Saturday, May 16, 2020 7:38 pm 12.4 mi
AT 109.4 Winding Stair Gap → AT 121.8 Licklog Gap
Weather: Very sunny, pretty warm
Trail Conditions: Very dry and dusty, felt like a lot of rocks and roots but maybe I’m just out of practice
My Condition: Tired, sore, and HAPPY! I’M BACK ON THE TRAIL FINALLY!
Sad goodbye to Andy last night and to the pups this morning. Headed out at 5 am(ish). Hiked from Winding Stair gap to Wayah Gap (115.3 – a 5.9 mile hike!) with mom. I’m so glad she chose to join me for the day hike – she kept up like a champ and never complained. So happy she was able to experience the trail! Sadly, my trail legs/fitness level from my original start date seem to have vanished. I hit a wall shortly after saying goodbye to mom and dad – lots of uphill, but I just didn’t have the same gear for going uphill. Had to take a couple breaks to elevate and dry out my feet. Saw some relatively fresh bear scat. I was appalled at how much poop was directly on the trail. One pile of bear, 5+ piles of dog (most likely – could be human or raccoon potentially) and at least 3 piles of dried out stuff I couldn’t readily identify. Twice I got within two feet of seemingly invisible birds right off the side of the trail. I don’t startle easily, but the first one made me jump a little. Saw lots of traffic early in the day on trail, but the fire tower on Wayah Bald was relatively uninhabited. Hopefully I don’t wake up TOO sore – I felt like I needed to go further to cut down on some of the longer days to stay on schedule for Smokies shelter permits, but listened to my body.
Post Trail Analysis
The Smokies had just reopened – it was actually one of my cues to return to the trail. They were not, however, offering the traditional thru hiker permits. Hikers who came to the park following the reopening had to make individual reservations for specific shelters. This was a big point of stress – the permits went FAST, so you had to book at least a week in advance to guarantee your spots. Even booking so far in advance, it made for some wonky mileage – it meant I was to be thrown right into the fire. This, however, meant that I was locked into a specific itinerary. I knew I’d need to be at the start of the Smokies by this date, this shelter by that date, and so on. I was looking forward to this section of trail, but I was feeling the stress.
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