Appalachian Trail

About 5 years ago, Nicole first heard about the Appalachian Trail, a 2,000 mile trail from Georgia to Maine through the Appalachian Mountains.  She was determined to hike part of the trail when she was 12 years old.  Earlier this year, as her 12th birthday approached, she began making plans.  Nicole read books, interviewed fellow backpackers, collected supplies, and prepared to the best of her ability.  She and Jeremy had planned a 25-30 mile, 3 day hike in Tennessee.

They started at Winding Stair Gap, just outside of Franklin, TN.  Their first goal was a 4 mile hike to the top of the mountain where they hoped a shelter waited for them.

We drove right into town and dropped them off.  They only had a few hours to get there before dark.

All the while, I was watching the weather, because it was not favorable.  Of course, it deteriorated overnight.  In fact, they were in quite a storm, in the middle of the night, in their tent that was flooded with rain.

Neither one slept much, mostly because they were laying in a puddle of streaming water.  By morning, everything they had was completely soaking wet.  Not one thing was dry.  However, spirits were higher in the morning than they were the night before.

About mid afternoon though, I got a call, asking if I could pick them up.  They still had not dried out, and were really behind schedule.  I didn't think about it, but what I probably should have done was brought them dry clothes and encouraged them to keep going.  Instead, I brought them a van, food, and a place to stay for the night.

That was the extent of their AT hike.  The weather just did not cooperate.  They were drenched, exhausted, and probably even defeated.  Nicole confessed that she likes camping a lot more than hiking....so we may just stick with basic camping for now on.

We tried to salvage the day with a quick drive up the next mountain to check out the view, but quickly ended up in a warm home for the night.  Jeremy and Nicole both slept hours longer than normal.