Date: 2022-05-12
From: Morgan Mill Rd 

To: Bear's Den Hostel
Miles today: 6.1
Weather: broken clouds

We were up early after a good night's sleep in our bunks. Breakfast at the hostel is self-serve pancakes, so we went upstairs to the kitchen where we'd made our frozen pizza the night before. Instead of self-service though, Laurie had installed herself at a griddle with not only a huge bowl of batter and a stack of plates, but also a skillet into which she'd chopped some apples she'd found. Breakfast was apple pancakes, served by a smiling and chattering Laurie, and they were delicious! Mike and I went and sat next to John at the long wooden table. "I bet she finds stuff like this to do everywhere she goes, doesn't she?" I said. "You guessed it" he said. "You know her.". We discussed our plans for the day. Mike and I were getting back on the trail, to complete another section of the dreaded Roller Coaster, and John and Laurie were leaving, continuing their vacation after a few days of hiking. They were going to the Smokies next.I'd been gratified to hear the thruhikers, who now have 1,000 trail miles in their rear view mirrors, talk about how hard the Roller Coaster was. Obviously it was much harder for us than it was for them, but it's nice to know that it really is hard! To get worn out by four miles is just embarrassing!  A plan formed over breakfast. John offered to drive us to the next road crossing, six miles south, so that we could hike back to the hostel--sans packs! Slackpacking always sounds good to me, and looking at the guidebook made the decision a no-brainer. Those steep rocky slopes would be so much easier without heavy packs on our backs! While we were making the plan another hiker overheard and joined in, equally grateful for an easier day. So we stowed our packs for the day, Mike borrowed a daypack from Glenn the hostel manager, we loaded it with just enough supplies for the day, piled into John and Laurie's truck, and set off. The daypack was hot pink with a Supergirl logo, and Mike looked very cute with it. John drove us out into the country, down a steep gravel road. We said our goodbyes and promised to stay in touch and then started down the trail. The other hiker took off, leaving us to eat her dust, of course, but that's ok. As we walked down the smooth cool path we felt like we could fly. It's so much easier without a pack! We marvelled at how easy it was, and what good time we were going to make.  I know you see this coming. It didn't stay easy. Even without packs those hills are hard! Soon enough we were gasping for breath and I was sweating profusely. The cool air grew warm, then humid. We struggled!  Halfway through the day we got to the Sam Moore Shelter, and it felt great to sit at the picnic table and eat lunch. There was a nice spring, and we gathered and filtered and drank lots of water, and enough to carry with us to finish out the day. The humidity increased, the sky was cloudy, it felt oppressive. Sweat poured out of me. And still the Roller Coaster continued. Our pace was so slow that if it was any slower we would have been going backwards! But we stayed in a good frame of mind, encouraging each other (at least when we could talk!) Eventually of course we climbed the last steep pile of rocks to the hostel. Hallelujah! I can't describe how good it all felt--to sit on a bench in the yard, to take my hiking shoes off, and then to get in a shower! Awesome! Gatorade -here I come!