As soon as I rolled out of my campsite I began climbing, the longest one of the day right at the beginning. Steep up, steep down, was to be the theme of the day. Appalachian Trail hikers have a name for these, a term used so frequently amongst themselves that they have shortened it to simply PUDs, or pointless ups and downs. So it seemed for me today. I really jinxed myself talking about that 12% climb yesterday because it seemed like every climb today was eerily similar. It also made descending a challenge, if not outright work. I was constantly dodging big rocks poking up out of the road whilst also trying not to fly off the edge around a sharp corner. So it was a rather slow day. But it was enjoyable, almost all the climbs were pleasantly shaded and there were lots of lovely streams to filter water from. In the middle of the day I kept hearing industrial noises, which confused me. It sounded like several large drum fans each with a missing blade and bad bearings. Then it hit me; cicadas! I confirmed my theory when I found the shell of one on the ground later. As the day wore on I was still undecided as to where to camp. I had made such bad time and it was so hard I thought I would just find a spot somewhere near the Hiwassee river near the end of the Cherokee National Forest. But it was packed with people and in any case there were signs saying not to camp 1/4 mile from the river. There were Railroad tracks beside the road too so not many alternative places. I decided to push on. I actually felt really good as I had been keeping on top of my eating and drinking all day. I had just stopped and cooked a meal only a little while ago and I had full water so I just decided to push on till a spot revealed itself to me. I rode through a bunch of little farms being worked the old fashioned way with animals and manual tools. Didn't want to camp in there. At length I rode by a church and found a nice level spot behind one of their buildings which was hidden by woods. Perfect. Whippoorwills and fireflies are my companions for the night.