Finished this section again last Thursday.

In general water was readily available at regular intervals. I don't think I went more than 10 miles without a water source - usually much less.

Bridge over Lick Creek is out. It was 12" deep when I crossed but seems to vary between ankle deep and impassable depending on rain. Guthook is a good place for updates. There is a rope with a carabiner on it to ease crossing.

Starting about 1 mile north of Chestnut Knob shelter (there's a dirt road crossing) there are about 4 miles of blowdowns from an ice storm in February. Makes for slow going because picking a way through is tedious. A good portion of it is directly on a rocky ridge with either side of the mountain immediately to your right and left.

Starting again from the northern Ribble Trail intersection going all the way to Angel's Rest there were more blowdowns. In some areas they were one after another and in other areas they were spaced apart but from Doc's Knob to Angel's Rest they seemed to be one after another.

I took the Ribble Trail. Going north that's a real lung buster. The last mile is around 1000' elevation gain and the trail is a 12" wide 8" deep ditch. In the rain I imagine it would be a real challenge to get to the top. Going south would be brutal if your knees aren't good with downhills.

Trent's was open.. 7-7 M-S, closed on Sunday.