March 21

Start: Springer Mountain Shelter
End: Woody Gap
Miles: 20.9
Total: 1874.5

I was excited to get going on the Appalachian Trail, and I got an early start from the shelter, probably leaving first. Soon enough I was covering familiar ground, intersecting the cursed Benton MacKaye Trail and visiting the Three Forks area again.

I knew that there would be many more hikers on the trail than what I was used to, and sure enough, as the morning wore on I started to pass more and more people. Soon I was passing the shelters in which the people I had spent the last night with would be spending the upcoming night.

I climbed mountains, and did so at a decent pace. The Benton MacKaye Trail had taught me that things could be much worse, and that I could do these mountains without resting. As I neared Woody Gap, I started to formulate my plans for the rest of the day.

I had a reservation at the Hiker Hostel in Dahlonega, but they were too busy to pick me up. I also had a high school friend in the area and I wanted to catch up with him. I decided to hitchhike into Dahlonega, pig out, meet my friend, then go to the hostel.

That is how things went. I got a ride without too many problems from a nice woman from Suches, and ate a pizza and got groceries. I then went for fast food and hung out, catching up on the web on my iPhone and enjoying myself. My friend took awhile to arrive because of traffic, but it was great to catch up on life. Finally I got to the hostel late, but I was there.

I wish I could have had more time at the hostel because it was a great place, but there were not enough hours in the day. I went to bed happy, ready to get back on the trail the next day.