Date: 2016-04-10
From: Newfound Gap

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 67.1
Weather: overcast clouds

Day 19 on the trail (Wednesday, April 6) we woke up early and enjoyed the hotels continental breakfast before heading to the NOC store to get a ride back to Newfound Gap. When we got back to the trail everyone hiked at their own pace. Coming out of town is always rough mainly because you're carrying 6-10lbs more food than you were coming in. It was a cold, windy day which was fine while hiking but freezing once you slowed down. Fortunately I was able to get a spot in the Tri-Corner Knob Shelter and they had a fire going. What really made it cozy was that we fit at least 26 people on the ledges and floor of the shelter that was supposed to fit 12, that's how cold it was. Thursday I finally got out of my toasty sleeping bag at 6:45am and braved the cold to go pee (I'd been holding it for at least 4 hours). When I pulled back the tarp a winter wonderland was before me. There was a layer of snow at least 2-3 inches thick over everything! It was cold while getting up and going but when I started hiking it was wonderful. The sun was above me and a gorgeous snow covered wilderness all around me. I hiked at a fast pace and made it to Davenport Gap Shelter by 3pm and was surprised to see that the exposed side of the three walled shelter had a metal chain link fence (for bears) making it feel like a cage. Friday we finally left the Smoky Mountains, they are a beautiful mountain range but having to stay at shelters really limits you mileage flexibility and makes for much more crowded sites. I wasn't ready for the challenge of that days journey. Not only was it my new biggest mileage day at 18.7 miles but it included hiking up Snowbird Mountain and Max Patch Summit. The mistake I made was stripping down to my short sleeve wool shirt when initially hiking up to avoid sweating through my fleece only to soon find myself surrounded by snow and cold, windy weather. Being the stubborn person I am I decided to just keep hiking and ended up burning a lot of energy trying to stay warm leaving me quite exhausted by mile 12 or so. Before the final ascent of the day I was blessed with trail magic by a woman who was waiting to pick up her husband who is also thru-hiking. She had an amazing spread of sodas, donuts, cookies, string cheese, bananas and Pringles!! She turned my day right around and I was able to keep going with much more spunk and make it to Roaring Fork Shelter before it started snowing. Saturday I woke up to more snow but it had lost it's luster after being the third day in a row and I just really wanted to be warm. The best part of the day was hitting Garenflo Gap about 12 miles in to the day around lunch time and finding more trail magic. A father and daughter from Atlanta, GA who had completed their thru-hike in 2014 were giving out hot dogs, snacks and Sweet Water beer! After gorging myself I managed to hike another 3.4 miles to Deer Park Mountain Shelter. Today I arrived in Hot Springs, NC a town the trail goes straight through and plan on spending the rest of the day doing errands. Tomorrow however will be my first full zero mile day when I can completely relax, I'll also be enjoying the hot springs!