Date: 2015-11-16
To: It's All About Me!
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

I set my alarm for 7 am as I had to resupply my food bag, swap out dirty socks, etc. for clean ones and take one last long hot shower. Breakfast was served at 8, and my, oh my, what a feast. I didn¢t think I would ever be hungry again after last night¢s dinner, but my hiker appetite was finally kicking in. Those of you reading this, who know me, are probably saying to yourselves ¢whaddaya mean, ¢finally kicking in¢? You always eat like that!¢   Let¢s just say I upheld my reputation.   As we were finishing the last of our tea and coffee, Fran walked in. She is also a Trail Dame, from the Georgia chapter, and had come to join us for this leg of the trip. Wild Thang, Certificate and Fran have known each other for quite a while and have hiked together many times. It was fun to see them come together and organize us like a well-oiled machine.We loaded up two vehicles with our packs and set off to shuttle the cars to the start and the finish of our intended section hike. I had wanted to go to the start of the AT at Springer and hike north to see what I would be facing in March 2016. When I mentioned this to Wild Thang back in September, she offered to go with me, and suggested we tack it onto the back of the Trail Dames overnighter. Word got out to the others and soon our two-some grew to four. Shutterbug, who had been on a previous trip, was not able to make it. She was sadly missed by all! We wound our way around on the Forest Service roads, parking one car at Hightower Gap. Then we all piled into the other car and headed to the Springer parking area at Big Stamp Gap. It was about noon by the time we got the vehicles situated and secured. The ladies offered to wait in the car while I hiked up to the top of Springer Mtn for a look around. I declined. I will have to climb it in March to sign in, so why add extra miles? Hikers are so lazy! On went the packs and we headed north.I could not believe how wide the trail was and how nicely maintained it was. It was like a hiking super highway. We were hiking a nice, long easy downhill section, going from about 3300¢ to 2700¢. I was so content hiking along; the sun was shining through the leafless branches, birds were chirping and the temperature was comfortably cool. When we got to Stover Creek shelter, it was time for a late lunch. We all got so comfortable; we started tossing around the idea of staying there for the night. It was the usual hiker dilemma: too early to stop for the night, but¢¦¢¦. such a nice spot to stay, complete with a water source and a privy. The ¢time¢ factor won out, and we moved on, promising each other we would stop soon. We were rewarded for our decision by coming upon the best campsite ever, in my opinion! It was multi-faceted; it had a water source, trees for hammocks, flat spot for tent, branches for food bags and lots of bushes for privy use. What more could anyone ask for? (My sister would say ¢a Comfort Inn, please¢). After getting our hammocks, etc. set up, I noticed Fran and Wild Thang collecting firewood. Hooray, we have a fire maker among us. Certificate and I joined in gathering firewood and sorting it into piles according to size. Didn¢t I tell you these women were organized! Soon Fran had the fire blazing to warm us, while we warmed up our dinners. There is nothing like sitting around a campfire on a dark night with stars coming out and a crescent moon. This is why I like being outside in the woods. Campfires have a mesmerizing, soothing effect and foster camaraderie. It was a wonderful opportunity to get to know each other better. Campfires also make you sleepy and I found I could hardly keep my eyes open. It was only 8 pm, but I trundled off to my hammock anyway. I saw Certificate head for hers shortly after, leaving Fran and Wild Thang to tend the fire. I read for a bit, and then drifted off to sleep, listening to the murmuring of their voices, the wind in the branches and the gentle babbling brook¢¦¢¦¢¦.