I will keep this one relatively short as I am very exhausted. I trudged through anywhere from 6-10 inches of snow all morning, and it really took its toll. Although very important, it is nearly impossible for me to keep my feet dry. The snow just seems to get right through. Once again, I ate while I walked and had most of my food for the day stashed in my pockets. The only tricky part was that I could only eat on flat terrain as I was slipping all over the place on the uphill and downhill. It was a trying day. As I neared the 16-mile mark for the day, astonishingly, I found patches of dry ground. My pace picked up immensely, and I was able to fly through a couple of miles until I got to the Nantahala outdoor center and store. I was hoping to ask about weather conditions, repair my gear, and then keep going. But unfortunately I got there 20 minutes after their closing time at 4 and only found an empty store. I hiked 8 more miles into the dark and so on until I found the next AT shelter (Sassafras Gap Shelter at trail mile 144), which is what I try to stay in. They are 3 sided structures that vary greatly in their functionality and the level of which their rodent problems exist. Tomorrow, it’s on to a few more North Carolina rolling hills and then into Fontana Dam to pick up my mail resupply. Hopefully, I can come up with a better way to keep my feet dry. I almost forgot to mention I broke my trekking pole in half to add to the brutal day. The good thing is I salvaged it, although it’s a little shorter than I would like now.
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