The Great Smokey Mountains 4/17/18 – 4/24/18

The Smokey Mountains have been such an amazing experience to hike through. We had a lot of contrast in weather from snow to weather that felt like summer to one of the coldest days we ever had to the last few days being rainy. We needed permits to hike through the Smokey Mountains and there are a lot more regulations which makes more specific planning more important. For instance, we have to stay at the designated shelters they have here and can’t just tent anywhere like we can on other parts of the trail. Sometimes the shelters are quite a few miles apart and we have to decide between an 8 mile day or 14 mile day. Once the shelters are full then we are able to set tents up around the designated spot around the shelter.

Tuesday, April 17 – Our first day in the Smokey Mountains.

Snow on the ground part way up the mountain.

Tent city!! The first shelter we stayed at in the Smokies…there were close to 40 tents set up!

Wednesday, April 28 – Today was a nice sunny day and felt like summer! I couldn’t believe how warm it was. I always heard about how much worse the weather is in the Smokies so I was envisioning us putting all our cold weather gear on and being freezing cold the whole time so the beautiful weather was a nice surprise!

These wraps are the BEST thing I have eaten on the trail so far! I start with a tortilla wrap and spread a thick layer of cream cheese on and then a layer of salami, pepperoni, and cheddar cheese. This is usually what we have for lunch.

Thursday, April 19 – The weather today was a stark contrast to what we had yesterday. It was the coldest day we had out here yet somewhere below freezing in the high 20s. We got up really early though this morning before sunrise and got all packed up and were on the trail by 7. We had 13 miles to cover today so it was nice to have an earlier start. As brutal as the cold was, it was one of the most beautiful days too. When we got to the top of the mountain everything was covered in an icy snow and looked like a winter wonderland.

This was close to the top of the mountain where it was sooo windy and the trees were covered in icy snow.

The snow was just soooo pretty!

Clingman’s Dome….and at the top! The highest point on the whole A.T. We didn’t have much of a view but it was still a fun experience.

We reached the 200 mile mark today! Less than 2,000 miles to go…

The forests were covered in moss and so magical.

Tonight was also our first night sleeping inside a shelter. This was something I was a little scared of doing…I heard too many stories of the mice crawling in people’s sleeping bags. It was great though and we had a cozy fire and it was nice that we didn’t have to tear down a tent in the morning.

Friday, April 20 – Gatlinburg, TN Today was an incredibly fun day! We got to go into town to resupply, saw our first bear, and got to see some of our friends!

We crossed the line into Tennessee this week but the trail goes along the border for the next 100 miles or so we switch back between being in NC and TN.

We got to see some of our friends Airell and Bev! It was SOOO good to see them and finally see someone we know!

We finally got to see bears!!! A momma bear with two cubs…They were so cute!

Saturday, April 21 – We hiked a little over 12 miles today. It’s nice to be gradually increasing our miles where 12 miles is more of a normal day versus 8-10 miles.

Charlie’s Bunion….an absoulutely gorgeous view and big rocks we could climb…a bit of a precarious steep drop off.

Sunday, April 22 – Today marks 1 month being on the trail! So exciting we made it this far. Today we are taking a zero day again. We are feeling really good but we like to try to take one rest day a week so our bodies have a bit of a break and so far it feels like we still make the same amount of progress and keep up with the others in our group. People stopped early at the shelter because of the rain so we hung out and played card games to pass some of the time in the afternoon.

Monday, April 23 – Goodbye Smokies! This morning we hiked out of the Smokies! We really had a beautiful time but happy to be down at a lower elevation and enjoying more spring-like weather! It’s beautiful here and all green with flowers and trees blooming!

-Marlisa