Day 141: Zero day at Uncle Johnny’s
Day 142: 11.1 miles. Spivey Gap/SOBO mile 1865.1 to Uncle Johnny’s (Erwin, TN)/SOBO mile 1854 (hiked NOBO)
Easy day in damp weather, mostly in the trees, slackpacked.
Have loosely planned out the rest of this hike. 20 more hiking days. About seven of them are 19-21.5 miles, the rest are less than that. Lots of hostel stays! Only four more nights outside!! I can of course change that if I want to, and I might want to. I do like my tent. It is nice to know though that, since it is getting quite cold out, there are only four spots where I HAVE to sleep outside, and that if it is really cold the other nights there are hostels close by.
Day 143, 13.4 miles
Spivey Gap/SOBO mile 1865.1 to Sam’s Gap/SOBO mile 1878.5
Easy peasy day. Tomorrow will be too. Then I will get back to doing more respectable miles. It’s been a nice break though, with all the nearos and zeros. After tomorrow though it will be time to crank out the rest of this trail.
Bread & Butter, Voice of Reason, and Heisenberg, three amiable guys I have been seeing off and on for a week, joined me in the shuttle and we all got dropped off back on trail.
Off we went. Cold and raw day, but I like that for hiking as long as it doesn’t rain, which it didn’t.
One sad thing is that I found a dead kitten on the trail. No injuries that I could see. I think he died of hypothermia. 😞 I spent a long time holding him trying to warm him up just in case, but when the other hikers arrived (I had gotten ahead of the guys), they confirmed that the little fella had definitely passed and that there was no bringing him back.
Took me a while to shake the blues over that, but I got back into the hiking groove after a while.
Highlight of today was going over Big Bald. Totally socked in with ice on the grass and freezing strong wind. Cold cold cold! Loved it though.
The rest of the day was back in the trees. The guys got ahead of me – I said my goodbyes to them but I do hope I see them again at some point…though I believe they are pushing big miles over the next couple of days and therefore will always be a day or two ahead.
Got to Sam’s Gap and called my hostel hostess. Fuego, First Class, and someone I haven’t met called Butterfly were here last night. I am here alone this evening. I raided their hiker box and now have what I need for dinner and breakfast tomorrow.
Tomorrow I will slackpack a measly 8.5 miles and then return here. Then I will go back to 15-23 miles a day from here on out except for one day in NC where I might slackpack 10 miles.
I have 19 days of hiking left starting tomorrow assuming nothing goes wrong. I have very mixed feelings about that. Part of me is very ready to be done. Another part will miss seeing the same people over and over, I’ll miss the community, I’ll miss hiking miles and miles each day, I’ll miss finding those nice tucked away campsites, I’ll miss someone hollering “Prom Queen!” at me in greeting, I’ll miss constantly being outside (except when it is really humid or pouring cold rain).
But first – 19 more hiking days to go.
Day 144. 8.5 miles. Sam’s Gap/SOBO mile 1878.5 to Devil’s Fork Gap/SOBO mile 1887.
Measly 8.5 miles today, and as a slackpack at that. I am in serious vacation mode. Gotta snap out of it since the rest of the hike will call for 15-22 mile days.
Amy from Nature’s Inn (forgot to name the hostel yesterday when I posted!) took me back to Sam’s Gap in the morning, then she picked me up four hours later at Devil’s Fork Gap. Had two ascents less than 1000 feet each and saw one or two nice views. Also went through an area notorious for aggressive dogs, but thankfully those dogs were elsewhere.
Got back and spoke with Amy for a couple hours about various things we have in common, including our ancestry. Amy also has an ancestor who was on the Sea Venture in 1609. Our ancestors were shipwrecked in Bermuda together. Both ended up in Jamestown in 1610. My ancestor then stayed in Jamestown while hers eventually went back to England and then later sailed on the Mayflower to Plymouth. We had some fun discussions about our genealogy.
18 more hiking days to go.
I have to get my mind back into this game. I am feeling like I want to be done, and that affects my hiking mood. Gotta get back into the joy.
At least I am not alone. There are quite a few SOBOs who used to be over a week ahead of me who are now just a couple days ahead. That means they took more zeros than I did lately. One guy I met at Uncle Johnny’s just took another zero for the hell of it after taking one just two days ago. I think all the Flipfloppers and SOBOs are starting to feel like they want to be done, but they also feel like they want to slow down and take it easy.
I have a 20 mile day tomorrow. And another hostel stay of course.
Day 145, 20 miles
Devil’s Fork Gap/SOBO mile 1887 to Hemlock Hollow Hostel (Log Cabin Drive)/SOBO 1907.0
Back to respectable miles today, and with a full pack too. At least I only have to carry two days of food at most from here on out.
Amy from Nature’s Inn got me back to trail an hour earlier than I expected, which was great. Gradually ascended 1200-ish feet to the wooded summit of Big Butt. Yes, I spelled that correctly. Got a photo with the sign for Big Butt Bypass. My inner twelve-year-old thought that was great.
Descended a bit and then went back up and enjoyed the ridge of Firescald Knob. Lots of pretty views up there. Went by Blackstaff Cliffs and passed the 1900 mile mark! Woot-woot! Less than 300 miles to go.
Eventually descended a bit, then ascended again, then finally descended for good down to Log Cabin Road. Feet and ankle started hurting at the 16-mile point, and it felt difficult getting through the last 4 miles.
I turned left on Log Cabin Road and walked the short distance to the Southern Cookie Lady, a sweet woman who gives a large homemade cookie to every thruhiker. She and her husband live in a beautiful cabin tucked away in the woods. The Cookie Lady had Halloween candy too, and for a donation (that goes to the rebuilding of the Hot Springs library which was demolished by last year’s hurricane) she provides brownies and ice cream. So of course I donated and ate brownies, ice cream, Halloween candy, and a cookie. It all seemed to make my ankle feel better.
After we chatted for a while, she called Jill at Hemlock Hollow Hostel, and Jill came to pick me up. I am now in a gorgeous and roomy cabin on a gorgeous and huge country property. A creek runs right by the cabin, and there are cats and dogs everywhere. Jill has a great resupply store too, and I have already raided it and eaten a proper thruhiker amount of calories.
My ankle is definitely injured, I do not think it is just edema (though that likely contributes to the pain). However, the double compression stockings help, slackpacking helps, and keeping mileage well under 20 seems to help. It probably acted up today because I did 20 miles with a full pack.
I have 17 hiking days left. Of those, only 4 are 20-22 miles. The rest are usually 17–18. Some are 14-15. I’ll get myself across the finish line. I have made it well over 300 miles with my ankle feeling like this, I can make it 300 more. After Springer, I’ll have a doc look at the ankle and then do whatever I need to do for it to properly heal.
Day 146, 16.3 miles
Hemlock Hollow Hostel (Log Cabin Drive)/SOBO 1907.0 to Hot Springs, NC/SOBO mile 1923.3
Slept well in the gorgeous and comfy cabin at Hemlock Hollow Hostel. Jill made pancakes in the morning, and I bought a blaze orange wool hat her neighbor had knitted. Bruce took me back to the trail, and I was hiking by 7:15. Great start to my morning.
In the trees all the way to Hot Springs. Had unforecasted light rain for the first five hours. The temps weren’t that cold, so I stayed warm and dry wearing just my pullover and new orange hat.
A few big ups and downs and a few small ones.
Great views heading down toward French Broad River and Hot Springs. Reached Hot Springs and saw the block of ruined shops courtesy of last year’s hurricane. Some of the stores have relocated, some have closed for good. Rather sobering sight. Hot Springs is a cute little town, and I hope it fully rebuilds.
Am staying at Elmer’s Sunnybank Inn, a National Historic Building that was built in 1860 and housed both Confederate and Union soldiers during the Civil War. AT hiker Earl Shaffer stayed here twice; the room in which he stayed is not available to rent, and it remains as it did when he lodged here. I have a giant private room for $45. It’s a good deal.
Caught up with Weatherman and Heisenberg (both are staying here tonight) as well as Bread & Butter, Bilbo, and Voice of Reason (they are in a neighboring hostel). All of them got here yesterday and took a zero. Fuego stayed here yesterday but went ahead this morning. Maybe I’ll catch up with her in the Smokies.
Had dinner at the diner across the street and took on their “Appalachian Challenge.” Three big hamburger patties with two different cheeses on a bun along with sweet potato fries and a massive Starry (Sprite-like drink). I don’t usually eat red meat, but my body sure loved all that hamburger. I finished without any trouble and without feeling full. Got a free dessert for finishing the challenge – pecan cobbler served warm with vanilla ice cream. That was the best thing I have tasted in a very long time.
My ankle hurts as usual, but it’s not too bad. It’s only 6:45, but I’ll go to bed soon since tomorrow will contain a lot of elevation gain. I will “git’r done,” but I might have to cheer myself on during the ascents and take a lot of breaks.
16 more hiking days to go.
Day 147, 17.9 miles
Hot Springs, NC/SOBO mile 1923.3 to Roaring Fork Shelter/SOBO mile 1941.2
Was up and hiking by 6:45. Almost 6000 feet of elevation gain, but it didn’t feel too bad. Almost all in the trees with some peak-a-boo views.
Hiked with Weatherman off and on. Enjoyed speaking with him.
Am at Roaring Fork Shelter. Bread & Butter, Heisenberg, Weatherman, and Voice of Reason are here too. Max Patch is just 1.7 miles away, and Heisenberg suggested we wake up early tomorrow and get up there to see sunrise. Sounds good to me. Got a selfie with Heisenberg and Weatherman.
There’s a family with little kids staying here tonight. Cute munchkins.
Day 148, 15.5 miles
Roaring Fork Shelter/SOBO mile 1941.2 to Standing Bear Farm/SOBO mile 1956.7
BEST. DAY. EVER!!!
Got to see sunrise on the summit of Max Patch! With the full moon on the other side of the sky to boot! It was Heisenberg’s idea. Last night, he said he was going to get up early and make it to Max Patch before dawn, and both Weatherman and I jumped on his idea. It was magical. Truly the best sunrise I have ever seen in my life, and definitely one of my favorite moments of the whole AT. I think that is the most beautiful scenery I have ever personally witnessed. My many photos and videos can’t properly capture the stunning reality.
After that amazing morning, it was all trees until Standing Bear Farm. A bunch of elevation gain of course, with one big bump (1300 feet of elevation gain) and a bunch of smaller bumps for a total of 3700-ish feet, but that is the norm for the AT.
Standing Bear Farm has a mixed reputation for some reason on FarOut. My personal experience – this place is fantastic! Great resupply with really good prices, super nice people, good layout of different buildings (shower, laundry, bunkhouse, etc), and a cute “treehouse” for private rooms! I love it here.
Heisenberg flipflopped and is finishing halfway through the Smokies. He is going to take his time and therefore won’t be doing the big miles I will do over the next two days. I said goodbye to him tonight. He’s a really cool guy and I will miss seeing him.
Tomorrow is going to be tough. Entering the Smokies and hiking up most of the day for a total of almost 7000 feet of elevation gain. I can do it!! Gotta cheer myself on sometimes.
