Date: 2013-03-30
From: Roaring Fork Shelter

To: Hot Springs, NC
Miles today: 18.0

My worst day on the trail. By far. Hated getting up this morning. My tent was soaked with condensation and my bag is damp. Put on freezing socks and shoes. The girls decided they just couldn't do the miles so they planned to hike to a road and hitch out. By the time I'd collected water and got going it was 9:00. Much later than I'd planned. The first few miles was 4-5 inches of slush. My feet got repeatedly soaked and just couldn't get warm. Early into the first of two climbs today I let go of my pole to wipe my face. As it swung forwards on my wrist, it caught a rock and popped me in the face. I felt like I'd been punched. As the tears welled up it all hit me at once. I was miserable. I still had 14 miles to go. Brooke and Danielle are flying home to wait for warmer weather. It's freezing cold. I'm alone. And I'm going to be alone for the foreseeable future. I sat down and had a good cry. Didn't feel any better after though. I went downhill after a while and back up. I was looking for a sign that said Kale Gap which I knew was the start of the second climb but I went up and up with no gap. I begged God to be on the second mountain, that somehow I had missed the gap and didn't have another mountain ahead of me. At one point I started to worry about frostbite. I hadn't been able to feel my feet for hours. I fell over in the snow and it took me a long time to get back up. A few minutes later I fell in the mud. I had no service but I so badly wanted to call someone - anyone - for support.After what felt like an eternity, the trail turned downhill. I jogged/stumbled/slid down the mountain. I didn't have the strength to resist gravity. My feet slid on every step. It was like walking through sand. Eventually the snow ended. I came to a gap and was surprised to see Tennessee Jones. I didn't think I'd catch him. I stopped and ate with him. My mood did a huge turn around when he told me I'd missed the gap and was done with the second mountain. We only had 7 miles left. I hiked with him the rest of the way, and was in surprisingly high spirits considering I'd been in tears earlier. When we got to town there was no service so I couldn't call the girls to see where they were. Went to the bar and had a beer. They had wifi so I got a hold of Brooke. They'd hitched off the mountain. She got a ride to the bar from where they were staying which was as she described "like mile away". We went to another bar because Brooke wanted a drink. There was wifi again so I called family and updated a few things. Tennessee Jones was there with his friend so we sat with them. A couple hours later Tennessee Jones's wife arrived and Danielle and Tori came down. Not long after they arrived, all three girls took off while I talked to the others. They soon left also because they had reserved a time to soak in the hot springs. I was hoping to have time for that too but I'm so fed up with everything it's not going to happen. I sat the bar for over two hours waiting for the girls to come back. They still had a pitcher of beer and an open tab so I knew they hadn't gone back to wherever they were staying, and I was supposed to stay with them anyways. I was finally able to contact Brooke. She'd gotten mad and went back to the house. She finally texted me directions how to get there. It was after 12 when I left the bar. It started raining as I walked. I had use my head lamp because it was pitch black. After an 18 mile day in the snow, walking to an unknown destination at 12 in the rain is the last thing I wanted to be doing. Someone stopped and offered me a ride. I took it, and thankfully the place was right around the corner. Danielle and Tori are here. Apparently they ditched the tab, and me. It was almost 1 by the time I got here. The California boys are here as well. I took a shower and set up on the floor because there's 7 of us and only 2 beds. I'm exhausted. No one is in bed but me. I don't know if I'll be able to sleep with all the light and noise. I'm ready to leave here.