Date: 2017-05-25
From: Allen Gap

To: Flint Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 18.0
Weather: light rain

Day 23Thursday, May 25, 2017 Allen Gap (289.2) to Flint Mountain Shelter (307.2)Miles: 18 miles in 10 hours with one longish break to heat up a late lunch2017 AT trip miles: 307.2Total AT miles to date: 1600.5Weather: Overcast a.m./cold clouds/rain showers all afternoonDinner: Broccoli Mac ¢n Cheese, Fig NewtonsHikers: Bear Spray and Loretta, Gazelle, Tin Man, Buttercup, Shane, one was there at shelter tonightWildlife: Four deer on drive to trailhead, two heart-stopping turkeysThe air was decidedly colder when we awoke this morning at the campground in Hot Springs.. But blue skies. At least for now. Kay is heading toward Erwin, TN to wrestle us a USFS campsite first thing this morning where we will now be based. The only immediate problem is that the next road crossing is 20.7 miles distant¢a distance I¢m not comfortable committing even for a slack packing day and especially knowing someone is waiting for me to show up. Too. Much. Pressure. So I will camp tonight and meet her 35 miles up trail, which is closer to the new campground anyway. Thus tonight finds me in rain, ensconced in a very cold shelter with five other hikers all huddled in their bags of down. One woman has yet to make an appearance since I arrived at 6:30. I have both of my long sleeve shirts and a t-shirt on, but not my puffy jacket, which I left behind with Kay¢and will be sending home next week. This is a good test as it is freaking cold. I have been cold all day, but this shall pass.The morning again started out sunny, although cold. I ran into the New Zealand women one more time as they were slacking south back to Hot Springs on this, their last day on the trail. 300 miles was enough and they have more places to visit during their visas.Hiking in the cold was fine until the rain started. My fingers became numb and I had trouble adjusting the bungee cords around the umbrella handle, although I had one heat-inducing moment when two turkeys exploded into flight just a few yards in front of me. And if you know turkeys, that¢s less than an aerodynamic feat. Almost as unexpected as seeing pigs fly. That'll make your heart pound for at least a few minutes.I also stopped to boil a bit of broth and take a real break to warm up at a shelter 6.4 miles away from my final destination. This is the first day that I didn't have time to really study the map as I hiked and instead had a continuous string of podcasts playing for most of the day. I had a new ¢Wait! Wait! Don't Tell Me.¢ episode to hear (and in doing so caught up on some news), the Mother's Day Moth broadcast and several new History Chicks episodes. I learned about the real Alice of Alice in Wonderland, a two-part Marie Curie, and the last four wives of Henry the 8th.  Some where along the line, I blasted right through my 1600 mile mark today.Between the podcasts and the cold, I just kept moving. The rain is taking a toll on people. One guy here in the shelter is talking about leaving the trail and has been pretty negative all night. Thus I write with earphones in place¢a universal sign that I'm in my private zone within this communal space. Kay picked a good week to visit¢at least as far as I'm concerned. Really looking forward to seeing her and her trailer complete with a mattress and firm roof lines, out of the rain.