Photos Added!

I have created a flickr page for Shawn's photos from the trail... to access the page, click on the link on the right side, below our photo. I have been informed that the photos are largely from North Carolina, with a sprinking of Georgia and Tennessee. And, for some reason, they ended up backwards in the upload, so if you want to experience the trail the "right" way, start at the end and work backwards.... Enjoy!

Photos from the Trail!

I received a package from Shawn today, with his old sleeping bag, a shirt, and a few other things he didn't need anymore... but most importantly, there was a camera card as well! Here are a few photos from the trail, so you can see our thru-hiker in action and see some of what he's seeing - at least the portion between Georgia and Tennessee! The first photo is of him at the southern terminus of the AT, at the top of Springer Mountain. I have more, and as soon as I can upload them to flickr, you can see them all...

HELLO FROM CLOUD9

Hi everyone! I can't write for long as there is a line for the computer, but I am sitting in a delightful place called Cloud9 Hiker Hostel and Trout Farm in Hiawasee, GA. I've done about 68 miles of the Trail, and have only a day or two more in Georgia before I hit the rollercoaster mountains of North Carolina. The trail has been tough so far but not as bad as I expected, and mu body is holding up very well, though the feet began protesting yesterday afternoon since they knew a day off was coming. This hostel is great - jacuzzi, horseshoes, pool table, free ride to town for groceries, a big cookout and bonfire tonight. Perfect after 6 days of solid hiking, especially given the weather. Its rained at some point every day except one, and on the few sunshine days, it gets into the upper 70s and sunburn through the leafless trees is a factor. The longest day so far - 13.5 miles, was also on the toughest terrain with two 1000ft drops and two thousand foot climbs, and it was solid rain and 55 degrees all day and night. But it was done with gusto because a local BoyScout troop was cooking burgers at the destination, and after 3 burgers, a hot dog, 2 bowls of soup, a pile of cookies, and other snacks, a great sleep was had. The best part of the Trail is the people hiking with me, and the first day out I was introduced to M&M and Pootz who hiked the trail last year and left me with two delicious beers that day and have stashed some bourbon along the Trail in North Carolina for me to find later. I also met SlowGoin at the Lodge, who seemed a bit crazy at first but has quickly become a great companion. Lots of others, too many to mention now. I will try and write again when i get to Wesser, NC in about a week. Until then, take care all and thanks for the support. A special shout out to Mom, whose cookies were well-received by me and a dozen other wet and cold hikers at Neels Gap. More to come!

Hiawasee, GA

Just got off the phone with Shawn, who has now completed 3% of the trail! All is well in Georgia, and he's still on schedule. He said there was a little trail magic recently, when they came across some Boy Scouts having a cookout for trail hikers. A few hamburgers and hot dogs later, he was back on the trail and is now at a hiker Hostel for the day to refuel and resupply. He said to say hello to everyone, and might get the chance to post here soon... And as it was last time, it was so good to hear his voice. The next time we could expect to hear from him is when is makes it across the border into North Carolina, around the 15th.

Georgia on my mind

oops.... I think I am hoping he walks faster than he is... note to self: check map, then post. He's still in Georgia, at least for a day or so. I was thinking of the next mail drop he'll get, which is, in fact, in North Carolina... sorry for any confusion for those following along on a map!! Just had a wonderful, but sadly brief, conversation with Shawn, who has made it to Neels Gap in Georgia. This was the destination for mail drop #1, which was sent out about 2 weeks ago and waiting for him when he arrived! He also said he got a package from his mom (cookies, I believe), that he was really looking forward to opening. All is going well on the trail - weather, food supply, water supply, knees, feet, and back are all doing just fine. He slept the first night in the shelter with about 8 other hikers, but since then has been sleeping in his tent. So far so good... I think we'll be talking again on Saturday or Sunday, depending on how fast the next few days go - that will be able to be a longer conversation as he's planning on spending the night in a town. It was so good to hear his voice, even if only for 5 minutes.

He's in Georgia... I think.

After a short debate as to whether it was better for him to walk away from me, or for me to drive away from him, Shawn headed off into the woods at around 10am on Monday morning.

He registered at the Amicolola State Park Visitors Center as a northbound thru-hiker in the morning. The sign in procedure is kind of fun – you walk in, and tell them you’d like to register for the Trail. The question is then, “Where are you going?” and when you answer, “Maine,” they smile, say, “That’s the right answer!” and let you sign in. We also weighed his pack, including food and water, and it came to 37 pounds, which I think he’s pretty happy with. We took a lot of photos (if you’d like to see more, let me know!), walked over and saw the beautiful waterfall, had some tears, and then he was off.

Interesting Trail Fact – Shawn was the 500^th northbound thru-hiker to register this year. According to the staff, that number is down a little from last year at this time, but they expect to pick up soon. There were three hikers who left earlier that morning, and we met one other who was expecting to start later on in the afternoon.

Interesting Trail Fact #2 – It is around 800 miles from Fishtown to the start of the trail… and a distance that took us 2 days to drive will take him about 3.5 months to walk. Kind of puts your commute into perspective. Of course, the other kicker is that once you set out from the Visitors Center, you're not actually on the trail yet... you're on the 8.5 mile "Approach Trail," which them takes you to the official start, on Springer Mountain. I'm guessing he arrived there, to the shelter, before dinner time last night.

We also think he’s settled on a potential trail name – “Keychain.” It comes from the two photo keychains I gave him as a going away present (Camille and my photos), which he has hanging on his pack. Those plus his small thermometer and whistle keychains make a nice little jingle as he walks. We also bought him a keychain from Georgia. He’s hoping to buy one in each state as he hikes through. We’ll see if it sticks or if the other hikers decide on something they’d rather call him!!

Thanks for everyone’s well-wishes… I expect to hear from him sometime on Thursday, and I’ll be sure and let everyone know when I do! (and if you look very closely at this photo, you can see Shawn, walking off onto the Trail...)

He's off!!

Shawn is currently hiking through Georgia, and I am home ... more info to come.