(Dick's Creek Gap (mile 69.2) - Standing Indian Shelter (mile 85.9))

I woke up at 7am which gave me more than enough time to shower, pack, and stretch before the shuttle was scheduled to leave the Budget Inn at 9am. I loaded into the van along with Tyler, Caroline, and a young lady thru-hiker who introduced herself as "Squid." She explained that she got her trail name because her last name is "Calamari." We reached Dick's Creek Gap at 9:15am and I sat near the parking lot to prepare my breakfast while Tyler, Caroline, and Squid set off down the trail.

While I ate breakfast, I reflected on my previous experience with this section of trail. Last summer, I rather spontaneously decided to do an overnight backpacking trip on the AT. The section I chose was Dick's Creek Gap to the Georgia/North Carolina border, which I was hoping to knock out today before lunchtime. In the summer, it struck me as a really pretty section of trail and I was excited to hike it again.

As soon as I climbed out of the gap, the wind began its assault. As I hiked, I was constantly readjusting my adventure hat to ensure it would not be stolen off my head by vicious wind goblins. I soon started to pass many familiar faces including Squid, Daphne, Detox, Tyler, Caroline, and Painless. I also ran into a few new faces including Joe, who almost always hikes shirtless and has earned the trail name "Nipslip" - which he hates.

I soon made it to the border, where there was a traffic jam of hikers all waiting to take their picture with the sign. I waited my turn and took a few pictures to commemorate finishing my first state of the AT. At 78.1 miles, the Georgia section is not particularly long, but it was my first major milestone on trail and it felt pretty good to step into North Carolina.

Just north of the border is Bly Gap which is home to a really old twisted tree growing in the middle of the trail. I ate lunch near the tree at a small campsite just out of the wind. After lunch I did my mid-day stretches and took time to photograph the old tree.

During my previous overnight trip on this stretch of trail, I had hiked the next couple miles after the border, so I knew that the climb out of Bly Gap was going to be tough. However, I also knew that there was an excellent view at the top so I found myself repeating "we do it for the views" over and over as I climbed. The extreme wind also added excitement to the climb as each gust threatened to carry me off the mountain.

After burning a few calories, I made it to the view on Courthouse Bald. As I soaked in the vista, I realized that I could see Hiawassee in the distance. It was cool to think about how far I had come since 9am.

After another 2 miles of hiking, I made it to Muskrat Creek Shelter. By now it was about 2:30pm and I was starting to feel a little tired. The next shelter was in 4.9 miles so I decided to hike on and see how far I could make it. After about another hour of hiking my feet were starting to ache, so I stopped to rest, air out my feet, and elevate my legs. When I took my socks off, I was surprised to realize that I had developed my first blister! Two exciting milestones in one day: finishing my first state and earning my first blister🎉

I elevated my feet for 20 minutes and then treated my blister. After stretching again, I set off down the trail feeling better. At this point, the skies were teasing rain and I was rather determined to make it to Standing Indian Shelter. I made it at about 5:45pm and quickly set up my tent and hung a bear line as it started to lightly rain.

There were a number of familiar faces at the shelter including Evan, Madeleine, and another thru-hiker named Jack who was now going by the trail name "Captain." After eating dinner, Madeleine nonchalantly approached me and asked if I had any confidence in my bear bag hanging abilities. I laughed and explained that I had spent my last three nights on trail teaching fellow hikers to hang bear bags.

By this point in the evening the rain was starting to pick up, but fortunately Madeleine was a quick learner and soon we had her bag hung. I then quickly retired to my tent in anticipation for a stormy night. As I lay in my tent, cozily wrapped up in my sleeping quilt, I reflected on a successful day of big miles and quietly wondered if my body would make me regret it in the morning😅

Wind goblins are out!
Hold tight to your gear or they
will steal it away