Day 37
Start: Spring Mountain Shelter
End: Jerry Cabin Shelter
Miles Hiked: 15.9
Miles on AT: 302.0
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Today we woke up to a completely different AT. Gone were the cloudy skies; we could actually see blue and sunshine! It wasn’t as cold as it had been last night when we arrived at camp and the winds had blown away.
As is our modus operandi, we had a leisurely breakfast and left camp around 9:45 am. Since it was the weekend, there were a number of day and weekend hikers out and about. Our descent was mild; I typically don’t like long descents. Either they’re a bit boring or too painful if steep or staired. Going uphill takes effort in a way that makes sense, whereas going downhill can take a lot of effort and energy for apparently no reason at all.
Eventually our descent was over and we reached a highway, crossed it, and started a short climb. As we were emerging onto another gravel road, a yellow sign caught my eye. “Trail Magic by the Southern Cookie Lady” – awesome! I’d heard about the Southern Cookie Lady, but had no idea we were anywhere near her. Hello trail magic no. 4.
We headed that way and were charmed by the quaint cabin homes that stood in the forested clearing. Today’s cookies were peanut butter flavored, so I had one and sat down for lunch. Godspeed and another hiker were there. He had been able to see the Aurora borealis from the firetower the night before. A group of townsfolk had driven up around 11 pm to view it and he said it was beautiful.
After a long lunch sitting in rocking chairs on the porch, the Janitor and I reluctantly got up and continued on our way. As we were retracing our steps back to the trail, something pink caught my eye. Oh my goodness!! I had been looking for this all trail long – a Pink Lady Slipper. Orchids are so uniquely beautiful that to see them in the wild is really something special. Today, I saw my first one!
As we climbed, I continued to spot more and more. I must’ve seen at least twenty. I felt very special. We stopped for a midday shelter break then continued on a steep ascent. I thought it would never end, but eventually we got to the top. There was supposed to be a lookout tower, but it was roped off with caution tape.
Our next exciting area was an area dominated by rocky cliffs. A few a of the cliffs were closed to protect peregrine falcon nesting, but we reached a rocky ridgeline that had the absolute coolest views. It was a very narrow ridgeline with a lot of navigating over large boulders instead of walking on a flat trail. It was a bit tiring to traverse, but definitely lots of fun. We had a view of NC on one side and TN on the other.
After taking pictures and making our way down, we were a bit pooped. It was getting late but we still had a few miles to go. After a brief pre-dinner snack, we started on our last push to the shelter.
Once again, we were running from the rain, which we could see falling into the valley to the left of us. Luck was on our side once again and we made it and set up our tent before it started to rain. Even then, it only rained for a few moments before stopping for the night. I had a real dinner tonight and I’m looking forward to a good night’s sleep after our longest day on trail.
And that’s day 37.
A version of this post originally appeared on TheTrek.co.