This trip has been so amazing so far. And it's only just begun!
We got on the road Tuesday night around 10 o'clock and drove to the Tennessee state line. There we stopped at a rest area to sleep. However, sleep never happened. At least, not for me. We were vastly unprepared for our first night in that van (Garrett's dad let us borrow his worker's van which has been completely stripped down so there's plenty of room for our 3-week luggage and a blow-up twin mattress). We had packed plenty of blankets, but we were so dog-tired after driving for over 3 hours and arriving at 1:30am that we decided to just use the 2 that were already out (we had used them to wrap ourselves in while driving). WORST. DECISION. EVER. Unbeknownst to us, it was in the 20's that night. Also unbeknownst to us, there were huge open spaces in between the side doors on the van. We froze, needless to say. And I put one sleepless night under my belt as we hit the road for the Smoky Mountains. The next day we got into Gatlinburg and paid a steep $10 for parking (that's steep when you're on a 2 1/2 week road trip). If you're not familiar with Gatlinburg, Tennessee, let me fill you in. Pancakes, taffy, and fudge. This is a big tourist area and these people treat these 3 items like they're crack. Along the entire strip you'll find oddities such as "The Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum" and ... I don't know, they were so ridiculous I can't remember. All of which, though are begging you to spend your money. And in between these odd themes are candy shops, purse shops, t shirt shops, gift shops, head shops, christian shops (so contradictory, I know), shops, shops, shops. It's weird. Anywho, we ate some pancakes (of course) and headed for the Smokies. After talking with a few people in town, we decided to go to Charlie's Bunion. SO GLAD! The trail that took us there was actually the Appalachian Trail. Which is awesome, considering Garrett and I had planned to hike the trail a few years back, but had a big set back that prevented us. We had a beautiful drive in through and UP the mountains. Once we got to the top we loaded our packs and set out. The hike was a little rough, considering it was 3 miles nearly entirely up a mountain. We arrived at our shelter, Icewater, around 6 o'clock. Set up camp and started meeting some people. Most of the people we met were thru-hikers (people hiking the entire Appalachian Trail up to Maine). There was also a group of about 10 (adult supervision included) kids from a private high school in Michigan. There were a little oblivious, but nice. The thru-hikers, though were amazing. Each so friendly. With trail names like: Cheeks, Papa Wolf, Atlas, Honey Bomb, etc. We brought weenies and marshmallows to share. This proved to be a great strategy as we quickly became popular with the group. These guys really were awesome. Singing songs around the campfire, roasting marshmallows, and getting to know some friendly people -what could be better? That night, temperatures were in the low twenties, as in 21 degrees. WTF. I slept with a sports bra, a tank top, under armor, a patagonia shirt, my wind breaker, 2 pairs of thick socks, tights, my cargo pants, and even my shoes on - all while being in a 20 degree sleeping bag. It felt as though it didn't make a difference at all. I had to pee before going to bed but told myself it'd be okay to wait until the morning. I'm so stupid. I've never actually contemplated peeing my pants instead of getting up to use the restroom, but I did that night. In fact, I'm pretty sure the only reason I didn't was out of fear that it would freeze against me. Our entire tent froze inside and out. When we awoke the next morning, Garrett shook out the tent and opened it to find a snow ball inside. We all combined efforts and made a morning campfire for breakfast and talked a bit while leisurely packing up. We hiked about 1.5 miles further to a spot called Charlie's Bunion. This spot was literally the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, ever. It's a little side loop right off of the Appalachian Trail that allows you to walk around the side of the mountain. And I do mean right along the side. Soooo terrifying and mesmerizing at the same time- like something you'd see right out of National Geographic. Then it was back to the car, and back on the road for North Carolina. We're currently in Asheville, North Carolina, and I'll have to post about it later as there is just way too many amazing things going on here.
