Day 162 – Mile 1166.7 + 336.5: 20-mile day over Big Bald Mountain into No Business Shelter outside of Erwin, TN… Day 163 – Mile 1166.7 + 342.6: Up with whoever else had their alarm set for 5am, out the … Continue reading Day 162 – 166: Big Bald into Erwin and Trail Days🌅🙌🇺🇸🌸🌈!!

Day 159 – Mile 1166.7 + 289.8: This has to be one the GREATEST days on the trail so far! 😎🌅😊🙌🌈 The essence of the day was that my uncle Jim Anderson worked in this area building log cabins 30 … Continue reading Day 159 – 161: The Gotts!🇺🇸😊😊

Day 156 – Mile 1166.7 + 273.5: Thanks Kevin Rumble for the best zero day ever – lots of rest, great food and good movies! This guy is a movie star (literally)!! Day 157 – Mile 1166.7 + 275.4: Jam-packed … Continue reading Day 156 – 158: Hot Springs!

Day 154 – Mile 1166.7 + 253.6: Beautiful hike up to Max Patch after making new friends – Smokes, Tangerine, Penny, Patchy, Levi, Lakes, Soup and Mike. Then came a delivery of Asheville’s best burger – Farm Burger and salad … Continue reading Day 154 – 155: Max Patch into Laughing Heart Hostel

Day 151 – Mile 1166.7 + 221.9: Now that was one full shelter!! Started the day in pretty full Icewater Spring Shelter and ended the day in EXTREMELY full (30 people in a 12-o shelter with people sleeping in the … Continue reading Day 151 – 153: Leaving the Smokies and into Standing Bear Hostel 🐻😎

Day 147 – Mile 1166.7 + 206.8: This is the top of Clingman’s Dome – the highest point of the Appalachian Trail at 6612 ft!🇺🇸⛰  My cellphone battery died 2 days ago so I got a random tourist (there is … Continue reading Day 147 – 150: Snow ❄️ in the Smokies; Stuck in Gatlinburg 

Day 145 – Heading for Mile 1166.7 + 177.0: Woke up in the wonderful Fontana Hilton Hotel (I mean shelter) with the other 15 who slept in the shelter and about 20 people who tented, and decided to walk with … Continue reading Day 145 – 146: Into the Smokies

Day 143 – Mile 1166.7 + 155.7: Sleeping Beauty had to take a nap in Stecoah Gap. A hitch into Robbinsville followed this, and then a trip to Microtel to print Smoky Mountains Permit, then a little free Microtel coffee … Continue reading Day 143 – 144: Hitch into Robinsville, NC

Day 143 – Heading for Mile 1166.7 + 158.9: Sunrise in Cheoah Bald!  Thanks for the coffee Melissa Kay Thompson😎🌅Saved it for today! Continue reading Day 143: Sunrise on Cheoah Bald!🌅

Day 142 – Mile 144.8: Woke up to lots of fog and not well rested so went back to sleep! Great stealth camp spot last night overlooking Nantahala River. Met lots of new friends today – Jeff, Jason, Chris, Jason, … Continue reading Day 142 – Mile 144.8: Cheoah Bald 🌅!!

Day STILL 141 – Mile somewhere-after-the-NOC: So after a day full of thunderstorms (which I waited out in the comfort of a blow-up chair in the NOC outfitter), a coin shower, coin laundry, some food (with Tripod, Kansas and John) … Continue reading Day STILL 141: Mile Somewhere-after-the-NOC🛶🚣‍♀️🚴‍♀️☔️🌈🌸!

Day 141 – Mile 1166.7 + 137.1: Welcome to the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center)! This is a special place for me because it’s the first time I encountered the Appalachian Trail😍 Back in 2012, my neighbor, Scott Dillery, and his … Continue reading Day 138 – 141: Mile 137.1 NOC😍😎🙌!