A Night @ Spence Field

Just got back from an overnight at Spence Field shelter. There were bear warnings and closing of shelters and campsites all around, but no bears crossed our path. The coyotes howled through the night though. The temp was very warm during the night, not freezing as I had expected. I was with 4 UT students who had never been to Spence Field before and we all enjoyed the hike. It was a tail kicker for me though being a good bit older than my friends. Actually I think it kicked them a little too. It took us about 4 hours to get from Cades Cove parking lot to the shelter an about 3 to get down on Sunday. The highlight was a brief communion service in the field using a grove of trees for our gathering and a large rock for the table.

We had the shelter to ourselves which surprised me given the great weather. There were two female hikers getting water and eating but they were passing through. The last time I was on this trail was 10 years ago to the day. It all came back to me as I limped along and I remembered swearing never again to undertake this hike. I was new to backpacking then and my pack was probably 50 lbs with every stitch of warm clothing I thought I might need and a big belt knife that weighed about 2lbs. I took it in case we had to fight off ninjas or if I started to freeze and caught pneumonia I could reenact Bowie's death scene at the Alamo. I recall geting so frustrated that my legs were like rubber that I chucked it off into the woods. Then embarassed that I had to retrieve it because I have had it for twenty years. That hike the weather had been clear at Cades Cove, turning to sleet and snow as we made our way from Russel to Spence field. This trip was nothing like that. I learned a few things over the years and they all had to do with weight.
I wish I had learned something about conditioning. While the hike was strenuous I made it without praying for God to strike me dead as I had 10 years ago and had a blast. It is tonight at home that my legs are like rubber and my back is sending me signals, telling me that if I try that again without some exercise it is going to teach me a lesson I won't forget.