The First Eight Days

Stats: Monday night 3/21, MM 69.6

(54.7 miles this week, 78.4 total miles)

At the official hike start, Springer Mountain
(4:30PM first day, hiked from Amicalola Falls)

The first day (after Mary left) my goal was to get to the first shelter on the trail, right past the start.

When I got there it was crowded so I hiked past it, and found a spot along the trail where Maria had set up camp. She was an experienced hiker and taught me many things…including how to use a tent pole to get my bear bag down from the tree when the carabiner got stuck. It was dark and I was tired, bad throw. (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.)

After the second day my legs were worn out. Huffing and puffing up hills, I pressed on and tried to build up my stamina. I started out early, Maria caught up to and then passed me. I met Dale, 56 and in good shape, with a pack that weighed 55 pounds. It rained off and on all day and was very muggy. When I stopped for the night near a stream, I changed shoes to flip-flops then decided to walk down to the stream to get water. Bad move, I slipped and fell in the mud; won’t do that again.

The third day I met Milon, Miles, Catfish, and Snake. Also met Marmalade who came over from England to hike the trail. After lunch I met Moondog and Bald Eagle and started hiking with them. They, too, had experience, and we all hiked about the same speed. We went to a campground but it was full, so we continued another mile up a hill until we found a flat spot and then set up camp. We could see a house close by – the woman who owned the house came over and asked us not to start any fires (which we weren’t planning anyway), and then offered us water from her spigot. Very nice lady.

Pic from Bald Eagle

My tent

On day four we hiked up to the top of Blood Mountain – from 3,200 ft elevation to 4,400 in less than 3 miles. People said it would be tough, they weren’t kidding. For me the uphill was not as much problem as the downhill. The downhill seemed twice as long, very rocky with steps here and there, and it was harder on my knee.

Another few miles past Blood Mountain is Mountain Crossing, a store where the trail runs right through the store. They offer pack shake-downs – they take everything out and go over it with you to help you trim weight. I ended up sending 5 pounds home, which cancelled out the weight of the new food I needed.

Moondog, Bald Eagle, and I decided to rent a cabin at the store, where we had a hot shower, bunk, power to charge the phones, and PIZZA! Tasted so good after four days on the trail. We were all beat! We enjoyed egg and sausage pizza the next morning before heading out.

On day 5 I noticed 3 blisters: one on the bottom of one foot, two on the other. Painful, but not unbearable. I packed plenty of moleskin and blister items. Met a group from Texas, 10 students – they passed us, we passed them, they passed us. Their leader, Chicklet, hiked the AT last year. That night we stayed at Low Gap Shelter.

Day 6 we hiked 11 miles total, to the top of Rocky Mountain, 4,000 feet up. The weather called for rain; we woke up in the middle of the night to the sound of strong winds, but thankfully no rain.

Day 7, Saturday, started out as a beautiful day. We saw Miler and a few others we’d met before. Met Grumpy, an IRS guy from Colorado, who started out with 60 pound pack and trimmed 16 pounds during his shake-down. We got to Sassafras gap early so set up camp. From this point on it started to gradually get colder, and the wind picked up. We turned in early, 7:30, because our tents were warmer than being out in the wind. We heard howling coyotes in the distance that night. Glad they were not nearby.

On Sunday, day 8, we woke up to 35 degrees. Thankfully we only had a short hike to Dicks Creek Gap where Bald Eagle’s wife picked us up. We were all ready for a zero day, which is a day without any hiking. We heard the temps would be in the 20’s for two nights, so were very happy to be in town and in a warm hotel with a bed and shower. Talk about great timing!

Bald Eagle, me, Moondog, Grumpy, Whisper, and Boomer (pic from Bald Eagle)

So far the hike is about what I expected. I met many nice people and learned from many experienced hikers. I knew I’d have to get used to it – it’s hard because I’m not in shape and have a few extra pounds on me. Most of the hiking is basically from one mountain to another – up one side, down the other. Some are steeper than others, some longer than others. All have beautiful views.

One last update, I now have my trail name: Nailgun, from my roofing days. So if you’re reading AT journals or blogs and see Nailgun mentioned, that’s probably me.

Thank you for all your comments, encouraging texts and voice mails, and your prayers (especially for my knee). I may not have time to respond, but know that I appreciate them very much.

Hope you enjoy the pictures, God's creation is beautiful!