Posted: 4/4/2010 6:56:24 AM EDT
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I took my 14 y.o. daughter on a spring backpacking trip on the AT in GA. It was her first backpacking trip so I kept her pack weight low, maybe 15-20 lbs. She used my Gregory Reality pack. I also kept the mileage down - about 7 miles in and out to one of the many shelters on the AT. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky, if not slightly warm. Above 3000' in the mountains spring is slow to come so the views are great this time of year.
Starting out at the trailhead. Someone left some nice "trail magic" which is an AT tradition - extra food, fuel, etc.. that we took advantage of. I probably didn't need it because my pack was weighing in at 45 lbs already. 
So far so good. 
The AT is enchanting. The 2"x6" white blaze marks the way. 
The AT in GA is either going up or going down like a roller coaster. You don't underestimate it. 3000 people start the AT each year and attempt to hike to Maine, most of them are finished by the time they get to Fontana Dam in NC. The 75 miles or so in GA will kick your ass. 
A welcome site after a long day humping some tough miles - an AT shelter with guaranteed water and fellowship with other hikers 
The evening meal which usually isn't anything to write home about consists of pasta, "mac and cheese", jerkey, gorp, ramen, stuff like that. I have a Jet Boil stove that works pretty good. 
Kids are always drawn to the fire. There was a fellow with his two boys - 8 and 10 - staying with us. I was pretty impressed - they were out for 4 days. I should have got my kid out hiking sooner. 
Ah yes the privy. Control of human waste is important in the backcountry. Most privies are elevated and decompose waste using "aerobic conditions". After you leave a "deposit" you are supposed to pour a cup of wood chips in the privy and shut the lid to add decomposition. 
The water source - a welcome sight to all hikers. This one is running pretty good, but it is April. Hiking the AT in October you will find many water sources are dried up due to the long summer. All water should be treated. 
Its getting dark so its time to pull our food up using the cable and pulley system so bears wont be attracted to it. Mice have gotten smart though and have been known to crawl out on the cable and down to your food bag. This one has a baffle to prevent that from happening. 
Reading your favorite book before lights out is always a good way to end the day 
Heading back out on the AT. 
Water break. I can only hike for about 45 minutes before I need to "drop it" and have a Clif or Powerbar. I typically hike about 2 miles per hour which is not that impressive but these mountains will kick you butt. You cant do long mileage at the beginning. You need to get your trail legs which can take several weeks. By the time you get to Damascus you should be able to do 15-20 miles per day. But starting out in GA, 8-10 is the max most can do. 
The AT is an incredibly awesome experience. Its very rewarding but very difficult. People hike the AT for a number of reasons - to accomplish a goal; for solitude; to overcome a difficult obstacle; a transition has occurred in their life (graduation, divorce, retired, job loss). I think what I like the most is the sense of total freedom. The AT will change your life. If I want to be with people I go to a shelter. If I want solitude, I can easily find that. I also like the people I meet. I stop and talk to everyone for a couple of minutes to find out what motivates them. |
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Is that Dicks Creek Gap trailhead? If so, my GF and I were there twice a month ago during the first week of March. As far as helping yourselves to the food and supplies left for thru-hikers, It is not appropriate. Those supplies are for people who are making the entire run and have to rely on mail-drops, hitchhiking into town, etc., and can perhaps stay an extra day on their long slog before having to detour for food. They're not for people who drive in fresh from grocery-land and park their cars at the trailhead.
That said, I'm glad you and your daughter had a good time. The trail is truly wonderful. |
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Is that Dicks Creek Gap trailhead? If so, my GF and I were there twice a month ago during the first week of March. As far as helping yourselves to the food and supplies left for thru-hikers, It is not appropriate. Those supplies are for people who are making the entire run and have to rely on mail-drops, hitchhiking into town, etc., and can perhaps stay an extra day on their long slog before having to detour for food. They're not for people who drive in fresh from grocery-land and park their cars at the trailhead. That said, I'm glad you and your daughter had a good time. The trail is truly wonderful. I agree on taking supplies left for thru hikers, but we left some "magic" as well on the trail. |
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Is that Dicks Creek Gap trailhead? If so, my GF and I were there twice a month ago during the first week of March. As far as helping yourselves to the food and supplies left for thru-hikers, It is not appropriate. Those supplies are for people who are making the entire run and have to rely on mail-drops, hitchhiking into town, etc., and can perhaps stay an extra day on their long slog before having to detour for food. They're not for people who drive in fresh from grocery-land and park their cars at the trailhead. That said, I'm glad you and your daughter had a good time. The trail is truly wonderful. I agree on taking supplies left for thru hikers, but we left some "magic" as well on the trail. Ahhh, makes sense. We parked at that trailhead on two different days and split between north and south. We ran into quite a bit of snow, maybe a 50/50 mix. I just wish I lived closer to the trail since it's essentially out of driving range from here. |
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What do you "carry" while you hike? I have an safe full of guns, but I don't carry a gun while hiking. I had a .38 in the car, but put it in the trunk before we left. I know I will get flamed for that, but I honestly have never felt the need to. Sometimes when i go solo I carry a pistol. I just dont like the idea of having to lug a 2.lb hunk of steel up and down those hills. |
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That looks like fun. It's been a while since I went hiking. Getting to be nice weather out though so I'll be doing it again soon! A great hobby. Good for you and very rewarding. I always feel like I accomplished something when I get off the trail. You also gain alot of skills. You have to be organized, plan, self reliant. You are accountable to yourself. After eating pasta and water for several days, you appreciate the finer things in life. I get an incredible "food mood" when I am out on the trail - I start thinking about pizza, ice cream, burgers, steaks, etc... |
| Early spring is a good time to go. Rats and mice have not figured out where to hang out yet. Once you cross the Fontana Dam headed north, you are in the GSMNP, with some added rules and enforced. So, check with the rangers ahead. Volunteers keep the trail up throughout the year. They do a good work. Unless you are trying to beat it to a back country campsite before dark (rule #1 in the back country) , take your time, and enjoy the spectacular scenery along the way. |
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What do you "carry" while you hike? I have an safe full of guns, but I don't carry a gun while hiking. I had a .38 in the car, but put it in the trunk before we left. I know I will get flamed for that, but I honestly have never felt the need to. Sometimes when i go solo I carry a pistol. I just dont like the idea of having to lug a 2.lb hunk of steel up and down those hills. I do it all the time and never notice it. A G-19 ain't that heavy. In fact, I carried it on the AT yesterday and the day before. Better to have it an not need it than need it and not have it. I am not that far from where two thru-hikers were murdered almost 30 years ago. Be prepared. Without a gun, you are one broken ankle away from no longer being on top of the food chain. |
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What do you "carry" while you hike? I have an safe full of guns, but I don't carry a gun while hiking. I had a .38 in the car, but put it in the trunk before we left. I know I will get flamed for that, but I honestly have never felt the need to. Sometimes when i go solo I carry a pistol. I just dont like the idea of having to lug a 2.lb hunk of steel up and down those hills. I do it all the time and never notice it. A G-19 ain't that heavy. In fact, I carried it on the AT yesterday and the day before. Better to have it an not need it than need it and not have it. I am not that far from where two thru-hikers were murdered almost 30 years ago. Be prepared. Without a gun, you are one broken ankle away fom no longer being on top of the food chain. I remember those 2 girls (i think both were females) got murdered near skyline drive. So it has happened a few times. If I wasnt carrying most of the gear I would have taken a gun. |
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You may want to rethink carrying while hiking in the mountains by yourself. You are vulnerable more so than usual if there happens to be some psycho or criminal in the area intending to do harm. There has been some really bad stuff happen on the AT in this part of TN. It was a long time ago, but it still happened.
If not for yourself, carry to protect your daughter. Beautiful pics, wonderful time to be in the mtns. Thanks for the thread! |
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What do you "carry" while you hike? I have an safe full of guns, but I don't carry a gun while hiking. I had a .38 in the car, but put it in the trunk before we left. I know I will get flamed for that, but I honestly have never felt the need to. Sometimes when i go solo I carry a pistol. I just dont like the idea of having to lug a 2.lb hunk of steel up and down those hills. I do it all the time and never notice it. A G-19 ain't that heavy. In fact, I carried it on the AT yesterday and the day before. Better to have it an not need it than need it and not have it. I am not that far from where two thru-hikers were murdered almost 30 years ago. Be prepared. Without a gun, you are one broken ankle away fom no longer being on top of the food chain. I remember those 2 girls (i think both were females) got murdered near skyline drive. So it has happened a few times. If I wasnt carrying most of the gear I would have taken a gun. Actually, the Dismal shelter in Giles County near Pearisburg. The girls weren't thru-hikers IIRC. |
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You know trail magic is intended for thruhikers not overnighters right? I didnt realize that at first. I have run across candy, a beer, various things that I thought were intended for the next person that happened upon it. But it makes sense its for thru hikers. Well I did my part and left some magic as well |
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You know trail magic is intended for thruhikers not overnighters right? ETA someone already pointed the above out. Springer to NOC was my favorite section of trail. yes back in '93 i did Dicks Creek Gap to Wesser, NC (NOC). A 75 mile section. I like the scramble over Albert Mtn the AT rocks |
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Nine homicides have been documented on the trail since the first reported homicide in Georgia in 1974.[citation needed] In 1981, the issue of violence on the Appalachian Trail received national attention when Robert Mountford Jr. and Laura Susan Ramsay, both social workers in Ellsworth, Maine, were murdered by Randall Lee Smith.[27] Another homicide occurred in May 1996, when two women were abducted, bound and murdered near the trail in Shenandoah National Park. The primary suspect was later discovered harassing a female bicycler in the vicinity[28] but charges against him were dropped, and the case remains unsolved.[29]
On May 6, 2008, Randall Lee Smith, the killer of Mountford and Ramsay in 1981, shot two fishermen from Virginia near the trail in Giles County, Virginia, not far from the site of his 1981 murder; he then stole their pickup truck but crashed it and was imprisoned. The fishermen survived, but Smith died in jail four days later,[30] most likely from an acute pulmonary thromboembolism incurred when he crashed the pickup truck.[31] I was reading on some hiking site with some thru hikers and the general consensus was that there's a whole lot of crazy on the trail and that the majority of them wouldn't hike it without carrying. It wasn't WhiteBlaze...95% of them think it's absurd to even think about a gun while hiking, if i'm thinking of the correct site. |