Smoky Mountain’s Majesty

(for Jenna)

If you are a hiker (and I mean a real hiker, no paved nature trail crap) you'll know where I'm coming from. I decided randomly last week that I'd spend this weekend hiking the Smokies. My trail of choice: Spence Field.

First off, I LOVE hiking. I love every bit of it.. the smell of the earth, the trees, the smell of dead leaves, the way your shirt sticks to you from sweat, the way your skin feels as the sweat mixes with dirt and dries, the battle between body and mind as your muscles cry to you to stop and your brain tells the body to go fuck itself cause you're making it to the top. period. The sound of your heart mixed with the sound of your breath and the way water tastes as you gulp it from your Nalgene bottle, the heavenly taste of a Clif bar, or better yet a PB&J sandwich somewhere around the 4th mile, the sound of the birds, the water at the base of the mountain, the cool air at higher altitudes, and the absolute quiet of the forest... it's just so serene. No phones, no cars, no laptops, very few if any people, just you, a mountain, fresh air, and peace. Just peace. The forest is my sanctuary. I've got a crush on the Smokies..

My day started out wonderfully. I got up at 4am, did a half our of yoga, showered, made a good breakfast, double checked my pack, stocked up on coffee and gas and made the drive out to Knoxville. You can't even know my excitement as I started into the park. I was beaming. Simply beaming. The blue sky, perfect weather and mountains all around me. SO beautiful. And just so nostalgic. I thought about Jenna and Raven and Kevin and Kutztown and Chimney Tops and Jim Thorpe, Summer, Potato Salad, Antiquing and Bonfires, Night Hikes, Building Forts with my sisters... my brain was brimming with happy times and fond memories.

And the hike, the hike was just amazing. The first few miles weren't bad, pretty quick. Lots of mini falls and creeks, log bridges.. where Anthony Creek Trail met the AT I met a goup of hikers, stopped to chat a little, then headed up the 1.7 miles to Spence Field. Let me tell you, that was the LONGEST 1.7 miles I've ever hiked. The elevation was the highest I've ever hiked, just shy of 5,000ft. and my body knew it! Every so often I'd stop to breathe, get my heart rate to a lower state and just relaxed.. enjoyed the nature, just breath in the forest. Take it all in. I really do love it up in the mountains.

Once I made it to the top it was awesome. Simply awesome. It was a field with craggy trees strewn about. I stopped for a bit in the midst of the goodness and just enjoyed the view of the mountains then hike the .2miles to the AT shelter. I met a guy from PA thru-hiking. He was on day 23 up from GA!! How awesome is that!! I hope he makes it the whole way! I can't even imagine how he'll feel once he hits Jim Thorpe. Amazing.

I met another woman who went to school in Reading and was up hiking with her husband so we chatted about Southeast PA. On the way down I met a couple and we talked about trails and maps and the AT and then further down I met a group of college guys that were THE nicest guys ever! We chatted about the south and hiking and moving and working. It was good. Mountain people are good people. I've yet to meet a person on a mountain I didn't like.

Of course, no good hike is complete without some pain (or at least in my book). A good hike is where you push yourself as hard as you can, you go farther and climb higher than you thought possible. When I come down off a mountain I want to feel it. I want my muscles to be all bitchy and tight, I want to feel it in my arms, my legs, my abs. I want my skin to be covered in a fine layer of sweat and dirt, snot on my shirt, sweat on my back from my pack. Hiking isn't supposed to be pretty, or clean. And as far as that scale goes, yesterday was a GREAT hike. And I'll be losing a toenail to further seal the deal.. turns out I definitely did not have good socks and I guess my toes hit the inside of my boots a bit too much on the decent and my toe's not doing so hot, but I've got antibiotics, so it's all good.


Last night I chilled out in downtown Knoxville (Jenna I missed you SO much!) ate some delicious food at TomatoHead and called it an early night. Now I'm back in my apartment, got some hiking books out at the library (and Jenna, I bought a Spence Field patch online!!) and now I'm hangin out, had a good dinner and am watching Grey's Anatomy then Six Feet under. Gonna do some yoga, relax, and enjoy the night.

Ciao folks!