Woke up by 0500 but took my time getting ready. I was on the road by 0645 and got McDonalds in Greeneville (0655) - I met a nice lady who "really" knew the menu. :-) Since the weather in the area was still nice, I decided to finish the rest of the AT section in Shelton Laurel Wilderness. From previous research, this meant that I had to make sure I got one of only two parking spots at the AT Trailhead at Allen Gap (near TN/NC border on TN-70). I was successful in this task - barely (second car arrived just after I had started into the woods) - and was hiking NOBO by 0730. It was a little cool in areas where the morning sun hadn’t yet reached so I brought my light jacket again - within 15 minutes I’d shed down to my short sleeves. Near the busy road and several farms, I heard the sounds of big trucks reaching the top of the steep grade, baying dogs and proud roosters. Later, it got quiet again and I only heard a few woodpeckers and thumping jackrabbits. After a few days of seeing them, I figured out what was going on with the crosses on the white blazes: an energetic group called “Team Christ” had gone overboard with Sharpies. It was interesting to see the reaction of other hikers with Sharpies - most of the crosses were converted into the “AT” symbol. Anyway, watching this counter-graffiti battle helped pass the time... The early part of the section was a mini-roller coaster of sorts and I guess I used up a lot of my energy - by the time the hour ended, I was already very tired. And that’s when the AT changed to a pretty dramatic incline. The hill (base of Viking Mountain) just seemed to go higher and higher, with no let up, and I thanked my lucky stars it was early and only 50 degrees... Passed two campers about halfway up the hill and, just before I reached the turnaround point (Little Laurel Shelter), a fast (local) climber (and his puppy) passed me. My pedometer had gotten REALLY messed up on the way so I was shocked to reached the Shelter “early”. Of course, I didn’t stop to figure out why I was done so quickly with the outbound leg of the section, I just headed back towards my car. The sun, which had taken temps into the mid 60s, mercifully went behind a cloud and the trail cooled down nicely. Over the first few miles of my backtrack, I passed 14 hikers of various stripes: four 2021 Thrus, seven 2020 “Do-Over” Thrus and three Sectioners. The trail was downright busy after several days alone! I only talked with a couple of them because everyone was concentrating on the hellish climb. The young people all looked cheery and the old people looked determined - but my chat with a mid-20s young lady from Louisiana revealed that looks were deceiving. She’d fallen back (on purpose) from her larger group of Thrus for some “alone time” and said that she really needed it. I gathered that some of the youngest people in her group (teens) were wearing her out and sons of the oldest (40s) were annoying her. But she wasn’t too tired of people to talk to me and I appreciated her perspective on the last two years of AT hiking she’d done. Resumed my descent and then powered through the little coaster, arriving at my car at 1145 after almost 10 miles. Tired and worn out but felt good about breaking through the “400 miles left” barrier! Since I was done with all the hiking I could do nearby, I decided to check out the road conditions for the drive up to Max Patch. From the trailhead on TN-70, I backtracked towards Greeneville and then used TN-107, US-25/70 and TN-107 until it terminated in the little town of Del Rio. There, the pavement ended but I was able to use Round Mountain Road (gravel) to get to Lemon Gap - it took more than 30 minutes on the long, winding road. But my efforts paid off - there was an AT Trailhead (very prominent) at the Gap, just like advertised. Even though I was already tired and the temps had reached the low 70s, I decided to do a short hike up to the Walnut Mountain Shelter from there. The section was one of the biggest climbs of the AT in the area but it was also just under 1.5 miles - mostly, it was a mind (Brain: I want to do this) over matter (Muscles/Feet: No, you don’t) exercise. Starting at 1335, I climbed the hill (NOBO, ~1000 foot elevation increase) in bright, sunny conditions. There was a field at the top, just before the Shelter, and I was able to see all the prominent peaks to the south and west (including Clingman’s Dome). Turned around immediately and made better time in the descent. I passed two solo NOBO Thru hikers - they both commented on the heat - and caught up to a young couple who were backpacking SOBO. After getting done (1445, after just over 2.6 miles), I looked at the weather forecast again. If I was sure the rain wouldn’t hit the area in the next 18 hours, I would have preferred to camp nearby. However, I reasoned that I could get into Newport for the night and, depending on the actual conditions, decide whether to drive back up to Lemon Gap in the morning. So I took US-25/70 into town and arrived at Quality Inn (near I-40) in Newport by 1600. I got gas at (Exxon ?) next door at 1615 and then spent the evening resting, cleaning up, reading and organizing in my room all evening. My neighbors were noisy, annoying and smoking - I wasn't sure if I'd get any sleep when I went to bed at 2145... Crossing fingers for dry day tomorrow! AT Today = 6.2 miles / G.T. AT = 1790.0 miles / AT Left = 395.3 miles
