The sun may rise in the east…

…but it definitely sets in the west, as the pictures at the end of this post prove!

To start things off, I just wanted to share the absolute beauty of the outdoors in the springtime here in the south.  Yes the weather was not on our side the first two days, and it was even colder than planned the last two, but we survived (and I would argue THRIVED) thanks to some hard work, dedication, brotherly love and most of all His grace.  Day One started out highly optimistic and held up even through the first five miles in the rain.  At camp this started to dwindle thanks to a failure to maintain a fire in the still misting afternoon, but a dry tent, some granola and a few scriptures helped to end the night on a positive note.  We awoke the next morning to find that the storm wanted to stick around for another day (much to our surprise and dissapointment) but none the less we were blessed with a family of whitetails (the first I had seen of the larger cousin to our blacktails) and a hot breakfast thanks to our homemade penny alcohol stoves (oatmeal + coffee = ready to go!).

This day would quickly turn from lets-make-the-best-of-it to this-is-not-so-fun to oh-crap-my-feet-are-numb.  Thanks to much more snow above 4,000ft than expected, we (Daniel) got into a bit of a pickle with cold feet, as we had started the day in not-cold-weather shoes, and his had soaked through in the snow.  Once we made it to ridge crest, it was all downhill to the next night’s camp and the two of us sprinted (read: jogged, those packs were HEAVY!) down the trail in order to get out of the cold and get his feet over a fire (praying that we could get one started in time!).  Thankfully, just a mile or two down feeling returned and we warmed up enough (and the sun even came out!) to slow down our pace and enjoy the scenery as we waltzed into camp right on schedule.  After a couple hours laying in the sun the tents and bags were dry(er) and we were able to get a respectable fire going, which was quickly adorned with not only food but every article of clothing that was wetter than we preferred.  As you can see with the first victim of sitting too close to the fire (of many this trip) we were quite successful in getting wet wood to burn (first pic of the burned sock, as Nate pulled it out of the fire, without skipping a beat, his first words: “I’m still gonna wear it!”).  Taking a trick from survivalist Les Stroud, we added river rocks to the fire in order to create personal heaters for our tents and sleeping bags; they were met with mixed success this first night.  A hot meal (rice + mashed potatoes + ravioli never tasted so good!) in our bellies and a good reading in our hearts, we dozed off under scattered stars (but mostly clouds).

Day three started with a bang – hot breakfast, a strong cup of Joe and a peak of sunshine brightened our spirits as we turned around and climbed back up that which we had descended so quickly the day before.  The original plan was to make a long (10 mile) loop around the Cataloochee valley, ending with a short and steep climb to the summit, but after reevaluating the group’s minimum pace after the first two days, we decided to take the shorter six mile climb back up in order to allow time for both resting and/or tanning, provided the sun ever fully burned off the scattered morning fog.  It didn’t take long for us to start begging for the latter; by the time we reached the ridgeline it was again cold and most of all windy as we trudged through the snow and ice that had fallen from the trees the previous several days.  But our prayers would soon be answered, as we reached another junction along the ridge, just shy of the summit, we found both a little meadow to drop down in and a roaring sunshine to bask under.  Rejuvinated by this early afternoon shot of Vitamin D, we raced to the top to find our future campsite the popular place for dayhikers to take their lunch; but no matter, we had views to see (and oh what a view!) and water to retreave (we were plum out!).  As we trekked down the north side, we realized the next morning would be a very, VERY cold excursion as we searched for running water (given the time it was on the ground and our impatience, we really wanted to filter our water and filter it quickly).  This night yet another fire was needed and we were blessed with a spectacular sunset from the top of the abandoned fire lookout, towering some 50+ precarious feet over the summit and trees.  This was to be our last stand and earliest rise.  A pot full of mashed potatoes and a mind full of the Word, we shivered ourselves to sleep as the moon came out and the wind picked up.  The night was not quite over yet, as Nate was determined to make those rocks work; around 2 am we were awakened to a rustling and zipper in the other tent.  Fearing they had heard something (bears are more common on the summits here, where there is much more foot traffic and garbage) awoke and called out to Nate.  It turns out he had woken up with a cold rock, and so ventured out to not only stoke the fire, but to retrieve a rock he had left in the coals!  While this was a stroke of genius on his part, he forgot gloves (so I assume) and was able to grab the last rock and hurry back to the tent.  Waking up the next morning, before the sun, I realized why: the ground was frozen solid!  To add insult to injury, the wind howled that night on the peak, dropping the wind chill (based on my estimations that morning) down to or below 20 F.

Despite the freezing winds even at 6 am, we trudged back up the tower to watch the moon set and the sun rise, awakening the entire land to the new day!  After pictures we hustled back down (the wind was worst in the tower) and tried to get breakfast going; we got halfway there, but we ran out of fuel just as we were making coffee, a big let-down for me!  Never the less, we wanted out of the cold so we packed up and headed down the snow and ice covered trail, headed for warmer weather and a clean set of clothes in the cars!  Soon we were out of the snow (and the north side was completely covered) and overdressed for the part, so we stopped and adjusted our garments for the rainforest-like groves we began to wander through (my favorite of this set is the “Into the Rabbit Hole” shot where the border is spinning, unintentionally!).  Green surrounded us and little melt streams were everywhere to be seen.

Day three and four were my favorite days because I was able to break out my new Vibram Five Finger, KSO Trek shoes (the funny lookin ones!) to truly experience the trail.  Let me tell you, you have not hiked (or lived, for that matter) until you hike in these shoes (the next best thing is barefoot, but lets be honest, rocks are sharp!).  The concept behind these shoes is that God (or nature, pending your persuasion) gave you all the arch and ankle support you need (and the most current research backs this up in spades!).  They are essentially a thin rubber sole wedded to a leather upper that hugs every contour of your foot like a glove, which is essentially what they are; gloves for your feet.  Check out your local shoestore and try a pair on – it is quite possibly the best thing you could do for your feet and you won’t regret it!  Back to the story…

After one final overlook and a photo opportunity (Master Adventurer shot included) we soon descended to the valley floor and caught our first glimpse of the finish line (the raging river that ran alongside our parking lot).  After passing a rock wall that we almost stopped to climb, we came to the bridge that signalled the end of our trip and freedom from the heavy bags we had lugged those 26-some-odd miles.  After a quick head and foot bath in the river, we assessed the damage to not only shoes, but feet (note, I came out on top with near perfect feet and very dirty, but undamaged, shoes).

Lessons to be learned?  Pack light.  No, lighter.  Nope, lighter still.  It is always colder/hotter, wetter/dryer than you expect (I knew this going in, yet somehow failed to prepare myself adequately and my team at all).  Your pace will be set by the slowest person, not by what is reasonable or “totally possible”; it is more important to make it safely and comfortably than not.

In the end, I had an absolute fabulous time and cannot wait to plan a trip to California for summer break (John Muir Trail, here we come!) and was totally fired up to jump straight into this quarter, to which we are off to a great start!

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