AT Day 13: Long Haul to Fontana Dam

Daily Miles: 20.0, Total Miles: 164.3

Around 9:30pm last night I heard a lot of hooting and hollering in the direction of Sassafrass Gap Shelter downhill from me. Sure sounded like a bear visitation.

While having lunch yesterday at NOC, I was doing some planning. I decided to set my sites on Fontana Dam and the hotel/resort tomorrow, a 20-mile day with good elevation gain. So I was up and at’em early. A tough day with seemingly endless and sometimes pointless ups and downs (PUDs) and rain most of the afternoon. I was dragging, sore feet, tired legs and chaffing pretty bad by the time I got down to the Fontana Dam marina. I called the resort and they sent down a shuttle.

The shower, big cheeseburger and IPA, king-size bed and the NCAA basketball championship game were all a special treat. To top it off, I won the bracket this year despite not picking any of the teams in the Final Four. Had a nice chat at dinner with fellow hikers, Fossil and Little Bhudda.