(Moreland Gap Shelter (mile 413.7) - Boots Off Hostel & Campground (off mile 428.4) *overnight at Boots Off*)

I woke up a little after 7:30am and took my time with breakfast in camp before hitting the trail about an hour later. After making it over 18.5 miles yesterday, the plan was to get to Boots Off today. I felt pretty confident I would be taking a zero day at Boots Off. The primary reason for a zero day would be to allow myself the opportunity to finalize grad school plans.

This morning I received a text from Dr. Anna Savage at the University of Central Florida. Dr. Savage informed me that she was next in line to receive a grad student teaching assistantship, and was hopeful that she could soon offer me a spot. For context, I only applied to two grad schools. The University of Central Florida, where I would be advised by Dr. Anna Savage, and The University of Alabama, where I would be advised by Dr. Gui Becker. I already received an offer from UA and have been waiting to hear from UCF. Over the last few weeks, I’ve been leaning more and more towards UA. The research seems cool and the stipend is better. In fact, I already have a signed copy of the UA offer letter on my phone. However, given this new information from Dr. Savage, it seemed like an offer from UCF was in the works, so I needed to consult with my mentors, family, and Anna Claire to get their thoughts. The University of Alabama expects an answer by April 15th (three days from now), so I have time but I’ll be cutting it close.

A zero day would also give me a chance to rest my knee a bit. The elevation profile on Guthook showed a lot of downhill today, so I hoped my knee would cooperate. Whatever happens, I’m definitely going to seek out a knee brace in Hampton.

After 2 miles, I stopped at a water source to eat my apple and orange. While there, I met a thru-hiker named “Saltlick.” The next 4 miles were mostly a gradual downhill, peppered with an occasional small view through the trees. I passed an old dilapidated log cabin on the banks of a small pond before crossing Dennis Cove Road and entering the Pond Mountain Wilderness. The trail followed along the Laurel Fork River, eventually leading into Laurel Fork Gorge. Dramatic rock walls rose on both sides of the trail as the trail wound deeper into the gorge.

As I entered the gorge, I curated a playlist of every Lil Wayne song on my phone. This included a collection of songs from my middle school iPod (peak bling era Wayne), providing plenty of hype as well as a lovely musical excursion down memory lane. Standout tracks included “Go DJ” from the original Tha Carter (2004) and “Paradice” from Rebirth (2009 - which was Lil Wayne’s excursion into rock-rap). The trail passed over the Laurel Fork River on an absolutely massive wooden bridge. I stopped to take pictures of the bridge and noticed a small art installation on one of the bridge’s supporting pillars. I returned to investigate and felt like I had discovered an AT easter egg.

The trail routed into the gorge, descending steeply down an awkwardly spaced stone staircase towards Laurel Falls. My knees had been doing pretty good this morning, but the stone steps were far from comfortable. I decided to stop at the falls for lunch. The waterfall was huge, and its thunderous roar echoed up the gorge walls. Today was another beautiful day, and I basked in the sun at the base of the falls.

The trail followed Laurel Fork downstream and seemed to dead end as the river wrapped around a massive cliff. I thought I must have missed a turn-off until I noticed a blaze painted on a tree near the cliff. Sure enough, the trail skirted around the cliff on a narrow ledge only a few feet above the river. The trail climbed quickly towards a shelter side trail and then descended again to continue alongside the river. After crossing the river two more times via beautifully engineered wooden bridges, the trail finally started an extended climb out of gorge.

The next 3 miles were one long, hot, dry climb. Fortunately, I had Lil Wayne to keep me company. The sweet sounds of Tha Carter V (2018) motivated me over the last mountain before Boots Off. Tha Carter V was released long after the peak of Wayne’s relevance, but I think it served as fitting proof of his continued influence, charisma, and dynamism. Not every song on the sprawling, 1hr 30min project was perfect, but it certainly hyped me up and kept me stepping. Personal highlights included “Uproar,” “Can’t Be Broken,” “Demon,” and “Mess.”

After summiting Pond Flats, I spotted a garter snake on my way down towards Hampton. About 3 miles later, I made it to Shook Branch Road and completed the short road walk to Boots Off Hostel & Campground.

I stopped at Boots Off Hostel & Campground to make my grad school decision official. I will be attending the University of Alabama in the fall to pursue my PhD in biology

The shower stalls at Boots Off where I did my laundry while showering