Date: 2014-03-05
From: Double Spring Gap Shelter

To: Newfound Gap
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: overcast clouds

I looked at the dehydrated eggs the guys left behind and thought about mixing them up with chicken flavored Ramen noodles for breakfast. Mark thought that sounded fantastic so I made just that. Well.... if I was home I wouldn't exactly whip it up, but it was the carbs and protein I needed to get going. I shoveled it in and off I went.If the weather yesterday was good, today it was fantastic! Warmed up very quick and the clouds were quickly dissipating. Today is Clingman's Dome day. It is the highest point on the entire AT at 6655'. We all 3 arrived at the short trailhead to get to the landmark. We dropped out packs, grabbed out cameras and went up the spiral concrete walkway to the top. It's always hit or miss with the weather at some of these landmarks but we hit this at a perfect time. Mountains and views as far as the eye can see. Tennessee to the west and North Carolina to the east. I took my Go Pro camera and started talking to it as I filmed video. As I was walking down the spiral while filming the device decided to jump out of my hands and drop all the way to the ground.....With it still recording of course. Oh no! Jesi grabbed it and tried to turn it off, but the good thing was is that it was still working. It didn't land on concrete so that was a plus. I will check it out when we get to Cherokee to see if I still have a functioning Go Pro or not. :/Just shy of 11 miles today we ended up at Newfound Gap. The "halfway" point of the Smoky's. From there most hikers venture in the Gatlinburg to the west at 15 miles for a resupply or a zero. I wanted to head east to my home away from home in Cherokee, NC about 20 miles away. Either way, it is up to hikers to find a ride. Newfound Gap is right on Highway 441 and is a very popular scenic stop at the border. Always cars and tourist there, especially on a nice day like this. My mom was nice enough to get us a room at the Hampton in with her points, so I left it up to Jesi and Mark to get a ride. Come to find out when I finally came out of the woods Jesi already accomplished just that. Leave it to a girl to get a ride. A nero was very much what I wanted right now. I knew what to expect in Cherokee since I have been there a lot, and couldn't wait to shower and do laundry. Cherokee is also home to a very nice Harrah's casino. Which is why I don't understand why hikers go to Gatlinburg. A very gaudy touristy town that I call the Myrtle Beach of the mountains. We check in about 3 pm, throw out nasty smelly clothes in the washer, and get cleaned up. Mark walked to KFC to grab a quick bite even though I told him that was not a good option. He did come back with a bunch of food, and of course I demolished it, but it was still yucky. He agreed it was a bad choice but we were starving and he couldn't wait to eat when we got to the casino.All 3 of us rode to Harrah's in the shuttle about 8, and when we got there we went our different ways. I only planned to stay for a couple of hours because I was tired for one, but the last shuttle to the hotel was at 11:30 so I didn't have time for a long poker session. I blew threw my $100 very quickly at the Let it Ride table and walked around. I found Jesi enjoying a glass of wine and a steak at the Brio restaurant and ordered a beer for myself. With time to spare we went across the street to the gas station to resupply our junk food for our next 3-4 day stretch. I text Mark to let him know the last shuttle was leaving, but he was staying longer. He said he was up at the tables and he would catch a cab later. I'm glad someone is winning. Jesi and I headed back, packed up our bags to get ready for the second half of the Smoky's tomorrow. After a massive pillow fight (which I won btw) we ran out of energy and went to sleep........ At 5am Mark texted both of us........... uh oh!No song today, but Oceans 11 was in my head. "Looks like we got ourselves a grease-man"