My AT Obsession Begins
My obsession with the Appalachian Trail began in 2010 when I read an article in a magazine about Hot Springs, NC. This little town is a famed spot for AT thru hikers. The description of the small hiking community, and the nearby day hikes on the trail that traversed from Georgia all the way to Maine intrigued me.
I got on VRBO and found a cabin just steps from the AT. I had never even heard of the AT, and yet, that summer, we drove up to North Carolina to check it out.
Prior to that year, I was a bona fide city girl, obsessed with New York City and any place where there were a million other people. But that all changed when I found the serenity of being in the middle of the wilderness where you could go an entire day without seeing another soul or seeing any sign of civilization.
That first trip, we did two hikes on the AT, Max Patch and Lovers Leap. We also got on the trail just behind the cabin and tried following it to the top but it went on and on through a series of switchbacks and my kids were cooked. I was hooked. I was, and am, enthralled by the very idea of this continuous trail where you feel completely alone, yet completely connected.
Thus began a series of vacations where Tom and I (mostly me) dragged my kids on long hikes, and for some reason, though they sometimes complained, they didn't completely mutiny.
That year, we also found several waterfalls. Those, the kids loved. They enjoyed anywhere they could get wet. So our usual summer vacation became a mix of waterfall hunting for them, and a long hike for me, preferably on the AT. Each time we were on the AT was a thrill.
After a few years of this, Tom started fantasizing about getting our own cabin the woods. Thinking it a pipe dream, we looked here and there for a few years until we finally found the perfect little cabin on the side of a mountain in the northern part of Georgia. We fell in love with it, put in an offer, and to my complete amazement, we discovered it was only 10 minutes from an AT trailhead. Life could not get any better.
So I've started this blog to begin capturing all of our many mountain adventures. There are tons of good, useful hiking sites that give great trail info. I couldn't even begin to offer trail advice, there are far more knowledgeable people than I for that.
This blog is for myself, so I can remember the different places we've visited over the years, and capture the moments we've experienced. But if anyone cares to read it, or find inspiration, then all the better.
I got on VRBO and found a cabin just steps from the AT. I had never even heard of the AT, and yet, that summer, we drove up to North Carolina to check it out.
Prior to that year, I was a bona fide city girl, obsessed with New York City and any place where there were a million other people. But that all changed when I found the serenity of being in the middle of the wilderness where you could go an entire day without seeing another soul or seeing any sign of civilization.
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| Caroline, age 4, on the top of Max Patch on the Appalachian Trail. |
Thus began a series of vacations where Tom and I (mostly me) dragged my kids on long hikes, and for some reason, though they sometimes complained, they didn't completely mutiny.
That year, we also found several waterfalls. Those, the kids loved. They enjoyed anywhere they could get wet. So our usual summer vacation became a mix of waterfall hunting for them, and a long hike for me, preferably on the AT. Each time we were on the AT was a thrill.
After a few years of this, Tom started fantasizing about getting our own cabin the woods. Thinking it a pipe dream, we looked here and there for a few years until we finally found the perfect little cabin on the side of a mountain in the northern part of Georgia. We fell in love with it, put in an offer, and to my complete amazement, we discovered it was only 10 minutes from an AT trailhead. Life could not get any better.
So I've started this blog to begin capturing all of our many mountain adventures. There are tons of good, useful hiking sites that give great trail info. I couldn't even begin to offer trail advice, there are far more knowledgeable people than I for that.
This blog is for myself, so I can remember the different places we've visited over the years, and capture the moments we've experienced. But if anyone cares to read it, or find inspiration, then all the better.
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