"Winter Storm 'Remus' Tried to Ream Us"

After our resupply day in Franklin we were all set to head out to the trail. But we woke up Tuesday morning to a world covered in snow. This made finding a ride to the trail very difficult since people in North Carolina are not at all prepared for even the smallest amount of snow. 

After a night out in a shelter we realized we were close to the Nantahala Outdoor Center, so we decided to push the extra couple of miles in order to sleep indoors last night. This turned out to be a great decision as last night storm Remus hit.  We arrived at the Nantahala Outdoor Center just a couple minutes before they closed early due to the storm and a few minutes later the snow started to fall.

After this recent storm and talking with several people we have decided that it will be best if we avoid the Smokies right now. It sounds like the trail has been very very icy and cold lately and we don't have the necessary equipment to stay safe in that environment. We found a guy willing to give us a ride to Davenport Gap tomorrow morning. Hopefully we'll be good to go from there. Once we're back in Asheville for the summer we'll come back and cover the section we're skipping now. 

Sunday, Soggy Sunday

We crossed into North Carolina the other day! This was a big moment for us since we had been feeling pretty stuck for the last few days due to being forced off the trail and having to move slowly due to bad weather. It finally felt like we were making progress!

We hiked our biggest day yet yesterday. 20.4 miles on the trail in just over 10 hours and a few bonus miles on the road at the end. 

When we woke up yesterday it was warmer than usual but still chilly. The shelter we stayed at wasn't very effective at keeping out the rain so we started out very damp. We packed up with a light breakfast and hit the trail. 

It was slushy with light rain early on and our shoes weren't the best at keeping water out, so for a good 12 ish hours we had wet feet.  Even though it was warmer than usual, we decided it was still too cold to stay out on the trail with a lot of wet gear. So we picked up our pace and pushed it all the way to town. 

 (Our first 20 mile day!!!!)

Sorry for the lack of pictures...it was so foggy yesterday we were lucky to see the trail. We arrived at an overlook mid day and everything around us was completely white. It was a very eerie feeling, as if we were standing on the edge of the world. 

Another cold night kicks us off the trail

Got back on the trail yesterday. Made it up the mountain and saw some spectacular views. At night we huddled close together at Tray Mt Shelter  to block each other from the wind while the temperature dropped to the low single digits or maybe negatives. The weather got so cold that it set records in the local towns. 

Neither of us slept very well but we made it through the night alright. 

We decided to get off the trail again and get a good nights sleep at Top of Georgia Hostel at Dicks Creek Gap before trying again. The weather should be getting better the next couple days. Hopefully we can stay on the trail until Franklin. 

Week 1 - awful weather

We have finally had a chance to get a blog up and going. Today is our 7th day of the hike. Everything has been going very well, we've been pushing ourselves to wake up sooner, pack up camp faster, and hike a bit quicker each day, and are very hopeful that we will figure out our system soon.

We have traveled about ten miles each day and have been fortunate enough to spend most of our nights at the shelters. The one night we spent in a tent was pretty windy and we were woken up in the middle of the night by Search & Rescue looking for a lost day hiker.

We spent one night in a hostel at Neels Gap and set out the next day at 5:30 to stay ahead of the weather. We got to camp relatively early and spent the afternoon watching the freezing rain turn the ground into a skating rink and coated the trees in ice.

Unfortunately my (Hannah) feet have developed some nasty blisters so luckily for them we were forced to leave the trail yesterday due to bad weather. We were hoping to stay out on the trail for a couple more days but the bad weather started a lot sooner than we were anticipating.

Luckily we were only 10 miles from Hiawassee, GA so we called our old landlord who offered us a ride and a warm place to stay. So we have hunkered down with a hot bath and some chocolate milk to ride out the storm. We finished the first quart of chocolate milk so had to go buy another half gallon.

The Journey Begins

It's the night before our big adventure begins and we are anxiously waiting in the tiniest airport I have ever been in. After months of planning, saving, organizing, and packing, the time has finally come to put it all together.

The last couple days have been spent organizing resupply boxes to be left with the parents, buying shuttle tickets, making sure permits are in order, and racking our brains for the right puzzle pieces to fit together so our copious amounts of food and cold weather gear will somehow miraculously fit into the packs we have chosen to use.

So tomorrow is it, all the waiting is almost over. Here's to 4 months of rice and beans, cold nights, sore feet, chocolate (can't hike without lots and lots of candy and chocolate), beautiful trails, and a whole lot of hard work and fun. Wish us luck!