19 May 2010
Yin: So... today was... interesting. We awoke and left the shelter at around 7:00 a.m. heading for Siler Bald shelter about five miles away. We arrived there at around 10:30 and had a good lunch. After looking at our maps and talking it out, we decided that we simply can't survive another cold night like last night. So we made the professional, or crazy stupid, decision to head to Gatlinburg, TN and in doing so trek over Clingman's Dome (the highest point on the A.T.) altogether making for a 12 mile day. We could see our destination the entire day looming in the distance. It was a tough climb but we had higher spirits now that we had a newly found destination. Yang assured me that we could hitch a ride from the tourist attraction/watch tower on top of the mountain. However, when we arrived the entire area was closed due to construction! We were able to talk one of the workers there to give us a ride to Gatlinburg but we would have to wait until his shift was over. Not a problem. Yang and I took some awesome photos from the watch tower (despite the clouds/fog/mist/stuff). Before we knew it we were in town and getting a hotel for the night. Right now we are talking of steak and beer so I am going to wrap this so I can fill my stomach for the first time in what seems a long time, knowing that our adventures on the Appalachian Trail have come to a close... for now! Until tomorrow, Peace!
Yang: No Entry
Posts
