Date: 2003-03-07
From: Amicalola Falls State Park

To: Forest Service Land
Miles today: 2.5

Hi. I'm not Outlaw Torn (Outlaw), I'm Scud Runner, his father. I Hiked from Amicalola Falls State Park to Stecoah Gap with Outlaw. I am his transcriber, and editor. His entries will be delayed because I am using his original jounal notes which must be mailed to me. I will take the liberty of adding a few of my own observations for the time that I was with him.By the way, Outlaw Torn's name comes from a Metallica son and only two people I met knew what Scud Runner refers to (it has nothing to do with the infamous missile). Scud running is a (not necessarily safe) practice of flying using outside visual references in marginal weather conditions, usually close to the Earth. I don't endorse the practice but the name seemed appropriate for our current endeavor.We have been hiking together for many years but it wasn't until sometime last summer that we seriously considered a thru-hike. We hiked most of Maine last summer, all but the 100 mile wilderness to Katahdin. We gained much confidence from this, and learned some things from the thru-hikers we met. So, Outlaw decided it was a good time to try. He had just spent two years in college. He got a couple jobs and earned some money for the trip, and we began acquiring the additional equipment we needed, and began planning.Now, on to day 1.Woke at five after staying up until 3 a.m. finishing up packing. Talked to Erin online til 2:30 a.m.. She will hopefully hike with me a while after she gets out of school. Talked with I-Chieh on phone before that, and Charlotte before that. Lori came over to say bye.Flew down from Portland International Jetport where I said bye to my mom and my brother. The security line went all around the walls of the terminal. We boarded the plane with no time to spare.The mountains of the A.T. look small from the vantage point of our jet. Stopped in Philly and transferred to another jet for our segment to Georgia. Landed in Atlanta, a huge airport. It was a hike just to get to the baggage area. We got our stuff and took the train to meet Michael from Georgia Adventures. He took us to Amicalola Falls via REI and Popeye's. We picked up some trekking poles at REI. We decided to join the revolution. We had talked to a number of thru-hikers last summer who had sung their praises.Signed in at Amicalola as a (potential) thru-hiker.And so it begins. Thrown together as it was, I am here. I always thought that thru-hikers were cool. Now, finally, I am a potential thru-hiker, and its my turn for people to be amazed at the thought of me doing this. I haven't even done anything yet and people I meet are in awe. Me and my dad decided to hike the trail to the trail as we could not reach the side tril to Springer today due to mud. So we lose at least a day...already. Hiking up the first hill/mountain made me realize what a great investment the trekking poles were. They contribute to speed, agility, safety, and a distribution of weight over four limbs instead of two. Cruisin' up. We stopped to enjoy our first sunset and ended up hiking at night. Got "lost", no-one can tell us where to go. We havn't even left yet. Oh well...finally camped on forest service land. Cooked first meal...chili that my mom dehydrated...once we fixed the fuel pump. We were joined by some friendly scouts with a couple of their leaders. nice bunch. It gets cold fast once the sun sets. The day was beautiful though.Anyways...tomorrow to Springer and I can officially begin.