Date: 2017-12-10
From: Walnut Mountain Shelter

To: Roaring Fork Shelter
Miles today: 4.8
Weather: light snow

I took a short day so I could start later, when I was warmer. The sun was out, which helped. The snow was anywhere from 2-14 inches deep, and it was sometimes hard to tell what was a snowdrift and what was a rock or log or stairs.Emotionally, I felt a lot better once I got walking, and I could even feel my feet in my frozen boots after a mile or two. I might skip the Smokies and come back after Springer. Hopefully there won't be a foot of snow on the ground by then.I saw lots more coyote tracks today- more than deer.This shelter is so much nice than the last one. It actually keeps the wind out!It is too cold to write much. My fingers go numb so fast.(I did type a bunch in my phone later in the evening, warm in my sleeping bag. Mostly just random thoughts that I would have written in my physical journal if I wanted my fingers to be cold.)Bottled happiness= hot water in a nalgene in my sleeping bag. This is so amazing why have I not been doing it for the last month. Yes, it uses a lot of fuel but I don't care.If I don't find anyone to tackle the smokies with OR the weather doesn't clear up, I will skip around and do them later, around Christmas, or if more snow like this comes in then I'll have to do them in the spring and Greg can come along. I just don't have the gear for extended periods like this. I can do cold, I can do some snow. I can't do snow above my boots and temperatures not getting above freezing for days in a row.I'm learning how to do this. I want waterproof gaiters. Or snow pants. Or both.Is there a lot of snow like this on the PCT?I was miserable this morning, but then I started walking and everything was okay. I need to remember that for tomorrow. And tomorrow will be even warmer! Walking makes me happy, even if I don't know that it will at the time.Seriously though, this hot nalgene is magical. I've been carrying some hot hands since Damascus and treating them like a powerful potion or scroll in a video game- never using them "in case I need them later." Dumbass, you can buy more later. Use them tomorrow morning and be happy enough to push to Standing Bear.It is six and dark out. Only 11 days until the days start to get longer! Or maybe 12. I have no idea.I just heard noise and it was a mouse in my pack where it was hanging on pegs on the wall. I moved my pack to a mouse trapeze where it will be safer from mice but more likely to fall down and startle me in the middle of the night if there's a breeze. There isn't even anything in there that a mouse would want, but I'd rather it didn't poop in there or chew on the straps or anything.I also gave the mouse my standard speech about how I'm totally fine with sharing the shelter with it, but if it messes with my stuff I will MURDER IT WITH MY SHOE. I added on that I know several coyotes and would happily feed it to them. The mouse doesn't have to know I was lying about that last part.I need to boil water in a nalgene every night. It takes this whole thing from being a sufficient temperature for sleep to being truly cozy. This whole adventure is mental for me, and being cold all the time is demoralizing. Being cozy is a morale boost. I wonder how much of the night this thing will stay that hot for...