Heads up

I will no longer be posting on this site, if you would like to follow along on my trip head over to

www.jtlifeonthetrail.WordPress.com

Suches, GA

My grandparents were awesome enough to wake up at 2:30 in the morning on Wednesday to drive up to Amicalola  Falls state park so I could get started on the approach Trail at 11, the ascent up the waterfall was very beautiful and slightly taxing but nothing to complain about. I made it the Springer Mountain (8.8 miles in the official start of the trail )  with in hour and a half . There I meet up with a hiking partner (Trail name Medic, will tell how he got that name in a bit) and we pushed on another 8.1 over a iced over trail to make it to the first shelter I would sleep at ( Hawk Mountain Shelter)
We arrived with maybe 30 mins of daylight left. Made dinner and collected water to refill our supplies.

There where 4 other hikers sleeping in the shelter and maybe 8 others sleeping in tents surrounding the area. went off to bed around 9:30 to toss and turn for a bit( fighting a head cold)  Around 2 o'clock or so one of the hikers that was staying in his tent comes up to the shelter and starts making a bit of noise saying " I'm very sorry guys I'm just really sick" at first I  didn't really understand what the guy was trying to say but after he kept repeating it and sound like he was slurring his words it became clear he wasn't in very good shape.

He had gotten a stomach bug of some kind and (lost control) and he completely soiled his clothing. The air temp at the time was maybe 28° so he got hypothermic very fast . me and Morgan ( Medic) and a fellow hiker quickly jumped out of our sleeping bags to start to help this guy out. We tried to get a fire going to get him warmed and luckily the other hiker had a thermometer and a emergency solar blanket ( his body temp was down to 92 ) we were able to get his body temp back up to the 98 range by getting him warm food , wrapping him up in the solar blanket, and the small fire. Luckily he had contacted his wife to arrange a pickup for him at the closest fire road. And we finished it out by escorting him out to be picked up.

And that is how Morgan "Medic"( Trained EMT)  got his name because he knew his stuff and was able to assist in helping this guy out.

We hiked around 13 miles today to make it to my first hiker hostel. We summited around 10 mountains today and they kicked our ass.  But nothing warm food and a bed can't fix , both of our knees are giving us some problems( mine from a running injury and medics from a heavy pack )

www.jtlifeonthetrail.wordpress.com

Please got to that site to see more photos for some reason this won't let me post more than one

Saying Goodbye

The date has been set in stone after years of waiting , on February 17 I start my trek.
I was previously really  hoping to leave on the 15th but due to a "wintery mix" on the weather forecast for the roads. The 17th is the day!

Today is Sunday which means I went for my last trail run with the running group this morning( beautiful view of the Marsh )  and  also that I'm having my "happy trails " farewell get together with very few family members and friends.

This past Monday was my last day at work and I had to start saying my goodbyes to friends and co-workers. It's a little strange but it hasn't felt real until now... ( And for those of you who don't know, as soon as I finish the trail I move out to Hawaii for work for a 6 month internship with the national park service) so I was saying goodbye to people that could've very well be the last time I will ever get to see them.  But the way I have  always looked at it is this , people come in and out of your life and it's a wonderful learning experience, but what matters is how you spent the time you had together. And I can  proudly say I made the most of it and learned a hell of  alot from all of you whether you know it or not.

This has been such a pipe dream for the longest time now that it almost seems a little overwhelming now that it's arrived. 

Now the key is just to live in the moment and go with the flow and remember it's always worth it in the end!

Check out the photo of the tree with that white Blaze on it! That just shows you how awesome my mom is , she made the get together a trail theme and that was really the cherry on top! (The white Blaze is what I follow the whole trail) 

So I knew going into this I would have to say goodbye , but hot damn I didn't think it would be this hard 

Marathon

I was going to hike the A.T. last year leaving around the same time but decided to push it back a year for a few reasons , at the time i was pretty bummed about not going ,but looking back now I don't regret it for a second.
I was able to do things the proper way, spending time with family members and new and old friends, I  accomplished goals I set to myself and really solidified my desire to go hike.
Because I stayed I was able to finish getting my captain's license  (a process I was working on for 5 yrs)  Also I dedicated myself to training for a marathon that was ran on the  3rd of January.  (After training for 26 weeks I'm now obsessed with running and accomplished something I never thought I'd be able to do.)

So as the trail comes speeding towards me it's bringing alot of things into perspective.  I have a really good life filled with truly great people. Leaving will be hard for many reasons but my mantra while I was training for the marathon was this, "No matter how hard it gets, it's always worth it in the end"  so I will hold true to this while on the trail. Under no circumstances will I give up, I know saying that now is one thing and it will really be tested once I'm doing 20 miles a day and walking through a foot of snow  and dodging lightning  on mountain tops while sleep deprived and hangry (but that is what makes it awesome right;)

I recently posted a video on a YouTube channel that I plan to keep updated along the trail. 
https://youtu.be/FllpsvmN4UA

This morning I'm out to go for a trail run with a really great group of people who I met because I stayed this year.

Gearing Up

So in the hiking world your base weight comes down to your big 3. Being your pack itself then your shelter and finally your sleeping system. The General rule is that if you can get your big 3 under 9 lbs you are golden .

                          My big 3

Pack: frameless Go Lite jam 70 - 1lb 14 ounces

Sleeping system: Rei flash 29° down/primaloft - 1lb 10 ounces
Therma rest sleeping pad so lite R value 2.8 (this pad also doubles as a frame for my pack ) 14 ounces
I have a pillow but it is a stuff sack that is reversible with a fleece liner so,I'm not including that as part of my sleeping system. I will more than likely add a sleeping bag liner to my system for the winter season in the beginning.

Tent : six moon designs, trekker
It has no poles included,  you use your trekking poles as the tent frame so it really cuts down the weight.
24 ounces

So my big three comes out to 5.8 lbs so let's round up call that 6 lbs!  Not bad!
(Side note I never purchased any of these items at retail price , I always waited for them to go on sale.)
We will go into more detail on gear later on when things get closer.
Currently sitting at 74 days out till Springer mountain. 
My marathon is on January 3rd so I'm just trying to focus on one thing at a time.

Changing of the seasons

132 days out (at the latest )

The cooling temperatures and more frequent northeast breeze signals winter is coming, which means the trail is that much closer. For the past few nights I have found myself restless with my mind going 100 mph contemplating my gear selection and going over what needs to be done before heading to Amicola falls.

I recently went on a small overnight backpacking trip (shakedown hike) to Jennings state forest. Me and my hiking partner got a very late start on the day and arrived to the campsite an hour and half after  civil twilight to be met with another family of campers that were more than welcoming of us , offering us food and drinks and even better a warm fire to gather around. Turns out they were from a neighboring town and had canoed out to the spot to celebrate their son's 18th birthday. My hiking partner and I contributed what would could (which consisted of gather a bit of wood for the fire) but It's people like those that make hiking and camping really an amazing experience more than willing to share with people they have never met and have little to offer in return. (Trail magic)

I am currently 10 weeks out from my first marathon so the training for the race and trail continues.

I Hope everyone is enjoying this fall weather. -J.T.

Shakedown hike= smaller hikes that help determine your gear's usefulness and what is not really needed. More gear means more weight and remember I'm carrying my house on my back for 7 months so every ounce counts!

Trail Magic, defined as an unexpected act of kindness, is a quintessential part of the Appalachian  trail experience for many long-distance hikers.