Porcupine 2008

The last week was a very slow one, with a foot injury, gear problems and just plain stupidity slowing me down.

I finally left Franklin, N.C., last Monday, from where I left off at Wallace Gap, passed through Winding Stair Gap and onward 6.8 miles to Siler Bald Shelter just below Siler Bald, when the bad weather started moving in. Or so it seemed. I took Tuesday off and stayed there, to wait out the expected bad weather, but it never materialized; it was sunny almost all day with just a brief shower around 8 p.m. A day wasted.

Wednesday I left and found myself moving a bit too slowly, but still made another 7.8 miles to Wayah Shelter just on the north side of Wayah Bald, where I caught some impressive views, including first sight of Clingmans Dome, 26.7 miles away as the crow flies but 78.6 miles up the Trail. At the shelter I saw my first wheelchair accessible privy. I still haven’t figured out how a wheelchair would get to it.

Thursday I left, despite predictions of rain, and made only 4.8 miles to Cold Spring Shelter. By the time I got there it had been raining hard for a good 45 minutes and I was soaked through. This is where I discovered my rain gear isn’t properly sealed, and so it leaks right through the seams. So I stopped there and attempted to dry out. On Friday morning my stuff was still wet and it was still raining so I stayed another day. Yet another day lost.

On Saturday I finally left, leaky rain gear and all, and got 5.8 miles to Wesser Bald Shelter without getting too wet. But I twisted my left foot climbing down wet rocks on Wesser Bald and it was hurting pretty bad, so I didn’t press on, even though I got to the shelter around 1 p.m.

And yesterday my foot was swollen and bruised, but I knew the Nantahala Outdoor Center was only a few miles away, so I toughed it out and hiked the 5.7 miles mostly down to the NOC as fast as I dared. This probably wasn’t too good for my foot, but I really didn’t care. I just wanted to get off it and get a shower and laundry done. After that I had a late lunch and stayed here overnight last night.

The A.T. runs directly through the NOC campus on the Nantahala River, which looks a lot like an amusement park for outdoor sports. Especially looking at it from above on the Trail. I could smell the food cooking at the restaurant a good half mile before I saw the buildings, and that really got me going down the hill.

The NOC’s specialty is whitewater rafting, which there’s plenty of in the mountains around this region. But they also cater to A.T. hikers and to other outdoor sports enthusiasts. The outfitter here, though, didn’t have a whole lot of selection for hiker food. It was either Mountain House or ramen noodles. Of course it was Sunday, so maybe they were just low on stock. I’ll check them out again this afternoon.

This morning I was planning to hit the Trail again but my left foot is still swollen and a bit bruised, so I’m staying here again tonight, and I may stay here several days to see whether it heals up or I need to go see a doctor about it. Either way I’m going to seal up my rain gear today and hope that, at least, is something I don’t have to worry about going forward.