Day 184: Springer Mountain Shelter

Start: Gooch Gap (AT mi 16.9). Stop: Springer Mountain Shelter (AT mi 0.2). Today’s miles: 16.7 miles. Total AT mileage: 2192.9 miles.

So, I’m writing this post after the fact, because on this night I was so cold in my tent that I couldn’t stop shivering long enough to type, and when I finally stopped shivering, I was sound asleep! I think it worked out like it was supposed to though..

Anyway, I slept so good, snuggled into a cozy quilt. I did not want to get up, let alone at 6am.. but duty calls-we had to get Sundae’s dad to the Springer Mountain parking lot to meet her for her summit and then to hike the approach trail into Amicalola State Park. I’ll be doing that tomorrow.

Excitement got me moving. I packed quickly and when I went to the dining room, Mrs. Bonnie told me breakfast would be about 20 more minutes.. so I set the table and then went and crawled back in bed.. alarm set. Haha.. some habits die hard, or in this case-don’t die at all. When breakfast was ready, I got up and made my coffee. This morning was scrambled eggs (they had to have had something in them, because they were better than regular ole scrambled eggs), sausage, blueberry pancakes, and chocolate chip scones. For some reason, their orange juice is better than normal, too.

We ate it all up, chatting lightly and getting excited for the day ahead. Once finished, we loaded the car and headed out. It was cold, I was in my shorts but had my warm top layers on.. in the car I had my seat warmer on, so that helped up until the moment I got out.. ha. Mr. Paul took my picture at Gooch Gap and we all hugged goodbye. That sweet couple really felt like grandparents, loving and welcoming.. it seriously felt like being home for a holiday at their house. Part of me was waiting for mom to show up there. Being around them also got me thinking about my Granny Sara and PawPaw Bob. They’ve been tracking my progress throughout this whole trip, and I’ve been hoping they’ll come to Amicalola tomorrow when I finish. I don’t see them nearly enough, and I’d sure love to hug them!

I got moving but honestly didn’t have any real reason to hike fast. It was only 8:15, I had 17 miles to do over pretty easy terrain.. and getting to camp early would mean sitting still longer-and freezing. So, I hiked along leisurely, soaking up my last several hours on the trail thats held my attention for almost 6 months now. I listened to the birds and the squirrels squawk and complain to each other and attempt to chide me for interrupting their lives. I marveled longer than normal at the colors of the leaves on the forest floor under my feet. I talked to anyone with ears that passed me (and looked like they wanted to talk, too.. some were too out of breath and miserable for chatting). And, I teared up quite a bit, too.

The sky was cloudy, but the rain was gone. The ground stayed damp and squishy underfoot, but-still no falls in Georgia, yet. Maybe home was happy to have me back. I didn’t have many views, but I did pass a lot of water.. plenty of creeks and streams and some smaller waterfalls. When I stopped for lunch, I actually had a hot meal instead of a sandwich. I ate chicken and dumplings, plus the leftover casserole from last night (although that was cold). I sat there for an hour, taking bites and smiling at the scenery. I started an audiobook, “Braiding Sweetgrass” and it being about nature just sucked me in and had me touching trees and wondering how I’ll ever be able to do “normal life” again.

When I made it to the Springer Mountain Shelter, I was literally only 0.2 miles away from the finish of the Appalachian Trail. Seriously, only 10 more minutes of walking and I’d technically be done! But, because I wanted to hike the Approach Trail down to Amicalola State Park, 8.8 miles of “extra” trail but gorgeous scenery with the most stunning waterfall in Georgia, I didn’t let myself go to the summit. That way, the official “AT finish” and the day I finish hiking will be one and the same. I went and scoped out the campsites at the shelter area, picked one and set up. It was already only 39 degrees and I was starting to shiver, so I ended up in all my layers, and wishing I had more.

I carried my food bag to the shelter picnic table, got water to filter, and chatted with the guys already there doing the same. Two of the men there were on their day 1 of backpacking. In jeans. And had their hammocks set up inside the shelter. Thank goodness I wasn’t planning on sleeping in there. One of them insisted on explaining to me why his choice in water filter was better than mine. Cool bro.. mine only got me everywhere north of here to Maine, but sure-your filter may have made life easier somehow, I guess. They didn’t seem to appreciate my comment on jeans not being very warm in cold weather or a good choice for hiking in general, either, but whatever. Ya win some ya lose some.

While I was making my dinner, a man and his two sons joined me. They had just set up their tents and were on their first backpacking trip. They were so funny and entertaining, the 9 year old explaining the difficulty of the stairs on the approach trail and saying that the waterfall made it almost worth it, until he realized they could have driven to the top.. he was so animated and had me cackling for sure. The older son had some great one liners, and I was thankful I was spending my last dinner on trail with a good family out enjoying themselves, even with the struggles they faced.

I ended up cleaning up and going to get in my tent by 6-6:15. I was so cold that I couldn’t stop shivering and needed to get in my sleeping bag. I actually used it like it’s intended, a mummy bag, zipped to the top with my arms and legs trapped inside. I had my filter inside the sleeping bag, so it wouldn’t freeze overnight, along with my cellphone and the charging bank it was connected to.

As I was still shivering, I thought to myself I made a huge mistake and should have skipped the approach trail and had mom come pick me up from here tonight. But it’s too late for that now. Plus, mom, Uncle Keith, Aunt Kathy, and my friend Traci are all coming to see me finish tomorrow. And maybe my grandparents, too. So, for now, I’ll just have to suck it up and pray I get warm, soon.

Then, it dawned on me.. SoFarSoGood gave me hand warmers, what did I do with them? I popped up and started rummaging through my pack until I found them.. two of them.. and opened the package. Within 15 minutes I was no longer shaking uncontrollably, and within 30 minutes I was comfortably asleep. All before 7:30pm. I didn’t even have my earplugs in. I think that’s a pretty good way to have a last night on trail go.. I hope y’all slept that good too!