Day 3

My savior and envy of fellow hikers: Wise Bean Blend + Jetboil French Press

Day 3:

Today was supposed to be 12+ miles but we cut it short by hiking past the planned shelter. We arrived at the Fontana dam shelter at about four. Caught a ride into town and picked Dad up a trekking pole so he now has two. Well, now I get to use two again. This shelter is nice but filled with crazy bees. They have a shower + flush toilets. I discovered that I have no backup underwear! It's 6:31pm right now and I am fed, content and am looking at a mountain lake. Tomorrow will be rough. Looking to make it 13.8 miles. We have a steep 4 mile long hike to start the day, which will be a bitch. If we can get to the top by noon, I bet we'll make it. We hear there has been a lot of bear activity, so we'll be lookin' out for Smokey. Time to shower, play some cards? Hit the sack. Bastards beat us at euchre. 2 games in a row! Beautiful Sunset.

*My Dad and I both learned a ton about hiking gear during the AT trip. When we had backpacked while I was in the scouts, it would seem we prided ourselves on how much stuff we could bring. One of the things this trip taught me is how little I truly need to be comfortable in camp. One thing this trip taught my Dad is how much easier it is to hike with two trekking poles. The poles really make a difference when you're headed up or downhill, and catching yourself when you're about to bust your head after falling for no good reason. I had given Dad my set to use until we were able to outfit him with a matching stick to the one he brought. I was very excited to get my 'ski poles' back in hand.



The Fontana Hilton; The second best looking shelter I will stay in on the trek