Hot Springs, NC to Erwin, TN

It was tough leaving a town as nice as Hot Springs, but we were eager to get back on the trail, and the weather was good. Since we had already slack-packed the first 15 miles of this stretch, we got a ride to Allen Gap, and did a relatively easy 14 miles to the Jerry Cabin Shelter. When we got there, M found a bit of trash that was sure to attract some critters, so he spent some time picking it up. The shelter was in a little clearing and had a decent spring that was close. We knew there were a lot of people out on the trail, but once again, we ended up with the shelter to ourselves.

The next day we ended up at a shelter with a bunch of other people, and even more showed up after dark. Shadow and Numbtoe tented out back, and we also met the famous Umbrella Lady, the Habitual Hiker and their 13 year old dog, Mac. Elsa and Nat also came after a 21 mile day, and Golden Boy was the last to arrive. We awoke to fog and a little rain. The weather just got worse all day, and we walked through a steady rain up until Big Bald - which is supposed to have fantastic views, but we saw nothing but fog. We did only 10 miles that day and made it to the next shelter, where Flick and I took afternoon naps and M conversed with Bronco Billy, a southbound section hiker. The next day, we felt refreshed, so we did the 17 miles into Erwin with no problem. M got some cool pictures of lizards on the way down.