Date: 2006-03-29
From: Newfound Gap (Gatlinburg)

To: Tri Corner Knob
Miles today: 15.6

Newfound Gap to Tri Corner Knob Shelter. 15.6 Miles. 6 Pieces of trash¢all found within the first mile (on the corner of civilization, in other words). I wish it were the case that I¢d only found 6 pieces of trash over a course of 5 days, but there was still a blanket of snow everywhere. It was melting no doubt, yet we were still hiking in snow and slush for the majority of the day. It took close to 90 minutes and two rides for Buree, Redneck and I to get to the Gap, and during that early part of the morning, a lot of the rocks were still icy. We moved cautiously and slow as a result. However, our pace was slow anyway from the zero day we¢d all taken the day before. ¢You gotta hike the town outta ya,¢ Redneck liked to say, and wasn¢t that the truth. For a good half hour, my knees felt like they hadn¢t done anything remotely like this for years. Redneck diverged from the trail a bit to check out Charles Bunyon¢a large rocky outcropping overlooking part of the Smokies. A few minutes later, Redneck and I came across some large black-bear tracks heading in the opposite direction. The tracks were becoming slush like everything else, but the palm and toes were still clearly visible. Hiked by myself most of the day, arriving at Tri Corner Knob Shelter at 3:40pm. A large tarp was draped over the entrance like a curtain. A thru-hiker named Squirrel was inside with three spring breakers from Chicago. When I walked inside, all three of the students were sitting side by side on a bench with a their backs to me, looking down at something. They were obviously preoccupied, and to be honest, the first thing I thought of was television. Impossible, I thought. They couldn¢t have brought a TV up here. And as I stepped to the side and saw the fire burning in the fireplace, I was reminded of all the times I myself have sat around a fire and been mesmerized by its brilliant flames, its streams of color and light, its ever-changing body and patterns, its heat and comfort, allowing the mind to relax, to wander, to dream. Every bit as entertaining as a television, when one wants it to be. After coming nearly sixteen miles through mostly slush and what later became puddles, my shoes and socks were soaked again, so I exchanged them for a brand new pair of Darn Tough socks I had purchased in Gatlinburg. Boy, were they comfortable. Also arriving at Tri Corner Knob that evening, were Calumet, Redneck, Casey Jones and Doodle, Pyro, and bringing up the rear, Buree. During the past month, Pyro¢s knee had gone from bad to can¢t do it anymore, and he was actually getting off the trail as soon as he could escape the northern half of the Smokies. He said he¢d try to finish the rest of the trail in sections, when his knee healed up. It sounded like to me that he needed surgery. ¢Hey man, you gotta watch out for Wild pigs when you¢re hiking,¢ I heard Squirrel telling one of the Chicago boys.¢Wild pigs?¢¢Yeah man¢boars, ya know,¢ Squirrel answered, taking a drag on a hand-rolled cigarette. ¢Those things are meaner¢n you can imagine¢those things¢ll chase ya!¢¢Chase you? What are you supposed to do if one comes after you?¢¢Climb up a tree¢but they¢ll wait as long as 35 hours for ya to come down.¢¢Jeez¢¦do they have tusks?¢Heck yeah, they got tusks,¢ Squirrel¢s eyes widening as he took another drag. ¢You want me to purify you some water?¢It seemed that the Chi-Town spring breakers were just winging it as far as water went. They hadn¢t purified or filtered a drop since they¢d arrived a few days before. I didn¢t think it mattered anymore if Squirrel purified some water for them or not. By now if they had something, then they had something, but I said nothing. I was just glad it wasn¢t me. ***Random Register Entry: ¢Sent my son Thorin home today. Miss him already. Steve Kopillo.¢