Date: 2004-05-02
From: Mt Collins Shelter

To: Spence Field Shelter
Miles today: 19.8
Weather: heavy intensity rain

Clingmans Dome5PM, 5/5 - Cheoah Bald(I am 4 days behind in my journaling, so this may be brief.)Today (5/2) started off much like yesterday, a heavy mist that got you just as wet as a light rain, with a visibility of about 250'. I set off with not much expectations for the high point of the day, Clingmans Dome. I think of the AT as being characterized by 4 peaks. There are Springer Mtn in GA and Mt Katahdin in ME at the ends of the Trail. Then there are Clingmans Dome in NC, the highest point on the Trail and Mt Washington in NH, the highest point on the Trail in the north.Clingmans Dome features an observation tower from which you can probably see mountains in NC, TN, GA, KY and VA, and maybe even SC, AL and WV. But not today. Standing at the bottom of the entrance ramp to the tower, I could barely see the tower itself, about 100' away and looming about 50' overhead.I walked away feeling a bit disappointed with the Smokies so far. Two of its most famous viewing points, Charlies Bunion and Clingmans Dome had been completely socked in. I was even disappointed with the Trail, which had not been too tough so far. "How can you climb the highest mountains in the East without having the trail kick your butt at least once?", I thought. That is the kind of hubris that the Fates love to answer. And they had their answer for me by the end of the day.As I was descending Clingman, the wind picked up and actual rain started to fall, quite hard at times. In fact the most exciting part of the Smokies for me was being buffeted by the wind and rain as I crossed a bare patch just below the Clingman summit.By noon the rain had become torrential, and the trench that is the AT in the Smokies showed its true character. On slopes it was a running stream 1" to 2" deep. Where it was level it was a puddle 6" deep and 3' wide and many yards long. Not only were my shoes and socks soaked, but so were everything I had on and much I had in my pack as well.Amidst all this water I realized I was running low on drinking water. So I pulled in to a shelter to get out of the downpour and to replenish my water at the shelter spring.Imagine my surprise when I was greeted by someone saying they were about to start a worship service and inviting me to participate. I declined as politely as I could, somewhat taken aback by a religious use of a government facility, and somewhat put out that I couldn't do what is normal at a shelter stop, relax a bit.As inobtrusively as I could I set out my water treatment kit, went to the spring for water, and waited quietly while the treatment took effect. While waiting, I couldn't help hearing the service, including some statements I quite disagree with. I barely kept my silence, waited until the end of the service to gulp a handful of GORP for lunch, and hastily departed.By the time I reached the shelter one short of my goal for the day, the rain had abated somewhat, but I was exhausted since I hadn't eaten much all day because I was slogging through the rain. After a high-calorie snack of a couple of candy bars dipped in peanut butter, I was beginning to feel better. When a young man came in to the shelter from the south saying that the Trail was essentially all downhill to the next shelter, I decided to push on.Now, I knew that it could not be all downhill, since the next shelter was 100' higher than the shelter we were in. Furthmore by looking at the Handbook, I saw that there was a high mountain near the next shelter, about 700' higher than where we were. But the young man semed quite sincere, and I (arrogantly) figured that the climb up the mountain would be the same gentle climb that I had seen for other mountains in the Smokies.WRONG! I should have been on my guard when the Trail started out going DOWN. Any time you need to climb a mountain and you are going DOWN, you know that you will need to go the same amount UP later on. Well, I did. In fact there were two tough, long climbs before the next shelter, among the toughest on my hike so far. Moreover, the rain had started again, so I had to do them while they were slippery with rain. And when I finally got to the top I didn't know where I was. Only later did I learn that I had climbed over Rocky Top, the highest point in TN, and the topic of a song of the same name that is almost a patriotic song for most Tennesseeans. Fates, you sure had your pleasure with me today!However, I definitely plan to come back to the Smokies someday soon, but when it's not raining.Hikers met today:Chris & Nikki; Mary & John; Jigsaw; Jaybird; Arnie; Mainiac; Allegheny; Dolphin; Greybeard; Brian; ScottMilestones:Today I passed the 700 mi mark in my walk.See you on down the Trail