Date: 2008-04-17
From: Tri-Corner Knob Shelter

To: Standing Bear Hostel
Miles today: 18.1
Weather: clear sky

=== COMPUTER UPDATE ===Just a quick update...I'll do my full journal updates in a couple days in Hot Springs, NC...this is just to say that I'm still alive and I've just completed the 70 mile traverse of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.It was pretty crazy...we had a night where it went down into the single digits? Insane...hiking through ice/snow/slush most of the time. But after it cleared it was beautiful, probably the most beautiful hiking of the entire trip so far.I'm in a pretty amazing place called the Standing Bear Hostel...it's just 200 yards off the A.T...it's this quaint little cottage nestled into the woods...there's a little shack for the computer (where I am), one for showers, one with our bunks, one with laundry, one with a full kitchen...then a stream running through the whole thing. It's very idyllic.There's a store here, and here's how it works...you go in and take what you want, and drop the money for the stuff in a box. That's it. It's on the honor system. Uncommon to see stuff like that nowadays. There are also a lot of people staying here and working instead of paying for their bunk. The owners are incredibly laid back. I bought a few days of groceries and stayed one night, I totaled it up as $50, a pretty good deal.My feet are sore from hiking with wet socks/shoes the past week...plus the legs are feeling it, maybe more than ever. I think I need a stretching regimen.Gonna try to do 15-20 miles today, so I should probably get going, it's about 9:30am.Thanks for all your notes, keep leaving your messages in the guestbook, they really help.====== PAPER JOURNAL UPDATE =======Another fine day, weather-wise, plus the trail was mostly downhill. Very nice scenery descending from the Smokies...spring always asserts itself more at the lower elevations.I was making better time today than perhaps ever before...about 13 miles by noon. Then I hit a wall again at around 15 miles...I don't understand why this happens...it's not a gradual decline but an abrupt drop in energy...my feet hurt and my legs hurt and my body just feels tired, plus I got a bit nauseous...I thought I would do more like 25 today but instead I rolled into the Standing Bear hostel knowing I could go no further. This is a private hostel right on the A.T. (well, 400 yards away from it). It is so cool...it's a little cottage in the middle of the woods with a stream running right through it. They have a store and do everything on the honor system. It's almost unbelievable in this day and age. You just go into the store, take what you want off the shelves and refrigerators, and pay later. Same for the bunks, you just plop your stuff down wherever...I haven't paid a dime yet. They have a guitar you can use, a full kitchen, they started a fire and we played songs...it was fun.I would highly recommend this place to any hiker.I met a guy named Matthewski today - he is the kind of person I disliked instantly, then slowly liked more as time went on. He is obnoxious, offensive, insulting, and very intelligent and funny. It's a strange combination but I found myself almost crying laughing at him for no good reason. He's actually quite fun to have around. He named me "A.E.G" because he says those are the only chords I play on the guitar.All in all, a good day.