The adventure of trying to see a movie last night made for a busy morning today. I needed to resupply on food, meaning a stop by the general store for breakfast and normal food then across the street to the NOC Gatlinburg store for freezedried meals. These Mountainhouse dinners are amazing – part of it is being ready for any hot food at the end of the day, but they taste almost like restaurant food. With shopping done, Matt and I left the hotel and began trying to get a ride back to the trail. These towns are supposed to be trail friendly but getting to and from them has not been easy. It was about noon and we still had to find a ride, dive 15 miles, then hike 15.5 miles. After a couple non-productive phone calls we ended up at the Grand Prix Motel which caters to hikers (read: looks like a shack) the guy there said he could get us a ride for $35 – it was basically the only option and we split the cost. While we were waiting there were some other people calling themselves hikers sharing their thoughts with us. They did have the forecast calling for 31 degree temperatures to tonight in the park, and they were telling us that someone died at Tricorner Knob Shelter of hypothermia this January. They seemed to not realize that 31 degrees was a lot warmer than it would have been in January and that I actually had clothes other than shorts and teeshirt in my pack.
The taxi came and we were back to Newfound Gap and heading out at 12:40. Just as I was starting someone donated an almost full large bag of M&Ms, they’re always worth the weight. It was extremely windy today and cool, many of the people I saw on the trail were wearing winter jackets, I was hiking with running shorts, microfiber shirt, and wool hat. It’s amazing how warm you stay as long as you keep moving. If I stopped at all in the shade or in the wind it was chilly, hiking was fine though. Much of the trail today was high up along the ridgeline and there were several places with great views. With the late start and big mileage to cover I tried to hike quickly, and ended up making good time, getting to the shelter about 7.
When I arrived I saw someone I had not seen since Helen and hadn’t expected to see again. Let’s Party (the 5000 mile girl) was here, minus the dog since they aren’t allowes in the park. I had been a bit worried about a crowded shelter due to the start of memorial day weekend, but there was plenty of room and I think everyone here is a thru hiker. It is quite cold already tonight, I added long underwear top and bottom and the down jacket to the hiking clothes. Someone managed to get a fire going in the fireplace, but I’m not looking forward to getting up tomorrow. I have no idea how people start a thru-hike in February or early March!