We started our day with a pretty steep climb from Sassafras shelter up to Cheoah  Bald, gaining around 700 ft of elevation in about a mile. Great unobstructed views from the top (elevation 5062)

From there, it was a steep 5 mile descent down to to Cheoah Gap. The loss of 2000 feet of elevation did provide for some nice views and scenery though.

As we were coming down towards Cheoah Gap, we caught sight of a red checkered  tablecloth, a cooler and a few hikers hanging around, Trail Magic!

A husband and wife and set up with a cooler of drinks, chips, grapes, candy bars and sandwiches. It was great timing before we tackled our next obstacle, Jacob’s Ladder.

One thing I have come to learn on the trail, is whenever something has been given a name, it is going to be a rough time.

Jacob’s Ladder is part of the trail that takes you straight up a ridgeline, going gaining 700ft in elevation over the course of a half mile.

There were no switch backs or lazy winding paths, just a trail straight up the front of the ridge.

It was so steep at times, you thought your toes might touch your shins!

Once at the top, we could see Fontana Lake looking closer than ever in the distance.  But we so had about 6 miles to go until we reached our camp site for the night.

Dr. Thor had hiked ahead of us in the morning, but was able to leave a note that said he left the first shelter and would meet us at the next one (that we were planning on staying at). He had actually brought a piece of chalk for this exact purpose and was really excited to finally have used it.

We finally made camp at cable creek shelter just as it was getting dark. It had warmed up from the last couple days to a comfortable upper 40s. The moon was bright enough to eat without head lamps.

Afterward, we didn’t even build a fire, we just sat around talking in the moonlight.

Tomorrow (Monday) we push into Fontana, where we will take a day to prepare for our trek across the Smoke Mountains!