Friday, April 24th - (At the Grand Prix Hotel in Gaitlinburg) Up at 6:30, and quickly finished packing up. Headed over for an all-you-could-oink buffet at 7:00, but they didn't open til 8:00, so we ended up at a pancake house instead (which was more than enough food). Back at the hotel by 8:15, and we moved our gear down to the parking lot. Our shuttle arrived at 8:30, but we held a bit longer for a fellow hiker ("Happy") to join us; we had briefly met him up on Clingmans Dome two days before, and (I think) he nero'd and then zero'd at the hotel while Mark and I were overnighting at Mt. Collins Shelter. That held us up til about 8:45, then we headed back up the hill to New Found Gap, arriving around 9:15 or so.
It was already mostly sunny and quite warm at the parking lot - 70 degrees. A large pack of high school students (with a few adult chaperones) were assembling as we got our gear together, and took off en masse north on the AT - presumably they were heading to Charlie's Bunion, a well known overlook about 4 miles up the trail. We followed about 10 minutes later, quickly catching various subgroups who couldn't keep up. Then the rest came back down, again en masse, after about an hour - way too soon for them to have made Charlie's Bunion, so I'm kind of mystified as to exactly what they were doing (or maybe they just gave up?) Certainly they were minimally equipped to hike more than a couple of miles (sneakers and sandals, no water, etc.)
The trails today were a bit more reasonable, not as steep, and only a couple of nasty rocky sections. We leapfrogged with several small day-hiking groups, including an older couple from Maine who were very enthused about our attempt to through-hike. We bypassed Icewater Shelter, then arrived at Charlie's Bunion - accessed via a side trail - just after 11:00 am, sharing the rock with one of the day-hiking groups (and 15 minutes later, with Happy). The overlook offered an excellent view of Mt. LeConte and also of the valley some three or four thousand feet below. We spent about 30 minutes there, relaxing, grabbing some snacks and water, and taking a couple of photos.
Moving on, we again ended up hiking the ridgeline spine that marked the NC/TN border, one foot in each state. It was also a vertigo inspiring trail in long stretches, with the crest varying from 6 - 8 feet wide, with nearly clifflike 75 - 90 degree dropoffs to both sides - like you were walking a knife-edge. Great views to both sides, of course. After bypassing a side trail to Pecks Corner Shelter (located way off the AT), we hit several peaks, including Mt. Sequoia and Mt. Chapman (both over 6,000 feet again), once again "climbing back into winter." [For whatever it's worth, Mt. Sequoia was the one tenth of the way to Katahdin tic-mark.]
It clouded up a bit in the afternoon, and we got a few sprinkles - but nothing serious, just the peaks scrubbing some moisture out of the passing lines of clouds. One of the oddities of the hike was the cell phone coverage - we were looking to try and make a reservation for an upcoming hostel, and routinely had 3 and 4 bars - but no connectivity. As best as I can figure, the phone is measuring the total signal strength from multiple towers, none of which were strong enough to connect. Well, we'll try again tomorrow.
Finally pulled into Tricorner Knob Shelter - reputedly the most secluded shelter along the AT within the Great Smokies National Park. We were a bit surprised to find over a dozen people already there, including a local ATC Ridgerunner - I guess we had caught the tail end of yesterday's hikers. Only one guy we semi-recognized. The shelter had a large tarp stretch across its open face, so the inside was well sheltered from the wind. The number of people was a problem for us, because a certain number of spots were reserved for non-through-hikers, and Mark and I were over the limit *if* all the folks with reservations showed up. So we had a choice - tent camp at a horse corral about a quarter mile away, or push on another 7 miles to the next shelter (and it was mighty late for that). [As I previously noted, in the Smokies you are required by law to stay at or nearby the shelters.] Even though the horse corral was supposed to be decent (and flat), it certainly didn't appeal - I've camped in similar spots at Philmont, several times, and found it less than pleasant. But we were about ready to bite the bullet (or tiptoe through the horse apples, if you prefer) when we got a break - a couple with reservations came in and told the Ridgerunner that they preferred to tent camp (in fact they insisted). So we got inside after all. Unexpected, but we'll take it - the skies had cleared by this point, and it was quickly getting nippy again with a steady breeze blowing. As expected at 6,000 feet. A bit later Happy arrived, and we enjoyed eating dinner together (the Ridgerunner allowed him inside, too, as the last reservation holders never showed). A few more people came in, but elected to tent. After dinner I chatted up the Ridgerunner for awhile, then hit the rack at dusk. So, 16 miles today, not bad. The end of our third week on the trail. And pretty good weather, hard to believe. All in all, probably our best overall day since we started the trek.
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