Day 12 The Smokies

Writing from my tent, feeling accomplished after entering the Smokies.



I slept well last night. Learning how to sleep consistently in the woods has been such a boost to the overall experience of backpacking. I think there’s a mental side to it, where you get used to the sound,  temperature fluctuations, and not thinking every noise is an animal. But also the gear makes such a big difference as well. I use a 25 inch wide pad, which is definitely a luxury as it adds about 4 ounces. I also sleep in a two person tent, which gives me plenty of space for myself and my gear. The added weight is definitely something I heavily considered, as together they add around a half pound, but for good sleep it is very worth it.


I woke up around 7, just at the tail end of the sunset. We ate breakfast and were hiking between 8 and 8:30. The day consisted of an 8 mile hike down into Fontana, a walk into Fontana to pick up our resupply boxes, a shuttle back to trail, and an 8 mile hike up into the Smoky Mountain National Park.


Most of the morning was overcast but not foggy. We could see the mountains around us quite clearly. 



After making it down to the road which leads into Fontana we hoped to get a shuttle for the two miles to the general store. However, the Fontana Resort only runs the shuttles at 9AM, 12PM, and 4PM. We got to the road at 12:15. When we realized that the shuttle wouldn’t be back for 4 hours we decided to walk the extra 2 miles into Fontana. It’s always painful adding unnecessary miles to a day. We didn’t feel like we were making progress, so it feels like wasted time and effort. However it was necessary as we needed our resupply to make it through the Smokies. So I tried to look at the added miles as part of the overall journey, even though they weren’t on the official AT.


Once we got into Fontana we got our resupply boxes, went through our stuff to make sure we were ready for the next 4 days and 80+ miles. We won’t have a resupply until we are out of the national park, so we need to carry quite a bit of food.  After getting our food we waited for the 4PM shuttle while eating snacks and charging our electronics. Once back on trail, we hiked across the Fontana Dam, the largest dam on the east coast.




Then we began the Smokies with an ascent up Shuckstack Mountain. The hike was pretty gradual and we made decent time to the top. We were all running low on water, since there was a 4 mile gap between water sources. After filling up and drinking over a liter on one sitting, we pushed over Shuckstack as the sun was setting.



After Shuckstack we descended down another couple miles into Birch Spring Tentsite. We got to camp about a half hour after dark. I was quite sore by the end of the day and was relieved to get into camp. My ankles aren’t bothering me much but my left ankle is still swollen and slightly bruised. 


Either way, it is exhilarating to be back in the Smokies. After covering the next 80 miles the trail will get a good bit easier and there will be much less standing between us and Virginia. 


Overall we hiked 19 miles today, including the 2+ mile non-AT road walk into Fontana. 


I’m headed to sleep now.


Goodnight,

Walker 


If you want to follow Tyler or Spencer, here are their logs as well:


Tyler: https://tylerat2024.blogspot.com/?m=1


Spencer: https://www.instagram.com/baxter.bound?utm_source=qr&igsh=MWx4MzRqa3M4dGk3Mw==

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