March 16, 2020 6:33 pm 7.3 mi
Approach Trail 0.0 → Approach Trail 7.3 Black Gap Shelter
Weather: AM mist, PM steady light rain
Trail Conditions: Lots of steps, muddy last couple miles, slippy path down to water source
My Condition: Feeling great physically – could definitely have kept going. Mentally/emotionally – ON TOP OF THE WORLD!! It’s here!!
BEAUTIFUL Amicalola Falls! Sad goodbye with mom and dad. Hiked 1/3 of the day with day hiker from north Georgia. He spends 3 days a week doing things like this. Some days he’ll hike the stairs, up and down, as many as 7x. Other days he’ll hike to Springer Mtn and back. Today, he hurried onward to get his car to rescue an AT hiker who was bailing out with a bad hip. Alone rest of day, but passed a few people. Lots of tents here – at least a dozen. Not sure how many in shelter – it was pretty empty earlier.
Post Trail Analysis:
I’m a firm believer in never telling anyone how to hike their hike now, but I highly recommend that people do the Approach Trail. Amicalola Falls is BREATHTAKING and remains one of the most incredible sights I’ve ever set eyes on. It felt like I was on the outskirts of Rivendell, right in the middle of Middle Earth. In the grand scheme of things, the extra miles aren’t at all a big deal. The stairs really weren’t bad in hindsight, although at-the-time-hiking-me might say different between huffs and puffs of air. The beauty of the trail is you don’t need to do it fast, unless that’s your goal. If you’re gasping for air, you can stop and catch your breath. If your legs are burning on a climb, you can take a break. You set the pace! I remember passing the hiker who was bailing – he wasn’t far past the stairs, and I stumbled and fell trying to give the guy a hand up to his feet. From what I recall, he had two weeks worth of food in his pack, which was monstrously heavy. I remember crossing paths with Oracle/Brent for the first time right around camp. It’s funny looking back – these first few nights are easily, far and away, my most crowded ones on trail. I still remember the snoring all around me, on top of the pools of water I remember soaking into my tent this particular night. All these miles, experiences, and stories, and I can still remember small details like this!
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