Mile 31.7
Elevation 3,125
What a day. First, my hiking partner, Bobby, had some kind of problem and could not continue. I left him at Wolpen Country Store and went back to the trail at Woody Gap. I’m hoping he shakes it off and we can reconnect later. His plan was to stay at a hotel today.
So, I hooked up with Sarah and Carter the dog, and we headed out from Woody Gap. The plan was to go about 6 miles, but Sarah didn’t like the area (windy and cold) at the planned campsite, so we decided to go up Blood Mountain, which is infamous for its tough climb. The longer hike did not seem to suit Carter and towards the end he was jumping on Sarah. I’m not very good at interpreting a dog’s behavior, but it looked to me like he had enough walking for the day.
Blood Mountain Shelter and a look inside, Sarah and me, some hikers just hanging out at the shelter and me again.
During the day’s hike, we reached the Blood Mountain Shelter. This is one of the few shelters on the trail that has four walls. As you can see, it is very sturdily built. It had a fireplace at one time, but it has since been blocked. Few if any hikers stay at this shelter because you are required to have a bear canister into which you place your food. There isn’t much in the way of viable trees to hang your food bag, so I’m guessing that is why the canister is required. While we stopped for a bit to check things out, we had no intention of spending the night there and continued on after about 15 minutes.
We ended up doing 10 miles for the day and reached Neel Gap just before 6 PM. It’s supposed to rain all night and Sarah’s tent is not sealed against rain. Consequently we decided to get a room at a Best Western in Blairsville where we are right now. Another hiker, a 19 year old from Kentucky decided to join us, so it will be three at the motel tonight.
Mountain Crossings Outfitters at Neel Gap is the first opportunity on the trail to buy something you either forgot to buy or didn’t realize you needed. In my case, I didn’t realize I needed a sleeping bag liner because my 30 degree bag is not cutting it. I am freezing in my bag at night, so I whipped out the old credit card and bought a bag liner for around $60. Sure hope it helps. By the way, Mountain Crossings is known for its position on the Appalachian Trail. The trail goes right through the property.
One of the reasons we didn’t stay at a campsite tonight. We’re in the Chattahoochee Forest, so you can see the mess heading our way.
That’s Sarah and Carter the dog. That dog was absolutely zonked out. He had a hard day on the trail.
