AT #2: Nantahala, NC to Iron Mountain Gap, TN

Beside a good preparation and a great fitness, the key to success in a multi-day hiking adventure is mostly about the pack weight. A heavy pack will slow you down quickly, and your body will have a hard time recovering. That’s basically what happened to me last year during the 1st section. A lighter pack will make you faster on the trail, but you will have to make some choice or sacrifice about what not to bring. I decided to go light this year and not take my tent and sleeping bag. Because ultra-light gear can be very expensive, I decided to buy just an emergency bivy and a tube tent. I was a little nervous about that choice, but my pack base weight (without food and drink) was only 15lbs. I knew that I would be fast and I was happy about that while flying back to Asheville airport in NC.

I arrived on Friday May 20th mid-day in Nantahala, NC, and resumed immediately my hike Northbound. It was hot and steep but I felt strong. After 16 miles and a brief dinner, I set up my “tent” for the very first time and tried to sleep. It was impossible and after 3 hrs. of tossing and turning, I decided to get back on the trail. It was 1am. So much for my brilliant idea! However, the advantage of hiking at night is that you cover a lot of distance, and at the end of the 1st full day, I already hiked 44 miles. Not too bad after a sleepless night. Obviously, I was done with this tube tent thing, and I stopped at a shelter, where I ended up with few other hikers and several mice during the night. That was my first night in a shelter, and it was not that bad. I actually slept and I was protected from the weather which was about to make things very interesting in the coming days.

Last year, I had a little bit of rain on the last day, and that’s all. This year was the exact opposite. On Day 3, it was pouring rain nonstop and after reaching Clingman’s dome, highest elevation on the AT at mile marker 200, things got ugly and the trail literally became a river. It was a bit of a fight moving forward in this condition, but by that time, I was now used to life on the trail. Plus, I had booked 2 nights in a row on Day 4 and 5 in a hiker hostel (Standing Bear) and a lodge (Laughing Heart). Therefore, I could suffer a little bit, knowing that I would soon sleep in a real bed and clean myself up and my clothes. It rained again all day on Day 6 after the lodge stay in Hot Springs, NC, but I was only 3 days away from exiting the trail, and I didn’t mind at all. That night, I stopped at a shelter where were 2 dads with their 3 sons doing a backpacking trip, and a young woman and her dog, doing the whole 2,180-mile-long thru-hike! I’ve seen many college students starting their thru-hike in May, and hoping to finish by the end of August before class start again. That’s really impressive, knowing that they need to average about 20 miles/day to finish on time. Those kids are real badass, and if they end up in Katahdin, ME, this adventure will most likely set them up for success in life.

My best day on the trail was on Day 5, where I had to cover 33 miles in order to be in Hot Springs in the evening. The excitation of being in a beautiful lodge at the end of the day, plus a nice weather for once, boosted my motivation and I succeeded. However, I felt really tired the last 2 miles and I was afraid of having pushed too much. But once again, I was amazed at how the human body can recover quickly. If you do something/anything long enough, your body will adapt and get better at it. It is that simple. By the end of only one week on the trail, my legs were stronger and I could cover the same distance much more comfortably than at the beginning. We truly have no idea how strong we can be, unless we put ourselves in this kind of situation. And when you do it, the feeling of pushing our own perceived limits is almost addictive.

As much as I wanted to stay on the trail, I had to exit on Sunday because 1) I’m not retired yet and most importantly 2) Monday was our 35th Anniversary, which I could not miss. After one last day on the trail and 21 miles covered, where for the first time I was able to slack pack, with the help of my shuttle driver taking care of my back pack, I exited at Iron Mountain Gap, TN. In 1 hr., I went from being on the trail to the Johnson City airport. Talk about a change in scenery! But I know I’ll be back for Round #3 and will keep going North!

Happy Trails everyone,

Patrick, a.k.a Frogman