Date: 2004-04-21
From: Hiawassee Inn

To: Muskrat Creek shelter
Miles today: 11.6
Weather: broken clouds

In shelter tonight: me, Goggles, Sarge, Doc. Tenting nearby: Samurai, Knuckles, JP, Crash and Cadbury (the Doggie Llama), Joker, One Trick Pony, Rainman, Moxie, Whoa, Augie, Too Near. Arrived late and slept where he could: Green Mountain Man.Today's physical misfortunes. Stumbles: 6. Rolled ankles: 0. Falls: 0.The day started out great. Took it easy. Went from Dick's Creek Gap at 9 am to the Plumorchard Gap shelter by 11 am. The trail wasn't too difficult. Plumorchard Gap shelter is another timber frame, by the way, and a triple decker to boot. Met Doc, Knuckles, JP, Samurai, Goggles and several other people there at lunch. Moved out and made the Georgia-North Carolina border by about 2. Had a nice rest and then started up the last section of trail to the shelter -- the last 3 miles.At one very well photographed point, there is a tree in the middle of the trail. You have to make a decision here. Around the tree on the right side, staying on the trail? Around to the left, along a little used path (should it have a blue blaze)? You do have to make up your mind, though. Wait too long to make a decision and your hike will come to a screeching and possibly debilitating halt. I took the path less traveled and it made no difference at all. But I didn't hurt myself either.Things went uphill fast after that. There's gotta be a special circle of hell for the people responsible for the North Carolina portion of today's trail. They're just evil. The tools they used are evil. They need to be burned (the tools) and their users banned from ever building trails again. Two mugger-whompin', gol-danged, freakin' climbs -- one right after the other -- took all the pleasure I had with today's accomplishments and buried it right in the nearest cathole with the crap and the used toilet paper. So steep that I couldn't have fallen forward if I had wanted to. If Torquemada had these hells... er... hills, people would be recanting so fast the scribes, not to mention St. Peter, would have to hire temps to keep up with the new business. (Hey, nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition.) As I climbed, did I hear the crack of whips and the cries of the trail crew boss, exhorting his minions to make it harder and steeper? Still not hard enough! Harder! Steeper! Sharp Top and Courthouse Bald. Even the names foreshadow evil and punishment. If the people who built this trail were facing a firing squad, they better hope it's all thru-hikers because we'd be too tired to lift the guns, much less pull the triggers. Sean Connery would have given up at the sight of elevation profile (look it up!). Maybe the trail builders in NC are showing Georgia how to build a real trail... Nyah, nyah, we can spot you guys in GA tough trail three days of the week and still win the week, cause we got what it takes to build a tough trail -- Torquemada's great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-granddaughter (I'm equal opportunity).I never want to climb anything like that ever again. I want nice gentle uphills with lots of switchbacks. Downhills free of rocks and steps. Plenty of level trail, well cushioned with pine needles or dead leaves. Why can't they build trails like this?Where¢er you walk, cool gales shall fan the glade,Trees, where you sit, shall crowd into a shade:Where¢er you tread, the blushing flow¢rs shall rise,And all things flourish where you turn your eyes.¢ Alexander Pope, Pastorals, Summer, L 73The trails didn't even go all the way to the top. Pant, pant. Almost there. Pant, pant. Almost there. Almost there. Almost there! Oops. Down we go. Reminds me of something. Let's see. Oh. Great views all around, I think. Couldn't see 'em. We didn't go to the top! Point? Thru-hikers have to climb that section to win the "Thru-Hiker" encomiums. (What's the point of having a vocabulary if you don't use it. ¢ John Moore) Anyone else would be crazy. Is there anyone out there that's this crazy?A little grey-green bird hiked with me for part of the day today. Just hopped a couple of metres in front of me for a kilometer or so. Okay, a few hundred yards. All right, all right, all right --all it did was make a first down. I appreciated the company anyway.