The countdown has begun – The Trek

The final countdown to my start date has begun! I realize I’m really doing this. If what I feel can be a single emotion, it is a mixture of super excitement, nervousness and anxiety. I started a to-do list several weeks ago with about 50 items. For a while, I was adding more items than were marked. As of today, I have narrowed it down to less than 10 articles. I’m a typical engineer… I love lists and spreadsheets… and checking things off.

Travel plans

Travel plans have changed. fair slightly. We are still traveling to Amicalola Falls State Park in a few days, but my youngest son will not be going with us. He couldn’t get out of school baseball and that’s why he stays behind. I’m very sad about this, but he said it was okay. The drive from our home in North Alabama to Georgia takes about 3 hours.

Pre-hike plans

We have a day at the state park to hang out and complete my registration and get my hang tag. My wife and I already went up the stairs and saw the waterfall. Last year we stayed at the Hike Inn to celebrate my birthday. Not my youngest daughter. So, I suspect we’ll see the waterfall, hang out at the lodge, and maybe drive around a bit. There’s a burger joint called Boxcar Grill in Talking Rock, GA that I found last year. The burgers are some of the best I’ve ever had. In my opinion, eating there before the hike would be amazing!

Day 1 plan

The plan for the first day is to start at the arch between 8 and 9 in the morning. My wife and daughter will see me off. My two oldest sons are in college and my other son stays in Alabama. I plan to hike 16.2 miles to Hawk Mountain Campground. That’s the approach trail plus 7.4 miles AT. I already walked from the arch to Long Creek Falls with my son. The rest will be completely new.

my goal

My goal is to provide regular trail updates. I’d like to say that I will faithfully write daily updates, but we’ll see. This trip has been in the works for 3 years. I am very eager to finish these last days of preparation and get out on the track. I hope you enjoy following me! I will try to provide an authentic perspective on my experiences, lessons learned, interactions, joys and difficulties.

If you’ve made it this far… Thank you very much for reading!

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