Date: 2013-03-21
From: Russell Field Shelter

To: Double Spring Gap Shelter
Miles today: 16.4
Weather: broken clouds

(In which spring doesn't arrive in the Smokies)It did snow last night. I wake up to find one or two inches of fresh snow blanketing the ground and clinging to the trees. Today looks like a rough day, with some steep ups and downs. The second shelter is nine miles away and the third is almost 15 miles, so I decide I will hike to the second shelter and then decide if I feel like pushing on. I do not stick around the shelter too long - when one sheds their camp layers in a very cold day, it is difficult to do much more than finish packing and start walking.The day's walking begins with a gradual climb toward Spence Field Shelter. Along the way the Trail passes through a couple small meadows, the appearance of which are greatly enhanced by the fresh snow. This shelter is 0.2 mile off the Trail but me and Grasshopper opt to stop here for water. Dahigh is here doing the same thing. Both of them move on ahead of me. I catch up to Dumbledore shortly after leaving the shelter. She did not choose to take the side trail for water, and has not had luck with her frozen water filter. I give her some of my water and move on ahead of her.I catch up to Dahigh and Grasshopper on Rocky Top, but let them go ahead as I pause to work the scene with my camera. Dumbledore was close behind me and I wonder why she had not caught up while I am pausing here. I take a snack break and when she had not caught up I assume she has stopped for a break herself. Rocky Top is followed shortly by Thunderhead Mountain, with a meadow running along its top and a small rocky outcropping. Dumbledore catches up here - she had run into a rare pocket of AT&T service and had stopped to exploit that.That pocket of service brought some bad news, however. As we catch up to Dahigh, Dumbledore announces that she has to get off the Trail for a few days to attend to an appointment that cannot be rescheduled. At the least she should catch up to me with all my impending zero and nero days for dancing, but it is a shame to see someone get pulled off even temporarily when they have the drive to keep going. We reach another water source and Dahigh gives Dumbledore some iodine tablets so she can get some water from a nearby stream. I push on, drafting Dahigh.Derrick Knob Shelter is 3.8 miles after the water source, with a couple steep ups and downs in between. I stay behind Dahigh for a while, until he gets confused and loses the Trail on a surprise switchback. It looks like the Trail should continue forward, but it almost sidesteps onto a narrow ledge on a rock face and makes a couple quick switchbacks to get onto the ridge. Immediately before the shelter I run into a group of section hikers that are having a trailside meeting. This must be the large group that stayed at Spence Field Shelter last night. I decide to aim for the shelter they are not at, so there is no competition for space.I stop to break at Derrick Knob Shelter with Van Gogh-Go and a couple others. The section hikers pass by and we inquire on their destination. They are headed to Double Spring Gap Shelter, the farther of the two. As I break for lunch, I announce this development to the other arriving hikers. I push on toward Silers Bald Shelter, with Cold Spring Knob and the gradual climb toward the shelter itself as the remaining effort for the day. I pace Grasshopper for much of the way, passing the time with whatever conversation comes to mind. Most of the talk involves past travels and jobs. I finally start pulling ahead just before Silers Bald Shelter.The section hikers are here having dinner, and I find Van Gogh-Go and Snow Frog here as well. I have been considering a change to my plan of avoiding the section hikers, and now want to push on to the next shelter. It is supposed to be a very cold night, and I figure having a full shelter will help with warmth. Many new faces in one place could also serve as a distraction and help pass the time. It is supposed to snow and rain tomorrow, and 1.7 more miles walked today are miles that I don't have to walk tomorrow. I voice this to the other folks here. Grasshopper and Dumbledore are keen to push on, but Van Gogh-Go and Snow Frog plan to stick around here. I am the first to finish eating thanks to having no stove or cooking to deal with.Silers Bald comes between these two shelters. There is a steep climb up to the bald followed by easier terrain for the rest of the remaining distance. I am surprised to find Heading Home and Smooth Sailing at this shelter. They did not have the energy to push past Clingmans Dome to the next shelter today. Having already eaten, I get situated on the bottom platform of the shelter with the other thru-hikers. I know tonight is supposed to be very cold, so I put plenty of care into my setup. The hammock is laid out band folded around the foam pad so I get full use of the pad. My sleeping bag already has an emergency blanket in it, but I take this out and fold it so it will cover most of my body.The section hikers arrive a while later. These are the beat group of spring breakers I have encountered yet, and seem to work well together. I overheard their plan to tend a fire all night long, and they wind up following through with this plan. They collect a large pile of wood, and Smooth Sailing gets a fire going while instructing the college folks on its care. Things are a bit louder than usual with all the commotion, but the folks tending the fire get their conversation down to a whisper before long. I had hoped to stay up and interact with these folks a bit, but sleep is an exciting prospect with my most comfortable shelter setup yet.Peace,