Since being on the trail, it has never felt better to be warm, dry and in my bag than right now. I was sopping wet all day long from the weather and trail conditions. Today may well be the most miserable I’ve been since my hike started.
Let’s start with the weather. The Smokies are well known for being a wet area. It gets something like 120 inches of rain per year. If it rained everyday of the year, that’s about a third of an inch – per day! So yeah, it’s wet out here. Today it rained all day long, and is still raining now. It started as one of those light mists, but it steadily intensified. After taking a break at a shelter about 3 miles into the day, the bottom dropped and it rained it’s ass off.
When it rains like that, there’s nothing you can do about it. There’s nowhere to go to get dry. You just have to keep moving. You’re going to get wet walking just as surely as if standing. So that’s what I did – kept moving.
The section of the A.T. that runs through the Great Smoky Mountains is in terrible shape. I think there’s a couple factors involved. First, the A.T. is a very traveled trail. This causes erosion. In some places, the trail is literally a couple feet lower than the surrounding forest floor. Second, factor in the fact that the Smokies receive so much rain. This increases erosion even further.
Either the trail needs to be relocated, or the trail itself shored up to better withstand water’s erosion effects. Something like better drainage.
Today, there were sections where the trail didn’t look like a trail at all. Instead, it looked like a river. And I was hiking in it. Some places, the dirt is just completed saturated which creates a very slick trail surface. It makes for very hazardous hiking conditions. Every step feels like you’re about to slide and go down.
I did fall twice. First time, I fell sideways when my foot just slid out from under me. I jabbed my knee pretty good into a rock. The second time, I was descending a treacherous mud slide. My foot slide out in the front, and I fell right on my ass right in the middle of the riverfied trail! If I weren’t already soaked, that would’ve made certain. My romp is ok, but I banged my knee pretty good. I’m sure it’s fine, just a bit sore.
The rain was relentless. As the day got later, the temperature began to drop. I didn’t arrive to this site until about 700pm. I was wet, cold and miserable. I checked the shelter for a spot but it was full. That meant I had to pitch my tent. I know it’s not my style, but I was really hoping for a shelter spot. Oh well.
I finally got set up, and was able to get dry with dry clothes on. M’mot and Zeeba are here tenting too. They arrive a couple hours before me and already the shelter was full. There’s probably 10 to 15 tents at last check.
Well, it’s 11pm now and I need sleep. I’m not sure what my plan is tomorrow. All I am certain of is that I’ll be in Gatlinburg on Friday night.
Wandering on…
Mojo