Dates ........ Friday, September 21, 2001
Miles ........ 9 miles, climb 1500 feet
From ........ Yellow Mt. Gap Overmountain Shelter
To ............. Times Square Restaurant and motel, Elk Park NC
Weather ... 55 degF at 7:30 Am, 60 degF at 9:30, mostly sunny, hazy. Heavy morning dew.

Friday, September 21, 2001

Little Hump (5459'), Bradley Gap (4960'), and Big Hump (5587'), Elk Park NC

Overmountain Shelter sits at the head of a gully overlooking a beautiful valley just below Yellow Mountain Gap, where, during the Revolutionary War, frontiersmen crossed the mountains on their way to battle with the British army at Kings Mt. SC. I was on the way back up to the AT from the shelter by 8AM. It was shaping up to be a beautiful morning, but with a little haze in the air from yesterday's moisture. As I climbed the side of Little Hump Mt., one of two 700 foot climbs in a row, I looked back and saw the Overmountain Shelter nestled in a valley with Roan Mountain and its neighboring balds looming over it. I get a real sense of accomplishment when I can look back and see the territory I have just hiked over. The grass along the trail was very wet, even though it did not rain last night.

Overmountain Shelter sits in the valley with Roan high Knob looming above. Round and Jane Bald(s) are just left of Roan Mt.

My feet were sore, especially my left foot, and both were very wet. I had taken care not to step into any water, not trusting my Gore-Tex boots that much. Hiking in the rain yesterday they were covered by my pant legs, but I hiked all day in wet leaves and grass. Today, it was just wet grass and brush and my feet were soaked. Water was not coming in the tops; it was soaking through the sides. So much for Gore-Tex being waterproof. I am unhappy with these boots - they are uncomfortable and not as waterproof as claimed. That's what I get for ordering them so close to my hike deadline and not having time to prove them out thoroughly before the hike. I was paying the price for that.

On top of Little Hump Mt. I was treated to a fantastic view and got several beautiful pictures, some with the morning mists rising out of the valleys. I could also see ahead to Hump Mt. and I could see the 500 foot descent and climb to its summit. The northbound trail lay clearly ahead of me, going straight up the side of Hump Mt.

Hump Mt. And the AT to its summit, from Little Hump Mt.

Nearly at the top of Hump Mt I saw a rancher in a Big Bear ATV. He was looking for some stray cattle. He asked me if I'd seen any; I had not. Then he asked me how I could stay warm on this cool day with no shirt on. In fact, I was sweating from the climb as he was wearing a shirt and jacket. He wasn't exerting himself as I was. As I hiked over the summit, a hawk lifted off from the trail, only a few feet away. It had been dining on a snake and left it's skeletonized remains behind when it took off. Just after that, starting down the other side, seven deer (one a six-point buck) ran across the trail in front of me. I Descended from Hump Mt into Doll Flats, overlooking a large Christmas tree farm, them turned and headed into the woods.

There I met a church group out for a two-day hike. I warned them about the bees on the entrance to Clyde Smith Shelter, then I circled around the base of some big stone cliffs and continued my descent. I liked this downhill hiking stuff! I passed the spill from some old mines then came to Apple House Shelter along a stream. I left my pack at the shelter and went down to the stream, below any point likely to be used to get drinking water, and washed some of the trail smell off me. It was nice to smell human again, especially since I was headed into town.

I followed the trail and stream down to the highway and started hitching. It had warmed up to the 70's and was a nice day. Soon a young lady with a little boy in the seat next to her stopped and gave me a lift in the back of her pickup truck into Elk Park. I took a room at the motel, did some laundry, got a good meal in their restaurant, called home and relaxed for a while. I also got a lesson in laid-back southern living. These folks were serious about it. The motel proprietor was sitting in his rocking chair, beer in hand, when I came along. As soon as I registered and was on my way to my room, he was right back on the porch. Then two friends joined him and that was the extent of their afternoon and evening activity: sit, rock, relax, and sip beer. They were most serious about it.

My late lunch was two fish fillet sandwiches, a basket of onion rings, and two Pepsi's. For dinner I treated myself to a couple pork BBQ sandwiches, fries and some pie. So? A hiker works up a good appetite, you know! We all have a good reputation for eating well when in town. Gotta live up to it!

All was well on the home front. I called my friend Jim Yeich and informed him that I was a full day ahead of schedule and he could plan accordingly. My room was decent, clean and comfortable. It was warm enough so I needed a fan in the window. I watched a little TV and went to bed.

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