Mile 2002 - Derrick Knob Shelter To Mile 2025 - Fontana DamToday we wrapped up the southern portion of the park with a long downhill back to Fontana Dam. The day started in deep snow, but as we descended the snow level gradually decreased until we were walking on dry ground again for the last … Continue reading Day 152. Fontana Dam

Mile 1984 - Newfound Gap To Mile 2002 - Derrick Knob Shelter With Christmas behind us and Newfound Gap open, it was finally time to tackle the Smokies. Today had the best weather for the next several days so we decided to start with the section that includes Clingmans Dome, even though it means we … Continue reading Day 151. Clingmans Dome

Mile 1984 - Newfound Gap Christmas in Gatlinburg was a bit of sensory overload, but exactly what we needed to really get into the holiday spirit. Happy Holidays! Mirror maze Pink Floyd room Believe it or not

Mile 2055 - Rufus Morgan Shelter To Mile 2067 - Burningtown Gap We planned a short hike in the morning to get to a road crossing where Brenda picked us, Ox, and Torch up and drove us back up to Gatlinburg. Once there, Rocket got to work decorating the hotel room just as she had … Continue reading Day 149. Christmas Eve

Mile 2038 - Brown Fork Gap Shelter To Mile 2055 - Rufus Morgan Shelter Christmas is in a couple of days and we've been discussing how the season feels unusual without all of the normal signals. There are no stores playing holiday music or commercials on TV reminding us to get our shopping done. Rocket … Continue reading Day 148. Holiday Spirit

Mile 2025 - Fontana Dam To Mile 2038 - Brown Fork Gap Shelter The remnants of the last snow storm are still visible here, but thawing quickly. The clear skies and above freezing temperatures made for perfect hiking weather. Although we'd rather be in the Smokies right now, this was the right choice and we're … Continue reading Day 147. Moving Forward

Mile 1937 - Max Patch To Mile 1952 - Davenport Gap Our last stop before the Great Smoky National Park is Standing Bear Farm. Our plan was to hike a few miles past there to Davenport Gap and then have Brenda drive us back to to stay for the night. It was snowing all day, … Continue reading Day 146. Standing Bear Farm

Mile 1917 - Laughing Heart Hostel To Mile 1937 - Max Patch There are a couple of significant peaks left before we enter the Smokies. The first is Max Patch, which we tackled today. Unfortunately, it was in the clouds so we didn't get the normally spectacular view. However, we were glad to make progress … Continue reading Day 145. Max Patch

Mile 1897 - Little Laurel Shelter To Mile 1917 - Laughing Heart Hostel We had a fast hike today down into Hot Springs. The prospect of town food and a hot shower motivated us to walk through twenty miles in record time! The trail goes right through the middle of town and we stopped in … Continue reading Day 144. Hot Springs, NC

Mile 1874 - Hogback Ridge Shelter To Mile 1897 - Little Laurel Shelter Most of the afternoon was spent walking along an exposed rocky ridge that reminded us a bit of Maine. With the leaves off the trees, we had nearly continuous views of the surrounding mountains. This was definitely one of the more memorable … Continue reading Day 143. Winter Views