Date: 2016-03-21
From: Amicalola Lodge

To: Springer Mountain Parking Lot
Miles today: 1.0

Today was officially the first day of our 2016 hike, even though we didn¢t cover much distance on the AT. This year we decided to hike the AT approach trail to the southern terminus. The approach trail starts at Amicalola Lodge in Georgia and covers about 8 miles from there to the top of Springer Mountain, gaining around 2,000 feet elevation in the process. Springer Mountain is actually the southern end of the Appalachian Trail, so the approach trail is not a part of the AT. There is a parking lot on the AT about a mile north of Springer and for the previous 2 years, we parked at that lot and hiked to the top of Springer, then started from there. This is the first time that we¢ve hiked the approach trail and we¢re doing it for the experience and as a prep hike.We¢re staying with Princess¢ brother (Ranger) and we talked him into helping us with transportation today. We all got up before 5 am and set out shortly after 6. Ranger drove his car, and Princess and I followed him in our car. Ranger¢s home is near Springer, but the gravel approach trail is 6 1/2 miles long and in bad shape, so it was a long drive up to the Springer parking lot. Once there, we parked our car, grabbed our gear, climbed into Ranger¢s car and we all headed back down the hill. When we got back down to the asphalt road, it was still a long drive around the mountain to Amicalola Lodge.The lodge was very pleasant. There was an ATC registration desk for AT Thru-hikers just inside and we took just enough time to sign in. When we signed the book, we were hiker numbers 851 and 852, so it¢s going to be a busy year. And bear in mind that many hikers don¢t do the approach trail and start at Springer Mtn instead. The first part of the approach trail was picturesque. About a half mile behind the lodge the trail started a long climb up a staircase that ran alongside Amicalola Falls. The falls were really beautiful and we had a closeup view as we climbed the 604 steps on the stairs. The remainder of the hike was more typical of AT woods hikes. Very pleasant, but not as distinctive. Several signs identified it as strenuous, but most of the climbs were relatively gradual. Overall, a good warmup hike.We encountered a few hikers along the approach trail, but there were far more when we reached the summit of Springer Mtn. It appeared that most people had driven up to the Springer parking lot and hiked the mile or so up to the top from there. We met several thru-hikers, but none had trail names yet. We all took photos of each other at the plaque that identifies the souther terminus of the AT, we signed into the registration book under the marker rock and then we headed on downhill.So now, we were officially on the AT for the last mile to the parking lot. All-in-all it was a pleasant hike, it started out cold and then warmed up to the mid-30¢s with a strong wind throughout. Our new Z-packs windbreakers worked really well and I¢m happy with mine. Our car was still at the parking lot (good news) and the lot was nearly full. So we hopped in and headed back down the 6 1/2 mile rough road one more time. We hiked 9.8 miles, but only 1 mile was on the AT. Clearly, my trail-legs didn¢t survive the winter.