Day 14 – Wayah Bald?

After a Nero (near zero) and a Zero, we came out of the gates blazing. I set an aggressive goal to hike 16 miles today and everything came together. This morning I weighed in at the Onward Hostel at 200lbs, down 10lbs from 2 weeks ago when I first started. I got on the trail at around 9:30 AM. Everything felt pretty solid. The days of rest were evident in how my joints felt.

In medical school during anatomy class we had a saying called “appreciate and destroy”. During a dissection in order to get to deeper structures you would need to cut things you just dissected to see and learn everything else underneath. Today was similar in that I appreciated how well my joints felt after a few days rest; followed by destroying those same joints by hiking 16 miles. I think everything responded well considering and I’m set up for an easy 10 mile day into the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center) tomorrow.

Humble Pie

The trail conditions today were fairly saturated after the significant rain recently. At one point I did slip in the mud and both feet went out in front of me. Luckily my foam pad in my pack took the brunt of the fall. My pride however was slightly bruised as the fall was witnessed by another hiker. I also got passed by girl today (which is not uncommon), and I’m only highlighting it to say that I ate a few bites of humble pie today. The nutrients from the pie should be character building though.

There’s no room for egos out here. Everyone hikes their own hike. People are out here of all different shapes, sizes, sex’s, ages and abilities and that’s one of the things that make it so beautiful. We’re all out here conquering the same mountains. I’m sure there’s a metaphor for life in there somewhere.

The day’s highlight was definitely the views from Wayah Bald. 360 degrees in all directions and I even saw the Great Smoky Mountains. I’m presently 55 miles from entering the National Park there and I expect to be there sometime next week.

Random thought of the day: Trail legs weren’t built in a day

Finally, I managed to listen to my first audiobook of the trail, “Lord of the Flies”. It definitely helped pass the time today. I expect I’ll finish it tomorrow.

Today ended at Cold Spring Shelter. The name was fitting as I cold soaked my feet in the cold spring (I’ve been told I’m missing out posting my feet pictures for free). I also helped a group of section hikers from Michigan get a fire going (they did most of the work). And I met a dog named Gravy and her owners Reckon and Spa.

Fortunately, tomorrow’s a mostly downhill 10 miles. Looking forward to good food at the NOC.

Stow away in my pack for Day 15 on the Appalachian Trail.