March 18, 2020 6:25 pm 15.8 mi
AT 8.1 Hawk Mtn Shelter → AT 23.9 Lance Creek
Weather: AM warm and sunny, PM mist, rainy, cool
Trail Conditions: Sticky icky mud AM, slippy slidy mud PM
My Condition: Felt great and kept pushing – maybe too much. Sore – hiker hobble. Took 4x ibuprofin – first meds of the hike
Another early morning – on the trail by 8:20. Easy to crank out miles when you start early. First poo in the woods (of the trail – done it many times before this hike) today. First real view today of the layers of north Georgia hills. Warm and sunny morning – was down to just my baselayer right after leaving camp. Felt the wind pick up and the rain coming at Gooch Gap. Lousy camp tonight – tent pitched on the muddy pathway right up the hill from a stream. Going to be a damp night. Still, was elated to get into camp, get out of my wet clothes, and get off my feet. Felt good so kept pushing, but rolled in to camp with feet barking, sore left knee, knotted shoulders. Was soaked to the bone! Warmed up quick once dry. Tomorrow is the first big challenge – Blood Mountain, resupplying, and putting on wet shorts!
Post Hike Analysis
Glad I was aware early on that I might’ve been pushing too hard. It’s important to listen to your body, especially early on when you’re not quite as acquainted with how it’ll react to the trail. I wore my earplugs for the first time of the trail this evening – loud group up quite late right down the hill from me on the peninsula. One of them was hacking up a storm, and it’s the only time I recall being anywhere close to potentially sick hikers. Pretty sure I lost one of my gloves during the final stretch of hiking today. It’s always a major bummer when you lose something on trail, especially since you have so little to begin with. Whether it’s a waterproof glove that you seam sealed yourself or a ball that you use to roll out your feet, every loss is painful!
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