Date: 2014-05-16
From: bobblets gap shelter

To: cornelius creek shelter
Miles today: 18.4
Weather: moderate rain

Waking up cold is one thing but waking up cold and having to pack up everything wet is another. i dragged my soggy feet as long as i could till it was time i absolutely had to get going. i normally wait for my hot chocolate and oatmeal to cool off before eating them, oh no, not today, they both went down boiling hot to raise my core temp to 94 degrees. my hope was to get going and hopefully be able to dry things tonight. the sun was coming out and the sky was blue so off we went down the trail. we crossed the blue ridge parkway a couple times early at overlooks with nice views but paralleling the road can be difficult when you could call a taxi and go get a cup of coffee! early on we were walking thru blooming laurel and wild azalea. the laurel is beautiful finally blooming and the azalea smells as good as any flower i have ever smelled. you smell it long before you see it and sometimes you cant find the plant but still smell it. bubba caught up to us when we took a break at the first shelter. with only eighteen miles for the day we were in no hurry so skipping a shelter and snack break just seemed rude. we would all walk together the rest of the day. with a long decline down to jennings creek the would be obviously a climb up to fork mt of about a thousand feet. it was a pretty strenuous climb but we scooted right up it and just like we thought we went right down the other side to bryant ridge shelter. this was probly the nicest shelter we have seen the whole trail. she was post and beam construction with plexable glass windows and an upstairs for extra campers. there was a nice covered porch with a picnic table so you could sit there even in bad weather. this was a bonafide shelter that made us almost want to stay there, especially since to get to our final destination there was an 1800 ft climb in the way. we moved on and it really wasnt as bad as it looked on the guide. we clumb back up to open hardwood forest with nice green undergrowth, mostly ferns here. there are still a few trillium hanging on and some other spring flowers blooming. as we got up to cornelius creek shelter we found a bunch of nice spots for tents which made us all happy, especially me so i could dry my tent and all my wet clothes. i whipped up my tent first then tied a clothes line and hung my stuff to dry. then a nice dinner and a campfire. we dont usually put the effort into a fire even tho everyone enjoys them. most of the time at the shelters people have scrounged all the firewood laying around so you really have to go far to find anything good to burn. things dried quickly but it was clear so it would be one more chilly evening for me. thankfully i have been eating well so i havent lost too much weight, im still insulated fairly well. i put on the same thing as the night before adding my hat and gloves, i forgot i had them the night before. glad there would be no river under my tent. i was making lemonade and thinking about getting to glasgow and getting a delivery of warm gear back. this night would make me never want to sleep out in 40 degree temp with just a silk liner over me. i fell asleep thinking about the warm sunshine i was out in all day making tonight mind over matter. at least my brain was warm, warmish. still there is no place i would rather be than on the appalachian trail