Sunday, May 29th

Siler Bald Shelter (113.1 mi) to Nantahala Outdoor Center (136.7 mi)

Hiking Miles: 23.6

Total Ascent: 5,003.9 ft

Total Descent: 7,872.4 ft

Total Grade: 544.6 ft/mi

Steps: 57,165

We got an 8 am start which was late for us, particularly if we were hoping to achieve 23 miles including the many 5k foot climbs we were facing. We did cook breakfast though – oatmeal, chocolate instant breakfast with protein, and it was hot and filling. We really like having a cooked breakfast from time to time, and it particularly helped this morning with hiking a steep 0.6 mile incline on the blue blaze leading back to the trail. We also experienced a steep climb up to Wayah Bald, and subsequently Wesser Bald later in the day.

So one quick highlight during the mid-morning was coming upon a trail angel who was handing out cinnamon buns. He gave us each one in a plastic wrap so that we could continue hiking and eat on the go, or later. It was delicious but there is a funny story attached to this that Stevie will explain in our summary video below.

The biggest highlight of the day came late morning when an Ultra Runner by the name of Kristian Morgan ran past me on trail. He called out to let me know he was running through and as he trotted by, he had a big smile on his face. Kristian was training for the Appalachian Trail speed record that currently stood at ~41 days, held by Karel Sabbe. When we reached the Wayah Bald tower, Stevie talked with Kristian’s support driver (a planned stop for them) who told him that Kristian was beginning his AT Ultra Run attempt in Georgia on June 1st. He had previously attempted the run in 2021, but unfortunately stopped early when he realized he was well off the record pace, and decided to keep training and give it another try in 2022.

Soon after, Kristian chatted briefly with Stevie at the base of the tower before climbing it. I heard Stevie say to him “My dad is walking down the tower – you will see him on your way up”. When we crossed paths on the stairs Kristian made my day. He said “Your dad? He looks more like your older brother”. After thanking him, I remember thinking “this guy is definitely breaking the record”. With his June first start at Springer Mountain (official attempt), he estimated that he would be passing us again about the time we would be reaching the Great Smokey Mountains. Unfortunately, we never took a photo with Kristian (I wish we had), but he is truly a down to earth guy!

Post Trail Note: Fast forward one year (2023) – Kristian attempted the Southbound AT record from Katahdin to Springer Mountain, and he broke it! He accomplished it in 45 days, 4 hours, and 27 minutes – fastest going southbound, and the second fastest overall for completing the trail. Congratulations again Kristian! Ironically, what inspired Kristian to attempt breaking the record was after he helped Karel Sabbe break the record in 2018.

We stopped at the Cold Spring Shelter and had lunch (two wraps – one peanut butter and one pulled pork), which was the last of my food. I sat on a wet log and my cooking bag rolled down a small incline into a puddle of water. I was having a slow, somewhat frustrating day already, and that just made it more accentuating. But on a more positive note, less than 2 miles later, we reached our 700 mile milestone!

Later that day, at the top of Wesser Bald, there was a cool tower with great views. Stevie had already checked it out prior to me getting there and he highly recommended the climb up. There was a couple at the base of the tower with two small dogs named Red and Cricket, and Red followed me up the stairs. His mom was nice enough to take a pic of me with the views in the background.

When I returned to the bottom, I called the NOC to see when their restaurant closed, and whether there were any bunks available; we were only 5 miles away, but a severely steep decline. I spoke with a gentleman named John who talked painfully slow. Processing our reservation took forever, and quite frankly he was wasting time especially knowing that we only had a few hours to hike before their restaurant closed. 

Our shuttle pick up was 8 pm and we made it to the NOC by 7:15 pm, so we had plenty of time to order dinner at the River’s End Restaurant, which was popular and very crowded. I honestly have to say by the time we reached the last stretch of the downhill leading to the NOC, I was past the level of tiredness and frustration, and cussed every step of the way. I needed food! But I was fine when we reached the resort and saw it was hopping with weekend vacationers. We ordered a chicken alfredo pizza, a toasted cheese sandwich (for me), and a chicken sandwich (for Stevie), and we also bought tall Corona Premiums, chocolate milk, ice cream and Powerade at the general store. While waiting for our order, we ate our ice cream and spoke with a couple there who was curious about our thru-hike.

Helene picked us up at 8 pm (her daughter actually worked at the River’s End Restaurant), then drove us 5 minutes up the road to her hostel. She had her niece with her for the ride, and when they approached the grounds, she stopped to add the “No” to the “Vacancy” sign so she could close up for the evening.

We checked into a very unique Glam tent – decorated in pink with pics of Marilyn Monroe and Joan Crawford (signed). Definitely not our style but it was a comfy bed for the night. Besides, all of the other cool looking shelters were occupied. We were happy because the beds had tons of pillows (to elevate my feet), and the room had a heater, heated blankets, a microwave, fridge, plenty of charging plugs, and a coffee pot! We listened to the Celtics online defeat the Miami Heat in Game 7 to advance to the NBA Finals.