Date: 2004-03-07
From: Dicks Creek Gap,Hiawassee,GA

To: Muskrat Creek Shelter
Miles today: 12.4
Weather: clear sky

Day 8, March 7, 2004Where to start...hmm lets see. brrr.... It¢s sleeting outside right now, I will come back to that shortly. It was on my mind so I thought I would go ahead and put that on the table¢¦ Woke up at 9 at the hotel. Had a little mixup with transportation. When I was paying for the room I asked the lady about rides back to the trail in the morning. She said that there is a guy that will do it for $10 per person at 8am. That sounded good at the time but after dinner I had decided that $10 was too high of a price, and, 8 was too early of a time. Figured I might as well enjoy myself and sleep in a bit. So after dinner I told the lady who was working the hotel that Nails and I had changed our mind. She said ok, and that she would notify the ride of the changes. Well at 8 I got a knock on my door. It was the ride that I had canceled... I had to politely explain the situation, he did not say anything, and walked away. Then at 9, I got another knock. This time it was his wife. She was pissed! She said that her husband had come out earlier and that the trip out was wasting gas money, and all this other stuff. I felt so bad, but before I could say anything she said "God bless you" and she turned her walker and quickly walked away. After that I crawled back to bed to watch the weather channel for the next 50min. When I went to meet Nails she said that the lady running the motel said that she saw 4 people come out of my room and they did not pay for the nights stay. Then the lady mumbled that it could have been the room next to mine. I think the world is turning against me :-) Let¢s just say I was happy to be on the trail again.... ¢¦Had to stop writing for a few minutes to let me hands warm up¢¦We were hitching outside the motel for 2 minutes when a friend of Nails who lives in town stopped and offered to give us a ride. Got to the trail head at about 10:30. It was nice to sleep in (ha ha) but I still had to 10 miles left to hike. Stopped for lunch at Plum Orchard Gap Shelter, and was then headed on my way. We did a lot of hill climbing today. Nails was a little slower on the climbs so most of the day I hiked alone. Thought a lot about all the stuff I have at home and don¢t use, and how I¢m always buying new things. Whereas out here on the trail, I carry all the stuff I need on my back...A high wind gust just knocked a very large branch / tree crashing to the ground. Yeah, there is a high wind advisory tonight according to Alex the thru-hiker. Was sure to check above for any large dead branches (also known as widow makers) before setting up the tarp. ... warming up hands again... Got to camp later than I wanted, but that¢s the price for sleeping in. Just as soon as I started setting up my tarp it begins to sprinkle. The weather channel said nothing about that! As soon as it was set up I crawled under it and ate 2 packets of raw Ramen Noodles. Surprisingly filling, but not stuffed. Drank some water and waited for the noodles to expand :-)   This might sound really gross, but the next chance you have to eat Ramen try it raw. That¢s my challenge to you. This has 3 advantages: 1) no clean up, 2) no cook time or equipment needed, 3) has a great taste, something you would not expect. Ran back to the shelter to hang my food bag and sign the shelter register. By this time I can see my breath quite clearly. The temperature had been dropping all afternoon, but now it was really cold. On the way back to the tent I noticed that the rain had switched over to sleet. I knew it was going to be cold but the wind advisory at high elevations, and sleet was a completely unwelcome surprise. Plan to get an early start around 6:30 and maybe see a cool sunrise, if I can rouse my toasty bum out of the sleeping bag of warmth to the frosty air. Its 8:30 and today has been a busy day, so I¢m gonna hunker down and hope that the tarp stays staked, and try to avoid these artic winds. Brrrr, its not all that bad, you get used to it after a while. Have to make a very quick bathroom run... this is so unfair....