Date: 2015-03-23
From: Stealth camping near Spanish Oak Gap

To: Walnut Mountain Shelter
Miles today: 17.0
Weather: few clouds

Another big day. It had rained the previous night but the skies had cleared by morning. It was a sunny, pleasant day which meant we had to put in as many miles as possible to take full advantage of the nice weather.We left very early again, beginning our hike in the dark. While I would not enjoy a long night hike, I do appreciate the 30 minutes or so in the early morning as the first of the sun's rays timdily pierce through the receeding darkness.Nothing was too outstanding terrain-wise until we arrived at Mack's Patch, more commonly called "Max Patch" a homophone that has replaced the original name. The site used to be an old homestead and logging camp. The forests were cleared by early inhabitants to create a grazing area for sheep and cattle. The bald is now maintained by the use of mowers and controlled fires. Small planes have even used the area as a landing strip.The summit is 4,629' high and offers a great panoramic view of the surrounding land, including the Smokies. One of the best places thus far and quite remarquable just to imagine these settlers clearing out all the forest. A monumental task.The rest of the terrain was relatively easy and we were motivated to reach Lemon Gap as there were rumours that Fresh Ground, the archangel of trail magic was there. With our music blasting we RAN there at an incredible speed (like 2.9 mph!!!)The Leap Frog Cafe was indeed there and Fresh Ground, as always, was bursting with energy; his good mood is extremely contagious. He had homemade rice and chicken, French fries, hot dogs and little cakes. It was nice since there weren't that many people so we had a great time talking to Fresh Ground. I must have been tired because I was doubled over in laughter when he was talking about....pressing gastrointestinal issues one encounters while hiking. It made me think about a few "You know you are a thru-hiker when...." jokes we had come up with during our forced nero in the Smokies. Here's one that applies: You know you're a thru-hiker when you wish you were severely constipated so you don't have to go in the rain.Here are a few more:-You know you're a thru-hiker when you can smell day hikers before even seeing them- You know you're a thru-hiker when you pack out 7 days worth of food but eat it in 3- You know you're a thru-hiker when you have walked 15 mi in a day but walking 0.2 mi to the water source is way too much.Shrugs had mentionned this but there were many day hikers who were very impressed by our planned thru-hike. We recieved more praise and encouragement today as well. It felt good to be one of the cool people. Approbation: isn't what we all want? It forced me to think about the reasons motivating our thru-hike. A mental and physical challenge are assured but I still had trouble articulating a tangible motive. Those strangers' reactions did bring forth a feeling that we are doing something out of the ordinary, unexpected. A thru-hike, in the real world, does not necessarily translate to any concrete benefit. Instead it is done for its own sake.We are rebels.Anyway, we left Fresh Ground and rolled a mile uphill to the shelter where we met Stretch a fellow Qu©b©cois. I did not mention this beforehand but we had met another Qu©b©cois, named Dark Knight, at Sassafrass Gap shelter. He had approached us saying that he heard unmistakable Qu©bec French (must have been my not-so-subtle exclamation:"OSTI ON EST ARRIVS! MALAAADE!/"DAMN WE ARE HERE! SIIIIICK!"). The other hikers groaned in discouragement while they witnessed the Qu©bec reunion but I think they were jealous of our exclusive club.Anyway, with Stretch that makes 4 Qu©b©cois thus far. Nous assurons la bonne repr©sentation du Qu©bec!-Axon