In the beginning...

Starting on Sunday, June 20, 2010, I, along with my friend Joe, started a trek along the Appalachian Trail starting at Springer Mountain, GA.  The morning began well.  Of course, there were tons of butterflies in our stomachs.  I knew I had to eat something, but eating was the last thing on my mind.  I managed to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and keep it down.  We gathered all our gear and we piled into the Santa Fe.  Off and runnin’!

When looking at the National Geographic map of the area, it had designations for improved and unimproved roads.  Growing up on a dirt road, I knew very well what the differences in the two were.  Obviously, in the North Georgia mountains, those two meanings aren’t very different.  Picture a winding dirt road with some rather sharp turns and then picture one the same way…only the second one looks as though it hasn’t been bladed/graded in quite some time.  There’s your differences!  I’m glad we have the Santa Fe now instead of the PT Cruiser.  It would have been a sad sight to see that beautiful blue car go through those roads.  They weren’t as bad as I was expecting.  I was expecting tree limbs and all that junk to try and block our way.  The roads do go through lands used by Army rangers that I will be getting to in a later post.  After driving for 10 miles (16.09 km), we were finally at the parking lot of Springer Mtn.

We piled out of the vehicle, stretching and breathing in the fresh mountain air.  It felt so great to be in the mountains.  South Alabama has hills, but it doesn’t allow you to get this wonderful feeling.  I strangely felt right at home where I was standing.  We opened the back of the vehicle and started going through our inventory of equipment and putting on our packs.  “Wes, where are your trekking poles?”  Are you freaking kidding me?  After going through all the stuff the day before, I had left my trekking poles lying on the table.  Oh well!  It’s not like we could turn around and go get them.  I was at the starting point and had to make the most of what I had.  After spraying ourselves down with bug spray, adjusting straps, and kissing the partner goodbye, we entered the trail with open minds, jittery stomachs, and beating hearts.

Trickling stream

It felt good walking through the trail.  It began pretty narrow…probably about 2 feet (.61 meters) wide.  We hiked single file for about a mile or so before the trail widened.  The scenery was to die for…awe inspiring and truly breathtaking.  A plant, whose name I do not know, that blooms in the mountains created an aroma totally inescapable.  It wasn’t bad and it didn’t make my sinuses go crazy.  It simply seemed weird smelling it the entire time we were in the woods.  I’ve mentioned in a previous post my love for bridges.  We crossed a few bridges, like the one pictured, allowing people to cross over smaller creeks and streams.  I failed to get a picture of it, but when we reached Three Forks, there was a camping area next to a nice size creek where we refreshed our water supply.  The bridge traversing the creek was well designed to be the size it was.  Guard railings and nice flooring made it my favorite of the entire hike.  The water flowing underneath was ice cold!  Even in the heat of summer, this creek was full of clear, cold , delicious mountain water.  That is, after it went through a filter and was treated with UV light to kill micro organisms!  We spent some time near the creek, and noticing that we were doing really well on time, we hoisted our bags into place and crossed the forestry service road (read “dirt road”) and continued on our journey.

After hiking nearly a mile, we knew we should be coming up on a fantastic waterfall called Long Falls.  We saw a creek below where we were standing and we could hear water falling.  We thought we had made it.  Venturing off the trail, we went down to the water and were greatly disappointed in what we saw.  If this was Long Falls, someone wasn’t thinking clearly while they named it.  Someone must not have wanted it to feel bad about itself!  We walked through the woods, getting a look at more of the area.  Nothing changed.  We stood by our packs for a minute, boggled from what we had seen.  I looked in my data guide and reviewed the picture.  A white, foamy wall of water was falling from a cliff into a pool at its base.  Obviously, this was not where we needed to be.  Something just didn’t sound right in our gauging of distances.  We climbed back onto the trail and carried on.  We hiked for maybe a tenth of a mile and there was the sign for Long Falls.  A sign…yes!  Look for signs to show you where you should go.  I felt kind of stupid at that point and we headed down the trail to find this great waterfall.

Long Falls

You can imagine how glad we were to see the real waterfall and the amazingly cold water falling into a rather deep pool at the base of the cliff.  There were people sitting on rocks around the falls, enjoying a Sunday snack.  Two southern ladies were sitting around, smoking their cigarettes and talking about life’s issues.  When we walked up, they were welcoming and in that GA mountain voice said, “Hi y’all doin’?  It’s purty hot out here, ain’t it?”  I just couldn’t help myself from being overjoyed and down right giddy!  They asked how far we were hiking.  I told them our goal was Hogpin Gap.  They shook their head in agreement, as though I had asked them a question.  Joe and I took some pictures of the falls before we sat down on the rock made vacant by the ladies after leaving.  While sitting there, a father and his son joined us at the falls and before long, a family stopped by with sandwiches and drinks.  I started a conversation with them…me being the person who doesn’t often meet a stranger…and found they were from the metro Atlanta area.  They said they visit fairly often to spend some quality family time together.  How nice is that, I thought.  Drive at least 50 miles or more to spend time with the kids on a cool rock by a waterfall.  After refreshing the water supply and washing the dishes, we went back to the trail to complete our first day of hiking.

We arrived at a location known as Hawk Mountain.  In some way or another, this was my first real ascent up a country mountain.  Stone Mountain, located in southern Gwinnett/northern DeKalb counties in the Atlanta area, is the only other mountain I have had the opportunity to climb.  With its open landscape, Stone Mtn can be seen as pretty easy to climb, even to those who have never thought of climbing a gigantic piece of rock.  Hawk Mtn, covered in trees and other vegetation, proved to be a bit challenging while carrying my pack of nearly 30 pounds (13.61 kg).  Now was the time I wish I had my trekking poles.  My back was screaming loud obscenities in the direction of my tired brain.  We eventually reached the ridge, taking small water and breathing stops on the way up.  Sounds of thankfulness escaped our mouths as spouts from our camel packs entered.  That was a climb, but if only we knew what awaited us at Sassafras Mtn.

As I’ve said before, the thing I liked about going hiking on the Appalachian Trail is that it provides shelters for overnight camping.  These shelters are spaced at a day’s hike distance away from each other.  The Hawk Mtn Shelter was a nice looking hut, raised off the ground a foot or two and with a loft for those who wanted to sleep higher.  We reached the shelter in plenty of time to sit around and talk before the sun went down.  The father and son team were already there and had set up their tent sight.  We sat down and talked as we rested and thought about fixin’ some supper.  Mmmm! Can everyone say Ramon noodles?  Not long after, a guy from Chattanouga, TN joined us.  He was alone and, like me, wanted to be able to say he accomplished the hike.  Good for him, although, he needed some prier knowledge of his camp stove.  He caught the table top on fire!  Great going!  Joe and I put our tents up a few yards from the shelter.  After hearing some scurrying inside the hut, I knew for certain I would not be giving critters the chance to chew on me, much less my tent.  Many others must have had the same thoughts as me since after we got our tents in place, a group of ten to fifteen people joined us for the night.  So much for a secluded hiking experience, but the more people hiking on a trail that’s 2,175 miles in total length, having others to talk to and have nearby for safety is never a bad thing.

At night fall, we chose our bear cables and lifted our packs into the air.  I, for one, wanted to be as much a part of nature as possibe.  When I entered my tent for the evening, I was naked and without a sleeping bag.  It was hot and I didn’t want to be uncomfortable and sweaty all night.  Oh, dear!  At around 1 am, I awoke to freezing temperatures.  I was shaking and there was nothing to put on besides the clothes I wore that day.  I put on my shorts and walked over to Joe, lying in his hammock.  I woke him up and we pulled down my pack to retrieve the sleeping bag.  It turns out that the hammock was not the best option for cold sleeping and so Joe joined me in the tent for the rest of the night.  If one person can’t make the tent somewhat warm, the heat of two bodies should suffice till the morning.  It was worth a shot.

The Appalachian Trail

As I sit here, drinking my glass of Welch’s Grape Juice (used in the south for Baptist’s communion services…I’m blessed!), I am thinking two weeks ahead when I will be wandering the first 30 miles of the Appalachian Trail, along with my buddy JD.  Our lives will surely be touched with each step we make along the way.  Along with the couple of ticks we will pick up, I am positive we will have a splendid time trying to reach our destination.  Now that the trip has been planned out, mile by mile, it is time for us to get our equipment and supplies together.

“Get your shit together, country boy!”  OK! OK! Geez!

My backpack has been emptied out onto our dining room table to inspect each piece as I check off my list.  Tent…check!  Sleeping bag and pad…check!  Deet…check!  Shamwow…check!  Jetboil stove…check!

Wait a minute!  Shamwow?  Why the hell are you taking that thing along with you?

Ladies and gentlemen, lend me your ears!  The original group sat with a skilled hiker the other week, before doing the Laurel Ridge Trail again, and went over our plans for completing the hike.  One of the suggestions made was to take along a Shamwow…for bathing!  WOW, I almost died laughing at the hilariousness of the idea and the sheer thought that I had not realized it before.  The Shamwow can absorb a tremendous amount of water.  That being said, one can stand beside the creek/stream and bath.  The use of biodegradable soap (non-toxic to the environment) and the fresh flowing water allows you to be refreshed for the next day of hiking.  I can see myself now, looking like a modern day Adam, washing my nether regions next to a stream.  Ok…I’m loving that image just a little too much!

So now I am sitting here with my laptop, downloading the topographic disk for my Garmin GPSmap 60CSx unit.  I guess you can say that I went a little out of the way for this first trip.  My logic is that this is not going to be my last trip and it will get used more and more as the years go by.  The other half and I are also using it for geocaching.  If you have never heard of it, you should go over to Geocaching.com.  I’ll do another post about this wonderful sport/hobby later.  I wanted to make sure that if it were to happen…getting lost that is, I would have every bit of help to get found.  The last thing I want to do is get into the mountains of North GA and get lost and end up in some scene from Deliverance.  I would want to be Burt Reynolds if at all possible.  The trail from what I hear is clearly marked.  It may be a tad grown up with weeds and vines, but that’s expected in the humid, wet environment we call the South.

Getting back to the dream, I can’t stop thinking about completing the entire length of the Appalachian Trail.  Yes, I know that it takes roughly 6 months to go from Springer Mountain to Katahdin, Maine.  Think about the tranquil nights and the people you can meet along the trail that are genuine people, wanting to get out and get back into nature.  Think of the everlasting friendships that can be made with people who are trying to achieve the same goal as yourself.  The thought of it drives me insane with anticipation.  That’s what this country boy needs…some everlasting friendships with people who are interested in the same things.  Hiking, camping, going out on the lake….just to name a few.

Recently, I have been listening to podcasts about hiking the Appalachian Trail.  Each one provides me with another small dose of nervousness and happiness.  Happiness in that I will be able to prove to myself that I can do this and nervousness in that I am actually going to do it.  Does that sound weird?  It probably does sound as though I am being dramatic about the trip.  Oh well.  This is my trip after lots of planning and second guessing myself and I expect it to make a big difference in my life.

The days will go by.  The hours will slowly fade.  The minutes and seconds will tick away.  Two weeks will feel as though it were just a matter of sunrises and sunsets and then my feet will plant firmly on Springer Mountain and my dream will become a reality.  At least the first 30 miles of that dream! LOL!

Camping has become something in which I have fallen in love. The feeling of being out in the middle of nowhere in a make-shift hut. Or, in most of my camping experience, in a tent site located in a clothing optional campground with showers and a pool close by the site.

I am committed to going on a hike in North Georgia in 2010. I haven’t decided whether this will be on the Appalachian Trail or the Benton MacKaye (said like “sky”) Trail. The BMT is a bit more primitive than the AT. Both will take lots of energy. I will not be hiking the entire length of the AT since it goes from Springer Mountain in north Georgia to the New England states. While the AT travels to the northeast into North Carolina, the BMT travels to the northwest into Tennessee. Either state would be great to see.

A while back, I purchased a tent from Wal-Mart. It was a two person tent and the measurements on the package said it was 6′ x 6′. They must have measured this thing like a television. I am 5′7″ and I had to sleep in it diagonally. Talk about uncomfortable! I took it to the campground, set it up, sprayed it with protectant, and placed my belongings inside so that I could go lay in the sun for a while and let the treatment dry. That night, I thought I was going to burn up. It had started getting warmer and the sleeping back I bought was for colder temps. I had my Coleman fan attached to the roof of the tent. It was helping as much as a little plastic fan could in the heat. And, I wasn’t about to wear anything while sleeping. It had to be nude sleeping in that bag.

I learned a lesson in camping that night. You should always make sure you close the air valve on the air mattress under your sleeping bag. Practically sleeping on the ground is not comfortable in the least bit! Make sure that you buy a tent that is big enough for you. Before leaving the store, if the package doesn’t tell you exactly how it was measured, get help from a store associate. And that probably shouldn’t be at Wal-Mart. I only know one or two people in a sporting goods department that knows what the hell they are talking about, one being my sister.

I am currently looking at a few tents to purchase from REI. If you have never been to an REI location, you should take the time to pay them a visit. If there is not one anywhere near you, go to their website, REI.com. If you like outdoor activity, you will thank me later! The first tent I am thinking about purchasing is the REI Camp Dome 2 Tent.

REI Camp Dome 2 Tent

For $99.50, you can’t beat the room it offers. 84 x 54 inches (213 x 137 centimeters). That’s 31.5 square feet of space. That should be plenty of room for the lone camper and his/her gear. With the dome shape of the tent, it will be a a quick set-up and quick take down the following morning. The only issue that I could think of would be finding the greatest spot for camping on a tight trail. There are regulations concerning where people can camp along the trails. Some of the trails pass across privately owned land with owners rightfully not wanting people to camp within their land boundaries. Before taking off on a hike, you might want to grab a book, detailing the various sections of the chosen trail.  They will advise whether there are parts belonging to private land owners.

The weight of a tent comes into play when finding the perfect tent to take on a hike. You don’t want to carry around a heavy tent while hiking up hills or going down into gullies. You also don’t want to be weighted down if you are expected to leap over a stream. Falling into the stream or creek when it’s cold is not going to make you a happy hiker/camper. This tent has an average minimum weight of 4 lbs. 15 oz., just at 5 lbs. The average packed weight is 5 lbs. 6 oz. For my non-US citizen readers, this would be an average weight of 2.44 kilograms. The height is 42 inches at its peak height (107 centimeters). Not bad for a two person tent, it you want to take along that much extra room.

My second choice is a little more expensive, but not enough to really care about a price difference. It is the Kelty Crestone 1 Tent, costing $119.95 also at REI. This tent only sleeps one person. That makes for less material and less added weight in/on your backpack. It’s peak height is 37 inches  (94

Kelty Crestone 1 Tent

cm) with one door, two poles, and a floor area of 19 square feet. The vestibule area is seven square feet. I think that’s enough room for myself and my gear. The average packed weight is 4 lbs. (1.81 kg) and the minimum weight of 3 lbs. (1.4 kg). This is much better on the back when hiking in the mountains. You can place the rods in the backpack closet to your back and fold the tent up, sticking it down into the pack for easy access when you stop for the evening. The Crestone 1 is also beneficial in the fact that it doesn’t take up so much space. It would be easier to find a place to camp in a wooded area.

I know what you might be thinking. “Why don’t you get the bigger tent so that you can take a friend along, sharing the burden of carrying the load?” That’s a good question, and one that I have definitely thought about. Say that I took Travis along on a hike. We are out 12 miles into the trail and it’s time to set up camp. We get the two person tent together. He’s tired as well as me. After five minutes of lying there, the bear sleeping next to me starts snoring. I would rather not have to hear him that close to me all night when I know I have to wake up at a decent hour the next morning to get all the site placed back into my pack. It’s much more comfortable to have your own tent and not have to worry about the other person’s sleep patterns or restlessness. And, don’t forget the second person’s pack. Would there really be enough room for two people and each other’s belongings? I wouldn’t think there would be.

Tent selection is a big decision. You don’t want to get something that’s cheap and not dependable. You want to stay away from the overly bulky, heavy tents you have to lug around for days. You definitely want to find one that doesn’t cause you problems when you are trying to set up or take down a campsite. The tent may look cool with all of its gadgets, but how complicated are they going to make the erection of the tent? See, lots of things can make a difference.

Check out the REI site and also check out Campmor.com. Even though you wouldn’t think it, look at Amazon.com for tents and other equipment.