Date: 2006-03-22
From: Silers Bald Shelter

To: Gatlinburg
Miles today: 12.5
Weather: clear sky

I now know what cold feels like. Genuine cold. I thought something was a little off when I woke up at around 2 am and had to hide completely in my sleeping bag to avoid any little part of me facing the bitter air. Needless to say, it was a sleepless night for all of us. Sounds of tossing and turning in sleeping bags were constant. Carol, the older woman who was out on her first back packing trip got up some time in the middle of the night to bring the fire back to life and fell clear out of the upper deck of the shelter. I thought there was a bear in the shelter. It was a long night....But it was an even longer morning. When we all began to even think of getting out of our semi warm bags, Smokey's watch said it was 20 degrees in the shelter. the Shelter was that cold, with the fire blazing and the entrance covered by a tarp. So, we could only imagine that it was in the single digits outside with the strong winds...and in the single digits it was...but it was beautiful outside, despite the cold.   The trees had been taken over by the white ice. The whole place in fact. It was a winter wonderland outside. Minus the snow. Pure ice ws everywhere. But you could only enjoy it for so long. We gathered as much firewood as possible and ran back inside to dry out frozen hiking clothes. Great idea....I burned the thumb off my glove and the toes off my brand new sock. So, that is two pairs of socks now.Our water was frozen solid and we cooked dinner for breakfast to get something warm in our stomachs, then we were off. The only way to get numb feet warm is to hike.We climbed Clingmans Dome first thing. Highest point on the AT. We slipped and slid all the way up enjoying the incredible views as we climbed above the clouds and the rest of the mountains. But the ice was an obstacle we weren't prepared for.It took us an hour to go a mile down from Clingmans which was a sheet of ice down the trail. I single handedly took out Swansons falling record of 1 so far on this trip when I fell five times in the 12.5 miles we hiked today due to my failing battle with the ice. Ice and I apparently don't mix. It was a beautiful hike, but a painful one. Especially with frozen water for the first half of the day.So we decided to take the temperatures and the busting butt all over the place as a sign and hitched into the well known Gatlinburg, Tennessee for the night.   The Smokies won the battle today. I needed a beer, I knew I'd be sore after all that falling and we both agreed that we were excited to see the city so well known as the crazy tourist trap.   AND---we needed more food. Our hiker appetites have kicked into full gear and we are going quickly through what what we brought for breakfast and lunch.So, we got an easy hitch along with Switchbck and got dropped off at the Happy Hiker for resupply and to get a hotel room and food for the night. Outfitters are a dangerous money pit, but I got new socks and chucked the burnt ones, as well as a new and lighter pot. We also stuffed ourselves on burgers, fries and chicken nuggets before retiring to the hotel for packing and TV. Tomorrow, its another 12 miles once we get a hitch out of here. We are looking forward to it!! For now its cool ranch doritos and miller lites in bed, giving our feet a rest!