1:15 PM - We're at Cosby Knob Shelter for lunch. [Smoky Mountain State Park. According to the AT Trail Guide, the northen end of one of the wildest and most difficult parts of the trail ]. Fantastic day! Lots of sun and it warmed from about 30 last night to 65-70 degrees now. Only 7 miles to Davenport Gap. We'll be in Newport tomorrow.
Jim's going to get his feet looked at. Met Mark the "Ridgerunner"...works for the ATC [Appalachian Trail Conference] and Friends of the Smokies. He's from CA and here to work on trail cleaning, etc. for the rest of the summer.
6:00 PM - At Davenport Gap Shelter. At last a clean one with lots of hooks, benches, no trash and no mud. Took a bath in the tiny stream. Feel human again.
Two day hikers, Seth and "Goat"[?], just stopped by to give us some home made bread with raisins and nuts. GOOD! Then they left, just like that.
The afternoon got progressively warmer as we climbed down out of the Smokies, Came down almost 4500'. The wild flowers here are starting to come out. All little ones right now.
Took my first fall today...not bad, just skinned my wrist and hit my funny bone. Saw an owl today, but still no bears.
On to Mt. Mingus [5800'] tomorrow to get some direction on Jim's feet. He may have to leave the trail for a week & catch up with me in Erwin, TN.
8:45 PM - I'm in my tent at Ground Hog Shelter, 10 miles north of Davenport Gap (Newport). Jim's up at the shelter, but I wanted some quiet. The shelter's small & 5 is almost a full house.
Met "Whitewolf" from Georgia and "Grey Jay", both through hikers. Grey Jay is a woman of about 55-60. This is her first day, but is going to try for Maine. Got to Mountain Mama's [a shelter] about 9:00 this am. Luckily we went there instead of into Newport. Just as we arrived, so did the mail man. I asked about our packages down at the P.O. and he said he delivered them right here to Mountain Mama's. Good thing we didn't go the 13 miles into Newport looking for them.
Bad afternoon for hiking for me although Jim seemed to do better. For me the weight of my pack, the 3000' vertical and the hot sun did me in. Seven days of food on top of my extra boots put my pack at @ 60 lbs. or better. TOO Much! We couldn't send any packages from Mountain Moma's so the stuff I didn't need now and would have sent on, I had to carry. Solution... I gave away about 7 lbs. of food. I can always buy more in Hot Springs and I can't give away my boots. I ate another 2 lbs. and will eat a big breakfast too. I only need 2 days of food until Hot Springs, TN.
Warm night, but we're supposed to get some thunder boomers. Saw lots of big hemlocks today, but no bears [Brown Bears]. Grey Jay said she saw 3 yesterday.
5:00 PM - Roaring Fork Shelter [Still in the Smokes, but just north of the national park]. Went down to 30 degrees from a high of about 80 yesterday. Left Ground Hog Shelter about 9:00 this am. Started raining about 6 am...just light stuff, but the temp was @ 55 degrees. I started out in shorts and within 1 hour it started snowing, temp. @ 30 degrees with 25 mph wind.
Got to Max Patch Rd. Freezing & was planning to stop & put on wind pants & warmer clothes. When we got there, there was a white SUV with a young couple giving out food, soda & beer. They let us change into warm clothes in their car, got a few brownies [what, no beer?], and were off. They had hiked the trail in 1989. The man's name was "Tennessee Jeb", but I forgot the woman's [not like you Rick] except that she had red hair [Jon's note: Rick is a sucker for women with red hair].
Max Pax Mt. bald was something else! Winds of 50 mph, sleet, fog and no cover for about ½ a mile. What a bitch! The ice pellets felt like getting hit with a BB gun. Once we got off the bald, it was an easy 4 mile hike to this shelter. We got here with "Tut" and his friend. Tut thru hiked in 1984. He's just here till tomorrow. "Shag Bark" was already here and 3 more just arrived. All agreed that Max Pax Mt. was a BITCH!!!!
11:30 AM - Stopped for lunch about 7 miles from last nights shelter. Found the 1st place out of the wind and in the sun.
COLD last night. Got down to about 18 and it's about 35-40 degrees now depending if you're in the sun. I had every piece of clothing on last night except my gortex jacket & long hiking pants. Did have 2 pair of long pants and long johns on. It was still cold, but 6:30 came and I was ready to go. Boots were a little stiff, pack was frozen, but I was dry and the sun was coming up!
The boys "Golden Boy", Sundance" and "Pilot" - three students from Knoxville - were just getting up as we left at 8:15. Supposed to warm up to 50 deg. today, but probably not here in the mountains. Had 1-2" of snow last night...melting off now. Saw coyote tracks...2 sets.
7:30 PM - Doing our laundry in Hot Springs. Got in @ 4 PM and booked into the "Hiker Hostel" to be met by "Wild Child", a 19 year old dude from S. Georgia drunk on his ass. According to WC, he's hiking with a bunch of cool "dudes", mostly doing the ultra light thing. [Not sure what this means, but think it is hitting a lot of towns for food and carrying a very light pack]. Hope the noise upstairs [in the hostel] won't get too bad tonight. Jim and I got subs at the deli and some beers. Everything else is closed because it's Sunday. [Remember the Blue Sky laws?].
People here are real hiker friendly. Jim's going to take 5-6 days off and go on to Erwin. He'll get his feet looked at and if all is ok, we'll pick up together there.
Golden Boy, Pilot and Sundance came in an hour from us. "Smokie" just arrived at the laundry after making 26 miles today. There's a plaque in the center of Hot Springs commemorating Earl Shaffer's first thru hike in 1948. According to the poster next to it, we've gone 268 miles, one mile more than I've ever hiked in one session.
[As of today's date 5/13/2000, Rick has hiked more than 600 miles...which means I am very far behind...will try to do better. RGR].