Day: |
010 |
Date: |
Monday, 12 May 1986 |
Start: |
|
Finish: |
|
Daily
AT Miles: |
6.9 |
Daily Other Miles |
1.0 (to grocery in Fontana Village). |
Total
AT Miles: |
171.3 |
Total All Miles |
181.6 |
Weather: |
Warm, humid and partly cloudy. |
Accommodation: |
|
Nutrition: |
Breakfast: Rice bubbles, eggs, sausages,
chips, orange juice. Lunch: Biscuits and peanut butter, health
bar. Dinner: Macaroni cheese, instant pudding. |
Aches: |
Little toe on left foot very sore. |
Animals Seen: |
Long black snake. |
People Seen: |
Three AT Thru-Hikers, six day-hikers, many
others. |
Pictures: |
Here |
GPS Track: |
|
Journal: |
Got up at 7:50am and prepacking set off to
the cafeteria for breakfast. Had to wait in a long queue - lots of
old people. Breakfast only fair. Went to laundry dry remaining
socks and tea towel. Then went post office and collected mail and
return shortly after to send off used maps, etc., and letters. Went
to grocery and did shopping and returned to room at about
10am. Supposed to be out at 10am. It took an hour repack all food
and pack. Left 11am. While walking back to the Track along the
road, I met Kevin an AT hiker who had lived in Australia and chatted
for a while. Got a lift back to the Trail in a pick-up truck and
walked to Fontana Dam VisitorCenter. Lost the Trail a few times and
ended up walking further than necessary. At the Visitor Center I
learned that the National Park Service ranger had been in in the
morning and may be back in the afternoon around 4pm. I was not
pleased since he was supposed to be there between 1:30pm and
3pm. Tennessee Valley Authority rangers in the Visitor Center tried
to contact him without success. Sat around for a while (read Barb’s
letter), met another AT Thru-Hiker who'd come down from the Fontana
Dam Shelter for his permit. Went outside to have lunch during which
time Andy turned up. He’d successfully got lifts to and
from Fontana DamVillage after arriving on the road in the
morning. We hung around (Andy had a shower) until 2:30pm when the
TVA guy came to say he thought the NPS ranger might not show at
all. We decided to ring Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Headquarters in Gatlinburg and did so. They gave us the go-ahead
and I set off at 2:40pm, having wasted a large part of the day. In
the Smoky’s you have to stay in shelters so it looked like Birch
Springs, 5.5 miles away, would be the target although there was
another, 4.5 miles after that, if I made fast progress. From
the Visitors Center I walked across the huge Dam wall (highest in
eastern US) and entered the National Park. Shortly afterwards,
after being warned by a motorist, I saw a very long blue/black snake
on the road. It was a solid climb up to the Shelter with the views
hindered by the heavy haze. I arrived at 5pm and decided an early
night would do no harm after a late one last night. Andy arrived at
about 5:30pm. There was plenty of time after dinner to sit around
watching a beautiful evening set in with the birds singing. The
Shelter had wire caging across the front to keep bears out and there
were a lot of mice in the Shelter, even before we went to bed at
about 9:15pm. |
|
ADVENTURE LIST
Round Ireland
(2016)
Hume & Hovell Walking Track
(2013)
Via Alpina
(2012)
Australian Alps Walking
Track (2011)
Land's End to John O'Groats
(2010)
Round Oz Bike Record Attempt
(2009)
Round Oz Bike Record Attempt
(2008)
Round Oz Bike Record Attempt
(2007)
Australia Tip to Top MTB
(2006)
Adelaide to Darwin MTB
(2005)
Sydney to Melbourne MTB
(2004)
Three Peaks Race
(2004)
Appalachian Trail
(1986)
Alpine Track
(1983)
|