Springer Mountain - Unicoi Gap (Days 1-9)

Day 1; Springer to Three Forks

We finished day one early rolling into camp at about 2:15. Sharon is out with us for night one and was a little concerned with getting back to the car tomorrow in time to drive home. We mostly came down today which means she'll be going mostly up tomorrow. We completed somewhere around 4.5 miles today, making it from Springer to a little past Three Forks.  We're currently resting in the tent because it's frigid. Yeah, snow makes for gorgeous hiking, but it's stinkin' COLD! Over all a good first day out. Dinner in a few and then sleep early while we all try to stay warm tonight!

Springer Mountain and the start of the trail.  You can see a white, rectangular blaze next to Erik's right foot on the left of the photo!! Only 2,180 miles to go!!

Sharon being a trooper and attempting a fire on our first wake-up.  It Was COLD!

Day 2; Three Forks to Cooper Gap

We had intended to try to make it to Gooch Mountain Shelter, but my feet were hurting and I just had nothing left. I was relieved to know Erik was ready to call it quits, too. I feel like I'm slowing him down, but he assures me he doesn't mind. He's been so patient and kind in this endeavor. I hike at a snail's pace and he's more the The Roadrunner. But he waits at junctions and at the top of hills for me before moving on. Today has been simply frigid. I'm not sure what the temp is, but the wind is blowing and it's so blustery! Couple that with the hardest climb I've encountered yet (in life--not in our 2 days on the trail), and you get one somewhat discouraged Sari. I'm very ready for warmer temps and some hiking legs to allow us the fun friendships we seek out here. We met some very nice people today, but not making it to shelters limits the relationships we can build currently. I have to remind myself that it's not a race, and that the people aren't going anywhere. We're currently committing a major no no and are about to eat dinner in the tent because it's so stinkin cold.  Uncle Steve, we officially think you're nuts for winter hiking. After this endeavor, I'm a fairweather hiker/camper.

Erik cooking in the vestibule.  Our feet were double-socked and inside liners and sleeping bags.

**Excuse the first two days' short posts. We apparently are the only two hikers who stayed out while everyone else got into town out of the winter weather. Now that my fingers have thawed a bit, we hope to give more details.

Day 3; Cooper Gap to Gooch Gap

Oh wow, what a difference a day makes! Early in our day today we met Indiana Stones (trail name-this is a nick-name bestowed upon a hiker. There's always a story, though I didn't ask what hers is). She was essentially running up the mountain and ran out of steam. Huffing and puffing she said she needed to slow down, to which I replied that I'm going super slow and yesterday was rough. They say the trail gives what you need when you need it...Stones was SO needed. She told us she thru hiked last year and did 2 miles on her second day, and suggested that we do what we do and not pay attention to others. She said it took her 8 days to get to Neel Gap. I was so overwhelmed and asked her for a hug. The trail gave me exactly what I needed in that moment. The rest of the day was glorious with warming temps and beatiful sunshine. We crossed Justus Creek and stopped for water. It was so beautiful and we took our time filling water and enjoying the sun and the view. We continued on with little ups and downs for the rest of the day, and arrived in camp early by around 2. As soon as we got the tent up and were inside setting up beds, we heard our "neighbors" arrive. We wound up with a full campsite including a faster daughter pair, Taylor and Kurt (love these two!), and a group of three who are new to each other, Mike, Anchor, and The Roaming Gnome. Our first night with fellow hikers had been so nice. We built a fire and all talked while we prepared and ate dinner. Here's to a GREAT day 3 following a really discouraging day 2. Erik remains more patient and kind than ever! We plan to make it to Neel by Saturday.

Left to Right:  Anchor, Taylor, Kurt, Erik, Sari

Day 4; Gooch Gap to Lance Creek  Campsite

Today was a pretty great day. We started with morning trail magic from Lion Heart (breakfast items including fruit and sweets), and managed to make it over a couple of mountains with some pretty significant climbs and land in camp by about 3:30PM. Just about 7 miles in about 6 hours is cruising pace for our little trail family. I'm feeling pretty great with our miles thus far,  and am loving that we found a hiking group that moves at about my pace. There was a downhill section though, that was a slip and slide made of mud from the last of the snow melt, and was a challenge to navigate safely, and Erik has mildly injured a knee. He felt a little pain two days ago and took some pain killers, and it hasn't really gotten worse...until today. He was limping significantly and had us all a little worried, but especially me as I've not ever seen him act this way in response to pain. We got into camp and he checked it out. It was pretty darn swollen. He iced it and took it easy for the evening and says he's feeling much better. We'll decide tomorrow if we'll head out with the group or zero here and rest him a bit more. Blood Mountain is on the itinerary and we won't be able to stop until we're down the other side due to bear activity. Blood is also a big climb up, which means an equally big descent. For now, we're camped with with most of the group we stayed with last night. There are "four" tent pads and tons of people in the area. Our single tent pad alone has 4 tents and 6 people alone. It was cool to be among so many of us. The night was the warmest yet, and most of us got the best night's sleep yet as a result.

Day 5; Lance Creek to Neel's Gap

Well, we made it over Blood Mountain. I think we really psyched ourselves out about the climb, and while it was really, really hard, we all agreed it wasn't as bad as we'd expected (or as bad as Sassafras),and we made good time. The view from the top was beatiful abd we enjoyed a few minutes there before we had to move again. We were all drenched with sweat from the climb and it got cold quick. I found it very interesting that the shelter at the top seemed to be very interesting to day hikers,with a patent lifting a child to see through the window--there's a doorway around the other side. The funniest part is that no one is sleeping there now as The ATC has warned of extensive bear activity and suggested not sleeping there. We didn't tell the day hikers this. The down was pretty rough with stone stairs much of the way, a lot of mud which is very exhausting to walk in, and at the end of our day with already tired feet and bodies. Erik's knee is still hurting some, so he maintained a slower than usual (for him) pace today.  We made it to Mountain Crossing which is an outfitter directly on the trail and immediately outside of the Blood Mountain Wildness. We were excited to figure out what we'd get for dinner and rightly assumed that all the bunks in the bunk house would be taken. Taylor, Kurt, Erik, and I had been talking about pizza all day, and by the time we arrived to the freezer, the was only one left. Erik was hurting, we were all tired, and cooking really wasn't in the plan. He was going to pick some other microwaveable items to eat so we could share the pizza wed all been dreaming of all day. And then....TRAIL MAGIC!!!!!!! All we've read about trail magic doesn't do it a bit of justice. This lovely Church group came out with all the fixings. Burgers, hotdogs, baked beans, slaw, desserts galore, drinks. It was so amazing! Everyone was so very friendly asking us where we're from, why we're hiking, etc. Some were very impressed that Erik and I are hiking together, being that were a married couple. They were all excited for us and wished us well, Karen and John even let me borrow their cell phone to make contact with my parents (mom, check your voice mail). They also offered to pick us up and let us do laundry if we make it into Hiawassee. Our first trail magic experience in the book as completely amazing. These days have been hard, long, and full of learning, but they've also been full of self discovery and fun, too. We're enjoying ourselves for now and have planned a short day tomorrow with a bit of rest.

Crazy fog at the start this morning!

Taylor and Sari on Blood Mountain

Left front to Right; Erik, Kurt, Taylor, Shaggy, Anchor

 

Go Eagles--GA Southern represented at Neel's Gap!!  This is the trash receptacle at Mountain Crossing Outfitters!

Day 6; a spot between Wolf Laurel Top and Cow Rock Mountain

We got a late start today getting out of Neel's Gap and Mountain Crossing Outfitter. After the lovely trail magic which filled our bellies well, we retired to tents only to be kept awake all night by what can only be described as a mountain wind storm. We had to deplore all the stakes on our tent for the first time ever, and place rocks over each to be sure they stayed rooted in the wet soil. We'd planed a short day today to rest ourselves a bit, and I had no provoked getting up and out a little later than usual. I got my bag "shaken down" by the wonderful staff at Mountain Crossing. This usually means they pull stuff out and tell you to throw it out or send it home, but I already knew a lot of what needed to go home, so I had pulled it out. I got my pack weight down to 29lbs, including food and 2 liters of water! I was so impressed with myself!  And really, it only weighs that much because of Joe much food we're carrying. Once we get through our monstrously over packed  food bags, I'll be even lower and we'll look at splitting some items up between us. And all this from an embarrassingly almost 50lb pack to start.

Anyhow, we planned to make a stop one mile in today at Bull Gap to filter water, and to evaluate how long we'd walk. Erik's knee is still bothering him, and my right foot is hurting a lot, also. I bought inserts for my boots hoping it would fix the issue. I think they'll helpin the long run, though today was rough. My belly was hurting, too. Not sure from what but a sore tiny while hiking is not fun. So we walked, and walked, and walked some more until I took my pack off and took a break to let my stomach settle, and Erik walls back to me and tells me tat he and some guys have decided that we've all missed Bull Gap. Apparently it was pretty poorly marked. So instead of our intended three mile day, we put in six. Tomorrow we're assuming for fewer as we with toward our zero in town in a couple of days. Camp tonight was a lot of fun with a familiar face and sone new ones.  Patrick has been dubbed "Roller Rinkin'" after staying with a friend who wanted to take him line dancing--on roller skates. He couldn't get over it and is now so named. I missed hanging out with Taylor, but it was nice to meet some new faces. It's "hiker midnight" (9PM), and time for sleep. I can't wait to be in touch on Wednesday!

Day 7; a spot between Wolf Laurel Top and Cow Rock Mountain to Hogpen Gap
We got our short day today. Yesterday was going to be a short day, and it was in the grand scheme. But a planned three mile day turned into 5. So today, we were set on walking the two miles to where we are and resting our sore spots for the afternoon. I'm currently in the tent doing just that, and it's a a relaxing afternoon with very nice weather. We walked over Cowrock Mountain earlier which had a nice spot at the top with some grass and rocks to sit on, and a pretty view. It was a pretty quick up and down, abd Lion Heart was waiting at the bottom with some trail magic! Fruit and goodies, soda and water. We each took a piece of fruit and a treat for later, and I downed a bottle of water. Lion Heart is a super nice retired man who loves the woods and her people and really enjoys coming out to support the AT community. He's been out every day for 5 weeks doing this, missing only one day. It's been a pretty uneventful, quiet day and may stay quiet, though we're kind of hoping for some camping buddies tonight. We'll see how it goes. Is been nice, though. I think we both needed the rest.

Day 8; Hogpen Gap to Low Gap Shelter
Our first night in a shelter!  If I'm being honest, I'm not looking forward to any mice or other critters who come to visit, but the fact that we're currently hanging out in the shelter with the Wolf Pack (we finally met them, and they're super nice!) during a thunder storm makes it worth it. So in the morning, we can wake, pack, eat, and go. And the kicker....NO WET TENT! The group is friendly and fun, and is made up of Raisin (a 21 year old education major on a gap year), Igloo (a 26 year old free spirited vegan, Krazy Korean (a Roll Tide airport security manager), and Ned (a guy with a baby on the way collecting stories for him/her). We leap frogged with them all day today and could hear Korea's radio most of our walk today.

We came up a little short on water yesterday and didn't drink enough, meaning I woke up pretty swollen. We arrived at the shelter to filter water in the lovely stream and learned of the coming storm, so we decided to stay put. The afternoon has been lovely with time to visit and soak our feet a little. We met a couple of other people, including Mountain Man and his tiny little toy sized fluffy dog, "Critter," who his running along side him out here. It's been a good day, all in all. A long day tomorrow for Erik's birthday in town and a Zero (no miles day)!!

Shelter life with an incoming storm.  Uncle Ned and Korea made rain barriers!

Erik and Raisin--She gave me a Trail Karma medallion for sharing our water with The Wolf Pack.  I'll pass it along to another thru-hiker for a kind deed!  #TK043

Day 9; Hogpen Gap to Unicoi Gap/into Hiawassee, GA

Oh. My. Gosh!  We thought we'd lost all the posts we'd written when we had to take my phone back to factory settings.  Of course it's the only phone we brought, but we figured it out, and we're back on-line--AND we lost NOTHING!! 

Ok, so back to the hike.  We walked our longest day yet today, 9.6 miles from Low Gap Shelter to Unicoi Gap, then we called a ride into Hiawassee where we plan to stay in a hotel for a couple of nights.  We're taking our first zero day and have enjoyed our first showers in over a week.  We were GROSS!  Erik is upstairs right now washing our laundry which thoroughly stinks.  We had Mexican for dinner to celebrate Erik's birthday and no less than 2 trail families ("tramilies") /groups sung him happy birthday today!  The fact that it was our longest day yet has us hurting a little.  Erik's feet are fine, and his knee is on the mend.  Still a little swelling there, but the pain is nearly gone.  My feet, though, are aching pretty well.  Otherwise, our bodies feel pretty good.  The weather has warmed up a little bit with days all the way into the 60s, which makes hiking a bit more enjoyable.  There was a pretty nasty storm last night, during which we spent our first night sleeping in a shelter.  Fortunately, the weather kept the mice away.  We likely won't spend many nights in the shelters themselves, opting instead to sleep in our tent near the shelter.  We're not too keen on mice crawling over our faces while we sleep.  We really enjoyed the time with the Wolf Pack and find them to be a super friendly, diverse "tramily," and we hope to run into them again soon.

Our own little tramily began early and included Taylor and Kurt, and we'd hoped to see them today when we arrived in town.  They made it in yesterday and we missed them.  I miss the friendship and hope to bump into them again soon! 

No Spot updates today or tomorrow as we'll be safe in a hotel showering and resting feet.  But we'll be back out there on the 24th and will update the blog sometime in a week +/-.  Until then, thank you so much for the support and excitement!  Keep it coming.  You guys really have no idea how much it helps us every single day!  We walk the trail wondering what you all would think and what kind of stories we'll share when we finish and return home to you all. 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ERIK!  On our way to town!!

2 More Wake Ups!

It's nearly time to go, and we just can't believe it!  We did our grocery shopping today and bought WAY too much food!  It's very common to over pack food the first days/weeks out, and many hikers learn quickly that they need far less than they pack.  Often other gear is also over packed, and items are sent home in the first couple of weeks.  For this reason, we have likely intentionally over prepared.  We have a very real concern, though, with regards to Erik's metabolism and how to support it.  Getting him enough calorie each day is going to take some practice, which is why we've packed So Much food for our first days.  The upside to this is that he is his own furnace and usually stays pretty warm. 

It has become very cold in the last day or so, and snow is expected in our first day to two.  Add that to the fact that I am usually referred to as a "Sari-sicle" with a "broken thermostat," which has led us to do the same with clothing; prepare for very cold knowing we can send items home if we find we don't need them.  Hypothermia is a real concern in these early days of our journey.

We've opted to push our departure back by one additional day which has helped my nerves So very much!  We have this one additional business day to make sure we have all our lose ends tied up. My nerves are still quite high, but this tiny change in itinerary has allowed me to be truly excited in addition to very nervous and anxious!  Our coworkers sent each of us off well with kind words, gifts, and cards full of encouragement and excitement.  We couldn't be more lucky to have found workplaces which are so supportive of our dreams, even though this one is a bit off the wall.

Additionally, we're so excited to share these days with friends and family who are both very excited with us, and some of whom have hiked themselves in the past.  Brian, Alana, Su, Lindsey, Sharon, Courtney, Rick, All the Bloggers we've followed, and random others we've met over the last years, thank you for your guidance, your positive thoughts, and your encouragement of our goal.  Knowing you've hiked your hikes helps us know we can hike ours!

Surreal and Overwhelming...The Mountains are Calling

A long overdue update:

We're a week out, and we can't even believe it!  I had always envisioned the weeks leading up to this adventure being full of excitement and giddy nerves.  In reality, however, that is the farthest from what I've experienced.  I am a very talented "avoider," and have only proven as much in preparation for this endeavor.  It hasn't helped that our sweet and lovable fur-baby ("Stitch") became very sick a few weeks ago and we had to say goodbye quickly.  We were both upset, but I was a bit of a basket case.  All I had intended to do  was out the window and I found myself in a tail-spin of grief and stress, accomplishing nothing.  So...we're at T-minus 1 week with multiple items left on our to-do list.  We did, however, check off a couple of purchases this weekend, making the final list very doable. 

We have been truly blown away by the support we've received.  Genuine questions and interest, and loving support coming from directions we didn't even know existed.  Erik and I work in vastly different settings:  He in a small privately owned retail franchise, and I in a very large, not for profit healthcare system.  People he worked with in past years, and that he works with currently, are popping up with supportive words and requests to join us at various points on the journey.  People that I work with on a daily basis are excited for us and our next steps, many are inquisitive.  And some people who I talk to weekly but don't spend a lot of time with are just over the moon for our endeavor and all that it means to us.

We have widely different emotions on the subject.  We're both very excited; Erik would drop it all and leave tomorrow if it weren't for me and my notice at work.  I however, am a bit anxious for a number of reasons.  It has all become very real in the last few days as my replacement has finally been confirmed at work, we've begun planning my short return in order to tend to some important family needs (we could use any extra positivity/prayers you can muster thrown our way), and we purchased travel isurance today which is the largest single purchase to date, in preparation for this adventure.  Meaning...there's no turning back now!  I try to go into experiences without expectations, and I feel as though I've done a pretty great job of it this time.  If you don't think of what's coming ("avoider," remember?), you can't have expectations.  This counts as a plus when the feelings are a combination of overwhelmed and terrified, and completely taken aback with yourself for the absolutely ludicrous life decision you're making to go gallivant in the woods for months on end.

Despite the nerves and the many items left to accomplish, we are getting very excited and look forward to the time together outside, the people we'll meet, and most importantly, to accomplishing our goal!  We wish that our start was able to go exactly as planned, but with changes in dates and family health, we've had to make some changes to starting plans.  Despite the changes, however, we are super excited to be spending our first day to two with one of our favorite people!  She's taking us out and spending the first night or two with us and we couldn't be more excited to share the first steps of this journey with Sharon.

Stay tuned...more to come, including, gear lists & pack info & weight, final preparations, and our first days out!!