Date: 2018-03-29
From: Max Patch

To: Campsite on Old Road North of Bluff Mtn
Miles today: 12.2
Weather: overcast clouds

When we rolled out of our tent for a nature call during the middle of the night, the moon lit up Max Patch and the stars were sprinkled against the vast sky. With the wind, altitude and low humidity, we missed out on a golden opportunity to sleep under the stars. Our bodies still recovering from the previous day¢s hike featuring our biggest miles and largest elevation gain, we slept in a little later than usual. When I opened my eyes to the light of dawn, I crawled out of the tent just as the sun was rising over the mountains to the east. With the wind blowing hard over the grassy Max Patch, we decided to pack everything up and hit the trail before eating breakfast. We were the last of the hikers from the small group tented on the north side of Max Patch to get going this morning. Just as we were making our way through the open field to the trail, Flint and Steel came down from the top and we fell in behind them.  Now in the woods and protected from the wind, we stopped at a stream crossing about a mile into our hike to filter water, cook breakfast, and stretch. Several hikers streamed by as we were taking care of business. We would leap frog with many of the same hikers throughout the day. We usually take time to try to converse with fellow hikers. The group we have traveled among since leaving Gatlinburg has been awesome. Most of the hikers we have met lately have been much younger, yet they still gladly give us old folks the time of day. Indeed, a very pleasant group of young adults. The trail continued to slope gently down for another 4.5 miles, making this the easiest 5 mile stretch of trail we have had so far. Plus, the weather was great and water sources were plentiful as we frequently crossed streams the entire day. Just when we thought it couldn¢t get better, at the bottom of the descent we came to a dirt road and, you guessed it, Trail Magic. This time it came from ¢Sherpa Matt¢ who was pulling a truck bed converted into a trailer behind his vehicle. I had seen that same trailer at Unicoi Gap and at least one other place. We took two oranges off of Matt¢s hands and gave him a couple of bucks to cover his cost. Our first climb took us up about 800¢ to the top of Walnut Mountain, with its grassy dome. It was time for lunch when we reached the top. We could see a shelter sitting in the trees just over the crest, but we opted to occupy a spot at the top, where we could soak up the warm sun. After lunch we took a picture of the cute little Walnut Mountain Shelter and the group of hikers stopped there for a break.After a short descent, we once again started to gain altitude. This time we would rise about 1,000 feet to the top of Bluff Mountain. The only thing difficult about the climb was that the temperature was now near 70 degrees. To think, this time last week we were plowing through 3-foot snow drifts and just three mornings ago our fingers and toes were half frozen when we started our hike. If you don¢t like the weather on the AT, just keep hiking! There was a cluster of boulders marking the top of Bluff Mountain. We perched on top of the highest rock and ate the orange we got from Sherpa Matt. We then hopped down from the rock and stretched a little before taking off again. Just as we were about to depart, the same group of five young hikers and a beautiful white dog, Oden, came up and took our place on the boulders. The last few miles, a 2,500 foot descent, was the toughest part of the day. Simply put, the feet heat up quite a bit on a long decline under the weight of a pack. I had hoped to make it to the bottom and then start looking for a place to stealth camp on the modest hill beyond. But, with about 1.5 miles remaining, Which Way¢s puppies were barking hard. We stopped to get water at a stream crossing and she removed her shoes to soak her burning feet in the cold mountain water. Heartburn showed up at about the same time and was also spent. As I finished filtering water. I sent WW ahead with HB to look for the first suitable spot to camp. About a half mile down the trail, the AT crossed an old logging road and there it was, our not so stealth camping spot. At least it is flat and on good ground in case it rains hard as forecasted.  About an hour after we arrived, the group of young hikers we had leap frogged with all day came through our not so stealth campsite. A couple of them said they were hiking seven more miles into Hot Springs. The others were just shooting for the next shelter, about 4 miles down the trail. It is hiker midnight now and Heartburn just yelled from his tent that Close Call texted to let us know that he was in Hot Springs eating a cheeseburger. That rascal! And about that time the raindrops started falling on our tent. Sweet dreams.  ¢ Next Step Elevation Data:Ascent ~ 2,140Descent ~ 4,100Grade ¢ 9.3 Weather:Day ¢ 70 degrees / Mostly SunnyNight ¢ 49 degrees / Rain Over the Horizon: Hot SprIngs, NC