July on the AT - Day 3

July 5, 2010

Last night at dinner, we had decided that we would get an early start today since the other 3 had a long drive home to Charlotte, so around 6:00, I felt someone tapping my on my foot..it was Fab telling me it was time to get up. So I climbed out of the hammock, and packed up my gear. Again, I had another GREAT sleep, and was able to pack up in less than 10 minutes. I quickly changed clothes, ate some breakfast and headed down the trail. I think we camped somewhere around Poplar Stamp gap, but I am not totally sure about that. We were headed to Low Gap Shelter to get enough water to finish our hike.

This mornings hike was very nice, nothing to strenuous, nothing steep and rocky to climb, no big ups or downs. Mostly ridge walking, with a few little bumps here and there. Sweetpea and I made it to the blue blazed trail leading to Low Gap shelter by 8:15. The trail was a gradual downhill, so about halfway down, I took off my pack and left it at a campsite, so I didn't have to go all the way back uphill with it. We headed down to the stream for water, and saw that a family had set up near the shelter. I looked over and saw 3 hammocks....I knew I was going to have to check them out. Sweetpea and Waterboy took on the task of filtering water, so I asked one of the guys if I could check out the hammock setups. He kinda chuckled and said what do you have....well, I have a Hennessey deluxe explorer and a Maccat tarp.....he oohed and aahed over the tarp, and I was so proud! So I checked out the hammocks, they had 3 Clarks. This is a brand that I have been looking at on the web, so it was nice to see one in use. I really liked the pockets that lined both sides of the hammock, but they seem a bit small..I am so used to the hennessey, alot of other hammocks seem small to me. We debated the pro's and con's of each of our hammocks for a few minutes, and I decided I liked some aspects of the clark, but I think my Hennessey works better for me right now.

I knew we had a decent climb coming up right after Low Gap, so I decided to head on up the trail. Everyone else was hanging out with the family talking, so I headed up to where I stashed my pack, took a quick bathroom break, loaded up, and headed up the trail. We had about a 550 foot climb up Sheep Rock top immediately after the gap, so I really wanted a head start. I made up almost to the top, found a nice rock to sit on, and took a break. I was low on energy again, so I ate a few snacks to try to deal with that. Not too long after I sat down, I saw Sweetpea coming up the trail. I told her I was sorry I didn't tell them I was leaving, but I just had to beat them up ONE climb on this trip, nevermind that I started about 15 minutes before them. We took a water/snack break then resumed the hike. We stayed pretty much together for the rest of the hike, she would get ahead of me, then wait for me to catch up, then we would hike together for awhile. As opposed to yesterday when I started getting ticked off that they were doing that, today it was fine. Smores and Waterboy passed us somewhere along the way, I didn't see them again until Hogpen Gap. At one point I told her I thought we needed to eat Mexican food when we got done, so now we had a goal!! We had a few more ups and downs, then we came to the sign for Hogpen gap. I made her stop and give me her camera to record the moment, as this was the final section for her Georgia AT section. We came out of the woods and found Smores and Waterboy lounging and eating some snacks. I headed over to the car, took off my stinky, smelly boots and socks, and put on some flipflops.

I cranked the car to let the AC get going, and drove over to where they had parked, and yes, I caught Sweetpea applying lipstick. The Guatemalan Princess is now out of the woods. LOL. We drove down to this new business just outside of Helen, GA, called Goats on the roof. Since they all were facing such a long drive, they wanted to freshen up and change out of the hiking clothes, so when they did that, I found a nice, ice cold Diet Coke and some Cape Cod Salt and vinegar chips, so I sat at a picnic table and watched the goats up on the roof. Literally, there are grown goats that live on the roof. People can buy food, put it in a little container, and there is a chain/pulley system that cranks it up to where the goats are. I watched that for a little while, then everyone came out and we headed into Helen. Traffic was horrible, so it took us about 3o minutes go about 3 miles to the restaurant, and when we got there, there was nowhere to park. I mean come on, I just hiked 25 miles, and now I have to walk a half a mile just to eat. Oh well, just shut up and do it right?

We went in and placed our drink orders...another diet coke for me please, I took advantage of the indoor plumbing, soap and paper towels in the restroom, then we placed our orders. We made short work of the chips and salsa, had a cheese dip in SHOE's honor, demolished our meal, then headed to the cars. We said our goodbyes, hugged, and headed home.



All in all it was a good trip. I had a bad day 2, got mad, sad, uplifted, and managed to complete the day in good spirits. I absolutely love hiking with Sweetpea, she is a true friend. We really missed the company of SHOE, but know we will hike with her again soon. Waterboy and Smores are two really great people, who I enjoyed meeting and hiking with. Looking back on the trip, I know there are a few things I need to take care of physically, so I can enjoy the hike better. I feel at home in the woods, at peace with the world and myself, but I have to get over this issue with going UPHILL. Think it is time to make a date with sparkpeople.com so I can get the diet issue up and going again.

You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through.
- Rosalyn Carter