Day 19- Peck's Corner Shelter to Cosby Knob Shelter

Tuesday May 24th
Total Miles Hiked: 229.9
Miles Hiked Today: 12.6
Weather: Sunny and Cool

  We broke camp around 815, and charged up a set of climbs without much difficulty.  The weather was cool and sunny, perfect.

  We stopped at Tri-corner Knob Shelter for a lunch of Mountain House Lasagna and Chicken Noodle. After finishing 2+ servings of Chicken Noodle,  Sage asked for more food. She then polished off a beef ramen. Our food bag is nearly empty, our fuel canister is nearly done, but we have just enough to make it to our resupply tomorrow. This is a great success...it means we haven't taken a bunch of extra food weight on a difficult walk.

  We really lounged about at lunch. I took advantage of the nearby spring to wash some clothes, which will then air dry on the back of my pack as we hike. Before we left, John from Minnesota,  a through hiker we've been hiking with for about a week, rolled into the shelter. Looking at the choice between a 12.6 and 20+ mile day, he chose to roll over and sleep in. Good choice, a through hike is an endurance event,  20+ mile days will happen, but the Smokies are probably not the mountains to do them.

With a mostly dry trail and a shorter day, Sage and I really enjoyed this section of trail.

We took a foot break to enjoy this view.

It was shaping up to be yet another best day on the trail, walking through a smooth trail, pine forest like below, I stepped on a rock. Something I've done more than a few times on this trip. Just another rock. But it bent the second toe on my left foot funny, and I felt a sharp pain shoot through my foot.  Suddenly, every step hurt. Alot. With all the medical expertise I possess (none), I diagnosed it as either a sprain, a broken toe, or some other form of messed up. With 4 miles left to the shelter on what was suppose to be an easy day, I began hobbling slowly down the mountain. We arrived about 2 hours later than we would have otherwise arrived. I probably managed to hurt it another 10 times on the way down,  but nothing too severe. After a good freeze in the spring water, and a couple Ibuprofen,  it seemed possible it will be better the next day. 

Tomorrow is our last day in the Smokies, they have managed to be both the high point and low point of our trip. When the sun is shining, it's a great place to hike.