Hiking the Appalachian Trail – Week 6: Bears, Trail Angels & Views

Thinking about an Appalachian Trail thru-hike? Or maybe you’re just looking to get an idea of what it’s like? Then you’ve come to the right place!

Hi! I’m Cindy. In 2022, my husband, Barrett, and I completed an Appalachian Trail thru-hike! 🥳

I journaled daily while on trail and plan to have our entire AT thru-hike tale up on this website for anyone who may be interested in reading it!

🔗 If you would like to start at the beginning, with week one 👉 click here.

🔗 And you can find all the weekly journals 👉 here.

Just know that if you plan to tackle an AT thru-hike, you’ll be in for an incredible adventure!

Also, if you know us as flip-flop thru-hikers, it should be noted that we didn’t know at this point that we were destined to become flip-floppers. When we started, we had conducted months of research. We chose to begin our Appalachian Trail hike NOBO, in Georgia, in April.

(We now know that starting as Flip Floppers or in March would have fit us better. But that’s for a later post.)

Just know when picking a route to hike the Appalachian Trail, you can always change it up anytime!

👉 Click here for tips on where and when to start an Appalachian Trail Thru Hike. 👈
👉 And click here for advice on thru-hiking backpacking gear. 👈

Alrighty! Welcome to week six of our Appalachian Trail thru-hike!

This stretch carried us from Hot Springs, NC, deeper into the mountains along the North Carolina–Tennessee border. From bear sightings and breathtaking ridgeline views to the kindness of trail angels and the not-so-glamorous realities of long-distance hiking, this week had a little bit of everything. Here’s what life on the trail looked like, one day at a time.

Curious what it’s actually like to spend months hiking the Appalachian Trail? Well, here’s week six:

Day 36

May 10, 2022

(Warning: A lot of bathroom talk today.)

Last night was one of the best nights’ sleep I’ve ever had in a tent! We could hear a rushing stream all night.

This day had lots of stream crossings and zigzagging throughout the interior of the mountains.

I’ve found I don’t mind that much because it generally means there’s no crazy elevation, so it’s a nice break from the constant ups and downs.

The trees are fully leaf-filled and big enough to block out the sun, which has also been pleasant as these sunny days get warmer.

We came across a couple of chipmunks ferociously chasing each other, and another zone full of crickets, which led to another Barrett story! He told me on the walk to the bus that he used to collect crickets in his hands and then get on the bus, unfold his hand, and watch the madness ensue. 😹 What a little shit.

There was also a field-like area with tons of sticker bushes, all pointing straight up to the sun.

The forest floor is almost always very green now, and it’s growing to between knee and hip height.

This day, sadly, turned into a day of stomach and bathroom sickness for me. It bummed me out because we didn’t get as far as we wanted because of it.

Also, sadly, the privies have become quite traumatizing on this stretch. I won’t go into detail, but I may be scarred for life. I cannot unsee what’s been seen. 😹 Also, also, this was the day that wrecked my record of perfectly timing out privy arrivals. I dug my first hole of the entire AT hike so far.

During one of my darting down a hill to diarrhea moments, 😹 while attempting to be discreet, I touched a huge log, and it fell down the mountain forever and made a TON of noise. 😹💀😳

At first, I thought these sudden bathroom urges were all maybe ‘lady time’ related, but later in the evening, another hiker told us she heard there was a lot of expired food sold at Standing Bear hostel (where we resupplied), as we ate our last dinners from there.

We checked the stuff we bought, and sure enough, we’d been eating expired food for days, and also, shitty expired food at that. I felt malnourished and looked forward to being in a town the next day.

Being slower all day due to that was annoying because I wasn’t body sore. I wanted to go further, but I reminded myself that at least it was a small thing that would pass.

Oh, and we also saw a super tiny, young, bouncy chipmunk! He didn’t have his scurry down yet, and could only bounce. It was pretty adorable.

We found another tent site for the night, a bit further after a good water fill-up spot, and called it.

We ended this day with another stealth camping spot (which we are loving). A few other hikers were using the area too. Once again, a very peaceful and different feeling than cramming our tent in with everyone else around the shelters.

That night, there were tons of crazy sounds, including coyotes, owls, and possibly even a bear walking through, which woke a few people up.

✔️ Length: 10.6 trail miles
✔️ Total Ascent: 2004′
✔️ Total Descent: 3341′
✔️ Total Grade: 507’/mi

Day 37

May 11, 2022

I spent the majority of this day trying not to barf and consistently reminding myself we were headed to town and toward real food!

We saw: a lizard in a sunny, sandy spot, more blooming mountain laurel, and a turkey walking down the trail.

It felt like an early summer day with a delightful breeze as we weaved in and out alongside the mountains and then finally down into town.

Our lodge/hostel here (Laughing Heart Lodge in Hot Springs, NC) is directly off the trail, so the moment we popped into town, you could see it.

We checked in, showered, and then headed straight into town for food.

I weighed myself when we arrived here. I had dropped 7 pounds since Gatlinburg. 🥴

Ever need to lose pounds rapidly? Just go into the woods for three days with little, mostly expired food. 😹 It’ll do the trick! (Also… please don’t actually do that.)

We’ve driven through Hot Springs a couple of times between Asheville and Knoxville, but had never stopped. It’s a healing tourist spot but also a popular hangout for hikers and bikers. The whole central part of town is only about three blocks long, but it had everything we needed!

The host at the restaurant greeted you with a gun on his hip, asking, “Inside or Out?” I was so out of it, I asked if he wanted our IDs, starting to try to find them; he again said, “No. Inside or Out.”

Once seated outside, we ordered two Cobb salads, jalapeno poppers, “world-famous” cheese sticks, drinks, and nachos. It was an astronomical amount of food, and we ate almost every bite.

I ate for 37 minutes straight, which has to be a new record for me. I felt like a dead toy, and every bite was recharging my batteries and bringing me back to life.

Also, while eating, Darwin from Darwin on the trail passed the restaurant.

It was a big celebrity sighting for all the hikers who had prepared for their thru-hike by watching his videos. You would have thought Brad Pitt had just passed! (Although Barrett said he would not have been nearly as excited to see Brad Pitt. 😹)

We also went to the gear store. They were holding a new pair of shoes and gaiters for me.

Some athlete’s foot from too many days in wet boots has forced me to join the masses and try out trail runners instead for a while. So we will see!

Then we went back to the lodge/hostel.

Our house and pet-sitters, Tina and Craig, drove from our house to visit us for a bit. They brought us some things we needed and took my boots back home for me.

Also, we heard all the updates on our newly allergy-ridden Mart-man. It sounds like he’s doing better, and again, we are just so grateful for them watching over our pets and house.

Barrett then rested for a bit. We spent some time chilling and talking with other hikers. Then, we eventually ventured back down into town for some evening karaoke, a responsible amount of drinking, and an irresponsible amount of late-night Dollar General chips and cookies consumption. 😹

✔️ Length: 7.2 trail miles
✔️ Total Ascent: 1067′
✔️ Total Descent: 2411′
✔️ Total Grade: 482’/mi

Day 38

May 12, 2022

This zero day in a nutshell:

We had breakfast at the lodge and chatted with other hikers.

Did our laundry. Resupplied at the local gear store and Dollar General.

Barrett got a new rain jacket.

We both got massages (which were wonderful)! 😻😻😻

We enjoyed ice cream, kombucha, and an evening meal out.

Then we relaxed.

✔️ Length: 0 trail miles

Day 39

May 13, 2022

On this day, we left the Laughing Heart Lodge in Hot Springs, NC, and took the trail straight through the center of town.

We stopped at the post office that is directly on the main drag (and so also directly on the trail) and shipped Mom a few more items we no longer needed to be hiking with.

We also stopped and got breakfast smoothies at a spot right off the trail. 🤤

Starting a hike with a banana, peanut butter, chocolate, and coffee smoothie was such a treat. Barrett got a Mango Tropical one.

After talking with a few people in town while sipping our smoothies, we carried on and followed the trail across the French Broad River and out of town.

The trail switchbacked alongside the river for a long time.

The terrain was sandy, rocky, and gravely. As we climbed back up into the mountains into the sea of pines, maples, and many more varieties of plants and trees, this spot reminded us of past hikes we’ve done in Tahoe.

Today, we saw fully open mountain laurel, instead of just a few buds or a few blooms. The plants along the trail have gotten much taller in a few days. Much of it is now taller than me.

Despite being a more difficult day (lots of climbing up), we did have a lot of cloud cover, which was nice. However, I’m relatively certain today was the most we have ever sweated on the trail.

Throughout the hike, we saw a redheaded lizard (which Google has now informed me was actually a Broadhead Skink. I love skinks and had no idea they could be that small! I will definitely be on the lookout for another.), and Barrett saw an Eastern Newt while getting water.

We also came across a Carolina Mountain Club maintenance crew, which is our local club that we joined just before heading out on the trail. We spoke to some of the members for a bit, and Skip even gave us some candy!

We hiked past a dammed pond and enjoyed some snacks there while watching the fish and tadpoles.

Some of the maintenance crew were trying to convince us to jump in, so we must have looked toasty, lol.

For the most part, we avoided rain on this day. We did hear intense rolling thunder at one point, but then we looked up, and the sky was bright blue.

I opened my radar app, and sure enough, there was a red blob just a bit off from us. But that came as fast as it went, and we never saw anything from that weather patch.

After that, we detoured for a really cool fire tower!

It was wild to go up there. Beautiful and sunny for about half the view, and then you could see all the small patchy storms on the other side of the 360-degree view.

We decided to carry on and try to get to camp before any of those came for us.

The last few miles were exhilarating. We did end up getting a little wet, but nothing too crazy, and honestly, it was refreshing. We saw a tree fall, which we’ve seen before and is never less unsettling. We also saw a close-up tulip tree.

We’ve been seeing them here and there, but they’ve all been in the distance until now.

And then lastly!… I spotted a bear napping in a tree!

We watched him for a bit, then hiked another 0.25 miles, got to a shelter area, and called it for the night.

Overall, the new shoes were great. I even brought them into the tent with me to protect them throughout the evening. 😹

I did have some new leg pains and felt pretty stiff at the end of yesterday, but I think that’s all to be expected with new shoes. I rolled everything out and hope for another great day tomorrow!

✔️ Length: 11.3 trail miles
✔️ Total Ascent: 3791′
✔️ Total Descent: 1655′
✔️ Total Grade: 481’/mi (But I think that’s slightly skewed from the flatness of town personally. When you cut town out, it’s more an average of 520 at least.)

Day 40

May 14, 2022

This was just kind of a “blah” day.

I actually don’t have too much to write about.

Barrett’s been saying he’s felt sick since before Hot Springs, and he’s been blowing his nose constantly. I’m pretty sure I have finally caught whatever it is he has because I woke up with a sore throat yesterday.

We were basically inside the mountains all day and never really had any great views. It was the first day I didn’t take any pictures or videos! I guess they’re not all going to be winners. 😹

The hike was unexpectedly trying. We got VERY sweaty and stopped a little short of our goal. It has to have been the most I’ve ever sweated. Honestly, the grossness of it all finally caught up with me yesterday.

Also, all of a sudden, it feels like everything in the woods wants to hurt us a bit more intensely lately. The bugs are out, and love our hiker smell. Some stinging nettles have attacked Barrett, and tick checks happen much more often since the weeds are so much taller.

There were a few notable moments:

• We saw two huge pileated woodpeckers.
• A shirtless singing man came running down the trail, handing out tootsie roll pops. (We ate them separately just in case they were laced with LSD. (😹)
• An intense man warned us about a parked vehicle we never saw.
• The privies are still terrible.

Hoping for some bigger miles tomorrow, but we’ll, of course, play it safe and take what comes at us one step at a time.

✔️ Length: 8.6 trail miles
✔️ Total Ascent: 2411′
✔️ Total Descent: 2300′
✔️ Total Grade: 547’/mi

Day 41

May 15, 2022

We spent this entire day walking the jagged ridgeline of the border between two states, Tennessee to the left and North Carolina to the right.

It started with us walking through a winding meadowy forest. There was a bunny at the tent site and another shortly down the trail.

Overall, the trail was quite wonderful. Much of it was well-packed and easy to walk on dirt.

There were parts of it, though, that were covered in giant rocks and became very technical. We were slow going through those sections because we really had to watch our footing. Those areas were pretty neat, though.

The giant scattered rocks and jungle-like trees made it feel like we were traveling through ancient ruins.

There were a few views that were a bit off the trail early in the day.

We took the extra distance to a few of them, and we even went a little too far for one of them because the previous day had been so monotonous. They were gorgeous!

However, if we had known the epic ridgeline views that awaited us, we probably would have passed on at least one of those. (That’s just how the trail goes sometimes!)

The Firescald Knob lookout was absolutely the show stopper of the day. Here, we were treated to 360-degree views of the mountains in both states.

When we got to this portion of the trail, there was a bad weather bypass option available. However, the weather has remarkably held out for us so far, despite seeing black clouds appear and just as quickly disappear all around us for the past couple of days.

(Yesterday we experienced two short sprinkles, one while coming out of the rocks that lasted for less than 60 seconds, and then another similar one while we were eating. Luckily, it was never enough to make anything wet.)

So we continued along the trail, taking the “good weather” option with the views. When we got up there, the sky was split with sunshine over North Carolina and doom clouds lingering over Tennessee.

We took a few pictures, and within 60 seconds, the whole sky cleared up, so we stuck around and took a few more while savoring the beautiful moment.

Those last few miles, we traveled up into tall grass and a thicket of brambles once again, with an assortment of tree types that reminded me a lot of what it was like just after Max Patch a few days back.

We ended the day just short of Shelton Graves (graves for two Union soldiers who were killed on that spot while visiting family in the Confederacy during the Civil War), at a campsite right off the trail with a fire pit and room for just one tent. It was a neat, foresty, secluded spot.

And even though there was water here, we weren’t sure we would make it this far, so we carried a couple of extra liters the last few miles just in case.

✔️ Length: 10.6 trail miles (+1 mile to some viewpoint excursions)
✔️ Total Ascent: 2684′
✔️ Total Descent: 1819′
✔️ Total Grade: 424’/mi

Day 42

May 16, 2022

Barrett just informed me we were visited by some bears last night while I was sleeping. It sounds like they sniffed the tent for a while and attempted to snag our food, but luckily Barrett’s bear hang did the trick! 💪

I asked him how he knew if it was bears. (It could have been the soldier’s ghosts!)

He said it sounded like people’s footsteps, but then there was a lot of intense sniffing, and that it would have been “creepy as fuck” if people were sniffing the tent like that. 😹

We also had a deer visitor this morning:

We started this day off hiking through a misty forest with on-and-off light rain in the morning. The first 6 miles were straightforward, mostly downhill on a smooth trail.

We started hiking at 8:30 am and had done 6 miles by 12:00 pm.

Right before noon, we ran into another volunteer taking care of the trail and spoke with him for a bit (Lord Willin’ / Tim) and were gifted some soda from a trail magic cooler.

We then hiked down to Devil Fork Gap and met our newest Trail Angel, Sasha. ❤️

I learned of Sasha through the FarOut app. She had posted on there that she would shop for hikers and bring them resupplies on the trail in this area.

In Hot Springs, Barrett and I realized this next stretch would take us either 6 or 7 days. Hoping to avoid carrying that much food with us for the whole stretch, we reached out to Sasha to see if she’d bring us food for the second half.

She said she would, and the whole experience was incredible! She went to Walmart and texted back and forth with me while shopping. Then the next day, she met us at a spot where the trail meets a main road, handed us all the food, let us break down our boxes, gave us each a cold La Croix, and even took our trash. All for nothing! All she asks for is gas money!

She was incredibly friendly and nice. I asked her why she does this for hikers, and without asking for anything in return. She said she wanted to be around positive, happy people and that it was restoring her faith in humanity.

Days later, I’m still shocked that someone who doesn’t even know us would go to Walmart for us, buy all our food, bring it to us on the side of the road, and ask for nothing other than gas money in exchange. So, it seems she restored a bit of my faith in humanity as well!

The next half of the day was rougher. We may have gotten too much food. It’s hard to know what’s enough when you’re not the one physically buying each item. That being said, we would never complain because not having to figure out how to get to a store and lose all that hiking time was terrific!

The hike was beautiful, though. We crisscrossed a stream for quite a while that turned into a waterfall at various points.

We saw salamanders, newts, and toads.

There was a period when we were surrounded by baby-breath-looking flowers that came up to our elbows. We also had a couple of good spots to look out at the mountain later in the hike as we continued back up.

We continued to venture into a spot full of tall weeds, canopied from the sun via these tall, skinny trees we’ve been seeing often, with leaves only up on the tippy top. This makes the middle zone full of merely tree trunks and space.

Overall, the weather was spectacular on this day—a beautiful blue sky with cotton ball clouds. I ended the day feeling pretty worn out.

We stopped at a beautiful tucked-away shelter area. I had been coughing and sneezing a lot and was starting to feel a bit like patient zero, and just wanted to be tucked away.

We set up our tent in a space that felt far away, but as the bubble masses came in, the gap between us and the shelter was filled.

✔️ Length: 12.3 trail miles
✔️ Total Ascent: 2969′
✔️ Total Descent: 3220′
✔️ Total Grade: 504’/mi

Conclusion: Week Six of our AT Thru Hike

Week six of our Appalachian Trail thru-hike was full of contrasts.

Peaceful nights tucked away in stealth camps balanced by the wild chorus of the forest, sweeping ridgeline panoramic views, followed by uphill climbs, trail magic kindness set against some truly unforgettable (and questionable) privy encounters.

We battled expired food mishaps, colds, and the heat, but also enjoyed massages, some new gear, and some unforgettable wildlife sightings (including a bear napping in a tree!).

Each day brought something unexpected, reminding us why this journey is as much about adapting and embracing the moment as it is about chasing miles. As we cross into new parts of Tennessee and North Carolina, we’re carrying forward the lessons, laughs, and resilience we’ve built so far on this epic trek!