A beautiful view to the NC side of the Smokys
Our first few days in the Smoky Mountains felt a lot like the rest of southern NC. Not that there's anything wrong with that - NC was certainly preferable to GA (if there was a mountain in GA we went straight up and over it; NC figured out switchbacks). But to be honest, we wondered what all the fuss was about with regards to the Smokys. Leaving Gatlinburg, we had a crystal clear sunny day and finally saw the mountains in all their splendor. We hiked from amazing view to amazing view, more or less speechless. I've included pictures, but they don't even start to do the depth of the scenery justice. We walked for miles along a ridge line with a 1000' drop to the NC side and a 1000' drop to the TN side, and gorgeous views in both directions. We kept looking at each other and saying "I can't believe we're here!".
Of course, the following day brought torrential rain and thunderstorms. All day. We quickly became less anamored.
The upside of the downpour is that we discovered that perhaps we can hike harder than we think. As we raced through the stream that the trail became, the climbs seemed faster and the downs smoother. Maybe it was the motivation of dry socks at the end of the day, or maybe, just maybe...possibly, but not definitively...perhaps we're getting stronger. The AT blogs promised that we'd start to feel our hiking legs after the first 4-6 weeks. We're over four weeks now, so...maybe?
That said, you could still idle an automatic car from here to Maine faster than we'll get there. No joke. But the car wouldn't appreciate the views, the people, the places, or the stories that we're accumulating :)
Coming down out of the mountains
Speaking of people, we encountered the most fantastic trail magic on Wednesday. It was another rainy, chilly day and we were extending our miles to get into Hot Springs ahead of the snow (really Mother Nature? Can we be done with snow?). As we approached the 11 mile mark, we found a canopy set up with hot dogs, chili, chips, soda, cupcakes, and a roaring campfire. Hiker Super Dad was celebrating his 50th birthday by providing trail magic for thru hikers, including his son. Best surprise ever.
Sunday marks our one month anniversary on the trial. Can you believe it? Time flies...
Sweet Pea
Crossing Pigeon River, TN right after leaving the Smokys
The sun setting over our tent as I set up the nightly nest
Trail magic, and our hiker friend Daddy Long Legs with his cup of hot boiled peanuts
A windy ascent, but lovely views, following the trail magic