Date: 2018-04-06
From: Street Gap

To: No Business Knob Shelter
Miles today: 15.9
Weather: clear sky

Bottom line up front - it was a heavenly day! Every day on the AT is a great day (at least for me), but today was over the top awesome! We departed Nature¢s Inn at 8AM along with Finn and Happy Feet. Taft, the co-proprietor, was our shuttle driver. The first stop was Sam¢s Gap, where we dropped Finn and Happy Feet. I noticed that Quiet Paul was setting up his kitchen at the top of the hill and recommended that they should get   some eggs and hash browns to start their hike. They agreed, so Taft drove them to the top of the hill. He then took Which Way and me to Street Gap. Thankfully, he navigated his Subaru up the rutty gravel road that we had to walk down yesterday.  It was 38 degrees and sunny when we started our hike. The plan for the day was to hike at least half of the 22 miles to Erwin. With her craving for Mexican food still going strong, Which Way suggested that we hike to No Business Knob Shelter. Since it was nearly 16 miles away with four pretty big climbs, I responded that we should just set our sights on Spivey Gap (11 miles) and see how we feel. There were plenty of water sources between Spivey Gap and the shelter, so I figured we could just find a spot to stealth camp along the way. The forecast was calling for rain to move in around 5PM, so we wanted to be at camp by then. As we started our hike the temperature was perfect, the winds were light, and the skies were blue, except for a few wispy clouds. Our immediate goal was Big Bald Mountain. Although it was a 1,400 foot gain in elevation, the climb was spread over 4.5 miles and trail conditions were mostly ideal. The open forest offered an open field of vision and nice views. As we eased along a cut on the side of the mountain, Which Way stirred a small herd of deer just below the ridge above us. However, they did not all flee to safety. I got my camera out and slipped past WW in hopes of a better view. The deer did not disappoint. Instead, they kept a watchful eye on us as they continued to graze on a sprouting patch of vegetation. As we slowly passed below we counted 8-10 deer. Continuing on, we soon reached Big Bald, joyously working our way through the grassy field to the top. It was an awesome feeling to be standing at the top, just the two of us, with this magnificent mountain to ourselves. After taking a few minutes to celebrate the moment, and snap some photos, the cold wind pushed us along. The trail continued through open rolling fields for another mile or so. Before reentering the woods we saw our first hiker of the day, Murphy, a NOBO, who was headed south. He acknowledged that he was intentionally headed in the wrong direction, having decided to return to the top of Big Bald, where he would wait for others in his group to catch up and have lunch. The next mountain to conquer was Little Bald, where we would stop for lunch. Which Way came to a small clearing with a view, turned to me, and asked, ¢Table for two?¢ It was a great spot to take a break. From there we continued hiking past High Rocks, reaching Spivey Gap before 3PM. We took off our shoes, grabbed a quick snack, and contemplated our next move. Every mile we walked today would be a mile we would not have to hike in the rain tomorrow. To make a long story short, WW started hiking on what she dubbed ¢Heavenly Autopilot,¢ and we made it to No Business Knob Shelter just after 5PM. It started raining just moments after we arrived. We shared the six person shelter with five other hikers¢Chip, 13, Sparrow, Impact and Zero. It was a great group. Chip and 13 were at the shelter when we arrived. Chip was the hiker who showed up at our stealth site two nights earlier. He confirmed today that he was happy to arrive at the site and find other hikers there. We met 13 today after lunch and hiked with him for a few miles. He started the trail on 21 March. When I asked him how he got his trail name, he said it was kind of a stupid reason. Someone noticed his small pack and asked him his base weight. He replied, ¢About 13 pounds.¢ Noting that he was making really good time, I asked him how he covered the 330 miles so quickly. He replied, ¢I hike about 20 miles a day and have not taken any zeros.¢ He added that he would try to make it to Maine without taking zeros. He was very unassuming about his mileage and no-zero plan. Most hikers out here are that way, truly living by the ¢hike your own hike¢ motto. I don¢t know if there is any such thing as a ¢purist¢, but 13 is the closest I¢ve met and I wish him Godspeed in his quest. Knowing that we were headed to town tomorrow and that he was not resupplying until Roan Mountain, TN, I offered him a couple of tuna packets we would not immediately need. He graciously accepted.  Sparrow arrived at the shelter about 30 minutes after us and was trying to decide whether to stay or go (she was actually singing the tune, ¢should I say or should I go now¢). We saw her sitting at Whistling Gap earlier in the day preparing a cup of coffee. She told us she started the hike on 11 Feb, my birthday. She was bedded between 13 and WW. When we were all in our bags, I looked over and she was in an ¢L¢ shape, with her feet resting on the rafters. 13, then me, then WW, and then the other three hikers followed suit. Shelter yoga, you should try it sometime. Impact and Zero are brothers. A third brother had started with them, but had to go off the trail for a bit to take care of some business. Impact wants to have an impact on everyone he comes in contact with. He believes that each hiker is in control of their own mindset. He plans to write a book and be a motivational speaker someday. Zero was his much younger brother. He had a very deep voice but did not speak much, hence the name Zero.  The chatter continued well past hiker¢s midnight. The rain continued to fall. It was a glorious, heavenly day!- Next StepElevation Data:                    Weather:Ascent ~ 3,740                    Day ¢ 52 degrees / Partly SunnyDescent ~ 4,690                  Night ¢ 41 degrees / RainGrade ~ 10.0Over the Horizon: Roan Mountain