So the Adventure Begins….

The adventure started 24 March at 4:00 am. My two daughters and I arrived at Amilacola Falls 10 hours later. We were all pretty tired and decided that we would register at the Visitors Center the next day.  We had a decent dinner and retired to bed for an early morning start.

We started the descent to Amicalola Falls at 8:30…..how can such a beautiful place prove to be so painful?? The walk down the Falls seemed to take forever and with each step I was reminded that I had not done nearly enough to prepare for this adventure.

The beauty of the Falls helped temper the muscle pain and the weight of my backpack.  Each person we passed on the stairs we asked “how much further?”  One person pointed out a little speck in red below us. Wow!!! That was all I could say as I plodded on my way.  We finally reached the bottom of the stairs took a breath and continued on to the Visitors Center which was another 1/2 mile away.  Once inside I met with a young lady representing the Appalachian Conservancy and was assigned a thruhiker number 1107.  My backpack weighed 27 pounds.

Instead of taking the stairs we decided to take another route which seemed to be just as arduous. We passed many other hikers. At some point there were hikers sitting and trying to catch their breath.   The question???? Why am I here arose in my mind.  I continued to walk. Our first day we made the Approach Trail. The next day we started and finished our trek to Springer Mountain where I signed the book.  So the adventure begins.   

An Official Thru Hiker

We eventually made it to the parking lot where I met my first “trail angel” Tim. My daughters and I embraced and bid farewell. The asked me again if I was sure I wanted to stay. My reply once again…”of course”.  I am now on the trail and it has been beautifully painful.  I’ll write more as technology permits as there is so much more to share.