At about 9 am this morning, I started hiking the AT Approach Trail with Michael. The falls were a nice view, even if the long staircase climb was not much fun. Michael helped out by carrying my poles up the stairs to the top of the falls, since the stairs were metal grates that were not very trekking-pole-friendly.
We stopped for lunch around 11:30, and then Michael headed back, as I continued up the trail. Michael's wife generously made me a peanut butter sandwich.
Around 2:30, after about nine miles on the Approach Trail, I reached the summit of Springer Mountain. After a short rest, I began my hike of the Appalachian Trail.
After about 11.6 miles of hiking today, I reached the second shelter on the trail, the Stover Creek Shelter, which unfortunately doesn't get cell coverage. Oh well, I'll update the blog tomorrow.
I collected some water, ate dinner, took a nap, and then chatted with fellow hikers before going to sleep. Dinner was the dehydrated meal I bought for the test hike I never did.
Tomorrow, I'd like to be able to make it to the Gooch Mountain shelter, another 13 miles up the trail.