Day 11&12, Leaving the NOC and start of Smokies

Hiked out of NOC today, 19.5 miles and 6586 ft of climbing. Had a 4000 foot climb in the first 8 miles of the day. Legs felt well rested after a zero day but it was overall a tough day in leaves and loose debris. It was also the beginning of the toughest section of the southern Appalachian Trail so we’ve been told which will continue on until Davenport Gap which marks the end of the Smokies. Cheoah Bald had a stunning view. At the end of our day we rolled into a dispersed campsite. Here we met a very nice couple, Uncle Bill and Pace Setter who were also thru-hiking. They live on a sail boat full time. We ate our dinner with them. It was the first time we had company at a dispersed campsite. As soon as we finished our meals, we all headed into our tents to warm up as it was once again a cold evening. We woke up on day 12 knowing we had a big day ahead. We had a goal of 22 miles to get to the first shelter in the Smokies. Around mile nine we stopped at the Fontana Lake Marina to get some water and food. We were able to sit out on the dock and enjoy the view of the boats and the lake. It was sunny and 75 out. We then continued on to Fontana Dam where we were blessed with trail magic by Fresh Ground. Even though we had already eaten, we did not pass up the hotdogs and fries that were being served. We are very thankful for his generosity and conversation. We left Fresh Ground around 3:30 PM and we had 11 difficult miles of trail ahead of us to make it to the first shelter in the Smokies. We crossed Fontana Dam where the sun was strong and bright, and we were loving every part of this natural, vitamin D. We completed this difficult stretch about 45 minutes after sunset. We were blessed with not only a sunset, but also a full moon and as we were finishing we were able to see Gatlinburg, TN and its city lights off at a distance. We set our tent up and cooked dinner upon arriving to the shelter with headlamps.