Pisgah National Forest   Jan 20-21, 2007
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Day 1	Big East Fork parking area to Shining Rock gap	Daily mileage: 4.6	Trip mileage:  4.6
Day 2	Shining Rock Gap to Big East Fork parking area	Daily mileage: 4.6	Trip mileage:  9.2
Day 1
Sherpa and I met up with Stewart in the town of Brevard, NC late on Friday night. We had decided to park at the Big East Fork parking area. It was after 11pm and our plan was to hike in a short distance to the first established campsite. It was a beautiful night and I decided I was going to sleep out under the stars and not set up my shelter. I found a nice level spot back in a brushy area and laid out my Tyvek ground cloth. We all sat up talking for an hour or so then decided to call it a night and get some sleep. I slept well and woke up around 7am to the sounds of movement in our camp. Sherpa and Steward were already awake and cooking breakfast. I rarely eat a hot breakfast, so I laid in my sleeping bag and enjoyed a Power Bar. We broke camp and headd up to Shining Rock. We had originally planned on taking the Old Butt Knob trail but somehow missed the turn off. So we continued up the Shining Creek trail. I was hiking ahead of the others and soon they were out of sight. I took a break on a large boulder and waited for them to catch up. After 30 minutes and no sight of them, I continued on my way. Somehow we had gotten separated and were hiking different routes to Shining Rock. I made it to the water source near Shining Rock and sat down to wait for them. Again, I waited for 30 minutes and still no sign of them. I decided to head on up to Shining Rock Gap and wait there until they arrived. Shortly after I laid down and propped up my feet, I heard voices in the distance. It was Stewart and Sherpa. They said they'd be up at Shining Rock waiting on me. Definitely a weird moment. We just couldn't figure out how we had gotten separated and not ran back into each other on the trail. There was a handful of tents already set up in the area we were hoping to use, so we headed to the other side of the gap and set up camp. The temperature was dropping and it was getting down right cold. So against local regulations, we built a fire. Everyone else in the area had one going as well, so we figured we'd take our chances as well. Suzi, my dog, found her a warm spot under a fallen tree and settled in the night. I hung my hammock near her and quickly went about cooking some hot food. We all sat around the fire, eating and warming ourselves up, and then it was time to turn in for the night.
Day 2
I froze my arse off last night. Shortly after midnight, it started raining and it quickly turned to freezing rain and ice. Within a few hours the entire area was coated in a thick layer of ice. I slept off and on for a few hours but rarely for more than 30 minutes at a time. I accepted the fact that sleep was not going to come and decided to read in my hammock until the others wake up. Fortunately, they didn't sleep well either and we were all up and about camp shortly after 6am. We made a quick breakfast and broke camp. While it was cold, it was also a beautiful morning. Ice everywhere! We weren't the only ones looking to get back to our cars that morning. It was a mass exodus from Shining Rock Gap. Everyone in the area had broken camp and were heading down at the same time we were. The group of guys in front of us were falling left and right due to the icy trail. I'm thanful I had my trekking poles with me, which saved me on more than one occasion. We made it back to our cars in just a couple of hours and it was time to get a warm meal in Brevard. I love the cheeseburgers at Dugan's Pub, so we made a mad dash to get there. Not much to say. We climbed into our cars and made our way back to Atlanta.