Dicks Creek

As I write this I'm finishing up a 1/4 lb burger and fries at Wendy's. Ain't civilization grand?

This morning kicked off about 8 as I rolled out of the hammock and immediatly fired up the stove some coffee. I listened to a woodpecker rat-a-tatting in the distance as I enjoyed my brew. Breakfast (two packs of instant oatmeal) soon followed.

The hike out of Deep Gap wasn't bad. The hiking legs were really settling in. There was a side trail to a vista that was gorgeous and well worth the extra distance. The morning had a few ups and downs but most of the day was spent heading down.







I really tried to capture the beauty of the trail in this photo. I hope it does it justice but it's really hard to see the whole picture in this small image.



Along the way was the best water source of the section complete with a small (really) waterfall. There was even a bench so you could rest and enjoy it.



Right on schedule we rolled into Dick's Creek at 11:45 (just under 2 hrs).





I'll get into the trip back to Hogpen later...after I've thoroughly demolished my GPS unit. For now it's time to find a shower.

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GPS Update
Ok, my Mio GPS is usually spot on when it comes to routing me to various locations. However, the trip from Dicks Creek back to Hogpen Gap was a debacle of monumental proportions. I believe what should've been about a 45 minute drive turned in to closer to 1.5 hrs. After being routed down dead-end and dirt roads we finally got to 438 but believe me I was beyond ready to hurl the unit down the mountain.

Now what?

Ok, the fire is out (wood too wet to really sustain it), dinner is done, the crickets are chirping, and daylight is almost gone. What are we supposed to do now? The silence is deafening. :-)

I guess this is why we try not to get to the shelters too early. Oh well. Guess I'll turn in early.

Oh, a bunny did come by for a quick visit. His name was Rabby.



For those of you wondering if bears poop in the woods, I believe the answer is yes. At least based on the piles along the trail. For those of us that want to poop somewhere else, we use a privy.





Purty, ain't it? Just hold your breath or wear a bandana over your face.

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Deep Gap Shelter

Wow. Today was amazing. We must be getting better at the hiking thing. This was expected to be our toughest day yet we seem to have breezed through it. I thinl our total walking time was 4.5 hrs to cover 7.8 mi with insane elevation changes. I still can't believe we covered 5 mi by lunch.



We got to the last shelter of the trip just after 4. It would've been sooner but we stopped to refill water before heading down. I have to say this is the nicest shelter we've encountered. It even has a nice little loft area. The surrounding area is gorgeous.



It feels good to have the hammock up, firewood gathered, and dinner ready to prepeare with a good 2 hours of daylight ahead of us. Once again we have the shelter to ourselves (do we stink?) So I predict a quiet night just enjoying the sound of the leaves rustling in the breeze.



I did come up with a little saying today that helped me up the mountain: Small steps, big strides. I found I can cover more ground if I just take it slow instead of keeping a faster pace and having to stop more often. So remember that in life you can cover a lot with small steps. That's all for now.

I dub thyself Kudzu. I figured it was about time I had a good trail name so instead of waiting for somebody else to christen me, I gave myself one. If you know anything about kudzu it grows like crazy and spreads everywhere it can. That's pretty much how I am. Just look at the table at the shelter moments after arriving.



I continued on with my exotic dinner selections. Tonight was garlic and olive oil with vermicelli and chicken breast. It was quite yummy.



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Sassafrass Gap

Heading out from Tray it kept looking and sounding like rain. I hated to put the pack cover and and finally decided the breeze was too good to risk the socks not drying.

We've been making great time today and knocked out 5 mi before stopping for lunch at Sassafrass Gap. We put the tarp up since it was starting to rain again but now the sun is out and the sky is blue. There were also some interesting sights along the way. The paper wasps intrigued me. For example, while I'd seen the nests in trees before I'd never seen the ground nests until this hike. During this section I saw at least two.









We have a hateful leg ahead of us. It's close to a mile to Addis Gap and then it gets ugly. Addis to Kelly Knob is almost 2000' in 1.1 mi and then we drop 700' to Deep Gap shelter. Today has been easy to moderate though the long downhills have been tough on me knee. The payoff at the top of Kelly Knob was worth it.







We're in the home stretch,though, with only 3.5 mi tomorrow. Not as many people out as I'd expected with the holiday so they must be wisely choosing easier sections. :-)
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Tray Mtn Pt 2

Dinner sure felt good last night. I need to work on longer-lasting food, though. Woke up at 7:30 starving.

We had some rain last night but temps didn't get too cold. I was hot in the hammock and had to strip down until early morning.

There's a small chill in the air now but I doubt it lasts long. The sun is coming up, the birds are chirping, and the coffee is steaming. Life is good. Now where did I put that Ibuprofen? ;-)




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Tray Mountain

The climb down from Blue Mtn shelter to Unicoi Gap was less than fun. Dropping 1000' in elevation over a short distance makes your knees and thighs scream.







The hike up Tray helped me see why this is rated strenuous. The only way for me was slow and steady. There was the occasional relief with "level" ground but most of it was a gradual to steep incline.
We maintained 30 min miles but took a few long breaks since we weren't in a hurry. One thing to say is that this leg had some nice scenic views. We rolled into the shelter about 6:20 and we're the only ones here.







Here's a nice scene from the top of Tray Mountain.


Tray Mountain Shelter


And my lovely hammock...


Tomorrow looks like more of the same. The first 5 miles look downhill so the knees should be shot by the time we have to climb another 1000' in a mile. :-)

More tomorrow!
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Midday Update

Slept in till 8 today and it felt great. We left Blue Mtn shelter about 11:15 and just arrived at Unicoi Gap. It was about 2 mi with close to a 1000' elevation drop. Downhill sounds easy until you have 35 lbs on your back.

We only hit one snag along the way to Unicoi as we encountered a large tree that had fallen across the trail. If I'd had my Sven saw with me I would've cleared it but it didn't make it in the pack.



After a sock change and lunch we'll head up Tray Mtn. That'll be the rest of our day.
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