Backpacking at Mistletoe State Park

One of my goals I made recently was to visit and hike in all the state parks in Georgia. So this weekend I drove out to Mistletoe State Park in Appling, GA to hike the back country trail. I had scouted a couple of the other trails a few months ago and was eager to try out this one. I met Kirsten a fellow Trail Dame and my old friend SHOE at the office and we headed off to our site. Mistletoe is a beautiful park, the regular campground has amazing lakeside sites and there are lots of options for camping. This hike was mainly to scout the back country sites so I can lead a TD trip there at a later date.

I have hiked quite a bit with Shoe, in fact I have probably hiked more miles with her than anyone else, but we figured it had been at least 2 years since we had hiked together. This is really unacceptable, and I am going to have to make sure that we get out more often. Funny thing though, once on the trail we fell into the same rhythm as always and used the time to reminisce and catch up on each other's lives. Kirsten was such a joy as well, she acts all shy and all that, but once she gets going, she is just hilarious. She kept us in stitches the whole trip.

The trail is interesting, but the maps are terrible. (note to any hike leaders that read this....this is exactly why we require scouting hikes before leading a TD trip). We made our way down the Cliatt Creek Nature trail and hooked up with the Rock Dam trail which would take us to our camp. Once on the Rock Dam trail, we moved right along until the trail crossed the creek. It was quite confusing, there were blazes all over the place, but they went is several directions and it was very difficult to follow. We actually took the right direction first, but I kinda felt like we didn't so we turned around. After consulting the map for the 50th time, we all agreed that we were probably right the first time and we turned around. The first feature according to the map was a rock outcropping that is part of Stone Mountain near Atlanta. I kinda thought it looked like a dolphin.

We hiked on and arrived at camp after a couple of hours. I quickly set up my hammock, and helped Kirsten get her hammock hung for the first time. The afternoon was spent talking and just enjoying each others company. For dinner, SHOE had frozen in some sausages and I brought skewers to cook them on, so despite temps in the high 80's and almost 100% humidity we built a fire to cook our dinner. Oh, how could I forget, she also brought ingredients to make homemade guacamole, which was delicious!! Thanks SHOE for taking such good care of our bellies!

Indian Wormroot

I slept like a baby again in my Warbonnet, and woke up feeling so refreshed and relaxed. We had breakfast, packed up and hit the trail by 9:00. We finished the Rock Dam loop, crossed the creek again, and found our way back to the cars via the Cliatt Nature Trail. I had a terrific time, with great friends, and we capped it off with a calorie infested lunch at the Cracker Barrel. I would highly recommend this trail to backpacking beginners. I will be leading a TD trip here in the fall. Thanks SHOE and Kirsten for such a good time.


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

Beginner BP trip with the Dames

Ok, so I'm having attachment issues. I quit TD. I quit Meetup. I deleted my part of the TD blog. I have tried to cut all ties, but I keep getting sucked into events. Like this one. But now I am so glad I went through with it. It was one of the best outdoor experiences I have ever had.

Anyways, Saturday morning....I am up early, way too early, but I am so excited about this trip. Why am I so
excited you ask? I mean, it's just a little short backpack on the AT. On a section I have done several times, during thru-hiker season, which means a crowd at the shelter. I am excited because 7 years after starting to follow this woman's trail journal, I am going to backpack with her..........on the AT. Yes folks, Certain is in the house. If you want to read her journal Click here, you'll be glad you did.



So moving onward. We leave the house and head to Woody Gap to meet the other dames. Everyone takes advantage of the last semi-clean privy and we are off, heading up FS 42 to Three Forks. There we meet the rest of the Dames, Wendy, Jennifer, Donna, Diana, Fran, Pam, Catrina, and Kirsten. Jules is meeting us at camp, and Hemlock is meeting us somewhere on the trail. We take our time heading NOBO on the AT to the blue blaze trail to Long Creek Falls. Let me just say, the falls were amazing. All of the rain we have had this spring had the falls just filled with water, I have never seen them so magnificent. We had lunch, took pictures, met Angel, a thru-hiker on his first day out, adjusted packs, then headed back down the trail.

At Three Forks, the rest of the group headed south, while I jumped in the jeep to drive up to Springer, so we would have a vehicle at the end of the hike. Well, I almost made it, but about 2 miles from the Springer parking lot, I had another blow-out. That makes 2 in 6 months. Needless to say, I am not happy with Goodyear right now. So I luckily made it to the springer parking lot, parked, and decided not to deal with the tire. It's not going anywhere and I have a hike to do. So I quickly donned my pack and headed North on the AT, destination Stover Creek shelter. The sun was shining, the temperatures were warm, but not hot, the birds were out, and it was a perfect day to be on the AT. I passed a couple of guys starting their thru-hike. Their gear was, well, old. I bet they drop a bunch of money at Mt. Crossings on new gear.

Made it to the shelter in about 30 minutes, and soon the other Dames arrived. We all picked out our spots and quickly set up. We had dinner, then spent some time practicing hanging bear bags. I must say, these dames were great sports, and quickly mastered both the PCT version and the "certain" version of hanging bear bags. The rest of the night passed by so quickly, sitting around the pretend campfire, reading fortune cookies, telling stories, and talking about our favorite things. :) I laughed so hard, I think I gave myself a headache. This is the part of Trail Dames, I have always liked the most. The comraderie built around the campfire. The sharing of stories, the laughter, the fun. This is what I will miss the most. Well past hiker midnight we all retired to our own tents/hammocks and soon I was asleep.

Sunday morning, we all got up early and broke camp around 8:15. We met other members of the group a couple of hours later at the Springer parking lot and hiked up Springer Mountain to celebrate the 6th birthday of the Trail Dames. We made it to the summit, had a champagne toast, hung out a bit to take in the views and fellowship, then we made the trek back down to our cars. After Certain gave in impromptu lesson on changing tires, we said our goodbyes and headed home our own seperate ways.

I am so glad I made it to this trip. It was good to hang out with my friends, and the newer dames. I began to mend some almost broken friendships, and I got to hike and backpack with Certain. It was truly a perfect weekend.

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

Pine Mountain Trail

Way back in April of 2007, I took my first backpacking trip ever. I hiked the 23 mile Pine Mountain Trail located near FDR State Park. Since then I have had 3 repeat trips aborted because of various reasons. So I decided that my first bp trip on over a year would be down there to finish that trail again. So the morning of Good Friday, I met my friend Salt at the visitors center, obtained our permits and off we went to stage the cars at either end of the section we were walking.

We began our hike at Mollyhugger parking lot and headed east. Very quickly after the hike started, we entered the area of the trail that was hit by a tornado in April of 2011. I thought I was prepared for what I was going to see, but the devastation was astonishing. We walked through miles and miles of areas where very few trees were standing. I have never seen such a sight. But you have to give props to the Pine Mountain Trail Association members. They spent somewhere near 2000 man hours clearing the trail so hikers could use the trail. And they did an amazing job. After a couple of hours we made it to Dowdell Knob, where they have picnic tables, and ate our lunches. After a nice break, we donned the gear and headed on down the trail. Around 3:30 we made it to Big Oak Springs campsite and began the task of setting up camp.

Getting to camp so early actually was a good thing, as I have new gear, and Salt was using Whoopie Slings on her hammock for the first time. I got the warbonnet hung, then she helped me figure out why my underquilt wasn't keeping me warm. Seems like when I put my feet in the footbox on the hammock it creates an opening in the underquilt that traps air. We tried cinching it differently and finally stuffed my puffy jacket in the opening to aid in stopping the airflow. It worked to a certain degree, but if I put both feet in the footbox, I still was feeling the cold on my back. When I went to sleep, I tried different positions and finally found a way to lay in the hammock and keep warm. It must have worked because I went to sleep around 9 and never heard the coyotes in the area that woke Salt up multiple times.

If any of you ever head down to that trail, Big Oak Springs is an excellent site for hangers ;)

Saturday morning I was meeting the Trail Dames to do the last 5 miles of the trail, so we both woke up early, broke camp and were hiking by 7:15. By far my earliest time ever leaving camp. We made it the 0.8 miles to the car by 7:45, Salt delivered me to my Jeep and we said our goodbyes.

Salt, thank you so much for driving down and hiking with me. I really appreciate all your help with gear, and really am thankful you let me talk so much and to work some things out. You are a true friend!

I met up with the Trail Dames at the visitors center, and after shuttling the cars, we started out at Rocky Point parking lot heading to the TV tower at the eastern terminus of the PMT. We headed down the trail around 10:00. The first 2.5 miles were pretty boring scenery wise, but then we hit a series of small waterfalls that

really were nice to see. We strolled through the trail talking, taking pictures and basically had a wonderful time. Just after the last of the waterfalls, we entered another section of the trail that had been hit by the tornados. After spending an hour walking through rhododendron, trees, and lush greenery, it was shocking to come out on the ridge where there wasn't a single tree standing. It was almost like walking in the desert. It was eerie....and HOT with no tree cover.

After the last Dame came off the trail, we said our goodbyes and headed home. This was a bittersweet moment for me, as this was my last hike with the Trail Dames. After a mostly wonderful 5 year experience, I have decided to leave the group. It was a heart wrenching decision, but one that I felt I needed to make. I may elaborate on that later, but I may not.

All in all, it was a good trip, and I am glad I finally finished that trail again.

Until next time.....

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

President's Day Weekend with the Dames

So, it's the middle of February, and when you wake up, temperatures are in the mid 20's. Most normal ladies would gladly pull the covers up tighter, and would fall back asleep. But not us, we are the mighty Trail Dames!! We are tougher than that (or is it that we may just be a little crazy???) Saturday found us in Smyrna, GA (my hometown BTW) taking on the Silver Comet Trail. The Silver Comet is a fairly new trail that was built over an abandoned rail line. In total the trail is 60 miles long, but today's hike called for us to take on the first couple of sections.

At the trailhead I met up with Catherine who I have hiked with before and 3 first time Dames. Despite the low temperatures, once we started walking, we heated right up. We made it just shy of 3 miles, and took a side trip down to Heritage Park which has ruins from an old mill. After doing a little research, this mill originally produced uniforms for the Confederate Army. I'm kinda a nerdy History geek, so this was way, way cool for me. (and to think I lived the first 42 years of my life just a few miles away, and never even heard of this). Amazing. After a quick snack break, we headed back to the cars. It was a great day, the company was fantastic, and I got my history geek on.

Sunday

Sunday brings temperatures just as cold, but there is not a cloud in the sky. I met 10 other Dames at Red Top Mountain State Park to hike the 5.5 mile Homestead Trail. Another great day, we stayed close to the lake more than half the hike, and I didn't even notice how cold it was. I think my favorite spot was the "butt cheek" rock formation. Being mighty Trail Dames, we just had to stop for a comparison picture. I think this goes down as one of my favorite photos yet.



We all finished the hike in good spirits and headed home. I had a great weekend meeting new Dames and seeing old friends. Can't wait til next weekend!!

Week 4 Update

Week 4

After last week, things could only get better right? Well, pretty much they did. I got back on track and had an excellent Monday - Friday. I stayed in my calorie range (1200-1400) and felt pretty good. The weekend was a little different story, as I was on a camping weekend with the Trail Dames..and that means I kinda ate off diet. I wasn't horrible, but I just couldn't resist a hamburger each night, and a Nathan's hotdog. I did manage to avoid all the sweets, but the smell of those burgers and dogs cooking over a charcoal fire...I just gave in. Especially as I cooked it all! But I decided that I wanted to eat that, and I did. And Monday morning I got right back on the plan.

I would say that one of the biggest obstacles I face every day is the fact that I don't really like a lot of vegetables. Other than salad items, I have a hard time getting enough veggies in every day. So I have been searching Pinterest for recipes and have been having some success with finding new things. So far my favorite has been a recipe I found for roasted cabbage. I never would have thought of that. But oh my, it was so good. I even went back for seconds. Which I have never done with cabbage before. Weird huh? Anyways, here's the recipe let me know if you try it and how it goes.

Roasted Cabbage with Lemon


Makes 3-4 servings as a side dish
1 medium-sized head of green cabbage
2 T olive oil
2-3 T fresh squeezed lemon juice
generous amount of sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
lemon slices, for serving cabbage (optional)

Preheat oven to 450F/232C. Spray a roasting pan with non-stick spray or olive oil.

Cut the head of cabbage into 8 same-size wedges, cutting through the core and stem end. Then carefully trim the core strip and stem from each wedge and arrange wedges in a single layer on the roasting pan (leave some space around them as much as you can.)

Whisk together the olive oil and lemon juice. Then use a pastry brush to brush the top sides of each cabbage wedge with the mixture and season generously with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Turn cabbage wedges carefully, then brush the second side with the olive oil/lemon juice mixture and season with salt and pepper.  (I actually just used spray olive oil.....sprayed it, then drizzled lemon juice on it. It was much easier in my opinion.)

Roast cabbage for about 15 minutes, or until the side touching the pan is nicely browned. Then turn each wedge carefully and roast 10-15 minutes more, until the cabbage is nicely browned and cooked through with a bit of chewiness remaining. Serve hot, with additional lemon slices to squeeze lemon juice on at the table if desired.

Yummy.

Weight lost this week 1.4 lbs
Total weight lost  13.4 lbs

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