Recreation.

The first night in Gatlinburg was a “stuff my face” night. My body was craving calories, and that is what I provided it. I found the closest pizza place, Luigi’s Pizza, and ate a large pizza with pepperoni, pineapple, and jalapeños. Immediately afterward, I threw down a decadent milkshake from The Crazy Mason Milkshake Bar. I went to bed very full and slept wonderfully.

The next day was a planned zero day. Now, Gatlinburg is not a typical trail town nor is it considered a trail town at all. Gatlinburg is very much a tourist town with very touristy things: gift shops, fudge shops, mini golf, bars, restaurants, chair lifts, aquariums, novelties, and other oddities. All of this made for a very unique day on my journey.

Now, before any fun, I needed to do some chores. After breakfast at my hotel, I took everything out of my backpack and did an inventory. I aired out my sleeping bag and washed my tent in the shower. I gathered some unused items to discard and threw away the trash that had managed to accumulate in my pack. I made a list of resupply items that I needed to get later from the store.

Before my store trip, I met up with David, a fellow thru-hiker. I’ve gotten to know him pretty well over the past few weeks, and when I found out he was considering leaving the trail, I knew I had to talk to him. David was battling quite a few injuries, including his foot, which had become quite swollen. He accompanied me to the store while we caught up. Gatlinburg provided free trolley service around town, which we took to the local grocery store, Food City. There, I stocked up on food for the next five days before my next planned town stop. We then met up with Creek, Critter, and the Mellow Mushroom for lunch. I loaded up on protein by getting a large cheeseburger.

David has decided to leave the trail, at least for now. He’s made it over 200 miles, and I hope to see him back out there when he’s fully healthy.

After lunch, I headed back to the room to pack my food. I’m afraid I may have overpacked it, but it’s also really hard to tell. My hiker hunger started to kick in the last couple of days of hiking, and I basically resupplied thinking I’ll be eating double what I have been packing. I took the time to divide my breakfast and dinner meals into separate bags. This is to produce less trash on the trail, allow me to better organize my food items, and save me a bit of time. I’m scared to weigh my pack; I might be carrying the heaviest pack weight so far.

With all the chores done, the afternoon provided an opportunity for some good old-fashioned fun. My family actually visited Gatlinburg when I was 11 or 12, and the only thing I remembered was playing miniature golf. I was able to find a specific venue that I remembered called Hillbilly Golf. Creek and Critter joined me as we walked to the place, traveled up the hill in a lift car, and played 18 holes of mini-golf on a steep mountain. It was an absolute blast.

On the walk back, we ran into a few more thru-hikers, two of whom were from outside the US and were completely enthralled with the Americana oozing out of Gatlinburg. I also saw a pig on a leash. I went back to the room for one last hot shower and some well-deserved relaxation.

Tomorrow, I head back into the Smokies for what looks like a challenging day. Hopefully, the day off will help me cope with my heavy pack.