4/28 – 254 miles
Now that we are past the Smokys the weather has been good. I left Standing Bear Hostel early and faced a long, steady climb of 3000 feet to the top of Snowbird Mountain. There is a VOR navigational aid on top of the mountain and views for many miles. A lot of the mountain tops were cleared years ago for farmers to graze livestock and the Forest Service still maintains them. One of the highest and coolest places is called Max Patch, a grassy bald with panoramic views, and I was determined to stay on top and experience the sunset and sunrise. It is one of those places I had heard about and didn’t want to miss.
We were fortunate to find trail magic at Brown Gap, three miles before Max Patch. Two former thruhikers and there friends had hamburgers for lunch, steak for dinner, and full course breakfast the next morning. A lot of guys pitched there tent and ate all day, but a few of us ate lunch and went on up the mountain.
Max Patch was neat. You could walk barefoot all over the mountain top. We felt like we were on top of the world. Brooke said she felt like Maria in Sound Of Music. Several more hikers joined us and we watched a beautiful sunset.
Have you picked up your new tent yet?