We left Hot Springs late in the day after some coffee and pastries. It may just be my mindset but it was an incredibly perfect day. We had perfect weather, I was surrounded by perfect company, and the hiking was great! We got to a secluded camp and set up for the night before sitting around the fire way passed hiker midnight (9pm). The next morning I woke up early to the most beautiful sunrise but still ended up being the last one ready. We planned to stop for some instant coffee at our next water stop but missed it by a mile. We were out of water so when we saw a sign that said Milkshakes 0.6 of a mile down the road, we went. We enjoyed coffee, milkshakes, and fudge before heading back out to the trail. That day we were on an exposed ridge line for a while and the views were incredible! Some of the best we've seen all trip. We kept going and found a campsite covered in garbage and very exposed to the wind. Tired we all looked at each other and knew we could do better so we trudged on. Off the trail we saw what looked like a campfire ring and some flat area so we went to check it out. Upon further inspection, we found two gravesites belonging to the Sheltons, a couple of union soldiers who were ambushed and killed in the forest by the confederacy while traveling home for the holidays. We decided camping there might be disrespectful, and incredibly eery, so we set up a 100 yards away where it was still flat. It began to rain as we made dinner together and we were subjected to communicate from tent to tent. I fell asleep that night toasty warm listening to the rain hit my tarp. Around midnight, I woke up with one of the most frustrating sensations a hiker can feel in the middle of the night, I had to pee. I begrudgingly crawled out of my tarp. Immediately I felt a very eery feeling. I saw the graves in the distance, blanketed by creepy fog. I decided to make this quick and took off running. Heart pumping I found a good tree. Off in the distance a quiet cough echoed. My heart stopped as all of the scary things that could happen to me ran through my mind. I've never moved faster than when I ran back to my tarp and dove in. Cozy in my sleeping bag again, I imagined the ghost of an old soldier spooning me in the night. I did not sleep very well from then on. We got another amazing sunrise that next morning and started moving. Somewhere in the day we heard about some weather that was coming in. Not planning to sleep at a shelter that night, we had to adjust our plans and ended up getting to a shelter at 3pm. The rain came in hard for about half an hour then stopped and turned into a lovely evening. We were kicking ourselves for stopping so early but it was nice to relax. We even had the added bonus of staying in the shelter with Loner Boner, a man somewhere in his seventies who has thru hiked the AT on three separate occasions. In and out of his slumber he would throw out one liners of advice like he had been a part of the whole conversation. The best we heard was "it's okay to lose toenails! It's when you start losing toes that you've got to worry! Then you have diabetes or leprosy!" (Yes, the exclamation points are necessary). We fell asleep around 7:30 as the sun went down and soon realized how grateful we were to be in a shelter. A torrential downpour began and raged for most of the night. There was intermittent thunder and lightning and a thick fog that made visibility less than 20 ft. in front of you. Halfway through the night the clouds cleared up and the freezing cold set in that lasted until the sun came up. We were told of some trail magic that might be happening in a few miles so we had a bit of motivation to stuff our gear into our packs with frozen fingers. We spoke of the pancakes and hot coffee that might be awaiting us the whole wag down. As we came to the street we looked around frantically for signs of pancakes but there was nothing there. Defeated, we sank into the concrete and whined about our lack of pancakes. The temperature was getting colder and colder and the wind was whipping us but the pavement was warm and our day was derailed. I checked the local weather and got an alert about a freeze warning that was in effect that night. With no hopes of making it to the shelter in 18 miles, we reevaluated our options. We decided to hitch into Erwin TN to escape the freeze and then slack pack the 25 miles we missed the next day. Upon getting into town, we met Lou, the owner of the Hawg and Dawg who fed us and helped us find somewhere to stay for the night. He put us in touch with Mike and Peggy who gave us directions to their place. As we walked up we noticed the brightly colored beehives in the yard followed by a huge chicken coup and a grand garden. We all got more and more excited as we walked up closer to find their incredible friendly dogs, Jessie and Roc. Mike told us to go inside all did grab a beer, so we did and enjoyed it while listening to the sounds of the Nolichucky river and the many beautiful wind chimes in the area. This place had everything, and outdoorsy persons dream home! We got to take over a small cabin in their yard where Peggys parents had stayed before the house was built. We had a wonderful evening sharing stories with Mike and Peggy before drifting off to sleep in the nice, warm cabin. The next morning, we prepared for our slack pack and Cara and Todd prepared to go home. We heard a small knock at the door and I opened it to Peggy with five easter baskets full of candy and peeps (she knows hikers well). We were all so touched by her kindness and had tge best start to the day ever! We got on our shuttle and a deep feeling of dread hit my stomach. My friends were leaving us today. As we hugged goodbye it didn't seem like enough, I wanted to squeeze them to death or carry them in my backpack. But life is inevitable and they drove away with hopes of winning the lottery in order to return to the trail. Blaze runner, Lemon, and I headed up trail and had the most amazing day. We made it the gorgeous 25 miles before five and returned to Mike and Peggys where we were greeted by Peggys sister and mom who were visiting for Easter. Her sister offered us some amazing coconut cake and we sat by the fire with her mom chatting about our hiking stories. Mike brought us a Yingaling and we tried to keep our eyes open long enough to finish it. We returned to our cabin and fell asleep watching Airplane. Today we head out, a little sore and not wanting to leave the oasis Mike and Peggy have made for us here. Mile 342.9