We decided to get back on the trail today, even though the forecast called for wind, and very cold temperatures. The day and a half of rest was great, but the trail was calling, and we were ready to put in a few miles.
It ended up being a good decision to get back on the trail today, as we both felt pretty great all day (meaning legs and feet). I think I’m a believer in these new insoles…my feet didn’t get that fatigued feeling that they’ve been getting every day. Also, I tried a new lacing method for my boots; on the left foot I’ve got it laced to reduce pressure on the top of the foot, since it’s been pretty sore. On the right foot I tried the heel lock method of lacing, which helps keep the foot from sliding around. I think the combination of the insoles and the new lacing, along with a knee brace and a little Advil, the hike today was pretty painless for the most part.
We got dropped off at Unicoi Gap right around 9:30am. We bundled up against the raging wind, and powered up the first mountain. I felt great today, I felt like I barely broke a sweat. That zero day really helped.
As we descended into Indian Grave Gap, we encountered our first trail magic of the trip. A group of people had driven up into the gap, and were serving hot food, drinks, coffee, fresh fruit… all kinds of good stuff. I wish we could have hung out longer, but we just grabbed an apple and an orange, signed the little journal they had (and of course left the website) and moved on since we wanted to get some good miles in. So if any of you from Indian Grave Gap happen to check our blog… thanks very much! I chatted with a couple other hikers who got to enjoy the great treat that you all set up.
Next it was up up up again. Up to Tray Gap, then right up Tray mountain.
Again, we cruised up the mountain. We reached the peak right at noon. We hiked about 5 miles in just under 2.5 hours.
The rest of the day was just a lot of shorter ups and downs. We were kind of in a nice hiking rhythm today, we almost forgot to stop for lunch. We did end up stopping and eating twice, however. We’ve found its better to have a couple of smaller meals every 2.5 to 3 hours rather than 3 main meals.
After a seemingly endless climb up Kelly Knob, we finally rolled into the Deep Gap shelter area around 4. That made it about a 13 mile day. Luckily Deep Gap is on the eastern side of the ridge, so it’s pretty well protected from the wind. The gusts today were supposedly in the 40mph range, so we’re glad to be down off the ridge.
When we first arrived at the shelter, there were only a few weekend backpackers from Atlanta there, but before long, the thru hikers all arrived, including a few guys we hadn’t seen since Neels Gap. As the sun set behind the ridge, the temperature dropped quickly. We had a nice little campfire going which many of us huddled around for a while.
The campfire has been a great way to get to know people. We met even more new people tonight, one guy from Ohio who recently sold his house and moved to South Carolina, and another guy who comes from North Carolina and used to be in the military. That second guy we leap frogged a few times today… his method of going downhill is to run… and he’s got quite a heavy pack. An interesting guy to say the least. He certainly kept us entertained around the fire.
Now it’s getting just about to cold for my fingers, so that’s all for today.
Glad all is going well. ..nice to see you met your first trail angels. . We saw that in a movie called Appalachian Impressions that we got from the library ????????to you both and enjoy Franklin!
Hey!! Glad you guys enjoyed the trail magic. It was great fun for me as well to hear everyone’s stories. One of our friends that came with us has been really sick. You have no idea how therapeutic and uplifting this was for her also. Good luck on your journey! I really enjoy following along with you