Day 23: Wallace Gap to Wine Spring Camp

Great day today folks! I covered 11+ miles and stopped here at this camp. We have a great group here tonight, all new faces. We had Gemini, Chef, Tonka, Slingshot, Woodstock and Giggles. Tonka made a kick ass fire which was great because temps are dipping to 25F      tonight! I’ve got my water filter in my bag with me to prevent freezing which would ruin it. My water bottles themselves I have just outside my bag. I hope it’s enough to keep them from freezing!

We all stayed around the fire until about 900pm. We all had dinner and listened to some Led Zepplin, courtesy of my portable audio solution. Everyone is now hunkered down to weather the freeze advisory for tonight.

The day started with an all you can eat breakfast, courtesy of First Baptist Church in Franklin. They picked us up from the hotel at 715am. We returned to the hotel at 820am which was just in time to get packed and ready for the 9am shuttle back to the trail. Most hikers resumed their hike at Winding Stair Gap, but I was the lone hiker to be dropped off at Wallace Gap, 3 miles earlier on the trail.

There was a lady at Winding Stair Gap doing trail magic. So, I left my pack with her and did a 3 mile slackpack from Wallace Gap to Winding Stair Gap. Without the pack, I was able to cover that 3 miles in barely over an hour! Once at Winding Stair Gap, I retrieved my pack and continued on the way.

The day’s weather was ideal. Sunny but cool and breezy. The highlight of the day, bar none, was Silar Blad, our first bald on the A.T. Balds are featured in the mountains where a peak has no trees, only a grassy covering. As such, you get a full 360 degree unobstructed view. I took plenty of photos and videos which I can hardly wait for you all to see. Additionally, I shot a new kind of video. I mounted the phone to my treking pole and used it as a camera boom to shoot a sweeping panorama with me in the center. I can’t wait to share!

I strolled into camp at 530pm, exhausted from the 1000 foot climb to get here. This site is at 5300 feet altitude, just about 1 mile!

So now it’s time for me to zip up in my bag and hibernate through the freeze alert. Good night!

Wandering on…

Kelly