I wasn’t expecting a 13.8 mile long, 4600 foot climb day to be very fun, but it turned out to be fantastic. The day began near the shores of Fontana Lake and almost immediately after crossing the dam itself the sign for Great Smoky Mountains National Park was in sight. I deposited my thru-hiker permit in the box and began the three mile climb up into the Smoky’s – what looks to be the hardest part of the entire 70 miles through the park. Less than half a mile from the permit dropbox I already stopped to catch my breath. The timing was right though because I saw a trio of black bear cubs climbing a tree about 40 yards off the trail. They were well up into the tree and ascending rapidly. There was no sign of the mother bear, but some hikers later on said they had seen her as well.
At the top of the initial long climb was another fire-tower, this one was the tallest yet, and the view was unmatched. Full 360 degree views including parts of GSMNP as well as back toward Fontana Lake. I could see the dam that i had walked across just a couple of hours earlier, now it was miles away and far below. The rest of the day felt like a normal day of hiking, but it ended up being the biggest day of climbing yet. The bottom of my right foot still gets a bit sore with high mileage, even after another zero day but it seems like I can go farther each day before I get any discomfort. For the third day of hiking in a row Matt and I arrived at a shelter just minutes before rain fell from an afternoon thunderstorm. The shelters are nicer here in the Smokies – there’s generally a fireplace (even though fires are discouraged) room for at least 12 and they all have bear cables. Several new people around today. Sam and Jess were planning on only going to the first shelter about 10 miles in and DJ is skipping the Smokies entirely. There’s one guy here complaining about having to pay $20 to hike and sleep in a national park for 7 days while carrying around an Ipad 4 in his pack. He’s actually not said much that isn’t complaining about something and apparently the federal government is always to blame. Surprisingly he hasn’t mentioned Obama by name.
It’s shortly after 7 and the thunderstorm seems to be moving on. With people saying the Smokies are one of the hardest sections of the trail, and everyone out here agreeing that today’s climb up from the dam is the hardest part of the Smokies I’m feeling pretty good about the rest of the trail. I’m hoping to get some rest tonight now that I’m back in the cool mountain air. Last night at Fontana was uncomfortably warm and humid. Tomorrow will be continuing the climb higher into the Smokies, but at a more gradual pace.