Day 2: April 5, 2021
Hawk Mountain Shelter to Gooch Mountain Shelter – 7.6 miles
I was surprised by how well I slept. I’m guessing the rollercoaster of emotions from the past couple of days caught up with me. I was incredibly comfortable, too. I had a pair of wool leggings and a wool long sleeve shirt that I wore to sleep in; these are called base layers. In addition to my clothes, I had a 30 degree down sleeping bag and a thin synthetic liner. This combination would keep me warm in temperatures down to 20 degrees. I wasn’t sure if I would have any nights that cold out there, but I knew I needed to be prepared just in case. While some people relied on having two sleeping bags for the warm or cold months, I hoped that the system I had put together would be versatile enough to last the entire hike.
A common phrase in the backpacking community is “you pack your fears.” This just means if you are afraid of being cold, you overpack clothes. If you are afraid of being hungry, you overpack food. I made sure to go out there as prepared as possible without packing my fears. I still may have overpacked, but I figured that was something I would learn as I went along, and I could always adjust. My clothes included: a hiking shirt, hiking pants, a pair of shorts, one pair of sock liners, two pairs of hiking socks, one pair of camp socks, two pairs of underwear, one sports bra, a beanie, a Buff (a versatile neck gaiter), a ballcap, a mid-layer (lightweight jacket), a puffy (like a winter down coat but much lighter), a raincoat, my base layers, a pair of hiking shoes, and a pair of lightweight sandals I would use as camp shoes.
When I woke up, I grabbed my hiking clothes out of their bag and changed into them. The cold air felt crisp on my skin and the clothes were no better; they were freezing! I threw on my mid-layer and puffy and slunk back into my sleeping bag, desperate to get the clothes to match my body temperature. I shivered there for a few minutes before the prospect of hot coffee made me brave enough to try again. I swung my feet out the door of my tent and slid my sandals over my socks. I passed a few people on my way to the bear-proof metal box where we all stored our food overnight and I heard a conversation that caught my attention.
“Did anyone else hear the gunshots last night?” someone asked.
Oh yeah! I thought. I had almost forgotten about that.
“Yeah, what was that all about?” another chimed in
“I think I read somewhere that there is some kind of military base nearby. Maybe they were running some drills?” someone else suggested.
I hoped they wouldn’t be doing any more drills so the next set of hikers camping here wouldn’t be afraid like I had been.
I retrieved my bright blue food bag from the bear box and shuffled sleepily back to camp. I rummaged around in my food bag until I found my stove. I had an MSR Pocket Rocket 2 mini stove kit which included: a 0.75-liter aluminum pot, a 16-ounce plastic bowl/cup that fits over the bottom of the pot, a lid, a small metal pot grip, a storage bag called a stuff sack, and the mini stove itself. All of this, plus a lighter, nested within the pot’s stuff sack. I screwed the two-inch stove onto the fuel canister and spread apart the three legs attached to the burner. I twisted the canister’s valve open and ignited the stove. I set the small pot with water on the legs and waited patiently. I found a packet of instant coffee and dumped the contents into the cup and soon poured the boiling water over the powder. A couple passes with my spork and I had a delicious, hot cup of coffee.
Zac, the mustache man who I had begun to call Stache in my head, mentioned how jealous he was that he didn’t bring coffee. I found an extra packet and walked over to him. His smile radiated pure happiness when I handed it to him, and he thanked me. I really liked him; I had a feeling we would become good friends.
I finished my coffee and debated eating breakfast, but I was still cold. I needed to get moving and I could eat on the go. I packed up my sleeping bag, sleeping pad, and clothes and set them outside while I broke down my tent. I fit everything neatly into my pack and began to stretch. A few other people in camp were doing the same, going through various stretches and yoga routines. So far, my muscles were feeling good and I wasn’t too sore, but I knew it was important to limber up before hiking.
I left camp with Analis. She was from Florida and a few years older than me. We got to know each other as we took the first mile slowly, warming up our muscles. She, unlike me, did not take nearly two years to plan this hike. Two months before, she committed to the idea of hiking 500 miles of the AT, starting at Springer Mountain and ending in Damascus, VA during Trail Days. Every year in Damascus, there is a hiking festival that lasts for three days. Hikers, past and present, from all around gather in that town and throw one big party.
I ate my breakfast while we hiked. After Dad and I had gone to the grocery store, I portioned out granola, freeze-dried strawberries and blueberries, and freeze-dried milk into Ziploc baggies in preparation for the trail. All I had to do was add water, shake and voila, I had a yummy, healthy cereal.
About halfway through the day was the climb up Sassafras Mountain. It was the first real climb I had experienced out there so far, and it was surprisingly challenging. The hike up was about 600 feet of elevation gain in the span of just one mile. The lack of switchbacks was quite a shock compared to the hikes I was used to in Colorado. A switchback is a zig-zagging pattern that you usually find on steep terrain. The trails out here, however, were one straight line up and over the mountain. This resulted in an arduous, calf-burning trek that felt a lot harder than it should have been, all while carrying 30 pounds on my back. Personally, the worst part about the lack of switchbacks was the descent. Trying to control my downhill speed meant putting excess pressure on my knees.
Everyone hiking around me agreed that Sassafras was one hell of a climb. My favorite comment came from Stormy Weather, an older white-haired gentleman whom everyone had quickly grown to love. He exclaimed, “That Sassafras kicked my ass,” after he conquered the mountain. His statement became the highlight of my day and an inside joke amongst all of us.
I arrived at Justus Creek with Mike and Analis at 1:00. It was 1.4 miles from Gooch Mountain Shelter, where I planned to stop for the night. It looked like a watering hole in the Serengeti given how many hikers there were. People stopped to filter water, rinse off, soak their feet, nap, or really do anything they wanted. A lot of the people I had camped with the night before were there, along with a few new faces.
I set down my pack to grab my water filter and bladder. I was getting annoyed with my choice to carry a bladder out there. To fill it up, I had to take everything out of my pack before I could put the bladder back in because it took up so much space. I was jealous of the people with water bottles; they seemed so much easier to deal with.
After filtering my water, I changed into my camp sandals so I could stick my feet in the cool water. I waded around, soaking my feet and rinsing my hair. A few of us got to talking about a thru hiker named Dixie, who I mentioned in last week’s post, because we all watched her YouTube videos. She’s from Alabama and has a very thick accent. Mike was doing a hilarious impression of her, mimicking how she introduced her videos by saying, “Hey y’all, Dixie here.”
Mike and Analis left the creek around 1:30 but I wasn’t ready to get to camp yet so I stayed by the water. I wanted to take the opportunity to write in my journal a little bit, but my pen appeared to be out of ink. In all my preparation, it never occurred to be to use a new pen. I had to borrow one from a hiker named Twinkle Toes.
People started to leave the creek and hike on, but I still wasn’t ready. Ken and another hiker named Sweet Water were hanging out by the creek as well, so I joined them. The three of us sat on a log and watched the water go by. We all talked a little bit about life before the trail and how we liked being out there so far. Ken looked at me and said, “I have a feeling that you are going to be able to finish this whole trail. You just seem like you have what it takes.”
That was so reassuring to hear. I had doubted myself before I started the trail, wondering if I was making a mistake. Since I started, I had been feeling better, but I couldn’t help comparing myself to everyone else around me. Research said one in four hikers finish their thru hike, and I had spent the past day and a half looking at everyone wondering who would make it and who wouldn’t.
A little while later, Sweet Water offered massages to anyone whose shoulders were sore from carrying our packs. Sweet Water was a bald, muscular man probably in his late 30s. Ken and I took him up on the offer, but I quickly learned there wasn't anything 'sweet' about his technique. When he tried to massage my shoulders, his massive hands felt like they were crushing my collar bones, and he occasionally pinched my puny muscles rather than working out any knots I might have had. It was the worst massage I had ever gotten!
“Oh my god! Stop!” I cried out. He did and asked what was wrong. “I’m small and you’re squeezing the hell out of me. Pretend I’m a little chicken or something. Be gentle!”
“Ha” he roared, “your trail name should be Chicken Little!”
I would not be called Chicken Little. I was excited to get a trail name but not excited enough to take the first one suggested. We were all eager to get trail names. Some hikers already had one when they started the AT, like Stormy Weather and Sweet Water. Stormy had gotten his from a previous hike while Sweet Water named himself the night before he started the AT. Sometimes it took a while to get a trail name and other times, as was the case for Twinkle Toes, it happened quickly.
Anyway, after that terrible massage, we packed up and hiked together to the shelter. I kept wearing my camp shoes since it was only a short distance, but I should have changed into my hiking shoes. The sandals I had were about two sizes too large for my feet, so they flopped around and rubbed against the tops of my toes.
We got to camp around 4:00 and found a place to set up our tents. I was never too keen to sleep inside the shelters because I had read mice loved them, but luckily there were always camping options scattered around. We found one of the last spots and crammed all three of our tents together. I don’t know why, but something about Sweet Water made me think he was a snorer; I was glad I had earplugs to drown out the noise if he was. I decided to sleep without my rainfly. Since the forecast called for mild temperatures and clear skies, I didn’t think I needed the protective layer over my tent.
While I finished setting up my tent, I noticed a man and two women making their way to the picnic table. The man set down his bag and pulled out four large pizza boxes while the women set out various drinks. Word traveled around camp almost as fast as the delicious smell of pizza and everybody was eager to get a slice. I couldn’t believe my eyes; this was Trail Magic!
Trail Magic was something I had read about so I knew it was common on the AT, but I never imagined I would get it so soon! It is an act of kindness that people do for hikers. Most of the time it involves free food and beer, but it can also be a ride into town, helping to pay for a resupply or hotel, or slackpacking (I’ll explain that later). The man introduced himself as Beam, but I didn’t catch the names of his companions. Even Trail Angels, those who provide Trail Magic, have trail names. Beam said he liked to hike up to this shelter at the beginning of thru hiking season to welcome newcomers to the trail and wish them luck. This was everyone’s first Trail Magic, and it was perfect! I ended up eating two slices of hot, greasy pizza and I washed it down with a cold Bud Light. I’ve never liked Bud Light and to this day I still don’t, but that was one of the best beers I’d ever had. I felt like celebrating. I started this journey by myself, was fighting through fear, was already making new friends and had 15 miles under my belt. I was so proud of myself!
As Beam packed up the empty pizza boxes, we called out our thanks one last time before everyone retreated to their tents/hammocks.
It had been a long day, and everyone was sore and tired. I assessed my body and took note of which parts hurt and which ones felt OK. Both of my big toes were sensitive, but it was nothing a nail trim wouldn’t fix. My knees were also painful, and I didn’t know what, if anything, I could do about that. I was hoping a good night’s sleep would help them feel better. I was also feeling areas on my back and hips where my pack rubbed. I didn’t have much padding on my body, so it felt like my pack was rubbing directly on my bones. I was sure I would be bruised in the coming days. I wrote all of this down in my journal and added: Even though I’m a little sore, my spirits are high, and I smile while I hike. Life is so very good!
I was so thankful that my start date got delayed. There were amazing people all around me and I already had the beginnings of a Tramily (trail family). I made sure to write down all the names of my friends: Julia, Shannon, Tony the Tiger Dog (he was an actual dog), Stache, Mike, Jesse, Analis, Sweet Water, and Ken. Those weren’t even all the names; those were just the ones I could remember at the time. I was excited to be able to change their names once they got trail names too!
I took some time to look at the map on Guthook as well. Guthook is a fantastic app that hikers use to get information about the trail; it has since been renamed Far Out. I bought the downloadable sections of the AT before going out there. You can use it to navigate the trail and see the nearest water sources, campsites, and shelters. You can also write comments on the icons, so you get up-to-date information while you’re hiking. I looked at the camping options that were about 8 miles away and I decided I would shoot for Lance Creek in the morning. I hoped that my friends would also want to stop there but just to be sure I made a mental note to talk with them in the morning to figure out a camping spot.
After that, I nestled into my sleeping bag and put my earplugs in. It didn’t take long before I was out like a light.
Next time on Packing It In: I face a lot of emotions as I hike my longest day. I also put my skills to the test with a couple of new obstacles.