Date: 2003-03-28
From: Standing Indian Shelter

To: Betty Creek Gap
Miles today: 11.3
Weather: overcast clouds

A north-westerly wind came across the hill which made for a noisy night in our tent. But we were cosy. I'm glad we chose this tent. It seemed like I had been listening to the wind all night but I woke today feeling really well-rested. Standing Indian Mountain is a 5,498 foot peak, which sounds hard going, but the climb and descent stretch over five miles, and we did it at a good steady pace. We both felt quite OK. The view at the top is supposed to be well worth the climb, but the heavy mist defeated us again. According to Cherokee legend, a great winged monster once lived on the mountain. Warriors were posted round the mountain as look-outs. A tremendous bolt of lightning struck the mountain, killed the monster, and also a lone Cherokee sentry who was turned to stone.Anyway, it made a very fine morning's walk. We passed through Beech Gap around noon and reached our "final" destination, Carter Gap, by 2.00pm. The next shelter was definitely out of reach, but a camping area with water lay four miles ahead so we decided to make for that. Before we set off, a hiker arrived. He turned out to be "Tanglefoot", the Englishman we had heard about at one or two shelters. He is from Sussex, about my age perhaps, a Maths teacher who has decided to give that up, and will join the VSO in September when he's done with the AT. He liked the idea that Verity was doing this in her "gap" year. He has two sons who also took gap years, working with Raleigh International on projects in Namibia and Ghana. "Tanglefoot" takes his name from a brew of Badgers bitter sold in the Home Counties. What I could have done with a pint as he explained it to me! We mentioned the number of bear warnings we had seen, particularly a bear known to go after backpacks "without fear of human beings". That's bothering everyone a little bit. It was surprisingly pleasant to talk to someone from back home. "Tanglefoot" was stayng at Carter Gap Shelter but we pressed on and reached our destination, Betty Creek Gap, 94.6 miles north of Springer Mountain, around 5.00pm. It was a strikingly dark and gloomy spot, and we were the only people there. This was our first night truly alone in the woods, deep in the Nantahala National Forest. Water had to be close by, given the name of the place, but it took me ages to find it and I had to be careful I could find my way back through the woods to our campsite. We rushed to get our chores done before dark, and were using our head torches by the time we hoisted the food bag. There wasn't a breath of wind which added to the slightly oppressive feel of the place. Woodpeckers drummed away in the distance, an owl hooted nearby. Just as we pulled ourselves into our sleeping bags, we were jolted upright by a tremendous screeching and shrieking practically just outside the tent. It sounded like two chimpanzees squabbling in the trees, but we didn't want to know. The mystery remains. Instead I think about the day to come, the day I have been dreading most since we first started to plan the AT. Albert Mountain, 5,220 feet, requiring a 1,000 feet climb and said to be truly a climb, not a walk. Above all, the narrow ledge overlooking an abyss, made famous in Bryson's "Walk in the Woods".