Date: 2005-04-02
From: Double Springs Shelter

To: Newfound Gap (Gatlinburg TN)
Miles today: 10.8
Weather: snow

DAY 22This morning, when I got up, the overnight rain had turned into a light snowfall. This didn¢t seem like a day I wanted to be out in for too long at elevations over 5500 feet. I was first out of the shelter this morning. I was heading for a hotel room in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Before I left the shelter Vitamam asked if I would share a hotel room with him in Gatlinburg. I told him I would be glad to, and I would register for both of us. For some odd reason he was not in a hurry to leave the shelter. He was sort of just standing around with his hands in his pockets and milling around. Colorado and Marshmallow were in the upper level bunks and had not gotten out of their sleeping bags. They just sort of watched the rest of us. I guess they were waiting for everyone to leave the shelter so they could engage in other activities.My breakfast was the usual pop tarts eaten as I walked. About 15 minutes after I left the shelter, I was passed by Red, going at top speed. He is a fast hiker.The snow got heavier and the wind picked up. This was not going to be a fun day. Today my objective was to get to Newfound Gap as rapidly as possible. At the Gap I planned to hitch a ride west into Gatlinburg. I had not previously thought about going into Gatlinburg, but the snow has changed any plan I had.After about an hour and a half of slogging through the snow, I reached the side trail to Clingmans Dome. This is the highest point on the Appalachian Trail at elevation 6643. However, I couldn¢t even see the very large tower on the summit which was only a few hundred yards to the right. I didn¢t even pause, but just kept slogging through the deepening snow.Later in the morning I met a group of southbound spring-breakers. At this time of year there are college spring-breakers all over the AT. As I knew I was approaching the Mt. Collins shelter, I asked the apparent leader of the group how far it was to the shelter. He was a sturdy looking guy wearing military utilities (as we call them in the Marines). His answer maddened me. ¢Not far¢, was his reply. This is the most meaningless answer possible. It told me nothing on a day when I was considering holing up at the shelter to weather out the storm.As I continued on the Trail, I saw a note on a tree. It was addressed to Vitaman. It was from Tim from Ohio. The note told Vitaman that Tim had booked a room at the Grand Prix Motel in Gatlinburg. Apparently I had just lost a room mate and someone to split the bill with. Oh, well, at least I know what the hiker-friendly hotel in Gatlinburg is.I continued to slog through the snow which was now knee deep and very wet. My hands were getting numb, even with gloves on. I took to alternating which hand I carried my walking stick with. The other hand would be in a pocket to restore some feeling before I switched hands again. Eventually I saw a paved road off to the right and I realized I was approaching Newfound Gap. This was a great morale booster. Soon I reached Newfound Gap and US Route 441 into Gatlinburg. However there was no traffic on the road which was demoralizing. The NPS had understandably shut the road down. The good news was that NPS Rangers were there in a car. They were going to take any hikers who arrived at the Gap down to GSMNP Headquarters, just outside of Gatlinburg. The Rangers directed me to wait in a heated rest room just north of the road. Already in the rest room were Red, ¢Adam¢ and ¢Josh¢. I had first encountered Adam and Josh on a similarly lousy day enroute to Low Gap Shelter. That day seems to be years ago.The Rangers only had room for three in their car, so I told the Rangers to take the young people first and I would wait for the next ride. After all I was the last one to arrive at the Gap. Shortly afterward my ¢ride¢ arrived. It was a snow plow. It was an interesting experience riding down the long (15 mile) mountain road to the NPS Headquarters in a snow plow. As the snow plow descended the mountain, the weather changed and there was no snow as we reached lower elevations. At NPS Headquarters the Rangers said they wanted to ¢interrogate¢ us. The word, interrogate, seemed to unnerve one of the younger hikers. Maybe he watched too many TV shows. What the NPS Rangers wanted to know was the whereabouts of other hikers on the Trail. We tried as best we could to account for the people we knew who were still on the Trail. The problem was that we only knew our fellow hikers by Trail Names. The records the NPS has are real names on the permits we filled out at Fontana. Some times trail names can present a problem. However, the logic of the self-permitting at Fontana now made more sense. After the ¢interrogation¢ the Rangers drove us to the Happy Hiker outfitter in Gatlinburg. The staff at the Happy Hiker outfitter gave us directions to the Grand Prix Motel, a few blocks away. As I was registering for the last room available at the motel, Red came in for a room. I am happy to share the last room with him. He is a nice guy and we split the $40 per night charge. We are likely to be here two nights.Once we got into the room, the first order of business was to get cleaned up and do laundry. I did the laundry for both of us. Afterwards I walked further into Gatlinburg to a Shoney¢s all-you-can-eat (AYCE) restaurant. I made six trips to the buffet tables: two for salads, appetizers, and soup, two for meat and vegetable entrees, and two for desserts. I think I got my money¢s worth. As I scribble these notes, we are in our respective beds, relaxing and watching TV. We are reconnecting with the outside world.