Date: 2008-03-13
From: Horse Gap

To: Woody Gap
Miles today: 9.9
Weather: clear sky

"If you don't scale the mountain, you can't view the plain." - Lao TseWe woke up several times last night as Rangers patrolled around our tent site. Yes, U.S. Army Rangers. There's a training site for them at Hawk Mountain, and they practice nighttime recons in the mountains here. We also heard an occasional helicopter, and gunfire from time to time. Fortunately we knew to expect this, but it was still unnerving to hear them moving around nearby in the middle of the night. Despite the disturbances (and the painful ribs), we slept pretty well for our first night out. Our sleeping bags were plenty warm, as it was a fairly mid night. By eight-thirty we were up, packed up and ready to hike. We stopped and visited with Beatbox and Nick who had camped nearby, and compared Ranger stories. Then it was up Sassafrass Mountain, a steep climb to start the day. We moved slowly all day. Although my knee wasn't bothering me, I could feel it, so I watched every step and took my time. We are so out of shape, the climb was tough, but we knocked it out and stopped to eat our Power Bar breakfast. I was having trouble getting a deep breath because of rib pain, and it's tough to hike with shallow breathing, but I was able to come up with a medium-sized breath that minimized pain and maximized the time I needed between rest stops. Then pushed on a climbed Justus Mountain and Phyllis Spur before coming to Justus Creek where we took a nice rest break. The creek was following briskly and was beautiful. So far we haven't seen any signs of the drought that is plaguing Georgia.We made it to Gooch Mountain Shelter by 12:30, and took another long break, eating lunch with boots off and playing cards until 2:00. Then we headed out to Woody Gap, about 5 miles up the trail.And I do mean up. We had a mile or two of nice hiking, then came Ramrock Mountain. This is where my knee became more painful. About 100 feet from the top, Hoover took my pack and carried it to the top for me. Then, over my feeble protests, he moved some weight out of my pack into his.At the top of Ramrock Mountain, we met a wonderful couple who were out dayhiking, Tom and Barbara. Tom offered to carry my pack the 1.6 miles to Woody Gap. How nice is that?! But with what Hoover took out of my pack, and the fact that the rest of the trail into Woody was pretty level, I was able to hike on to the Gap without any other help.We called Leigh and Josh of the Hiker Hostel, and they came to pick us up. We are at the hostel tonight so that I can elevate the knee and ice it. They'll shuttle us back to Woody Gap tomorrow for the 10.5 miles to Neels Gap. Since my knee hurts due to an injury rather than the dreaded tendonitis, I am quite hopeful that I'll be able to continue hiking. I'll be more of a turtle than a hare, but that's okay. With a terrific partner like Hoover, I'll have all the support I need...And now, an entirely unsolicited plug for the Hiker Hostel. Leigh and Josh are terrific people. The hostel is the cleanest and nicest one I've seen on 1400 miles of the AT. The breakfasts are yummy and plentiful. And the shuttle service they offer is flexible and convenient. If you're looking for a place to stay in when hiking - or biking - in N. GA, this is the place!