Date: 2012-03-18
From: Big Spring Shelter

To: Siler Bald Shelter
Miles today: 13.3
Weather: clear sky

We got up this morning at 4:00 to the sound of thunder. Oh no. Otto said we would wait it out but after 10 minutes we decided to pack up and head out. If we were going to get wet we might as well be hiking. It's always an adventure on the trail.Today was absolutely amazing. I just can't express just how perfect of a day it was! Maine-iac and I hiked the 9 miles to Winding Stair Gap by 9:00 am. Along the way the trail took a turn and followed in stream for a short while. In the dark it made it seem like we had made a wrong turn somewhere but it was actually the trail. The weather didn't hold out and we got soaked along the way, it poured on us twice but that's just part of the adventure. At one point Maine-iac stopped and said "I think there's a booby-trap." There was an odd contraption in the trees, it looked like it might be some sort of bear bagging experiment. I went to the sign and read out loud "to the AT thru-hikers, congrats..." TRAIL MAGIC! It was a giant box of cake. Cake! We each had a piece of chocolate cake at 6:30 in the morning. Such a wonderful surprise, thank you so much to Gingersnap for leaving the cake. We made it to the gap before 9:00 where some other hikers were waiting. 30 minutes later the shuttle shows up, driven by Ron Haven. He provided a wonderful free shuttle to hikers and also owns several hotels in Franklin. Maine-iac and I were dropped off at the Budget Inn and while deciding our plan of action, Ron Haven offered to drive us to Shoney's which had an AYCE buffet and was near a grocery store and outfitter. Awesome.We went to Shoney's and each had 3 large plates of food. It was interesting to walk into a restaurant with our packs on. We also smelled pretty bad. After food we walked down to the grocery store to resupply. Not more than an hour and a half after our first meal we went to Subway and each had a 6 inch sub. I ordered a foot long but was planning on packing out half for dinner. We walked all the way back up the hill to the outfitter and spent a long time there. I ended up buying some superfeet which are amazing! My feet feel awesome. While at the outfitter, Maine-iac offered to run across the street and grab us some ice cream from Dairy Queen. Yum. Finally we decided to head back to the trail. I went into the outfitter and asked the lady where the best place to get a hitch was. She gave me directions and said if we didn't have a ride in an hour she would take us back to the trail head. Well we never needed to wait, not more then 10 steps out of the door, a man driving a pick up with his family stopped and offered to take us closer to the trail head. Free a quick stop by k-mart he said he would take us all the way there. Magic! Thank you so much to Chris, his wife and his daughter Emma for their generosity. So Maine-iac and I hitched a ride in the back a pick up truck back to the trail head. It felt so nice with the wind blowing on me but the speed was a bit nerve wracking. I haven't gone that fast in almost two weeks.I learned today that it is incredibly hard to hike with a very full stomach. We dragged our feet all the way to Siler Bald Shelter. I ate the last half of my sub and finished the last bit of Maine-iac's Spanish rice that she couldn't finish. There was a group of 6 tenting and Animal showed up and is in the shelter with us. Tomorrow we're only planning to so 6 miles so we can sleep in.