TRAIL DAY 50

Sun, Apr 10, 2016 Breakfast and on our way by 7:30 a.m.  It would be a long day with a 2000′ climb back to snow, ice and ice pellets.

It was along this stretch that I called my wife, Bonnie, and we had a nice long chat as I hiked.  I believe this was my first call to her from the trail, while hiking.  After months and months of intensive preparations, I had been the horse out of the gate – in pure go mode.  By now, 50 days in, I was easing off a little and wanting to connect.  Not longing for home – not lonely – but remembering “my wife” and my kids, all grown and well into their adult years able to tell me a thing or two about life on this rock.  They are my peeps and it was time to say, “Hey, we’re doin’ this.  Thanks for bein’ there.  What’s up?”

I quickly found a way to talk and walk.  I made my call and discovered that my phone fit tightly in my chest strap on the left side where there was a loop that accommodated my device perfectly.  I put the phone on speaker, and fixed it in its spot, bottoms up, speaker and microphone toward me.  I could walk and talk with ease.

After a long chat with Bonnie, I called each of the kids in turn, oldest to youngest and left messages if I hadn’t gotten through.

Not long after my calls – Trail Magic! – courtesy of the Angels “Hey-Everybody” and family.  Hey-Everybody had thru-hiked the trail in 2014.  His family were happy to partake in the adventure through their generous supplies and friendly welcome.  Of course, everyone loved Theo.  Applejack and B-Hiker, both of whom I’d seen at Uncle Johnny’s, were there.  It was cold, brisk and the food was wonderful.

The trail was odd over the next mile or more.  The trees were sparse as if there’d been a fire some years before leaving no evidence other than the limited vegetation.  The going was fairly easy though elevated and still harboring ice pellets.

In time we’d go from Indian Grave Gap to Beauty Spot Gap.  Who names these places? – it didn’t seem like a gap because of the elevation but, regardless, it was a beautiful spot with more of the feeling of a bald allowing a 360̊ view under clear skies.  Theo and I spent an hour here over lunch thoroughly enjoying ourselves, the weather and the views.  When weekenders came along, I took their picture and they took mine and Theo’s.

Unaka Mountain with a “dense spruce forest” (AWOL) was just ahead.  At 2:30 p.m. we bit the bullet.  We were passed by a hiker in his 50s or so who seemed aloof, intent on speed.  If we had any exchange at all it was perfunctory.  I would see him later as the trail curved on a grassy path through a hillside of briars.  He was changing into cooler clothes.  We chatted briefly as I passed and he seemed a regular Joe.

Unaka Mountain was a challenging climb with switchback trails over more rocks than I’d seen before.  Oh, how common they would become. . . .

A picture from this day has me wondering if I’ve discussed backpack use, internal and external.  My preference is to have everything inside my pack, nothing dangling on the outside.  Others use every strap and hook to create a veritable Christmas tree of ornaments: crocks (always); sleeping pad (always); water bottles; drying socks; GPS device; and God knows what.  When we meet up with “Smoky” and the “Bandit,” we’ll see a lot more evident stuff.

Soon we finished the descent from Unaka Mountain and made our way over a couple of small climbs to Cherry Gap Shelter.  I met the folks at the full shelter briefly while Theo dusted off.  We then moved out into the woods nearby to pitch my tent.  I met “T-Rev,” “Moose,” “Down-Hiller” and a hiker I call “Loner.”  He looked French and slept in a hammock as did many on the trail.

There are two schools of thought here.  Obviously, you don’t have to worry about rocks and roots or uneven ground with a hammock.  If you can find two suitable trees or any supporting structures reasonably spaced, you can set up so you have no concern for the terrain.  One guy farther north hung his hammock between two shelters sufficiently spaced for him to do so.

Again and again you’d hear the objection to the sway-back hang of the bed answered with the comment that you can sleep diagonally to minimize the sway or sag.  Of course, the rain was kept out with a tarp hung over the hammock.

My preference was pretty solidly fixed on tenting.  In the hammock, you had little room for extra gear.  You couldn’t cook in it if it was storming outside.  You’d have to cozy up under it and the overhanging tarp which would be high enough to cover the hammock but perhaps too high to keep out driving rain.

With the two vestibules in my Zpacks tent, I could have a rain-soaked Theo in one and cook in the other.

We turned in around hikers’ midnight, 8:00 p.m.  We be up early.

Day #50 Curley Maple Gap Shelter > Cherry Gap Shelter 12.8 miles