Ambling up and down in Georgia

Hi folks!

My hike is progressing just great! At this point, I’ve hiked up to mile marker 69.4, Dick’s Creek Gap near Hiawassee, GA. Tonight, I’m staying at Green Dragon hiker hostel.

The last few days have had gorgeous weather, with full sun and gentle breezes. Coming from Wisconsin winter, I’ve gotten a small bit sun burned being constantly in the southern sun, but I’m faring well overall. The last couple of days have presented some of the toughest hiking so far, with steep climbs up Tray Mountain and Kelly Knob, offering thousands of feet of elevation gain in only a couple of miles. Honestly, though, the downhill portions have been rougher on me. My ankles and knees definitely begrudge any hike down into one of the many valleys on the trail.

Let me walk you through a day in the life of a hiker on the Appalachian trail. Most hikers wake up with the sun, or slightly before in my case. I cook a quick breakfast, usually oatmeal and instant coffee, before hitting the trail by 7:30-8:00ish. I will typically hike in increments of roughly two hours, taking breaks in between to snack and/or collect and filter water from streams along the way. Once 2:00 hits, I’ll start to plan out quite where I want to end the day. I like to finish my days up at or near one of the shelters on trail, as they serve as hubs to meet with other hikers. Once I pick my finishing point for the day around 4:00, I’ll relax for a bit before filtering more water, setting up my tent, and then cooking dinner and chatting with other hikers. “Hiker midnight” usually occurs at around 8:00, when most everybody turns in for the night to rest and recharge for the next day of hiking.

Today, I hiked 12 miles before meeting up with a shuttle driver at Dick’s Creek Gap. They drove me to where I’m staying tonight at the Green Dragon hiker hostel. There are 11 other hikers staying here, two of which I know from trail. This place really is super nice. For just $55, they offer a shuttle to and from the trail, as well as a trip to town to resupply at the grocery store, and a trip to a local restaurant to pig out on some actual food, laundry and shower service, and a home cooked breakfast tomorrow, too! Very excellent place, and Bill and Donna, the owners, are marvelous people. 10/10 would recommend. What’s more, the mayor of Hiawassee hosts a free burger cookout in the town park for hikers every Monday, so I got to partake in some delicious free food courtesy of the town of Hiawassee.

Tomorrow, I’ll be shuttled back to Dick’s Creek Gap, where I’ll resume my hike. The next opportunity to resupply will be in Franklin, NC. That’s exciting, because it means that the next time you hear from me, I’ll be finished with Geargia, the first state on the AT! Very exciting stuff.

I don’t have too many pictures this time around (I’ll try to be a better photographer in the future), but I’ll give bonus points to anybody that can identify this weird plant (or fungi?) that I encountered right on the side of the trail.