Day 1 - Lund Rover & NYC Sparkles

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Wednesday April 19, 2017

We stayed the night at Amicalola Lodge last night. Lauren got up, no joke, four times to use the restroom. Normally this wouldn't be a big deal, but the bathroom door was basically nonexistent AND the toilet sounded like a freaking bomb going off every time it was flushed. Needless to say, it wasn't the best night's sleep or a good way to start the trip.
Wednesday morning we got up and showered, ("For the last time ever" - Lauren) then went through our gear. Disaster #1: I can't even begin to explain the stuff Lauren tried and insisted on bringing. So, SO, much medical supplies. A full size book, camera AND phone, an abnormal amount of toiletries, etc. etc. It took quite a bit of time to go through everything and get our packs squared away. I nixed some of my cold weather clothes (pants and gloves) along with a few other things, and was a bit harsh when it came to Lauren's pack. Later I found out she was able to sneak most everything back into it though... haha.
I'll tell you what is killing us. Food. So much freaking food! 8 days worth! I swear its 15-20 lbs alone, and it takes up so much space! I think our packs are ~50 lbs. I don't know, it's hard to say for certain. I wish we had weighed them. Seeing Lauren struggle to move (and especially put on) her pack is hilarious. It totally reminds me of the book Wild. I feel like everyone who sees us is totally judging; thinking we were newbs and won't last a day. Can't say that I blame them.
The Lodge front desk lady was nice (or had pity on us) and offered to let us store our packs in the back so we wouldn't have to lug them up all the stairs at the falls. Boy was that nice. I forgot how strenuous those stairs are. [Long term parking for the trail is at the base of the falls, the Lodge is at the top]
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Thanks Wayne for the nice picture

At the Amicalola Visitor's Center we checked in and registered for long term parking. I named myself "Lund Rover," for obvious reasons, and Lauren doubed herself "NYC Sparkles." Very fitting I must say. We met a thru hiker named Wayne and had him take a picture of us at the archway indicating the start of the approach trail. Then it was off to the long term parking lot, up the fall's staircases, and back to the Lodge to pick up our packs.
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They sure are pretty

Disaster #2: We grabbed our packs and found that Lauren's was soaked with water. So, we stepped outside, pulled out her camelbak (Army issue from Kevin), and found a small hole in it. Of course there is. First she went into the Lodge store to see if they sold any. Of course they don't. The next and only option we had is to tape it up with duct tape and hope it holds. Oh please, oh please, oh please, oh please!
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Lauren in all her glory (after taping up her Camelbak)

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Finally hitting the trail, but first, one more picture

So, after an eventful morning, we finally got on the actual approach trail around 11 am. Whew. Only an hour and a half later than we had hoped. Compared to the morning, our hike was pretty uneventful. We trekked for about an hour and then stopped for lunch and another two hours before a pee break. Let me tell you though, that approach trail to Springer Mountain is no joke. I mean talk about being baptized by fire. First it's the stairs (so blessed we didn't have to drag our packs up them), then the trail starts off going straight up, and finally you have to summit Springer Mountain. The remainder of the trail stuck to the rolling hills typical of Georgia. But man! There's definitely no "easing your way into it."
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View from the top of Springer Mountain

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The very first white blaze of the trail

At the top of Springer we met Tony and Kristen; both thru hikers who'll be staying at the shelter with us. After we arrived at the shelter a few more people trickled in. Rick, an elderly man who sounds and looks like he's about to have a heart attack (Lauren is concerned). Paul and Billy, to young guys around our age who came into camp together, and a few others who trickled in the throughout the remainder of the afternoon. At the shelter we cleaned up, set up our tent in the loft (something we later found out was illegal), and filtered water. Now we're about to start dinner. Good day.
  • Something I didn't expect: looking forward to (and enjoying) meeting/getting to know the other hikers. I thought I would just want to stay off on our own.
  • We've met a weird dude. Lenny. He talks SUPER loud, brought a glass bottle of Whisky, and just can't seem to get himself organized haha. Pretty funny.
  • It turns out that Wayne was really struggling on the trail. We haven't seen him yet, just heard stories of people passing him. Heavy packs man....
  • We spent a good hour sitting at the table going over the funny stories people already had on the trail. Lauren lost some TP while we were hiking without realizing it. Well Chris, a 30-something year old from Orlando doing a section hike (we really like Chris), started telling a story of how he found a roll of TP on the trail and that it was his first experience with "trail magic." Of course we connected the dots and had a good laugh over it. Lauren was ECSTATIC haha!
  • Lauren literally gagged dinner down (Mountain House Stroganoff). *sigh*

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