Date: 2008-11-27
To: Springer Mountain, GA
Miles today: 50.9
Weather: overcast clouds

I did it!!! Woohoo!!! Here's the last journal entry. I'll probably write one more after this weekend to finish it up...Helen, GA ¢ Neels Gap ¢ Day 147 ¢ 2125.3 ¢ 2145.5 ¢ November 25thAfter hitching back to the trail this morning, the rest of the day was quite pleasant. The only drawback today was the high wind all day, making it a bit cooler than I¢d like. The hike today had a bit of everything in it ¢ wet, dry, rocky, dirt, steep, and well-graded all in some odd combination. The sunny skies did allow for some nice views today. I spoke to Stretch at lunch today for the first time in a while¢¦he¢s way back and enjoying it. I¢m staying at the Walasi-Yi Hostel tonight. It¢s a really cool place to chill for the night. Daniel met me at the hostel and took me to Fatz for dinner in Blairsville. It was awesome!!! Thanks again Daniel for the generosity! After talking with the folks today, we¢ve arranged for me to be at USFS 42 around 11am Thursday¢¦only 30 miles to go! I can¢t really grasp it all right now, but it¢ll hit me at some point eventually. Big 23 miler tomorrow!Neels Gap ¢ Hawk Mtn Shelter ¢ Day 148 ¢ 2145.5 ¢ 2168.4 ¢ November 26thLots to say today. The weather today was gorgeous despite some fierce wind this morning. The hiking today started off with a bang heading up to Blood Mtn (my favorite peak in GA). After that, the terrain was moderate with plenty of nice views. On the entire hike, on of the things I have enjoyed the most is hiking into the western setting sun at the end of the day. It was nice to do it one last time today. I am alone at the shelter tonight, which is fitting. Considering today was very long (22.9 miles), I didn¢t let my mind wander until the last few miles today. I¢m normally so focused on what I¢m doing that my mind can¢t wander too much. As a result, I can tell tomorrow will be an emotional day for the last 7.8 miles. It will be great having Mom, Dad, & Chelsea finish the last mile with me up to Springer. It has just been an incredible experience and I have enjoyed (almost) all of it so much. Tonight is like Christmas Eve for me¢¦I want to get to bed so I can wake up and have it be Christmas¢¦tomorrow¢s going to be great!!!Hawk Mtn Shelter ¢ Springer Mountain, GA ¢ Day 149 ¢ 2168.4 ¢ 2176.2 ¢ November 27thHappy Thanksgiving!!! What an amazing last day!!! The hike itself was very simple and a nice walk to finish on. The weather today was a perfect 60 degrees and sunny!!! Having the whole family there for the last mile was wonderful. There were tons of people on top of Springer for the holiday, so it was also fun to get to share the finish with so many other people. Surprisingly, my emotions today are almost non-existent. I can figure out how I¢m supposed to feel about all of this. Excited. Sad. Happy. Jubilant. It¢s nice to be done and also not great that I¢m not going to be out here any more. It has been so amazing and I can¢t believe I actually did the whole trail. It¢s been said that out on the AT that the People make the trail. That is so true. I have met some of the greatest people in the world on this trail and it is sad to be off the trail and not interact with them all of the time. I want to send a big thanks to all the people who made this happen. I can do the actual walking, but the assistance I received along the trail made it possible to walk from Maine to Georgia. Thanks to all of the hostel owners who take hikers in, the hotels that give hiker rates, the strangers that drive us into and out of town, the family who helped with the logistics, my friends who gave me such great support, and the hikers along the trail who provided the great times. Pictures will be coming after I get back from Athens on Sunday or Monday. Until then, Go Dawgs!!!