I had a great hike through the Smoky Mountains National Park. No ornery rangers to hide from and the weather was cold but still really enjoyable. The park has beautiful trails and so many magnificent views. I didn’t see a bear, but I did hear one trying to get through the tarp across our shelter one night. I was also there over the weekend, so I got some nice snacks and extra food from those crazy section hikers that carry 50lb packs! Really, the amount of stuff people bring into the woods for a weekend is ridiculous. If there’s one thing I’ve learned on this trail, it’s that you don’t need much at all to survive and even be happy. Yet, I must say I was thankful of their overpacking in this situation!
Then, yesterday I made a new adopted mom/grandma Jean. Jean is the jam. She’s part of some really cool group that started a foundation in town and obviously has been successful. She took me to her mansion on a mountain and has treated me like royalty- cooking for me, doing my laundry, feeding me milk and cookies, and she even bought my groceries! We spent a really lovely evening last night at a community dinner with her coworkers and then went hot tubbing under the stars. And man, what a bed I got to sleep in! I’m only 6 days away from springer, and now I feel refreshed and confident I can make it!
I never imagined that I would have these type of experiences along the trail and I feel incredibly lucky to have had them- I always knew the mountains would be beautiful, but I had no idea how much more so the people along the way would be. Everyone has been congratulating me even though I haven’t finished yet, and are legitimately shocked at the distance I’ve covered (over 2,000 miles now!). That seems like an impossible number, and I realize on my own it would have been. I know for a fact I could have never gotten this far by myself. Thankfully, I’ve had some amazing support along the way 🙂
Miles of Misadventures 