Day 27: Melting – The Walk

It’s still very hot today, with temperatures hovering around 90 degrees. This heat wave is kicking our butts.

But the hiker box had some good stuff! We’re missing some oats, spam, and bars, all of which can be found in the hiker’s box! We did the rest of our resupply at Dollar General and Hillbilly Market. Dad sent a card home from the post office.

Refueling

There’s a restaurant in Hot Springs that’s been on our radar for a while because it’s a foodie challenge—one of my original tourist activities. It’s called The Appalachian Challenge. A huge burger with fries. Ferdinand says he could get citizenship if I finish this mega meal

I wanted to do this challenge last night, but then they were closed. And I’m really not in the mood for a huge burger this morning… so a huge skillet for breakfast is! It consists of a fried egg, a pancake, 5 pieces of meat, two biscuits, a plate of hash browns and a large plate of sauce. I finished it! It also kept me energized throughout the day.

The sun is a ray of death.

The day started very pleasant and different, with a nice walk on the beach next to the river. It’s a shame it’s only half a mile or so, because I could walk here all day.

But it wouldn’t be the AT if you didn’t climb a big mountain every day. That’s when the heat hit us. My heart rate is increasing, so I take all the time I need.

It’s not the most flattering photo, but it tells the story.

We had to deal with drought again. Even a «reliable» water source dried up completely. The next source had 5 hikers waiting in line for the smallest of the trails. I think we have enough water to get to the next source.

Finally we found water, lots of it! It’s a pond. A bath sounds great right now! Unfortunately, it is very muddy and murky without a good beach. Eh… I’ll skip this one.

enjoying the sunset

We headed to the camp next to the fire tower. The idea is to watch the sunset from the fire tower. When we arrived, a hiker came into camp and warned us about a bear 0.25 miles from here, towards the fire tower. We will keep our eyes open.

We climbed the tower and greeted some hikers who were already up there. We watched the sunset, which was very cool. We will be there again tomorrow for sunrise.

When we got back to camp, I heard a guy making a lot of noise. There is a bear. I sped my way there. It’s a bear trying to get into someone else’s bear can. When we took a look, he ran away. But where there is a cub, there is a mother. So tonight I’ll leave my rocks and trekking pole near my tent.

I was writing down my thoughts for the day in my tent and three guys started yelling again. The bear was lying in the grass, less than 20 feet away. Together we scared him away, but it is clear that this little one has not yet learned to be afraid of humans. He’ll come back again, maybe even with his mother. I’m sure of it.

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