Date: 2016-04-05
From: Nantahala Outdoor Center

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 70.0
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 14 (Friday) was by far the toughest day of hiking so far. While taking a zero at the NOC was great, hiking out of it was a nightmare since you go from an elevation of 1749 to 5062 ??. Raudir and I headed out around 8:45am and while it wasn't raining it was extremely humid and foggy. Within the first 30 minutes of our hike we were drenched in sweat and I stayed like that the rest of the day. Once we got to the highest point of the day at Cheoah Bald we weren't done yet as there were several more PUDs before getting to "Jacob's Ladder" which was a pretty rough climb, especially at the end of the day. In total we hiked 15.5 miles that day and stayed at the Brown Fork Gap Shelter. We entered a new bubble and met about 8 new hikers, two of the boys had graduated high school early just to thru-hike the AT. However they plan on going home to attend prom, teenagers haha. Saturday on the other hand was a breeze, we reached the Fontana Dam Shelter (ie the "Hilton") by 2pm. There was a man giving away ice cold Mountain Dews and I just drank the soda while stretching in the grass under the sun. We had a little hiker party that night since the shelter accommodates 20 hikers plus those that camped around it. Seriously the shelter was amazing, there was easily accessible water, a solar paneled charging station, a patio with an amazing view of the water and bathrooms with... Showers!! Sunday we had perfect hiking weather, cold and sunny. Our little 4 person group consisting of myself, Raudir, Sweeper and Caboose (a father and daughter from Maine) entered the Great Smoky Mountains and hiked 17.3 miles to Spence Field Shelter. We had planned on hiking 13.9 miles to Russell Field Shelter but shortly after arriving there a woman told us her friend resting in the shelter was sick and would be assisted out of the mountains the next day... That was all the motivation needed to push on. Oh and while it stunk having to pay $20 for a permit to hike in the Smokies I will say the shelters are quite nice. All of them have bear cables, most have privy's and some of the shelters even have fireplaces!Monday was another rough day and what made it more challenging was that I was dehydrated. I hadn't drank enough water the day before and continuing to hike at such a high elevation under the sun was killer. When we finally made it to Double Spring Gap Shelter I made sure to drink plenty of water and added an electrolyte drink mix. All of us were running quite low on food and rather than have a short day the following day we decided to make it a bit longer to get to the gap where we could hitch a ride in to Gatlinburg. Knowing we would be able to resupply the next day meant that we could eat two dinners!! First I had one of those bagged hiker meals (veggie burrito bowl flavored) that a nice section hiker (thanks Alison!) gave to me, then I made a pack of nacho cheese instant mashed potatoes and finally a butterfinger for dessert. While making dinner a fellow hiker had a stove malfunction. The whole thing lit up and ended up burning through his entire supply of fuel before going out, that was our entertainment for the night (don't worry no one was hurt).Tuesday we were on the trail by 7am hoping to make it to Newfound Gap by lunch time. We hiked at a solid pace and were at the top of Clingmans Dome by 8:30am and man was the view something to behold. At an elevation of 6655 feet it is the highest point of the entire Appalachian Trail! Another fun milestone for the day was shortly after we hit 200 miles on the trail ??. We got to the gap at noon and had trail magic waiting for us from a local church group. In addition to giving us snacks and drinks they also gave us a ride in to Gatlinburg, TN which is 15 miles from the trail. Gatlinburg was referenced as a "tourist mecca" in our guide books and after arriving all I can say is wow. In addition to all of the restaurants, stores and distilleries (moonshine) you seriously can't go a block without a place enticing you to have your pictures taken (with a time warp back in the Western days) or get hitched. This place has to be one of the weirdest cities I have ever visited. The worst part however wasn't the crowds or the sensory overload but that the closest grocery store for a good resupply was 3.6 miles away. I know because we walked there with the encouragement from the locals saying it's just another mile or just around the corner... Obviously no one in this dang city walks. To be fair though we enjoyed the food scene as we had Five Guys for lunch and Mellow Mushroom for dinner. Now it's 11pm and I am exhausted, waking up early tomorrow to get back on the trail!