I thoroughly enjoyed my first zero day in Fontana Dam. Even though there isn't much there it was nice to relax, get clean, and rest my feet. I woke up early Saturday morning, even though I wasn't in a hurry to get anywhere, and wandered down to the visitor center by the Dam. As I walked down the road a man passing in his car pulled up beside me and handed me a banana out the window! "Banana man!" he said and drove off.. curbside Trail Magic!
A large group set up multiple tents near the shelter with the biggest trail magic I've seen so far - pancakes, eggs, bacon, brats, snacks to take with you, first aid supplies, drinks - they even had an industrial sewing machine in case hikers needed gear repairs. They were set up from around 9:30AM to 2PM and made sure everyone had their fill of food. Hikers even delayed their entry into the Smokies to experience the kindness of these Trail Angels.
I decided to stay in the shelter again and Meredith tented near by. The 'Hilton' is a large shelter that can fit 20. The larger the shelter the greater the snoring symphony - with rounds and crescendos. There orchestra Saturday night couldn't be beat. I was up at my usual time Sunday morning, but so was just about everyone else! Most hikers were trying to take advantage of the morning since storms were rolling in by the afternoon and would hang around for most of the week. Meredith led the way all day Sunday at a nice steady pace.
The weather in the morning was decent, had some great views from the sketchy firetower about 5 miles into the day. Around 1:00PM the clouds rolled in and the rain and wind started.
There were tons of thru hikers out, more than I had seen so far. Fontana Dam is a good place to meet up with friends who are a day behind, resupply, and rest sore legs before the climb into the Smokies so it becomes a bit of a 'log jam'. A permit is required to camp in the Smokies, thru hikers can get them while they are already out on the trail. But non-thru hikers must get a General Backcountry Permit, which requires them to 'reserve' a spot in a shelter which Meredith got for the trip. The rules in the Smokies are hikers have to sleep in a shelter unless the shelter is full and then you must tent in the vicinity. They don't want hikers 'stealth' camping and ridge runners monitor the trail checking for permits and making sure hikers follow the rules. When we finished our 14.9 miles for the day and arrived at Russell Field Shelter it was packed with hikers. I had to deliver the bad news to the large group of thru hikers that someone would have to give up their spot for Meredith. They made room for her and I tented right next to the covered porch that was a little protected from the rain and wind.
We cooked and ate dinner in the shelter with everyone else and the evening ended with a sing-along with the large group of hikers packed in the 12 person shelter. I was in my tent by 7:30PM and did my best to get some sleep. I was hoping that we would be hiking past the hiker bubble we were surrounded by that night, they were only planning on hiking 9 miles.
I stayed warm and dry in my tent but the wind was so loud. During the night the gusts were so strong that corners of my rain fly came unstaked. Luckily it wasn't raining but by morning I couldn't get out of my tent for fear that it would blow away. I had to hold on to all pieces of the tent and shove them back into the stuff sack while they were flapping wildly in the wind. We were hiking by a little after 7AM on Monday, planning on hiking 16.4 miles. The first hour hiking that morning was decent, still very windy and cold but at least dry. Still didn't see any views.
The showers came in and were consistent throughout the afternoon. We stopped at Spence Field Shelter, 2.9 miles into the day to eat a hot breakfast. We were soaking and shivering when we entered the shelter, which was still full with the previous night's occupants. They had a fire going and made room for us to warm up while we cooked breakfast, which of course I dropped on the ground because my hands were numb and not working correctly. By the time we were ready to hike again it had momentarily stopped raining. I was cold and uncomfortable most of the day and worried about having to set up my tent again in the miserable weather. We passed Derrick Knob Shelter, 9 miles into the day, at around 2:00PM and it was already full with the sing-along crew we had met at the shelter the previous night. We weren't done hiking for the day yet and pushed on. The next shelter was 5.7 miles away and the shelter we had planned on sleeping at was 1.7 miles further. We hiked quickly and for awhile it was pleasant - no wind or rain. But just as my clothes were about dry it started steadily raining again so we showed up to the shelter soaking wet.
Approaching the shelter we saw several tents set up which I figured meant I'd be tenting in the rain and wind again, but they made room for both of us inside the shelter. We decided not to push it the extra 1.7 miles, figuring that shelter would be just as full so we ended up with a 14.7 mile day. It poured on and off throughout the night and the wind was howling again.
But as 6:30AM came around Tuesday morning it stopped so we quickly ate breakfast, packed and headed up the trail. We would be climbing 4.5 miles to Clingmans Dome at over 6,500' - the highest point on the AT! For the first two hours it was great - no rain, no wind, warm(er), but still no views. As we climbed we entered the Spruce Fir Forest, which was so beautiful with moss covered trees and large evergreens. But then - rain.
When we finally got to the Clingmans Dome tower a little after 10 we talked to a Ranger who confirmed that it was pointless to go up the tower but warned that the weather conditions were going to further deteriorate and thunderstorms with severe winds were expected that afternoon/evening. We stood in the doorway of the visitors center, trying not to drip all over everything, and took the Rangers advice to take the free shuttle into Gatlinburg. TN for the night and come back in the morning.
The shuttle van was packed to the limit as we made the 15 mile ride down to Gatlinburg. It was kind of a charming, touristy town - we were checked into our hotel room by 12:30. We were hoping to catch the first shuttle out tomorrow morning at 8ish and make a 10 mile day. There was more rain in the forecast but looked like it would improve by the end of the week!
A large group set up multiple tents near the shelter with the biggest trail magic I've seen so far - pancakes, eggs, bacon, brats, snacks to take with you, first aid supplies, drinks - they even had an industrial sewing machine in case hikers needed gear repairs. They were set up from around 9:30AM to 2PM and made sure everyone had their fill of food. Hikers even delayed their entry into the Smokies to experience the kindness of these Trail Angels.
There were tons of thru hikers out, more than I had seen so far. Fontana Dam is a good place to meet up with friends who are a day behind, resupply, and rest sore legs before the climb into the Smokies so it becomes a bit of a 'log jam'. A permit is required to camp in the Smokies, thru hikers can get them while they are already out on the trail. But non-thru hikers must get a General Backcountry Permit, which requires them to 'reserve' a spot in a shelter which Meredith got for the trip. The rules in the Smokies are hikers have to sleep in a shelter unless the shelter is full and then you must tent in the vicinity. They don't want hikers 'stealth' camping and ridge runners monitor the trail checking for permits and making sure hikers follow the rules. When we finished our 14.9 miles for the day and arrived at Russell Field Shelter it was packed with hikers. I had to deliver the bad news to the large group of thru hikers that someone would have to give up their spot for Meredith. They made room for her and I tented right next to the covered porch that was a little protected from the rain and wind.We cooked and ate dinner in the shelter with everyone else and the evening ended with a sing-along with the large group of hikers packed in the 12 person shelter. I was in my tent by 7:30PM and did my best to get some sleep. I was hoping that we would be hiking past the hiker bubble we were surrounded by that night, they were only planning on hiking 9 miles.
The showers came in and were consistent throughout the afternoon. We stopped at Spence Field Shelter, 2.9 miles into the day to eat a hot breakfast. We were soaking and shivering when we entered the shelter, which was still full with the previous night's occupants. They had a fire going and made room for us to warm up while we cooked breakfast, which of course I dropped on the ground because my hands were numb and not working correctly. By the time we were ready to hike again it had momentarily stopped raining. I was cold and uncomfortable most of the day and worried about having to set up my tent again in the miserable weather. We passed Derrick Knob Shelter, 9 miles into the day, at around 2:00PM and it was already full with the sing-along crew we had met at the shelter the previous night. We weren't done hiking for the day yet and pushed on. The next shelter was 5.7 miles away and the shelter we had planned on sleeping at was 1.7 miles further. We hiked quickly and for awhile it was pleasant - no wind or rain. But just as my clothes were about dry it started steadily raining again so we showed up to the shelter soaking wet.
Approaching the shelter we saw several tents set up which I figured meant I'd be tenting in the rain and wind again, but they made room for both of us inside the shelter. We decided not to push it the extra 1.7 miles, figuring that shelter would be just as full so we ended up with a 14.7 mile day. It poured on and off throughout the night and the wind was howling again.But as 6:30AM came around Tuesday morning it stopped so we quickly ate breakfast, packed and headed up the trail. We would be climbing 4.5 miles to Clingmans Dome at over 6,500' - the highest point on the AT! For the first two hours it was great - no rain, no wind, warm(er), but still no views. As we climbed we entered the Spruce Fir Forest, which was so beautiful with moss covered trees and large evergreens. But then - rain.
When we finally got to the Clingmans Dome tower a little after 10 we talked to a Ranger who confirmed that it was pointless to go up the tower but warned that the weather conditions were going to further deteriorate and thunderstorms with severe winds were expected that afternoon/evening. We stood in the doorway of the visitors center, trying not to drip all over everything, and took the Rangers advice to take the free shuttle into Gatlinburg. TN for the night and come back in the morning.
The shuttle van was packed to the limit as we made the 15 mile ride down to Gatlinburg. It was kind of a charming, touristy town - we were checked into our hotel room by 12:30. We were hoping to catch the first shuttle out tomorrow morning at 8ish and make a 10 mile day. There was more rain in the forecast but looked like it would improve by the end of the week!
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