Hot Springs, NC
I managed to do 67 miles in five days to get here from Newfound Gap. That's better than 13 miles per day, twice what I was doing earlier. I'm up to mile marker 275. I'm not about miles, but if you want to finish this thing you have to put in the miles at some point. Still, it was a demanding stretch and I took a zero day here to rest up. Along with the miles, I also did another 9200 feet of ascent and 10700 feet of descent, bringing me to 105,000 feet of total ascent and 109,000 feet of total descent.
Sherry and her friend Dana dropped me off at Newfound Gap Friday morning and I hiked 30 miles in two days to finish the national park, spending the last night in this weird shelter that had caging across the front. Wasn't even comfortable. I did all that so I could get to I-40 in the morning and meet my friend Restless. We met when we were both doing the Long Trail in Vermont in 2021 and we've stayed in touch since. She did a thru-hike last year and decided to join me for the stretch to Hot Springs, which we managed to do in three days.
It was a lot of fun having her along. We have like interests about the trail and she and her husband, Nate, are both retired Navy. Nate even supported her on the trail last year with the RV just like Sherry's supporting me this year. We had plenty to talk about.
The weather wasn't great and the last morning was easily the most bitter since I started. Near freezing with big winds and a terrible fog. I started to get out of my sleeping bag twice and went "OMG!" and went back in. I knew Restless was waiting or I might 've stayed there till 10. As it was, our fingers were so cold we both had problems getting them to work. But, it turned nice and we had a very pleasant day coming into town.
Hot Springs was clobbered by Hurricane Helene and much of the town is still rebuilding. Still, it is a charming little town. I'll be leaving tomorrow (4/10) and will meet with Sherry Friday morning to leave the trail for about a week. We need to go to Baltimore to see Twyla before her next adventure and visit Sherry's brother here in North Carolina.
I'll post an update in about a week.
Onwards and northwards.
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| Smokey Mountains, where they keep hikers in cages at night. |
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| Navigating some of the extensive Helene damage. |
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| Hoar frost |
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| Max Patch, a lovely area that is being restored after suffering severe damage by visitors during the pandemic. |
Are the cages to keep you safe from animals?
ReplyDeleteYes, mostly bears. There are a number of ways to keep the animals away from hikers and especially their food, but this is a rather different approach.
DeleteCongratulations and keep it up my friend 👏👏👏
ReplyDelete