The following has been transcribed directly from the journal that I kept while hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT).

Monday, October 2nd, 2000
8:40 am 50º. Windy and clear. We woke up briefly to see the sun as it peaked above the mountains to the east but quickly fell back asleep for a few more hours. When we finally get out of the sleeping bags we realize how windy it is. We slept beneath a make shift lean-to so we wouldn't have to set the tent up on the top of this open mountain top at 4, 629 ft. We can see fog down in the valleys and we all take a few pictures.

Tim said that he woke up at 3:00 am and saw a deer about 20 feet from us. I also found a big hairy spider in my cup...We are pretty slow in getting started today. It is 9:45 am and we are still sitting around.

11:00am We finally pack all our stuff and are ready to leave. No real rush although we have 10 miles or more to do today - maybe because Max Patch was achieved with relative ease? On we go - through the open fields of the mountain and down into the woods.

* Forgot to mention - from Hot Springs to Max Patch was a total climb of 5,800 ft (that includes all the climbs and descents out of the gaps and valleys).

After 3 miles - 1 hour, we stop for a quick break on the border of Tennessee and North Carolina on a mountain road. We have been bouncing back and forth in and out of each state over the past 2 days and we will keep doing it today. We continue on along some short but steep climbs and finally down into Ground Hog Creek shelter. We get there at 1:30pm for lunch and water. it is 60º. We take a long break and finally move on at 3:00pm after filling up our water and eating some more soup. Now we face a 1,500 ft climb up Snowbird Mountain where there is an FAA directional beacon used for air navigation.

We reach the top of Snowbird at 4:10pm - 2.5 miles, steep uphill, in 1 hour and 10 minutes. We still have a few miles until an "excellent campsite" so after a long break - on we go.

By the way, there are absolutely no views from up here. Would be nice if we could see back to where we came from.

4:45pm - On we go. Long steep downhill. We start off on an access road and miss the trail as it ducks back into the woods. Todd points it out and we back track and get back on the trail. Long steep downhill race to get to a suitable campsite. Looks like 2.4 miles.

After identifying some points out of the hiking book, we begin to look for the campsite on Painters Branch Creek. We eventually run up on 2 Marines that we have been shadowing the past 2 days. They are camped on what looks like a sandbar right next to the creek. They were looking for the same campsite as us and didn't find it either. We drop our packs and I run ahead a ways to look for something suitable. The trail climbed up away from the creek so I returned. We back tracked a hundred yards or so to an area that looked ok. Upon arrival, we found that this must be the "excellent campsite" that we read about.. Tim and I gather wood and Todd filters water for us. It is 5:45pm and we are deep in a valley surrounded by towering Poplar trees and mountain walls.

The Marines told us that to go into the Smokey Park you need a permit and must stay in the shelters only. I must say that I am ready to head out tomorrow and go chill. It has been a hectic few weeks leading up to this and I don't think I am anywhere near being as mentally prepared as I was for the first week of hiking back in April. I would like to see Stef and the kids too, but I don't think they can come up here until Friday anyhow (we are going camping in the Smokey's with our families this weekend). Emily was climbing on the monkey bars at the playground in the backyard and fell off. Tim was there and he said he heard a snap. He carried her back to us and we laid her down on the couch and everyone felt her arm and did their own assessment of it. She didn't scream when we touched it and she could move her arm so we all thought it wasn't hurt badly. Well, after I left, Stef had to take her to the Emergency room where x-rays revealed a clean break through the uppermost part of her humorous (right under her shoulder). Poor Emily - the first one in the whole family to break anything...

8:30pm 60º No Breeze. Dark. There is an owl serenading us in the distance and many bugs are chirping in the trees around us. Last night lacked sound and tonight is full of it.

We are about 3 miles from Todd's truck. We are all going to head back to Daniel's house, take a shower, drop some gear and formulate a plan to go about 20 more miles on Wednesday and Thursday. Then come back Thursday night, wash up and take the stuff to set up the campsite for the family. Sounds like a plan to me!

Now we are sitting around a nice fire with the owl hooting in the distance and the bugs still chirping all around. I think Tim is going to spank the monkey.

Goodnight

Today’s total: 11.3 miles
Trip total: 31.3 miles

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