We got a ride into Cherokee Sunday afternoon, had dinner, and took a shower.
This morning Will and I had planned on having a waffle fest but I failed. I only ate one.
Then we did laundry. Twice. Cause it stank.
We watched tv.
Then we went up to Clingmans Dome, hoping it wasn't cloudy. On the way up to the tower we saw another momma bear and her two cubs. These cubs were even smaller than the first!
Off in the distance, if you squint real hard, you might be able to see Katahdin!
We hiked up to Clingmans Dome (the highest point in the park) to get a beautiful view of fog. Nothing beats white clouds and zero visibility! (Note the heavy sarcasm) The best part was when we were on the next mountain, an hour and a half later, turning to see that all the clouds and fog was gone from Clingmans. Just awesome. Oh well...
While we were hiking today, Will and I created a new sport called "Hikcour". It's a combination of backpacking and parcour. Basically we were jumping to and from rocks and logs to keep from splashing in the mud. Probably one of the few fun ways to climb up a mountain.
We made it to Newfound Gap where we were going to be picked up by the hotel shuttle an hour before we thought we would! We chatted with some tourists while we waited and found trail magic! Honey Buns and Dr. Pepper! Yumm.
We hit the 200 hundred mile mark today!
It rained all day long. A cold rain. A sad overcast that hid what we knew were beautiful views.
Other than that, it was a great day. We hiked the section of the a
Appalachian Trail that sparked this adventure 3 years ago. It's surprising how the change of season can make the shelters look so different.
After our 13 miles today, when we arrived at the shelter we were surprised to see three children. A girl a few years younger than me, a 9 or 10 year old, and, get this, a SIX year old! You're thinking, 'Oh they are probably just on a weekend hike'. WRONG. Yep. They and their mother are hiking the trail. Isn't that crazy?
It's a different world out here. And I'm not just talking about the nature; the way people are. We may have never met, but we all have this connection to each other. No one is a stranger.
Hiked faster than we thought this morning but quit early in the afternoon because we knew there was a storm coming. Got in about 11 miles. And saw another rattlesnake!
Interesting cast of characters. Shelter is packed. In one of the pictures you can see all the packs haning from a beam. We got the last two slots in the shelter and dad is hanging his hammock from the beams.
This was written inside the privy. Haha
We hiked the six miles to Fontana Dam and saw the shelter that is called the "Fontana Hilton". It lived up to its name. It could hold 20 people and it had showers!
We contemplated staying there, but didn't want to waste the pretty day. There was no way we could have made it to the next shelter 11 miles away because it would have been 9 o'clock and dark by the time we got there. So we decided we would shoot for the campsite that was halfway between.
On the way there we happened upon a rattlesnake! Ah! Dad threw a rock at it. And when that didn't work, got a really long stick and flung it off the trail.
The excitement doesn't end there. While we were eating supper a momma bear and her two cubs walked up. As the momma bear was getting a drink from the stream no more than 20 yards away, we watched the two cubs climb up a tree. They were so cute! Like puppy dog sized!
The only reason we don't have pictures is because we would have had to walk right past the bear to get my camera.
Now I'm in my hammock trying to catch up on my blog posts.
We had planned on just hiking to the next shelter, but it was so early we decided to push on to the next one, making it a 15 mile day.
We hiked Jacob's Ladder, a 600 foot climb in like half a mile. Phew that was a tough one!
The shelter we stayed at tonight had almost the same people as last night. We found out that the three of us snore like beasts. Haha
Dad hung his hammock inside the shelter. Luckily he didn't step on me in the night. :)
Dad, Will, and I drove down yesterday. Had Mexican for dinner. Left the car at the hotel in the morning and had a taxi take us to were we left off.
We hiked 7 miles up hill. Had to crawl under a fallen tree, which was fun. I thought I could just squat down under it, but the tree had another ideas and pushed me on the ground.
We got to the shelter pretty early in the afternoon, but too late to go to the next one 9 miles away. So we had to stay there and relax. Oh the horrors! The new thicker sleeping pad I bought while I was gone is amazing! I kinda feel like I'm cheating.
