This past Sunday, we were supposed to hike at the Unicoi State Park near Helen in NE Georgia. The hike was scheduled to start at 9AM rather than our usual 8AM.. which was just as well given the distance.
We met at "It's a Grind" coffee store in Canton, GA. The caravan included two cars and I drove with Sara, Scot & Cathy. We got to Unicoi at 9AM and we got checked in and Dean came up with the idea of driving 10 miles north and hiking the Appalachian Trail instead. After a quick show of hands, we got back in the car and headed North. The temperature was forecast to be 34F when we started, but driving to the parking lot, we saw a sign that said 29F and it definitely felt a lot cooler when we got out of the car.
We started the hike at Unicoi Gap at a height of 2975 feet and it seemed that the trail was straight up for about the first 30 minutes after that it was a gradual slope till we hit the summit of Rocky Mountain. We had climbed 1125 feet in 1.3 miles. We had some of the best views of the North Georgia mountains shortly after the summit as we were descending towards Indian Grave gap. The cold which was biting as we started up the hike was gone and there was little or no wind at the top. The descent was steep and it looked like the mountain kept falling off. Every step down made the hike back up just that much harder. We got to Indian Grave gap in a time of 1 hour and 19 minutes.
After a rest of about 15 minutes, fuel and water, I joined the group that was headed back to Unicoi gap. About half the group continued further on the trail to Tray gap. Their hike would have lasted 4.5 hours and I made the mistake of not packing lunch. I had enough fuel in the form of gels and bars.. but I wasn't sure if I could last long without something solid. The climb back up the mountain seemed steeper.
I clicked a few pictures and took it easy once we got to the top. The slope down was covered with ice formations that looked like millions of tiny silver threads strewn around. It looks like I may have figured out a way to rig the camera and use it comfortably while it stays attached to the backpack. We got to the parking lot, stretched, got in the car and headed to Helen in search of burgers. We stopped at Wendy's, got burgers, overheard this group of teenagers exchanging camping stories... clearly they had been smoking something illegal :-) and left for Canton.
In retrospect, I am glad I got to hike a portion of the A.T. I wish I had planned properly and gone on the longer hike.
You are wondering what the dots are about? Well, as we finished the hike, we saw a map of North Eastern Georgia with the A.T. marked by white dots. There was a label next to Unicoi gap that said "you are here". We also found Indian Grave gap where we had turned back. It was about 2.9 miles and a whole 2 dots from where we had started . so, there you have it.
Here's my album from the A.T.
Fund Raising Update:
We have set a target of reaching the 50% mark - $2,250 by March 31st. As of March 19th, We have now raised $1,400.00
Today, I got a check in the mail from someone I didn't know. A friend of mine had forwarded one of my email to his friends and voila! It was a great thrill. Thank You all for your donations and support and keep it coming.
Quote Of The Day:
"... it is not A canyon. It is not a big canyon. It is not even a large canyon. It is the GRAND canyon. Did you know that before you signed up to hike?"
-- Lou Horowitz expressing his concern on learning about what I had set out to do. Lou, Thanks for the concern and the donation.
Power Of Your Money:
As you consider a donation to this cause, consider what your donation can do...
- $ 75 - is the average cost of tissue typing to become a bone marrow donor.
- $ 50 - is the cost of a CT scan.
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