I planned a short day coming out of the NOC, there were more than 4000 feet in elevation to be climbed to get to the Sassafras Shelter. All miles on the AT are not created equally.

The climbing was tough, the weather was good, it was a beautiful day. I made good time and arrived at the shelter around two in the afternoon. I was glad I wasn’t going any farther. I set up my camp and talked to the other hikers. I knew some and met a few that I hadn’t seen before.

Dragon Ball and 5-0 surprised us by packing in all the leftovers from our dinner the previous night. Those guys have very little money, they had little to contribute. They do have strong backs, and they were proud to pack in the nearly twenty pounds of food. We warmed it up on the fire and had the most awesome dinner we’ve had on the trail.