with all of the trail relocations that have occurred. It was actually more than four miles, in addition to being over 1,500 ft. of elevation gain. Memo to self: always double check the guidebook stuff and the elevation guide against the Data Book which has at least the most current mileage between key points!!! Oh well. There are at least three section hikers here for company tonight, and I'll use an early day to get my journaling done. I'll also try to get to bed early so I can get an early start in the morning. I really hope I can make up for the five miles I'm short in my hike plan for Damascus. But, as She-who-knows-me-best-but-still-loves-me always says: "It is what it is; it will be what it will be." So true! Today¢s hike is dedicated to another of my favorite gear manufacturers - a small outfit run by a through-hiker named Tin Man. His company is called Anti-gravity Gear, and among other things he made the kitchen set I am now using. The key virtue is the pot cozy, which allows you to bring water to a boil, pour in your evening (dehydrated) meal, stir, put the lid on, put the pot into the cozy, and in seven minutes you have a perfectly cooked, re-hydrated, and ready to eat meal . I can do that with my old titanium pot, except that, by the time the food has finished hydrating, its cold! The pot cozy even works for food that is supposed to be simmered, since it keeps the food above 160 degrees for as much as 20 minutes. It's just one of those "quality of life things out here on the trail. Thanks, Tin Man! Stay tuned, LonghaulSent via PocketMail Email Anywherewww.pocketmail.com