Date: 2006-10-04
From: Hot Springs, North Carolina

To: Fontana Village, North Carolina
Miles today: 107.0

Waking up in Hot Springs we had a few errands to run before we could hit the trail on our section through the Great Smoky Mountains. The General and I both had to visit the post office, pack up our stuff, and eat a copious amount of his mothers Molasses cookies before we could shove off. The days weather was decent and it appeared as though we had missed the brunt of the storm. We had plans of hiking a full day of mileage, but due to a later start we only made it around 13 miles before evening caught us up. We had a fairly long and winding uphill out of town through deep forests up to nearly 5,000 feet of elevation. The clouds continued to thin throughout the course of the day and evening was beautiful. We camped in a freshly bulldozed field near the Walnut Mountain Shelter. The sunset was beautiful and there was the added bonus of a healthy apple tree nearby. The night was cool and I was thankful for the reinforcement clothing that my parents had mailed to me in Hot Springs, NC. The next morning I got behind Jon and had a nice morning hike through similarly lush forest. In late afternoon the sun was out in full force as we approached Max Patch Bald . It was a perfect hiking day in Smokies country and the trail was crawling with day hikers. In the bald we found ourselves a comfortable spot and sat down to a pleasant couple of hours enjoying the sun, eating food, and watching civilized outdoors-people milling about the hilltop. There was a spectacular 360* view of surrounding terrain and you could see the Smoky Mountain National Park to our immediate south. The afternoon was a large progression of down, up, and down before we found ourselves in Davenport Gap, the northern terminus of the park. As darkness fell we set off down the road with the intention of finding the ranger station and securing a backcountry permit so we could set off into the park early on our next day. Despite a bit of confused wandering we found the permit kiosk and made it back to camp happy to have taken care of that bit of business. During the night it rained.The next morning we began the 5 mile climb onto the ridgeline under foggy skies that threatened of more rain. Water was surprisingly scarce on the climb up and it took me a few miles to locate a good source. There was evidence of many horses sharing the trail in the form of poop and large muddy pits. On top of the ridge we passed a group of Appalachian Trail Conference volunteers under the supervision of a ridgerunner. We talked of the weather and his pessimistic outlook didn¢t inspire me with confidence. Soon however the skies began to clear and sun would poke through on occasion. At lunchtime I was lucky enough to dry out my gear and warm my skin. The rest of our hike through the park was characterized by small up and downs with spectacular views from the high ridge that we occupied. Our course ran us straight down the Tennessee and North Carolina border. To our north-west was the low plain of Tennessee and to our south-east was the descending progression of hills that make up this part of North Carolina. The afternoon passed by quickly with increasing sunshine and that night we stayed at the Pecks Corner Shelter with a great group of section hikers. They built a great fire and one of the fellows had brought along a guitar and harmonicas. His skills were impressive and as a result I had one of the most enjoyable evenings of the entire hike. That next day we set off over a similarly exposed ridge with superb views. Passing Charlie¢s Bunion was interesting, but my attitude seemed to prefer gazing on distant country as opposed to making forward progress. The trail was crowded for a Monday and traffic only increased as we approached Newfound Gap. The gap parking lot seemed to be overflowing and I enjoyed watching the spectacle as I ate lunch. Jon eventually showed up after eating his lunch a few miles north of that site. We hiked together up to the summit of Clingman¢s Dome which is the highest point of the entire trail. We walked up the large cement scaffold that occupies the summit and enjoyed the panoramic overlook. The remainder of the hike passed quickly as we talked while hiking for the first time in a long time. Near the shelter we ran into a SOBO section hiker known as The Englishman. He had started on Katahdin this spring with the intention of thru-hiking, but due to a groin injury was forced to settle with hiking from Harper¢s Ferry to Springer. The night was exceedingly windy and the shelter was properly placed so as to block the onslaught. In the morning I set off without a pair of socks that I had hung up to dry. Luckily Jon was paying attention and returned my property to me. Somewhere in the morning I ran into a group of hikers just starting a 10 day jaunt. They had seriously over packed in the food department and I made out like a bandit. They loaded me down with expensive Mountain House meals that I am certainly to cheap to buy. The hiking wasn¢t as difficult as other people had told us to expect which always buoys my mood. The morning was enjoyable and I made better progress than expected. This always makes me happy so I set off on the afternoons leg in high spirits. Jon and I passed each other a number of times during the hike and before reaching camp we began the long long descent that would ultimately take us out of the park and across Fontana Dam. Camp that evening was in a very deep and dark valley where I suspect the sun never strikes. That next morning we headed off in anticipation of heading into Fontana Village. The downhill was a relaxing way to start the day. The dam was impressive and I can see why people would want to come and check it out. The engineers in charge of that project should be proud. We took a great shower at the dams free facilities and in short order arrived at the Fontana Marina where we picked up a cheap shuttle into town. The town was dead during this time of year and it was somewhat strange and depressing. The store was poorly stocked and overpriced, so we shopped quickly, ate lunch, and disappeared back into the woods.