I had a little trouble sleeping last night and I'm not sure why. The upshot is that it gave me an early start. I was hiking at 8. It was still very cold and windy although the wind stopped within the hour.

Three notable areas were explored today. Above camp was the cliffy(?) Shortoff Mountain. It was only about 600 ft higher than were I slept so I was on top the long flat summit ridge quickly. Finally I warmed up little. The views made good pictures but my camera battery was fading fast. The cliffs were followed by a long descent way down to the Linville River which I had to ford. The water was cold. The air was cold. The wind made it seem colder but it lessened the shock of getting into the water. It is 60 feet to the other side, but it was never deeper than just above the knee and it wasn't flowing very fast. Picture me in long sleeve shirt, fleece jacket, wool cap, and from the waist down just briefs. It took 18 chilling minutes to carefully pick my way across the river with all it's slippery round stones. Boy was I goosebumpy on the other side. The third interesting area was the Pinnacle above the river. It wasn't really a pinnacle just a high point on a nondescript ridge that had a nice viewing platform. It also marked the beginning of easier terrain.

I set up camp at the end of Forest Service road 106. It is high on a wooded ridge about 500 vertical feet below Dobson Knob. I built a big bonfire earlier to ward off the cold. It made eating and planning much nicer.

I think I'll do about 10 miles out to the highway tomorrow. Then I'll hitch into Marion since I need a little more food and to recharge my batteries. I also haven't done laundry since Pilot Mtn.