It started raining hard about 5:00AM in the morning, we on the very top of Tray Mountain and the wind was howling. It rained for about an hour straight, then slowed to a drizzle and stopped. We were dry in our tents but packing up was difficult because everything was wet and muddy. Anything you set on the ground immediately became muddy. Our tents were wet and difficult to take down without getting them even more muddy than they already were.

We had a slow start, the trail was tough, although we were only doing about seven and a half miles, we had 4000 feet of elevation change during that seven and a half miles. The mountains were socked in with heavy fog that completely obliterated the views. The trail was steep, slick, and muddy. We didn’t talk, it required a lot of concentration not to slip and fall. We took it slow and were fortunate to only have a couple close calls, but neither I or Deets fell a single time that day. We saw some others who weren’t so lucky.

My legs were weary from the long hike the previous day. My feet were rock bruised, swollen, and sore. I was glad to see the shelter at Deep Gap looming ahead in the fog. We looked forward to taking off our packs and sitting down.

We headed out of Hogpen Gap toward Blue Mountain Shelter. It was tobe our highest milage day since we started. We crossed paths with several other hikers that had camped in different places along the trail. Some of them were calling Adam ”Deets” because he is notorious for looking at every single detail about every single thing. He can’t just go with it and let the chips fall where they may, he has to know the details. The trail name fits him perfect.

The Hiking was good, the weather was cool and overcast, the views mostly obscured by clouds, but we made good headway, and arrived to Blue Mountain Shelter about an hour earlier than we expected. It was a long hike, we set up our tents and cooked dinner. Deets stayed around the shelter talking to various hikers, I didn’t linger long, I was asleep before the sun went down. We had a couple shorter hikes the next couple days, then a hitch to Hiawassee for a hot shower, a meal made out of real food, and a real bed to sleep on. We were eager to get started that morning.

We hitched a ride back to Mountain Crossings at Neel Gap from an older gentleman, who told us he spent his days riding around looking for hikers that needed rides. It’s amazing how nice the people living along the trail are. It’s refreshing on the trail, when you pass other hikers, everyone smiles and speaks. Some pause and talk for a few minutes, others hiking faster still always take time to say hello. It restores one’s faith in humanity.

The hike was a little shorter today. My pack was heavy from the food resupply. I’m still hiking with Adam. For now our pace is about the same and we’re traveling about the same distance each day. It’s funny that you slowly get to know all the other thru hikers that started either the same day, or a few days before, or a few days after you started. We drift in and out of each others lives. You may see them at a shelter a couple nights in a row, then not see them for a few days, then stop at a water source and there they are. It’s pretty interesting really. Everyone is always glad to see each other, to know we’re all still on trail. Already we’ve lost some.

Adam and I arrived to Hogpen Gap pretty early. This was just a stealth campsite with a nearby water source. We didn’t like camping so close to a public road, but we needed to camp here so we could make it completely through a state forest that required bear proof food canisters for camping the following day. None of us were willing to carry a bear canister that weighs 3 pounds empty.

We set up camp and filtered our water. We were standing around looking for a good tree to hang our bear bag when this guy came running up the trail with a couple shirts tied around his waist and some baggy tie-dye shorts on. He was holding an empty water bottle, he ran up to me and asked, “Do you guys have any extra bottles of water?” I replied,“Dude we’re thru hikers, we don’t have any extra anything, I can walk down to the creek with you and filter you some water.” He asked, “how far to the next water source?” I said, “four point six miles.” He said, Four point six? I can make that.” Then he took off running up the trail. He had no backpack, headlight, and very little clothing. It was starting to get late, the sun was beginning to go down, and it was getting cold. ”That guy will never make it to Low Gap Shelter in the dark with no flashlight,” I told Adam.

Just then some of our hiking buddies, Dragon Ball and his brother Alex camp hiking up the trail. ”You guys camping here tonight?” Dragon Ball asked. I told him we were and he said they were going to stop here too. ”Hey did you guys see a dude in tie-dye banana shorts come by here?” Dragon Ball asked. I told him that he just passed by asking for water, and that he left without any headed up the trail to Low Gap shelter. Dragon Ball said, “those are my shorts bro.” I said, “the dude stole your shorts?” He said no, that he had given them to him because the guy wasn’t wearing any clothes except some tennis shoes and two tee shirts wrapped around his waist to cover his privates. Dragon Ball said he was pretty sure the guy was on meth or some other drug. We started wondering out loud whether the guy was going to show back up during the night, chances were good he wouldn’t make it to Low Gap without water or a light.

We made camp with our tents close together so that if he showed back up, everybody would wake up if there were any problems. We go to bed early, there’s nothing to do but go to sleep once it’s dark, we don’t have a lot of batteries to waste on lights at night. About an hour later I heard footsteps walking down the trail not far outside my tent. I unzipped my tent quietly, I wanted to be able to get out of it quickly if I needed to. I heard the steps stop outside of my tent. I just waited and finally he continued walking down the trail toward the parking lot. I got out of my tent and I could see his dark outline headed down to the parking lot. I went back in my tent and got in my sleeping bag. About another hour later I heard footsteps coming back up the trail from the parking lot. I unzipped my tent and made sure my treking poles were close. They were the only weapon I had. He walked past my tent without slowing down, headed north up the trail. Sleep came slowly that night.

The next morning Dragon Ball and Alex headed out early. I went across the road to collect and filter the water I needed for breakfast and for the morning hike. As I was coming up the hill I saw the guy, he was getting into the back seat of a sheriff’s patrol car. When I made it back to camp, Adam said, ” Man that dude just came past here headed to the parking lot. I was scared he was going to kill me or something because you were off getting water and Dragon Ball and Alex had already left, I was here all by myself. I told Adam the sheriff had picked him up in the parking lot. Adam said he told the guy good morning as he walked by. He told me he said good morning to the guy, who responded politely in kind. He then said he had been night hiking and had almost fallen off of a cliff, and lost his pack and all of his gear. He said not to worry though, because he had help coming to pick him up at the parking lot.

It turns out another hiker we know was camped down by the water source. When the guy came down the first time he passed my tent in the dark, he talked to the other hiker down by the creek. The hiker could tell he was on drugs or having a mental issue, he was wet and shaking from the cold. The hiker gave him $40.00 for a shuttle but they were unable to get any shuttle drivers to answer the phone that late. The guy asked if he could borrow the hiker’s phone to call his Mom. After he talked to his Mom he headed back up the trail, which was the second time I heard him walk by our campsite. Apparently his Mom called a hotline and the sheriff was there to pick him up the next morning. He must have slept in the woods just past our camp, and come down again that morning. I thought about his Mother. I’m sure it wasn’t the first time she’s gotten such a call. He was polite and well spoken, he spent the night in the woods, cold, wet, no food or water to drink. I’m sure it pierced her soul to know her child was so lost. The trail provides though, hikers gave him what little they had, clothes to wear, money for transportation, but most importantly a phone call to his mother. I hope someday he finds his way.

Volunteer trail maintainers continuously hike the trail carrying saws and other equipment to keep the trail clear and maintained. We thanked them for their labors, to which one gentleman replied, it’s our honor to be the keepers of the trail.

Today we ascended Blood Mountain, the highest peak in Georgia on the trail. I was a little nervous, I knew the trail was getting tougher. This climb is a milestone on the trail. We headed for the top.

The trail was steep and rocky, but Wes,, Adam and I hiked carefully to the top. There were no views that day, the mountain socked in with clouds. We stopped for a moment to take a picture of the Blood Mountain rock shelter, then started down the descent to Neel Gap.

Neel Gap is famous on the trail, about 25% of thru hikers leave the trail at Neel Gap, deciding the trail was not what they imagined. I have no inclination to even consider stopping.

I bought a new sleeping pad at Mountain Crossings, then Adam and I hitched a ride to Blairsville Georgia. Two older gentlemen gave us a ride in the back of a Toyota pickup. We were squeezed between some bales of pine straw. I preferred to ride in the back, ashamed of how dirty and smelly we were. We got a motel,bathed, and washed our clothes. We walked half a mile to a grocery store and resupplied our food. We ate Mexican food for dinner, it was awesome to eat real food. I learned that going into town was a busy time rather than a restful one. I was struck by the kindness and acceptance the locals gave us. Everyone seemed eager to help us in any way. It was refreshing.

Sleep came quickly in a real bed. I savored the controlled environment of the room after sleeping in a tent the past few days. I was eager to get back on trail.

I woke up feeling more rested than I had since I started the trail. My sleeping pad was still uncomfortable, but I was adjusting to this lifestyle. I wasn’t cold. I packed up my tent and gear more quickly. The trail is a hard headmistress, she teaches you hard lessons, her punishments severe. In just a couple of days I have learned so much.

Organization has never been my strong point. But the trail taught me that out here I have to be. If you pack your pack the same way each day, you don’t have to search for things, it’s easier and quicker to pack and unpack if you develop a system. If you put up and take down your tent the same way each time, you aren’t likely to leave tent stakes behind, your pitch will be better and faster. You have to plan ahead when you filter water. If you don’t plan you are likely to carry too much, or worse, not enough, to get you to the next water source. The list goes on and on. I try not to make the same mistakes twice

We started down the steep descent to Gooch Gap. As we rounded the bend we were greeted by a big cooler full of soft drinks, beer, and cold cheeseburgers. It was a sight for sore eyes. It was 7:30 in the morning, but a cold beer and a cold cheese burger was just what the doctor ordered. Everyone was smiling, it’s a marvel that there are still people that find joy in doing good deeds for other people that they don’t know, and will likely never meet. As the saying goes, “the trail provides”.

Within an hour we were ascending RamRock Mountain. The clouds were lifting, still cloudy but we looked forward to the views. The trail was tough, we descended the mountain and staggered to the campground. There were only a few campsites, we tried to leave as much space for other hikers as we could but knew there would be those who were forced to keep going once the spaces were all taken.

We spent an uneventful night. The weather was warm and sleep came quickly.

I woke to slightly warmer temperatures. Again my sleep was fitful, my sleeping pad was uncomfortable, too narrow for my shoulders. I decided I would change it out at Mountain Crossings in a couple of days. For now I would have to make it work for a couple more days. I dressed in my damp clothes and wet shoes and packed up my tent and the rest of my gear. I went to the shelter and had breakfast with some of the other hikers. We commiserated about the past two days. I ate a good breakfast for the first time since I started, by good I mean I ate a peanut butter sandwich using strawberry pop tarts instead of bread. The weather was already warmer, it promised to warm up into the 60’s. My spirits lifted as I started down the trail with two other hikers toward Gooch Mountain Shelter. Already I could tell it was going to be a better day. Adam, Wes, and I, had roughly the same pace, so we hiked about 50 to a 100 yards apart. We took breaks together, filtered water together, and ate lunch together. The trail was steep and taxing, but our spirits soared.

The weather was warm, the clouds lifted, and we made good progress. We arrived to Gooch Mountain Shelter in mid afternoon. We met Jimmy and Emily at the shelter, other hikers we had met at Hawk Mountain slowly trickled into camp. We were excited by the better weather, we spent time at the shelter, talking and eating our rehydrated evening meals. Everyone hobbled around on sore legs. Our spirits soared.

Quinton’s parents were supposedly doing trail magic about a mile and a half past the shelter at Gooch Gap. Trail magic is when people called “Trail Angels” provide food, drinks, and other small comforts at their own expense, to hikers along the trail. It is relished and deeply appreciated by hikers. There’ nothing better than coming around a bend of the trail to see coolers and water bottles left by Trail Angels. We looked forward to our first Trail Magic.

The night was warm and I slept a little better that night. For the first time I wasn’t cold. I looked forward to the morning.

I slept little that first night. I couldn’t get warm. I slept with my clothes in my sleeping bag to try to dry them out. I slept with my water filter because I knew if it froze I would have no way to filter my water. I lay in the tent until daylight, there was a still a sprinkling of sleet and snow. The air temp was in the mid twenties, I knew I had to get moving if I was going to warm up.

I put on my damp cloths and wet shoes. I struggled to pack up my tent and the rest of my gear. My hands were cold and clumsy. I wasn’t hungry, I knew I needed to eat but I wanted to get moving. I filtered a couple liters of water from the creek near the shelter. Other hikers camped at the shelter slowly came out of their tents and began moving about. Nobody talked much, we were all suffering from the cold and wind. I headed up the trail. I thought I would eat after hiking for a while to warm up.

The day was cloudy and cold. Light sleet and snow fell intermittently. The hiking was tough, but the effort slowly warmed me up. I took my time hiking, my legs were stiff and sore. I looked forward to reaching Hawk Mountain Shelter. Again, I ate very little, I just wasn’t hungry. I knew I had to eat more. When I was about 2 miles from the shelter, the chest strap broke on my pack. My hands were too cold to try to fix it. I trudged on, constantly shrugging my pack straps to keep them in place. I needed to fix the chest strap.

It seemed like forever but I finally made it to Hawk Mountain. I set up my tent and filtered water for cooking. For the first time since I started, I ate a full meal. I got in my bag in my tent to warm up, The food helped warm me. I fixed my chest strap with a small carabiner. I still couldn’t believe I was on the trail. Tomorrow promised better weather, I looked forward to the sun. Again I slept little, adjusting to sleeping on the ground in a tent. I was more sore than I’ve ever been. The night passed slowly, I woke up frequently to the sounds of the woods.

Friday April 8th, Amicalola Falls Arch to Springer Mountain, 8.8 miles.

My brother Shelby and I flew to Atlanta Georgia on April 7th, I had a one-way ticket. He was bringing me to the trailhead to start my long walk. It felt surreal that it was really happening. We ate what Shelby called ”the last supper” at a nice steakhouse on our way to the park. We decided to spend the night at the Lodge at Amicalola Falls. It crossed my mind as I looked around my room, that it would likely be half of a year before I slept in such a nice place again.

I checked and rechecked my pack that night. I discarded a couple more little things, I worried that my pack might be too heavy, I decided to carry less water. According to the trail guide there was a lot of water on the trail. I thought I would be okay, it looked like there was never more than a couple miles between water sources. It proved to be a good decision, there’s a lot of cold running spring water on the Appalachian behind

I woke up with a start at 4:00AM Friday morning. I had butterflies in my stomach. I put on my hiking clothes and walked outside. The air was cool with light winds. It was colder than I expected. I thought it would be good hiking weather.

The Approach Trail that takes you to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail commences behind the Amacolola Falls Visitors Center under an arch. After I registered my hike at the Visitor Center, Shelby and I started up the approach trail. Shelby told me he was going to carry my pack for the first mile, then let me carry it the rest of the “two thousand whatever” miles. The first mile on that trail is challenging. It requires climbing 604 stairs to get to the top of Amicalola Falls. It is a tough hike up, and him carrying my pack probably saved me as conditions worsened as I climbed higher and higher to the summit of Springer Mountain where the Appalachian Trail begins.

After Shelby and I said our goodbyes I headed up the trail. The trail was steep, but I was excited as I hurried along toward the summit of Springer Mountain. I climbed higher and higher as the clouds started building and the winds grew stronger. It looked like rain. I was worried that I may get wet on the very first day. I didn’t want to get wet, I hoped I could make it to the shelter before the rain started.

By the time I reached the shelter it was much colder. Sleet and light snow fell lightly. Once I stopped hiking I was immediately cold. I was soaked in sweat from the hike, my legs were burning and sore. I struggled to put up my tent. Everything hurt. I didn’t take many pictures. I hurried to get out of my wet clothes and warm up in my sleeping bag. I didn’t eat very much. I didn’t drink enough water. I just wanted to warm up. I was miserable, but there was no place I would have rather have been. I was actually hiking the Appalachian Trail.

Welcome to my blog. Thank you for allowing me to share my experience on the Appalachian Trail with you. I hope you will find reading it a worthwhile endeavor. I will not be able to spend the time it takes to proof, edit, or revise my entries, therefore I do apologize in advance for any crudeness you will likely find in the quality of some of my writing.

Trail names

Trail names have been a part of Appalachian Trail lore since the late nineteen forties, when Earl Shaffer became the first known person to successfully thru hike the trail in its entirety. When the trail was completed in 1937, conventional thinking was that it was humanly impossible to complete the trail in one hike. In 1948, walking to clear his mind of the horrors from his recent return from the battle front of WW II, twenty nine year old Shaffer became the first person to be officially recognized for walking the entire trail in on continuous thru hike. Shaffer was known as “The Crazy One”, by others in the hiking community.

Hikers take trail names for many reasons, some to preserve their anonymity while on the trail, many seek to discover a better version of themselves on their journey, their trail name being symbolic of their quest to leave their old self and identity behind. Others take trail names just for the fun of it, as a great conversation starter, or just because many people have the same or similar given names, and trail names help to make people more unique and memorable.

Trail names can be self appointed, given by family and friends, or many times, trail names are bestowed by fellow hikers. These names are usually based on some unique attribute, habit, or quirkiness this hiker possesses. Many times this can result in a very less than flattering trail name. The saving grace being that a hiker reserves the right to accept or reject any trail name suggested by another person.

I chose to take the trail name Juanito. The past two Januaries I have had the privilege of spending time hunting in the mountains of the Sonoran Desert in Mexico. A truly very rich part of those experiences have been spending time with the local people who work in the camp. A husband and wife do all the meal preparation and cooking, their sons and a nephew take care of the game we harvest and help their parents, others help us hunt and help with game recovery in the field. It has been an honor to spend time with these great people. They have almost nothing and very little opportunity. Despite this, they are undoubtedly the happiest, fulfilled, and authentic people I have ever encountered. They don’t waste their time wanting or worrying about the things they don’t have, they value each other and the richness of their relationships. They live in the moment, they aren’t always trying to meet a deadline. They take pride in accomplishment of their tasks, and the skill with which perform them. They laugh often and loudly. Even though my Spanish is nearly non-existent, and their English not much better, we still are able to communicate through gestures and the few words and terms we do understand from each other’s native language.

Juan is the Spanish equivalent of my English given name John. In Mexico the local people call me Juan. In camp the young boys started calling me Juanito, a pet name in Spanish that means “little John” or “Johnny”. For me, taking the name Juanito while on trail represents my choice to live more simply and authentically, to have much less, but experience the true richness of life much more. I want to carry everything I need to live for six months on my back. I want to walk a very long way in nature. I want to live focused on the moment for a time. I want to spend a time in deep reflection. I know there will be some suffering, but I believe there will also be great joy. As Juanito, I hope to become a better version of myself. I look forward to the prospect.