I got up early enough but messed around and didn't get away until after 0930. One of the family group gave me one of their maps which showed the elevation profile and POIs for the section from the dam to NOC, (Nantahala Outdoor Center). It really came in handy since I had no local maps of the trail. The bad news is it showed the steep climb I would have to make right out of tent.
It took me just over six hours to do the 6.5 miles to the Cable Gap shelter with about 1.800 feet in elevation gain, not counting all the extra ups and downs. The lake elevation is ~1,800 feet, the peak at 3,600 feet, and the shelter is at 2,880 feet. The steep 1,800 feet gain was in the 2 - 5 mile section of the day's hike. I found a great water source at about three miles in and change out all of my water in order to get rid of the chlorinated water I was carrying. The only wildlife of note was a Pileated Woodpecker, the largest one I have ever seen. (Reading up on them later and learned that they can get rather large.)
I got to the shelter around 1600 and had a good long rest before making dinner. Soon after dinner and cleanup and reorganizing, Sage, a NBF (north bound female) hiker joined me. She had planned a thirty mile day but settled for twenty two. I talked about going to the next shelter and back the next day, doing twelve miles. We chatted off and on about our hikes and was joined later by two SBM hikers with a dog.
Near dark I was rested enough to pack it in for the night.
PUDS = Pointless Ups and Downs!
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