Appalachian Trail: Day 49
Disclaimer: This post is NOT sponsored. All the gear mentioned in this post was purchased by me at retail prices. I have no affiliations with any of the companies or brands mentioned.
Today started with packing up and getting as ready as I could before the 8 AM shuttle to town for resupply. The same shuttle as a bunch of hikers who were slackpacking over Pond Flats which included Bard and Glimmer.
That decision just proved that my thoughts yesterday about their plans to take the blue blaze into town being the smart one.
I went to town and got a mediocre resupply since the store had a terrible selection. But I only needed about 3 days of food since Damascus is that far away.
After the resupply, it was back to the hostel to finish packing up. I spent some time chatting with the other hikers who where there. Sophie and Noel, or Gravity and Baby Bear now, showed up to do a quick resupply at the hostel. They apparently had camped a mile or so before the hostel.
I ended up leaving just before 10 and started my hike to the shelter. At first, the trail was easy. It went down and around Watauga Lake. The problem was it was very humid. Not especially hot, but warm enough that the humidity sucked.
When I reached the dam on the other side of the lake, the forecasted rain decided to let loose and I had to hike across the dam and up the road in the rain before turning off back into the woods.
The rain continued while I continued hiking up climbs to get to the shelter. When I got there around 4, there was only 1 other hikers there and he was waiting for a break in the rain before moving on. I thought there might be a chance I would be the only one in the shelter.
That thought turned out wrong. Gravity, Baby Bear, Bard, Glimmer, and another hiker ended up showing up and staying in the shelter that night too. I guess the rain has a way of making people want to stay in a shelter and not setup their tent.