Date: 3/25/04
Starting Location: Cable Gap Shelter
Destination: Fontana Dam Shelter
Miles: 6.6
Total Miles: 171.6
An amazing day today rolling on into Fontana Dam, the southern boundary of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, under more beautiful skies and temps in the 70s. Oh yeah, and my Mom is an absolute superstar. Having overnighted a week's worth of food to me here, I'm ready to roll through the park with Professor T to Hot Springs. Without her, and no open grocery store anywhere near, I would have been proverbially screwed. As it is, my Mom is the greatest ever, and me, Professor T, Semicolon, Mo, and Curious George are shacked up at the Fontana "Hilton" Shelter with beautiful views of Fontana Lake right out the door. Great relaxing day meeting some locals, eating fried food (my hiker food craze has finally set in), getting a shower, and soaking it in next to the lake. Tonight it's soon time for stargazing and tomorrow it's over the dam on my first day into the Smokies—only 3 days to Clingmans Dome and the highest point of the entire trail.
