On April 3rd, my friends and I began our journey down to Georgia to drop off yours truly and Bowen on the Appalacian Trail. We stayed at the Cascades Inn in Tiger, GA, and got to be right on the water. The next day, we drove down to Juliet, GA, to check out the Whistle Stop Cafe, and of course, we tried the fried green tomatoes and the BBQ.

Once back at the Inn, we drank some cider, I enjoyed my last shower for the foreseeable future and enjoyed the lit up river. The next morning, we watched the sunrise over Tallulah Gorge and then set forth to the Amicalola Visitor Center to check in for my big big walk. On the way, we got breakfast (chinease) and somebody… I won’t name names, decided to throw theirs on the floor of the car, haha. Once at the Visitor Center, I got a sticker, got my passport stamped, checked in at Basecamp, and received my hiker tag–1812.

I started the approach trail, accompanied by my friends, where we climbed 600 steps from the bottom to the top of the falls. At the top, we parted ways, until tomorrow, when I would arrive at the Southern Terminus of the trail, Springer Mtn.

There was lots of rhododendron that engulfed the trail as we walked. We met another dog along the way that is also attempting a thru-hike, Spirit. It was a very hot day, and many people I met had run out of water. We made it to Black Gap shelter just before dark and set up camp. And then I made a rookie mistake that I would be paying for the next couple days: I let my hiking clothes air out on the top of my tent and of course it decided to storm over night. It would be a few days before my clothes dried out, I’d have to rely on my dry thermals. I haven’t been eating enough calories so far, mainly just snacks.

• Date: 4/3/2025-4/05/2025
• Miles: 7.3
• Camp: Black Gap Shelter
• At Mile: 0
  • (They don’t count the Approach Trail in the mileage. If they did, we’d be at mile 7.3).