Day 2

Weather:
Cold and sunny. No Rain.

Today's Hike:
Stover Creek Shelter to Cooper Gap - 9.0 miles

I have a new definition of freezing. Freezing is when you wake up outside and its 10 degrees, your sleeping bag is covered in ice, you put your already numb toes into your frozen boots then hobble down to a privy and hover your butt over a frozen snowed covered toilet seat with an up draft. That's freakin' freezing.

I also learned two major lessons from only one day on the trail. Lesson #1, if you have a choice between sleeping in a tent or sleeping in a shelter, sleep in the tent.  Last night got down to 7 degrees and I'm still questioning on if I actually survived that or if this is just what the after life is like. Being in the shelter left me completely exposed to the cold, gave my ears a front row seat to the chorus of snores, and my sleeping bag go wet from something leaking from the ceiling above me.

Lesson # 2, when its freezing outside, put your socks and shoes in the your sleeping bag with you so they don't freeze. I'm not so sure that I've experienced anything more painful then putting on frozen shoes. My toes hurt so bad that they're still tingling 10 hours after I put them on.

Today was hard. Sasafras "kick your ass" mountain really did kick my ass. We wanted to make it to Justis Creek Footbridge but we didn't have enough time so we found a campsite just north of Cooper Gap. We're doing good at making up time so that we can still make it to Neel's Gap on Thursday. I just hope we don't over do it, but the thought of a hot shower and a bunk bed in a heated room is a good motivator. Sleeping in this 10 degree weather is for birds. However, sleeping in our tent is much warmer (and quieter) then sleeping in a shelter.