JBandStacy2014

Well, we have actually decided to leave earlier than the 15^th of December. Today is currently the 5^th and I believe there is a good chance that we will be out of here by tomorrow or the end of the weekend at the latest. Those ten extra days seem to be warm in Georgia, so why not do this? Why not get some more warm days if we can? To be honest, the anxiety here at home is too much and we need to go…we need to just get in the car and go. Someday, everyone reading this will get the entire story behind this trip and why it became such a necessity that we decided to leave in the winter to do it. I just am not willing to tell that story today…maybe in the documentary or in the book, but not just yet. Waiting for Spring simply is just not possible. With all of that said, I have been thinking a lot about what it’s gonna be like for 6 months without regular society. Then I realized, I have been planning this very trip for three years and can’t WAIT to get out of regular society. I can’t wait to remove myself from the constant bad news in the news cycle. I can’t wait to remove myself from Comcast bills and deadlines. I can’t wait to remove myself from this version of life. I truly hope to find something different on the trail. We intend on moving to Charlotte, NC after the hike. I want to eventually set up shuttles for other AT hikers and maybe even open up a hostel. Of course, I would also want to provide some trail magic along the way. I am not sure where Stacy and I go after this trail in terms of us…I guess for her, this trail is about REDEMPTION, so, only time will tell. At the end of the day, I will be standing on Khatadin though and I am sure that she will too. If we do stand on Khatadin, I am sure that next year, we will get married. If we do not…well, we will deal with that then.

She has now woke up and she seems excited about the trail. That actually makes me feel pretty good about her and her odds of finishing the trail. Over the past couple of days, she seems more and more ready for this journey. She seems like SHE wants to finish it for herself now just as much as finishing it for me. I am slightly concerned about the discs in my back and MY pack weight. I think she will be carrying around 25lbs. I think I will be carrying more like 35-40lbs in my pack. We simply could not ultra light this thru hike due to it being the winter. I was not going to spend THOUSANDS in gear for this trip. I know we are carrying heavy, but it is what it is. I am sure we will send things home as it gets warmer and we have the ability to do so. I know that most people advise against this, but we are going to be splitting gear. For instance, she will carry food and clothes while I carry most of the other gear. We will not be splitting up or hiking alone along the trail, so it won’t be an issue.