NOC

How I made it 17 miles to the Natahala Outdoor Center yesterday is blowing my mind. That was by far the longest day we have done so far and it was brutal.

It rained hard the night before and a mouse managed to chew through the mesh hip pocket on my pack to get through to an empty Cliff Bar wrapper. In my flailing to get rid of the little asshole I knocked over one of my boots and it fell outside the rain fly and proceeded to fill with water. Perfect.

Thankfully the boot dried out pretty quick and we got on our way at around 9am. The fog hung really low - similar to when we were heading out of Neels Gap - which played games with my mind the whole way up the first big climb. Every time we got to the "top" the fog would clear just enough to reveal another up. Perfect. And when we finally got to the top the views were so obscured by the fog that we couldn't even make out the mountains looming in the distance.

After a snickers bar and a loosening of my boots (they were way too tight, cutting off circulation to my feet) I felt like a new woman. The next 7 miles were alright, especially after some much needed trail magic at the gap before Wesser Bald. Hotdogs and Coca Cola anyone? I had just been whining about my need for a soda so when I rounded the corner and saw that pickup truck with three locals and a little grill and a big cooler I looked at them and said: "God?"

It was an Easter miracle.

The last bit downhill though (and by "last bit" I mean "5 miles") was insanely brutal. They say that screaming expletives actually relieves pain and I can attest to the validity of that. I think the hillbillies in the decrepit meth lab down the hill were a little nervous.

When we finally walked into the NOC I went straight to the restaurant and asked for their finest local brew and the worlds most massive glass of water. The bartender poured it into a plastic cup and I took it outside and savored it, shoes off as families that were there to do kayak adventures walked past judgmentally. Judge on, jerks, you dunno my life.

The jalapeño burger that I had for dinner was incredible. Sub tater tots for fries yes please. Full and happy I staggered up the hill to the cabins and into the loft to have a space to myself. Talking to family and a few friends lifted my spirits and I fell asleep in a stupor after a load of laundry and a thorough scrubbing in the shower.

Today Beacon, Trucker, Beetlejuice and I got our packs driven 14 miles up the road to a hostel for just a few dollars so we get to hike packless today. I am THRILLED. Hopefully walking a bit without my pack with help my legs and feet to heal.