Shaken Down Completely – Shake Down Hike (Part 4)
Heading Back to Oconee
December 30th: Drowsy but excited is good way to wake up. Drowsy with nothing to look forward to is not as fun. Much less pain all around this morning, thankfully. Stretched, packed and got out quicker today again. I am getting a pattern to my mornings that feels solid. Bill tells me it will get to the point that it is all just automatic. I am not there yet. The thinker is still fully engaged to get morning underway.
Natural Woman
This morning, I got a glimpse of myself. And it was HILLARIOUS. Bill had been taking all the photos and videos because my phone died. At some point during week one of the AT, I will add charging electronics into my evening routine. Unfortunately, I have been knocked out by the time we got to camp every night this trip. As my miles add up, I expect my energy will too.
But back to the way I looked. On the trail a beauty routine is somewhat limited. I have lived on a boat for the past eight months, so I am used to my natural beauty. But this was BEYOND natural, more like a creature from the children’s classic, “Where the Wild Things Are!” Shockingly, I didn’t cringe. I just laughed-hard-and that got Bill laughing. We laughed in and uproar and had a photo shoot for about five minutes before we took off for our hike. As a matter of a fact, many of our days start off with a good laugh when we’re hiking.
Gazing at the Glory
Most of our hike had been overcast and gray, but today was bright and beautiful. I was down to my t-shirt before I ate my Cliff Bar for breakfast on mile two. Rehiking the wide trail was much the same, a relaxing walk. But when we got back to the river, it was transformed. The water no longer looked like chocolate milk. It was white and sparkling as it gushed over the rocks. Water gives me energy. I soaked it all in, gazing at the glory. When we finally climbed down the rocks, I felt ready to tackle a good long day.
Unfortunately, my knees started hurting again. So we decided to take a good long break for lunch and redoctoring my knees. Now I realized I was going to need to go to physical therapy once we got home. I had three knee surgeries, and it was time to put in the work to strengthen them.
After lunch, we hike through the same ups and downs we had passed before we hung our extra food and gear at East Fork Camp Site. The trail looked so much different with the sun shining through the leaves. Foliage was vividly green and the water sparkled any time we were near it. Pain is relieved by endorphins, so I know I was getting a pain relief boost from all the beauty.
The Giant Bench: Lake Jacossee
My favorite view on this hike was at the “Giant Bench” at Lake Jacossee. The “Giant Bench” made its first appearance on our way to Bad Creek. And I thought, “Wow! Why would they put a bench up that high?” I still don’t have the answer, but I do know why they put the bench there. It was the perfect place to view the lake and the surrounding mountains and valleys.
Bill was behind me and when he caught up, I was perched way up on the bench. He chuckled and asked me what I was doing up there. I just pointed to the view. His response was to come join me. This was a view to savor and soak in: the sweetness of hiking. It’s similar to when the baby falls asleep in your arms after a long day. You just feel the stress melt away completely and breathe deeply of life. I am breathing it in again now. That’s another gift hiking gives you. Reliving the “moments” blesses you with similar blisses.After jumping down from the “Giant Bench,” the hike continued its climbs and descents for another four or so miles. Our arrival to the bear hang left us with about three hours of sunlight, so we ate dinner and then headed down the trail to get one mile closer to the end of the hike. Dinner for the past two nights was summer sausage and Duke’s Mayonnaise on tortillas. If you have never eaten this combo, you just aren’t living right. Try it next time you are on the trail.
Body Shaken
Camp was the Fish Hatchery tonight. Our mile total for the day was 11.0. I was proud, but determined to make tomorrow another 15 miler. Exhausted, I got into the tent, got into my jammies, and doctored my knees. Finally, I put my backpack under the foot of my sleeping pad and bag to elevate my legs and drain the fluid again. Massaging my feet and legs was helping, so I gave them a firm massage to assist.
The physical therapist gave me a cream that reduces pain and swelling to apply as I massage them on the AT. He told me to keep up all my PT exercises on the trial, and I will continue to see my knee pain subside as I hike. Don’t underestimate the value of doing PT BEFORE you go on a long hike for injury prevention. “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” I bet Benjamin Franklin was a hiker.
This was my best night of sleep on the trail.
A New Tradition
New Year’s Eve was cold and clear. So clear that I could see the millions of stars sparkling above us. We could not have been happier. Three dry, cool days to end our hike! Even though we had to hike and camp in a deluge earlier, we were glad we stuck it out. So glad, in fact, that we decided to get out before the sun rose with our headlamps on. My goal was another 6/5/4 day. Coming out of the gate early made it more likely for me to make it six miles to Burrell’s Ford successfully. The main difficulty with starting before the sun comes up is the cold. I chose to wear extra layers, and that is a mistake I will not repeat. Those extra layers cause extra stops. One extra layer and one extra stop would have worked better. Hike and learn.
Keeping My Footing
Hiking was easier on the second trip. There was less mud, therefore fewer slips. Keeping your feet under you really does make hiking more enjoyable. Stepping tenuously doesn’t allow for looking around and noticing the beauty. But this time I noticed so much more. The walk along the trail over the river was just breathtaking. We took pictures like tourists. I couldn’t help myself. Bill is the photographer, and so I asked for another picture every five minutes. Every turn brought a new view that I wanted to capture forever. And as the sun rose higher the colors would change.
We don’t know where we will be in the world each year, but we decided we want to end our year on the Foothills Trail. Thanks to Ramdino’s End of Days Hike, we can do it with the support of Fresh Ground’s Leapfrog Cafe.
Burrell’s Ford arrival time was 10:30am, but we were cold and a hot lunch as on the menu. Pad Thai was absolutely delicious. And that’s saying something for a hiker meal. We filtered and refilled our water in the river. Then ended our stop with a visit to the fancy privy. Completely ready for another ten miles.
Wade in the Water
Five more miles, and then web took another nice rest and refuel, deciding that Lick Log Campsite was where we would end the night. The grand finale would be ten miles or less. This part of the hike took us down to the river where this storm had done further damage. More trees down. And the trail was just a thin line, sometimes going through the river. Thankfully, this part of the river was moving, but not raging.
A surprise was in store as we turned a corner: fly fishermen in the river. Bill struck up a conversation: he is an avid fly fisherman. I hiked on slowly and carefully. He quickly caught up after his chat. The weather had warmed up, and we managed to keep our feet out of the river by climbing up the bank a bit. I love the water, so being near it is my favorite place on trail. We also decided that we want to do some fly fishing on the AT. Any suggestions would be appreciated in the comments.
Last Night
Our arrival at Lick Lake Campsite came late in the afternoon, and I had met my miles goal for the day! I was exhausted, and I climbed into the tent to rest immediately. Bill puttered around the campsite, setting everything up and prepping to make a fire when a new face popped in.
A young man had arrived. They chatted, and we found out he was in the Air Force and had come out to work on orienteering for a few days. He and Bill built a roaring fire, and I faded in an out of a nap enjoying the snippets of conversation when I woke up. We were itching to get rid of the extra food we weren’t going to need since we were almost finished hiking, so we gave him some summer sausages and cheese. He was so thankful. I was so tired that I didn’t even eat dinner that night.
It was time to enjoy the fire for a bit, so I popped out and thanked the young man for his service to our country. Bill and I discussed the plan for the next day, including our goal to make this the earliest departure yet. Then I crawled back into my sleeping bag for my last sleep on the Foothills Trail this year.
First Hike of 2025
Happy New Year! The alarm welcomed us to 2025 at 5:00 am and the stars twinkled their morning greeting. I packed and dressed like a lightning bug, and off we went with our headlamps on high because it was pitch dark. We beat the dawn.
Hiking in the dark does come with some drawbacks. I didn’t see the sign leaving the campsite and took us the wrong direction to start, but it was only about 100 yards, so not a huge deal. But definitely something for me to keep in mind going forward. Starting at dark makes for a day of good miles, so I will have to map things out carefully the night before, noting where I could make errors.
Shadows Dancing with Sunlight
When you know you only have a short day AND at the end there is a shower, then you hike like the wind. I also didn’t start over dressed today. All of this led to us having the fastest hiking miles of all time. Hiking was not only fast, but also colorful. The hills were alive, and across them the shadows were dancing with the sunlight. I hadn’t hiked early enough to see this progression before, and I was in awe.
We crossed the road, and Bill got signal and sent our Happy New Year texts to our families. Determined to get to the shower as fast as possible. Bill caught up and we made it to the showers before noon. We were exhausted. I brought extra clean clothes and gathered up my shower materials in my not hiking backpack for just this moment. A shower has never felt so good. The lack of a towel didn’t even bother me. I used some of the extra clothes I brought to dry off. We hopped in the car and headed home with full hearts and sore bodies.
A shakedown hike is supposed to test you and your gear. I was completely shaken down and so was my gear. At the start of the trail my pack weighed 38 pounds: WAY TOO HEAVY. After hiking the trail, my pack weighed 30 pounds: STILL WAY TOO HEAVY. The current goal is to get my pack down to 25 pounds with food and water. It is going to be a challenge. But every challenge is an adventure. So bring it on!
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Comments 1
I love that you keep going. You are willing to go back and give yourself another chance. Your posts demonstrate that life is about the journey and not just the destination.