Trail Day 17 - 3 Ridges - Prof

Everything was damp when we woke up this morning. We stayed in the trees at the brewery in a spot for hikers. It was sheltered pretty well but it rained a lot so it couldn't offer a ton or protection. I went full hiker trash and spread all my gear out on the picnic tables at the brewery while I ate breakfast. It worked really well and my gear got mostly dried which is a huge morale boost. 

The brewery, while expensive for supper, served an amazing hiker breakfast for 5$. It included: eggs, fruit, bacon, potatoes, toast, and coffee. I also order an extra 4 slices of toast and a beer. It was easily the top breakfast of the trip so far. The brewery also gave all of us hikers a free hat. 

After breakfast my gear was dry so I changed just in time for us to head out with an awesome family who shuttled us back to the trail. Even better they had a truck so we could all sit in the back and "air out", there's a shower on the agenda for tomorrow night for sure.

We made it back to the trail and began today's climb. At one point we came across fresh bear scat on the trail but we still haven't seen a bear. After a few miles of hiking we came across a fork in the road and there was two trails to the next shelter. One the AT and was like 6 miles long and other was a memorial side trail that was only 3 miles. There is a catch though. The side trail is supposed to be very steep and have some more technical climbs. Our group split up with Two Dogs, Doc, and I going down the shortcut and Clicks went the main way. 

It was a really difficult trail at times but I had a blast on it. I think we spent a good 1/4 of that on rock scrambles going by or up waterfalls. It was awesome to get the variation from the trail we have been used to and when the trail went straight up the waterfalls you couldn't help but shake your head and laugh. Here is an example of one of the climbs.

 

When we got to the shelter we came across a pleasant surprise, a group of three female weekend hikers our age. And to top that off they had a dog! We talked with the girls and played with the dog for a good hour while we waited for Clicks to catch up. The girls were really cool and they gave us a bunch of food. We were in heaven gorging ourselves with the food they gave us instead of our more boring lunches we had planned. 

We finished the day on a trail covered in the less fun type of rocks. There was a couple really cool views from on top of the ridges which made it worth it. We had a nice fire tonight and ate a bunch more since we are now going to be in town tomorrow night. It looks to be a dry night which is always appreciated. 

I think in the morning we might stop at a swimming hole along the way and then it's China Buffet tomorrow night. 

-prof