Date: 2005-05-17
From: Spence Field Shelter

To: Silers Bald Shelter
Miles today: 11.8
Weather: scattered clouds

Day 2 in the Smokeys - Another fabulous day!Despite my 16 mile first day back on the trail, I awoke feeling really good. My legs felt strong and, more importantly, my knee felt better than the day before. The only problem was that I had been up too late the night before - after 11 pm, and 8 pm is kind of like hikers mid-night. We are normally so exhausted from the days hike that, when the sun goes down, so do we. Between getting into camp as late as I did, getting all my chores done, enjoying the great campfire, and then I think the euphoria of being back on the trail, my adrenalin carried me longer than it normally would. The result was that I overslept! Given how slow I need to go to protect my knee, I need long days in order to meet my distance goals, and that means I'd like to be up and ready to hit the trail by 6:30. I didn't get up until then today, and so I only hit the trail by about 8 am. (Since I set up my tent in the shelter, and threw the rain fly over it but couldn't stake it out, I had a ton of consensation to deal with and spread it out in the sun to dry while I ate breakfast. We all left camp at about the same time, and I set off to see how far I would go on my second day back on the trail. My minimum was Derrick Knob, about 6.5 miles away, my "happy to get there" goal was Silers Bald, about 11.8 miles away, and my "if everything went really well" goal was Double Spring Gap, 13.5 miles away.The weather was once again gorgeous. The morning was "see your breath" cool, which is great for hiking, and it warmed up in the afternoon to about 70. The skies were sunny, with no hint of rain. As mentioned in yesterday's entry, everyone had told me that the section leading up to Derricks Knob was really tough, and I soon discovered why. My hike began on a really beautiful grassy area (the fields and balds are where earlier settlers grazed their livestock in the summer months, so they are generally clear of trees), but soon developed into really deep-rutted trails and lots of rocks. You should always expect rocks when the name of the mountain your are hiking too has that in the name - like Stony Man mountain up in the Shenandoahs, or in this case Rockytop. It lived up to its name. That mountain was followed in short order by Thunderhead. This was followed by three more gaps - and always remember, a gap means you've gone down to get to it, so you can just about guarantee that the next section to face will be up. Once again, however, it felt so good to be back out here, hiking the trails, seeing the sights, being alone in the woods with the birds singing, small creatures scurry around, spring flowers everywhere - none of which I could name, but all of them lovely, it's just an awesome feeling. I wish all of you could be here with me, even if only for a few minutes each day, to know what it's like. I just love being out here - but you know that by now, of course.If the day's hike is not too demanding, either in terms of the strenuousness of the climbing or the need to pay close attention to the trail, you can let your mind wonder. Sometimes for hours. That, of course, leads to all sorts of thoughts, some of which can actually be productive. I'm still too new back in the woods for that to happen, so mine are still a bit random. Yesterday, for example, after I saw my first Smokey Mountain bear, I started thinking what might have happened if he had not turned tail and run, but rather come down the trail toward me. Frankly, there aren't a lot of options for your friendly local hiker at that point. Running is the least preferred option, as that will only trigger the bear's instincts to chase you. Standing there and trying to look big, raising your poles over your head, and shouting to be sure he sees you is the advised option, if you can control your own instincts to run like crazy - not a viable option in my case, what with my knee and all. Sometimes they do what's called a "bluff charge" where they stop short at a certain point. That's sounds like a wonderful experience to have, doesn't it. Something you could write about in your journal, right after you've finished changing your drawers. So anyway, that chain of thought leapt off in strange new directions: what would the coroner list as the cause of death, I wondered, if the bear actually did attack me - and finish me off. I considered the different alternatives that might be on some form they use. Not suicide, at least not from my point of view, though the bear's defense team might argue that, I suppose. Not "natural causes", certainly, though once again, the bear might think so. Not "accidental death", since, after all, the bear would have attached me on purpose - and was unlikely to have stopped, afterwords, and thought "Opps, gosh, I didn't mean to do that." I don't think any jury would buy the old "it was just a accident" thing as a legitimate defense. No, I decided, the only logical category would have to be homicide. If I was the prosecutor, I'd go for first degree murder - fully intentionaly, and clearly with premeditation. On the other hand, if I were on the bears defense team ... Well, you see how the thought process works out here. Maybe soon I'll start having more productive exchanges in my mind, dealing with some of life's bigger issues. For now, however, I'm just happy to be out here where my mind can at least run free for awhile. Ok, back to the hike:Between the long first day, my late start, and the tough climbs, I did not reach Derrick Knob until nearly 2 pm. I had a quick lunch, and should have stayed longer to rest, but was anxious to move on, so I did. (Two points for the milage montster...) The trail wasn't much better after lunch, and this was in weather that was absolutely outstanding. All of my M company friends faced melting snow which had turned the trails into a river of boot-sucking mud, so I almost felt like I was cheating hiking along in May with dry trails.The plan was to get into Silers Bald Shelter, take a rest stop and maybe even eat dinner, and then decide how I felt about moving on to Double Springs. I got there, got my boots off, pumped water, and ate some crackers and cheese, but was feeling pretty whupped. The setting was beautiful, there were only a few others at the shelter, and it looked like I'd have no problem setting up my tent within the bear-fence enclosed area for a second night, so I decided to stay.My companions at that point included a group of four section hikers and one other Thru Hiker, Marshmellow. She was having a hard time, after more than a month on the trail - averaging something like 5 miles a day, with her longest so far a 7.5. She wrote in the trail register that she was seriously thinking of getting off the trail the next day at Clingman's Dome and getting a ride into Gaitlinberg. I could understand how she felt... Later that night, after we'd all settled in, enjoying a fire in the fire place that one of the section hikers had built, Base (the Thru Hiker I'd met at the Hike Inn Sunday night), showed up. He'd come from Mollies Ridge, but said that Ody and Diva had decided to stay at Derrick Knob. Like me, he said he hoped to reach Newfound Gap tomorrow and hitch into Gaitlinberg. We both planned to stay at the Grand Prix, so I said I hoped to see him there. We all turned in early, including yours truely. It was a long day, but another great one back on the trail.Today's hike is dedicated to the super folks at the Commonwealth Orthopedic Therapy Group, especially Allison, who helped me get my knee back into shape after my surgery so that I could resume my hike. Thanks, guys, you did GREAT!