Today started with [you guessed it] more rain. It only lasted long enough to dampen everything, but that’s the point – everything is damp or wet. I have been successful in keeping my clean clothes dry, my sleeping bag dry, and my food dry. But everything else is anywhere from moist to saturated. I’m guessing that adds about 2 pounds to my pack weight.
My initial destination today was to get to Unicoi Gap. GA Hwy 75 runs through Unicoi Gap about 10 miles north of Helen, GA. So after another day of foggy conditions, I arrived at Unicoi Gap only to realize that this was a true gap; it’s a steep incline on each side with a busy highway running through the middle of it. There was really no where to camp – and besides, it is very good advice when backpacking to never camp near a busy road. Because it was only around 4pm, I decided to make the climb from Unicoi Gap (2949 feet in elevation) up Rocky Mountain (4017 feet in elevation), and back down into Indian Grave Gap (3113 feet in elevation) about 2.4 miles away. As I climbed, I was experiencing complete exhaustion. My steps became a shuffle of less than a boot length. My feet were hurting worse than ever. I just kept reminding myself that the day’s end was near.
The descent down the other side of Rocky Mountain was not as difficult as the climb, but was also not as easy as it should have been. Two hours later, I finally got to Indian Grave Gap, removed my pack, sat down and gently began to pull off my boots and wet socks. Recall that I have had some heel blister problems for the entire trip. After four days of aggressive hiking, wet socks, an overloaded pack, and unkind boots, my heels have progressed from blisters to open festering wounds. While that is bad, the worse part is that my ankles are swelling. I called my wife and talked to her. She referred my to my oldest daughter, who gave me the benefit of her freshly minted Nursing Degree to let me know that I have an infection and potential cellulitis. I need to get off the trail. That will be tomorrow’s job.
To find the “silver lining” here, I actually did have a descent weather day and took my one and only scenic photo from the summit of Rocky Mountain looking toward Yonah Mountain (the tall one in the photo).
Doctor Photon
