Date: 2017-04-05
From: Allen Gap

To: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles today: 12.1
Weather: few clouds

Today was a mixture of things. I started near the paved road at the campsite with Boo Boo and Tootles, two hikers who have been together for a few days but with seemingly different hiking styles and no commitment for hiking together long term. I was up before daylight to eat and pack up. I left to start a nice hike alone in the early morning woods. A couple of miles that were not remote and skirted private property as you could see driveways up into some hollow and sometimes a glimpse of the place, or hearing the roosters crowing and the hound dogs upset by some sound. There was a big climb up Camp Creek Bald and then down to Blackstack Cliffs. At Bearwallow Gap a sign presented a choice. Take the real AT or a "bad weather bypass" trail for the next 1 1/2 miles. The bypass sign said EXPOSED RIDGELINE TRAIL - ROCKY AND STRENUOUS. So everyone took the real AT (it turns out) to see the exposed ridgeline - Big Firescald Knob. Well we weren't disappointed. Bad weather likely could include ice and snow or lightening. We had very high winds with a few raindrops mixed in but not fully raining at that point. I did hear distant thunder but nothing close by, all the way through. Honestly, real hikers don't take the bypass very often. So, you turn a corner and start climbing stacked boulders up 20 - 30 feet, then back down the same. Twisting and turning up and down so I'm thinking this is kind of an exposed ridgeline but not too bad. There were high winds but kind of above me and they sounded strong and angry but not directly hitting me. Yet. As this went on I thought OK I can do this. But it turns out what I was doing was just getting to the exposed ridgeline. When I got to the real stuff I knew it. Suddenly naked exposed boulders and stacks of rocks. Sometimes I had to study them, even with white blazes painted on them to show the way, just to figure out how to go. Often they were completely exposed rock and other times there were bushes and brambles trying to get a foothold. The wind was like a hurricane force. I held my cap in my hand and braced for balance. I prayed for safety and made sure to get the right foot placements and not hurry. 1 1/2 miles is a long way in such conditions. Once or twice there were swirling raindrops mixed in and the thunder felt a little closer but it did not come near me. I saw no lightening flashes the whole way. The views off to the other ridges were beautiful in the gray, clouded-over light. The clouds were high clouds, not surrounding me with mist like in the Smokys - great colors. It was the talk of the hikers at the shelter tonight. I was tired when I got to Jerry Cabin shelter. I had hoped to hike on but the next shelter is 6.4 miles ahead. Our weather apps said the heavy rain should start right then and there were no tent sites shown until that shelter. I decided 6.4 miles was too far to start that time of day and the rest of the hikers decided likewise as they came in. I was trying to go further both to cover the distance to Erwin, TN over the next few days and to get a head start on tomorrow with a tough section coming up. But we take it as it comes. It seems that the weather forecast is about exactly 24 hours off. That makes planning hard. Hardly any phone reception so no contact with Marlene today. I wonder if that will be better tomorrow. Goodnight Sweetheart.