We awake rested and clean. GG stayed on the sofa, Kelly and I shared the bed. GG starts organizing her gear by laying everything out on tables, sofa, and floor. I am more of a shove-everything-into-its-color-coded-stuff-sack-and-shove-in-the-pack person. It's not that I'm not organized, it's just that I appreciate simplicity. My hammock and down are in one compressible orange sack. Clothes in a blue sack. Rain gear, gloves, hat into a green sack. Food in a light blue sack, and lastly, my "personal" bag with meds, earplugs, headlamp, and soap in a small, bright orange stuff sack. I can pack in 15 minutes. It's getting my arse out of bed that's the problem.
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| The view from our hotel balcony |
We run in town and Saturday on the main drag of Gatlinburg does not disappoint. Trucks with rebel flags billowing from the truck beds and loud motorcycles cruise 441. The tourist traps are starting to open - Ripley's Believe It Or Not, candy stores, weird museums, clothing stores, and arcades. Tacky muscle shirts with distasteful tattoos abound. I love this place. My husband has never cared for it, because he says it reminds him of Ocean City, Maryland, but in the mountains. GG isn't a fan of southern culture, but she seems to be warming up to the place. Maybe if we were here a few more days....
We can't seem to get everything stuffed back in Kelly's car and end up strapping GG's pack to a rack on Kelly's bumper. The entire winding drive up the road to Newfound Gap, GG was worried about her pack falling off. Thankfully, we and the pack all made it to the parking area. We take a quick bathroom break and say our farewells to Kelly. She has been a wonderful hiking partner! She is so nice, and a strong backpacker and an overall great person. I will really miss her.
We head down the trail around 11am, way later than we intended. The hike is really uneventful for the first few miles. The weather was partly sunny, and the clouds are thick. The trail is busier than usual with day hikers. There are a couple of views on the map, but there isn't much to see because the trees are overgrown. Moreover, if you step off the trail you would think you're in a designated bathroom area: there is a lot of toilet paper littering the ridge behind the bushes, what I call "trail lilies". I like to think this kind of poor toilet behavior is left by uneducated day hikers and not long-distance hikers, but who knows?
We get to the Icewater Shelter which backs up to the trail. It has a sweeping view of the south and east which would be absolutely gorgeous on a clear day. We have no intention of staying, but I see a familiar face in front of the shelter. It's SMILES! We haven't seen him since the NOC, and we really thought everyone we had met thus far was way ahead of us. Smiles is a high-school student who received permission from his parents to hike the trail, with the caveat that he has to return home by a certain date this summer in order to start his next term. We saw him on our first day of this section, back at Dick's Creek Gap, and several times since. Most recently was at the NOC. We chat for a few minutes before we continue on.
Our next stop is Charlie's Bunion. It's a mountain straddling the Tennessee/North Carolina state lines that has a sheer rock face on the north side broken only by a large rock protrusion just below the summit, thus the name. When we get there, the fog has completely cleared out. The view is breathtaking, but there are a ton of people waiting in line for a picture, and some influencers are hogging the view for yoga move pictures. We hang out for a minute, but realize this is probably the best view we will get, and continue on.
The trail today is easy-peasy by AT standards. We already hiked four miles and 1100 feet gain. The next shelter is just 7 miles and only 1600' gain, broken up over the miles, with the biggest peak remaining over Laurel Top is only 600'. This is the way I love to hike, with gently ups and downs as opposed to the 2-3000 feet all at once.
We get to the blue-blazed side trail around five pm. The day is hot, with the humidity climbing from all the rain of the last couple days. I am really bummed about having to go down to the shelter. This is one of the things about Smoky Mountain National Park that I am not going to miss. We still have a couple hours of daylight to get some more miles in, but the next shelter is five miles away. We got a late start and don't have the energy for a 15-mile day today. Were we not in the park, we could just walk until we want to stop and set up off the trail.
But here we are, so we head down the trail to the shelter. And when I say down, I mean DOWN! Peck's Corner Shelter is almost a half mile down the side of the mountain. When we arrive, the shelter is occupied, and half dozen tents dot the few flat areas between the trees. These are the times I am very happy to have a hammock! The water source is another tenth-mile downhill, with a lovely piped spring emerging from the hillside. A tent near the water source has the best spot in this area.
We have our dinner while chatting with other campers and shelter occupants, congregating near the shelter opening, perched on the edge of the platform. We clean up and get ready for bed. We are out by 9 pm most nights, and tonight is no different. Good night.
Todays stats: 10.7 miles, 2800 feet elevation gain
Trip stats: 150 miles, 37k gain
Trail stats: 219 miles, 55k of climbing up hills
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