Goodbye North Carolina, Hello Tennessee!!!

After pulling out of Erwin, TN, Fatty, Paddy Cakes and I followed a gorgeous stream up and over some rocky climbs. With our packs newly supplied and feeling way to heavy we decided to stop on a bald named Beauty Spot. We soaked in the sun and relaxed for about an hour so Sleeping Beauty could catch up. After finally getting motivated we climbed Unaka Mountain which is over 5,000 ft. On the way up we past a couple that was day hiking and having a very hard time. They were both a little large but seemed to be pushing to the top. After the top we finally descended to Cherry Gap shelter where we pitched tents and enjoyed a fire. A little after dark the day hikers we encountered earlier stumbled into camp looking broken down and exhausted. They warmed their cold fingers and pushed on, even after many insisted they use there phones for help or even stay the night. One thru hiker even gave them his headlamp because they had no light to hike in the dark with. After crawling in the tent at about 9:30 we heard this terrifying noise in the distance. It sounded like a couple of drunk locals riding dirt bikes through camp. We were both terrified that they were coming to mess with the thru hikers, and we knew our thin tent would be no match for them. It turned out to be a search and rescue team on four wheelers looking for the day hikers we had seen earlier in the night. Our friends who were still up told them which way they went and the search team took off just as quick and noisy as they had come. We never heard what happened with the search but I am pretty sure everyone went home safe that night.
The next day we got a lazy start because it was very cold. We hit the trail at 9:00 and started slow with our still heavy packs. We took a nice long lunch which turned into a nap for Sleeping Beauty and myself. With to much of the day slept away we pushed up and over Roan High Knob which was 6,290 ft. It was a hard cold end of the day push that no one enjoyed. After 18.5 miles we ended up stealth camping in a field by Carvers Gap. The next day we had two main mountains to climb. Little Hump mountain and Hump mountain. There were some great views and a very sunny warm day. We even stopped by this barn that had been converted into a shelter. U could have slept at least 50 people there. After our climb up we were greeted by a steep climb down into the great state of TN. Not only did Tennessee greet us with a down but it also greeted us with the most amazing Trail Magic ever. This couple from Michigan named Slow and Easy had a car full of food. I'm talking trail magic on crack here folks. They had everything from bananas, mangos, cantaloupe, avocados, meats, cheeses, free gear, cokes, clif bars, milk, noodles, nuts, and to top it all off they were cooking BBQ Beaver. We were in heaven. We stopped short of our goal for the day and took it all in. We actually resupplied off their trail magic so we didn't have to go into town. God Bless those Michiganders. After we stuffed our bellies and our packs we took a quick rinse in the nearby stream to wash our feet then hiked another two miles where we all cowboy camped under the stars. It was a great welcome into Tennessee!!!!
Puddin'