Day 22 - Tri Corner Knob shelter, Great Smoky Mountain National Park

I am nestled in my sleeping bag with the drawstring pulled all the way closed over my head, and I'm wearing two pairs of socks, leggings, rain pants, three shirts including my flannel, my orange vest, and my hat. All inside my down sleeping bag. And it's really cold. Why are the Smoky Mountains so cold? Also, I smell horrible, even for me.

There is no service at this shelter, so I'm planning to write now but hopefully post tomorrow if I get service up on a high ridge or peak.

Oh, now I hear rain on the roof of the shelter. I love shelters. Even though there are mice, and people are snoring, it's so lovely to be dry on a rainy night.

It's after 9pm, which is basically midnight for hikers. Some of us have been in sleeping bags since 7 just because it was too cold to be out of them. I sat with a dude from western Mass for about an hour trying to build a fire with wet wood, but just gave up and got tucked in instead.

I way overpacked my food bag in my last resupply, so now I have to lug this stupidly heavy bag up and down mountains til I finish it, since I don't waste food. Grr. I have 4 days til my next resupply, and only 2 days til my next really big ascent. I have to try to eat all the heavy things in the next 2 days so I don't have to carry them up that big one. Today I made "hiker pad Thai" which is ramen with peanut butter and hot sauce. Surprisingly good. Apparently even better with raisins. Another common ramen concoction is ramen with powdered mashed potatoes and tuna. I don't intend to make that one any time soon.

Two interesting things I saw today were 1) A pair of white-tailed deer; and 2) A 77 year old lady hiking the A.T. I was very impressed.

I forgot to mention in my last post, but I finally have a trail name! I'm called "Wings" because on the day I was named, I was flying past everyone else. Normally I am a moderately paced hiker, but I like the name anyway :-)