Date: 2008-12-24
To: Coosa Backcountry Trail (from 12/19)
Miles today: 0.0

Hike: Coosa Backcountry Trail Day 1Miles Hiked: 8Miles left: 7.5We had an enjoyable day of hiking.We got a late start on our hike and didn't hit the trail till 12:00pm. At first the terrain was easy going and it rained on and off (never pouring down, more misting and sprinkling). We saw lots of creeks with water and enjoyed hiking in nature again.After we finished hiking the short approach trail we saw two guys hiking with a medium sized dog, maybe labrodore mix. They said they had just come from hiking part of the Coosa, that it was quite steep, and that they didn't finish it because they lost their dog for a while and spent time trying to find him. (I guess the dog must have agreed that the trail was steep and decided to take another route.) After hearing this we looked again at the elevation map and saw what looked like some steep ascents, so we prepared ourselves and hiked on.The mist felt great to hike in. A few times it picked up in rain and we put on our rain gear and pack covers, but mostly it was very comfortable, not cold at all, and the wind and mist had a refreshing feel as we pumped our legs up the mountain.After a bit of hiking we stopped for lunch. We had GORP (good old raisins and peanuts) and it was very tasty. Anya had put together almonds, cashews, raisins, cranberries, dried apricots, seeds and dark chocolate chips! That and peanut butter sandwiches made a great lunch with enough fuel to keep going.We came to some very steep ascents and switch-backs going up the mountain. After 4 hours of hiking we figured we should be getting close to the half way point on the trail, where there was supposed to be water.Our camelbacks were getting low, and since water runs down the mountain we had not seen any streams or water sources in hours. We both had an extra liter of water because we had filled up in our water bottles before we left, but we knew that we had to push on to the half way point or we would be camping with very little water to cook with and drink the next day.We crossed a logging road after completing another steep part of the trail and saw a sign that said we had hiked 6.2 miles after finishing the approach trail. The halfway point was supposed to be about 7 miles in. We booked it and hiked the last mile so we would still have enough daylight to set up camp (the night comes so fast in the winter). We hiked quickly and I was winded by the climb. Soon we heard the sound of running water, and we saw a stream in the distance.We hiked a bit more and found a nice campsite near the stream while it was still light outside.We set up camp and cooked our food, a Kashi Morrocon curry pilaf with a tuna packet mixed in. Just as we were finishing cooking dinner, it started to rain hard. We had to eat our food away from our tent so that the smell wouldn't attract animals to where we would be sleeping, so we put on our rain jackets and I got my headlamp flashlight (as it was getting dark outside). We ate the rice and tuna under the darkening sky and rain. It was delicious, despite the raindrops, but we ate fast because we were getting wet.We quickly cleaned the pot, brushed our teeth and bear-bagged our food and garbage bag in a tree, then jumped into our tent. Whew!Our tent is dry, our clothes only mildly damp, and our sleeping bags warm. We will rest now and hopefully sleep soon, even though its only 7pm, so we can get an early start tomorrow. We went about 8 miles today primarily because of the late start, but I was ready to rest by the time we camped.Looking forward to more adventures tommorow.-Joshua