The one with the most miles – Day 13

Today I entered the Great Smokey Mountains National Park! This will be a tough five-day stretch from here to Hot Springs, North Carolina.

Route report

I left the Fontana Shelter before dawn and headed into the Smokies. The Shuckstack fire tower offered incredible views.

In the afternoon it started to rain lightly. I still have great views from Rocky Top. Today I stopped at the Derrick Knob Shelter. A trail runner I spoke to at Rocky Top told me the shelter was booked on paper, so I just stayed in a tent.

Thought of the day

We don’t appreciate how wonderful God really is. In our normal life, we are always looking at the things that man creates.

When you go out into nature, you have the opportunity to see what God created. Sunrises, sunsets, trees, animals, mountains, sky and stars. That’s when you can really see and appreciate our God and what He did for us.

people i met

Today I met Lee, who is hiking with his dog. He was a little bummed because he couldn’t have his dog with him in the Smokies. I wish I was cheering him up.

Plant of the day

Today’s plant is a good one and has just started blooming in the Smokies. Mountain Laurel is so beautiful to see on the trail. Mountain Laurel can be seen from Florida to Maine. It is also the state flower of Connecticut and Pennsylvania.

bird of the day

The bird of the day is the Dark-eyed Junco. The Junco is a unique type of sparrow.

“Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon)” by Becky Matsubara is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

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