Date: 2011-01-30
To: The Journey Begins
Miles today: 0.0

Today is January 30th, and the days are counting down until I set foot on the start of the Appalachian Trail at Springer Mountain in Georgia. 41 days from today, on Saturday March 12th, my mom will be driving me to Springer Mt. I have not yet decided if I will hike the approach trail to the top of Springer again or not. I hiked it in October and had a blast, but I'm still not sure if I want to do it again. I have been trying to prepare as much as possible, while also trying to keep my mind off the trail so I don't become to anxious. I hiked Katahdin in September and it was great to see a rather large group of thru hikers finish while at the summit (definitely think their finish was part of the inspiration for my thru hike). Over Thanksgiving break I hiked near Buena Vista, VA on the AT and it was an awesome time and got to hike with a fellow thru hiker for 2011. After these three short weekend or so hikes, I did a day hike at Max Patch (close to my house) this weekend just to be able to get back on the trail. To say the last, I'm certainly ready to start! I turned 21 in September and it was around that time when I decided to do a thru hike of the AT in 2011. It was a very tough decision for me. I wasn't sure who was going to support me, and who would think I was crazy. Not to my surprise, I have had the support of all my family members throughout the whole planning process. This helped me realize it was an actual possibility that I might get the chance of a lifetime to hike the trail. When January rolled around, and all my friends were heading back to school after the break, I felt very out of place. For a little over two months, I would be staying in Asheville till I left to start my hike. What would I tell people when they asked what I was doing these days? I get asked all the time "why are you hiking for 6 months?" or "what in the world made you decide to do a thru hike of the AT?" and the hardest one to answer, "what was your motive behind deciding to take time off from school and hike?". I can't answer either of those questions in a sentence, and honestly don't know exactly how to answer them. I figured the best answer was "I'll let you know when I finish." I decided to look at it in a positive way and make sure to do a few shakedown hikes and get all my gear in order. Today, I have everything I will be taking with me on March 12th when I head to Springer. I have hiked with the gear I'll be using, I know it inside and out, and cannot wait to get on the trail.In a few weeks, I'll be heading to Maine to see all my family whom live there before I leave. I'll also be attending a Boston Bruins game with my dad as well as my step brother Chris. This is something I'm really looking forward to as it is the "last" time I'll be able to really hang out with them until I arrive in Maine at the end of my thru hike (hopefully in September).I'm very anxious to say the least. I'm ready for this journey of a lifetime to teach and show me things I would never experience in a college classroom nor living the "college" life. It's not the norm for a middle year Junior college student to take a year off from school to hike the AT, but I'm very thankful for the factors that are allowing me do so. Until next time,-Chris