I have been trying to hike an AT section in the southern half of Great Smoky Mountains National Park since my first week of serious effort on the trail but have been stymied by lack of available time-off, inclement weather, road closures and a popular Backcountry Shelter reservation system. Even during this trip to the Smokies, I was again forced to delay my hike because of high winds and thunderstorms on the Ridge above Gatlinburg/Cherokee. Fortunately, everyone (Fontana Village Resort, Shuttle Driver and Backcountry Office, my company and government client) cheerfully assisted me in moving my entire plan to the right so I could try again this morning. Prior to leaving the Resort today, I must have repacked my backpack about five times because I was not exactly sure what the weather would be like of my three day hike. My day began at 0530 and I checked out of my room within the next hour. I then waited in the lobby until the breakfast buffet opened at 0700. The food was good and I finished eating at around 0730. I then waited in the lobby again, still using WiFi calling until 0745, in case Mike K (my shuttle driver) tried to call me. When he did, I found out that he was already waiting at the Fontana Dam. Since I was ready to go, I quickly drove over there (it took about 15 minutes). When I arrived at the Visitor Center at 0800, it was crisp and cool but there wasn't any wind. Once I'd tagged up with Mike, he gave me the news that US-441 was still not open yet. Fortunately, though, he said he was willing to take a chance with me that we'd arrive after it opened. It took about an hour and a half to drive from Fontana to Clingman's Dome and this turned out to be just enough time for the National Park Service to check all the roads (for debris from the previous day's weather) and re-open US-441 (and, more importantly, the Clingman's Dome access road). As a result, Mike and I arrived at the parking area just after 0945. To say I was ecstatic that I'd finally reached the starting point for this long-overdue hike would be an understatement! But I wasn't exactly prepared for the weather that greeted me while I was getting my gear out of Mike's car - the wind was probably 30+ mph and the temperatures were in the 30s. It was also clear and sunny but the ground was very wet from rain overnight (I learned later that there had been a significant frost too). Needless to say, I layered up on clothes (3 levels) and also donned gloves and a winter hat. Saying goodbye to Mike, I climbed up (about 0.5 miles) to the place where the AT crossed the Clingman's Dome visitor walking path and, double checking my gear one more time, plunged into the alpine forest (1015). Immediately, I met several NOBO Thru hikers (I was headed south) and this started a long day of stopping and talking with the other folks I met. We shared intel, encouraged each other and sometimes parted with a hope we'd meet again before the end of the summer. In the initial stages of the hike, I proceeded downhill from Clingman's Dome (6643 feet), across Mount Buckley (6585 feet), to the Double Spring Shelter. When I arrived there, I took a break (for a snack and to layer down again because it had gotten a little warmer). While I was relaxing, a young lady NPS Ranger appeared from behind the shelter and asked to see my Backcountry Pass. I think I actually talked to her on the phone when I was rescheduling and, at her own recommendation, had prepared for this situation. For that reason, all was well. Just after that (1200), a large group of NOBOs arrived at the shelter and announced that they were planning to stay the night at the shelter. This was much too early for me (and my reservation was for a place about 8 miles away) so I donned my backpack again and headed south. My encounters with NOBO Thrus continued for the next several miles and it got downright crowded on the trail - I was also usually the one who had to clear the trail (allowing others to pass) because of hiker etiquette that the uphill person has the right of way. Before long, I reached the Siler's Bald Shelter (just below Siler's Bald, which is 5607 feet) and stopped briefly (for another snack). While there, I talked to some young folks who were trying to decide if they should visit Dollywood when they passed Gatlinburg. When they asked my opinion, I suggested that there were few places I would rather go than a popular theme park... Proceeding onward, I soon found myself in the first quiet zone of the day - after that point, I rarely passed anyone because most had started at around the same place in the morning and there was a gap. At around this time, I changed into a short sleeved shirt because the sun had warmed up everything above 5000 feet to a pleasant 50 degrees. I saw LOTS of birds and flowers along the way and, at times, saw some pretty views of the valleys below: looking south, North Carolina, and looking north, Tennessee. Actually, my feet were alternately falling in each state, since the ridge followed the state boundaries. At around 1615 (after a seemingly pointless descent-climb-descent), I finally arrived at my destination: Derrick Knob Shelter. I'd walked roughly 11 miles since leaving my shuttle driver and felt pretty good. Even better, I found that there were spaces inside the shelter itself, which prevented a scenario where I'd have to eject a Thru Hiker (because of the Backcountry Permit rules) or set up the tent I'd brought. After I had rested for a little bit, several folks introduced themselves and we started a nice back-and-forth exchange of information for the rest of the evening. I learned that most ("Peanut Butter", "Dragonfly" and "Sleepwalker") were NOBO Thrus. However, I also met "Nice Hat" (a section hiker from Florida who was doing the same thing I was) and "Snapper" (a retired Navy Cryptologist who had been SOBO Thru hiking off and on since June 2022). While making my dinner (dehydrated Chicken in White Sauce), I ended up in a nice conversation with "Sleepwalker", who I learned had been a First Responder during 9/11 at Ground Zero and was walking the trail in support of PTSD, Support Animal and Fire Department charities. I've always enjoyed learning about the reasons for people's AT journey and his story was very memorable. We continued talking while we walked down the steep hill below the shelter to get water from a spring. Later, "Dragonfly" introduced herself as a woman of color who was hiking to broaden exposure of the trail (including in the Trail Towns) and expand accessibility. "Nice Hat" got a good fire going in the nice stone chimney attached to the sleeping area and "Snapper" regaled all of us with tales of his trail adventures throughout the previous nine months. It started to get chilly again as the sun went down (maybe hitting 35 degrees again) - this encouraged all of us to retire to our sleep systems early (2100). Including my six companions in the Shelter, I probably encountered about 50 other hikers during the day - I was smack dab in the middle of the Main Bubble for sure. Big positive: my new sleeping bag (along with the bag liner I'd bought since my 2022 Smokies hike) was quite warm and I was able to get some ZZZs pretty easily. AT Today = 10.0 Miles / Grand Total AT = 2098.3 miles
