AT Day 39: Jefferson National Forest

Daily Miles: 18.4, Total Miles: 530.2

Rain started in earnest early in the morning. I packed up and left about 8:30am during a break in the action but it wasn’t over yet. Still raining steadily as I climbed up and around Hurricane Mountain, Iron Mountain and some nice looking trout streams.

It finally stopped raining as I left Racoon Branch Wilderness and headed for the South Fork Holston River. On the way, I saw my first cow on the AT after over 500 miles – a record for me on all my hikes. No wonder the water sources have been so good.

I made it another four miles to a ridge and just enough room for one tent. Very blustery with a cold wind so quickly got my tent up and jumped in.