Nantahala Outdoor Center and the River's End Restaurant

Forest waits so patiently for his chow to cool off, but there's no hesitation once he has his nose in the bowl. Consistent with his training, I always give him a chance to digest his food before we head out on the Trail, especially when we aren't in a rush. This morning he snoozed a little in my lap, while a woodpecker worked in the background. We had a leisurely morning today because the restaurant where we were headed wasn't open until 11 a.m.



After I packed up camp, we headed to the Nantahala Outdoor Center to get lunch at the River's End restaurant. I decided that I didn't dare eat there and watch the river because I wouldn't be able to resist spending the whole afternoon there fishing. For now, I need to spend the nice days hiking, and use zero days for bad weather. Instead, I got my food and took it to the laundry room to eat while I charged my phone and did my laundry. I'm not sure I've ever eaten so much at one time; I had a cheeseburger, fries, giant ice cream sandwich, box of four cinnamon rolls, bag of chips, a Coke and a Gatorade. Then I needed a coffee to wake me up!

By the time I finished my lunch and my laundry, had a shower, and repacked everything, it was
3 p.m. We would end up going less than 5 miles today.

I realized on the last stretch that I had used my phone too much and drained the battery. I'll have to be more careful, so I won't be posting as much online. I'll continue to shoot photos and video, but I'll probably wait until I get into a town where I have an outlet available to post them.