Day 14

Sunrise from my sleeping bag:

Got up early today because we have a big hike ahead of us.  We have 15 miles to get the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC).  It was cold last night so it was hard getting out of my bag but what a view of the sunrise this morning.  

We climb Copper Ridge Lookout, Rocky and Wesser Bald today. The first two are over 5,000 feet and the last one 4,600.  Then it’s a long trek down to 2500 feet to the NOC. We have sunny skies today so sunscreen was lathered on to protect me from the sun.  Off we go.

This is a view while we climbed Copper Ridge.

The weather warmed up quickly and we hiked in T-shirt and shorts.

Reducing backpack weight is always on my mind.  Carrying 34 pounds up and down mountains is tiring.  Water is a big component as each liter weighs about 2 pounds.  I’ve gone from carrying 2 liters to 1 and 1/2 liters and sometimes less if there is a reliable water source ahead.  Always need to be sure to have water.

The trails were steep today and my legs and feet are sore tonight.  But the views were fantastic.  This is from Wesser Bald.

Part of the walk as we descended Wasser Bald was along a ridge they call the knife’s edge as either side of trail drops off sharply.  One section is called Jump Off.  It was a little dangerous to take a picture there.



Saw our first snake on the way down from Wesser Bald.  It was a black rat snake about 3 feet long that slithered across the trail about 8 feet in front of us and disappeared into the woods before I could get a picture.

We made it to the NOC about 4:30 tired and hungry.  The NOC has a number of outdoor sporting activities including white water rafting, kayaking and the like.

We headed to the restaurant to eat as did others.

Tonight we are camping along the river not far from the NOC at Hobo Island.  It will be cool but not cold tonight.

We have another big day tomorrow before dialing it back to give our bodies a rest the following days.

Time to sleep sleep. 💤