Walking with a new team

Although we were incredibly sad to leave Hot Springs behind, we were happy to be back on the road again. The plan was to go a little less than 12 miles to the Little Paint Creek trail junction where there would be some tent sites.

The trail was nice but strange as it traveled along the French Broad River for a while and then ascended to a dirt road which it followed for a few miles. There was some magic along the way with a guy who was handing out Klondike bars. Ice cream always triumphs in the countryside.

The path we walked on for a while with a flowering tree on full display.

The path was surprisingly beautiful as all the spring flowers were blooming. We only saw what I can assume is a fairly old tree strutting around as it grows leaves. The trail has become increasingly charming as the season has progressed.

We took our time on the trail that day, stopping quite frequently for snacks and warming up again for the trail after setting off from scratch. It seems that it is getting easier to get back on track.

Big Dripper dropping dinner. (Wow, what a phrase).

We camped with Big Dripper (formerly known as Size Queen), Salamander, Chipper, and Hoot (a guy we had met in Hot Springs). We had gotten a little closer to everyone in town and thought it would be fun to travel together for a while.

The camp was incredibly fun as we all sat in a circle cooking our respective dinners. The main attraction was Big Dripper as everyone watched him do his famous “slop.” We all watched him put instant mashed potatoes, summer sausage, bagged tuna, olive oil, French fries, salsa mix, soul food seasoning, and probably a few other things I’m forgetting into one pot. It was amazing.

The hunger of the hikers is incredible here, as we all look at the slope with a touch of jealousy. We sat around exchanging stories until it was time for bed and we crawled into our respective tents until morning.

Jessie and Chipper enjoying a magical cookie from The Southern Cookie Lady.

The next day we all watched Big Dripper prepare his breakfast slurry (noticeably different from porridge) and hit the road. There was an air of excitement as today was the day we would arrive at The Southern Cookie Lady. The FarOut comments were filled with rumors about a sweet older woman who hands out free cookies on her porch right next to the road.

Chipper making a sandwich with peanut butter and peanut butter cookies. The cookie lady said she had never seen anything like this done before.

It almost seemed too good to be true, but when we reached the gap, there was a sign on the tree pointing us in its direction. It was everything we had dreamed of and more. She made some of the most excellent peanut butter cookies we have ever tasted. Apparently she has a lot of practice because she shared that she makes over 3,000 cookies a year for hikers. What an absolute angel.

Chipper presenting his work.

Jessie climbing Firescald Knob.

We made sure to give The Cookie Lady a big thank you before heading out on the big climb of the day. The uphill was… well, we went up for a while, but the ridge we ended up on was absolutely beautiful. The terrain was quite interesting as it became increasingly rocky and jungle-like. It felt like we were exploring some tropical jungle ruins until it opened up to panoramic views of the surrounding area.

Jessie enjoying the view from the top of The White Cliffs.

A view from Firescald Knob.

Jessie standing on top of Firescald Knob.

Although it was a little rough on the feet, the climbing was incredible and was the highlight of the segment. A little further down the hill, someone had made a sign out of sticks to indicate mile 300! Now we only have to travel 100 miles 19 more times until we finish the trail!

Jessie and Russell in front of the mile 300 poles that someone had fixed.

Once again we took our time that day and arrived at camp a little late. The shelter was completely full and we couldn’t see our friends. We had assumed the shelter was too full and had moved on, but we were too exhausted to look for another campsite.

An hour after setting up our tent on the first flat spot we saw, Big Dripper approached and informed us that they were set up a little further down the shelter, next to the bear box. We felt a little sad not to be set up next to them, but we didn’t worry because they volunteered to pick up the tent with all our stuff inside and carry it down the trail to be with the group.

The whole team moving our tent down the trail.

Many thanks to Chipper, Big Dripper, Salamander, Solar Power and Beaver for making the move happen. It was fun to catch everyone’s attention as we walked through the shelter with a fully set up tent. It was one of the most memorable nights of camping so far. Walking with this group seemed very happy and fun to me. This long, difficult trail is starting to look like a fun little summer hike.

A beautiful meadow, just before the top of Big Butt.

The next day was the climb to Big Butt, which was a fun name for a surprisingly beautiful mountain. As you can imagine, a lot of jokes were made about the name and the Big Butt Bypass sign attracted a lot of attention.

The Big Butt Bypass sign. We didn’t miss the opportunity to see Big Butt.

We hiked during the day to the Hogback Ridge Shelter, where we were happy to meet up with our friend Rambo again. This shelter had many dead trees that trailed and groaned all night in the strong wind.

Neither Jessie nor I slept well because we thought a tree would crush us during the night. It didn’t help that we were also on a gigantic slope that made us slide to the back of the store every hour. It wasn’t our best camping spot so far.

Clouds moved in and out of the mountains as we crossed a field.

Overnight the wind had brought a good rain and it poured down most of the day. However, the Appalachian Trail looks beautiful in the rain. The fog adds a very pleasant atmosphere to the trail. Mountains seem much more mysterious when they are surrounded by wisps of cloud.

The forest passing Big Bald Bypass.

The only sad part was missing Big Bald due to bad weather. In the end we had to take the bald bypass due to strong winds and low temperatures. We were already a couple of degrees away from hypothermia in the rain, we didn’t want to risk our luck on an exposed summit.

The view looking back at Big Bald as he is swallowed by a cloud.

Looking back we could see the clouds covering the bald man. Anyway, I don’t think there would have been much opinion, but I guess I can’t call myself an AT purist anymore.

Russell in rain gear walking through the fog.

Camping was less social that night as we all took shelter in our tents with the intermittent storms. The next day was going to be the final push to Erwin, Tennessee, and we wanted to get up early to get there with plenty of time to relax. Jessie told me I ended up falling asleep at 6:30. Between the cold and the wet, being in a warm, dry sleeping bag knocked me out.

The first thing you see when you turn off the road towards Erwin. Uncle Johnny’s Hostel.

We hurried to leave camp the next morning. It was easy to transport him the next 13 miles to Uncle Johnny’s lodge. The terrain was much easier on the descent and the constant light rain kept things cool. It was probably our fastest day yet, covering 13 miles in just under 6 hours.

A freshly cleaned Jessie relaxing on the deck overlooking the river.

It felt great to get out of the rain and relax for a while at the hostel. A warm shower is much more appreciated when you’ve been wet for two days in a row. It turned out to be an absolutely lovely afternoon sitting by the river.

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