Back to Fontana Dam…through horrendous rain

This is the best photo all day. Kept my camera in its ziplock baggie for most of the day because of the rain.

Taking a nero (near-zero—a short day) to hang out at the Fontana Hilton and rest up before hitting the Smokies.

I made a pact with myself not to run on this trail, but the PO for Fontana Dam closes at 3 (!!!), and there was no way I was going to make it there without running on the downhills. It was surprisingly easy–and I made it with 15 minutes to spare. This was great, as it gave me enough time to get my package (with new shoes!!!!) and also grab stuff out of the box that I wanted to bounce onto Hot Springs.

Last night at Sassfras Gap Shelter, I saw Shawn (aka Gotta Go) who was with me at the Hiker Hostel. When I got up at 5, I heard him say: ‘You’ve got to be kidding me.’ He was only joking, though. I always ask people the night before if it is ok if I can stay in the shelter even though I’m going to be getting up early, and no one has had a problem yet.

To my incredible sadness, I hit Cheoah Bald in the dark and didn’t get the view. I was hoping to hit it at sunrise, but was too early. I ran into two thru-hikers cowboy camping (not using a shelter) on the top—I bet they got a stern wake-up call at 7 when it started raining like crazy.

So—I realized that today I got my first horrendous rain since I started training on the BMT. I’m getting smarter about being wet, though. In the past, I would push harder and faster to stay warm when wet, but this time, I took a break at Brown Fork Gap Shelter around 9:30, took off my wet clothes, put on dry clothes, dried stuff, and made myself a couple hot drinking. By the time I was finished, it had stopped raining!! Now that’s luck.

Ran into Chef at Cable Gap Shelter, and then met the Dude, two women with a dog, another guy, and a girl hiking solo (yay!)–all whose names I’ve forgotten.

Got a hitch into the Dam and am still eating. So excited for a shower…