Finished second short section hike -- some observations.

[Elaikases]

Would have been longer but my wife came down with vertigo. Turns out it had nothing to do with the trail and was fixed with PT.

But it was interesting talking with a shuttle driver about the trail and gear.

Number one mistake: carrying too much food.
Number two mistake: undercalculating how much food you need to eat to meet your calorie needs (people still have too much food).

Other observations. The drought in Georgia meant we got to a shelter, there were still crumbs inside from people eating and not cleaning up. We swept them out. In the morning, they were still there, no shelter mice around because they had left for places with more moisture.

Acorns falling every 2-3 minutes are loud.

Rangers and hunters in the woods were (a) not observable but (b) meant no bears or wildlife anywhere.

Carrying two back packs (while getting my wife out to a road for a shuttle) is a lot heavier than one.

People taking motorcycles up into the trail area and trashing out the only spring for miles in order to go mudding in the midst of a drought -- not so cool.

Georgia in October was very pretty.

Arkansas trails were nice, but did not really compare with Georgia.

[RockDoc]

[QUOTE=Elaikases; food you need to eat to meet your calorie needs [/QUOTE]


You don't need to do that because you can train your body to hike using body fat for fuel. That is the default condition for the body.
The old "calories in/calories out" idea never worked for dieters, and it doesn't work for hiking either.

[ryply76]

Wow sounds like a tough experience. Congrats on dealing with all that and finishing.

[RangerZ]

Would have been longer but my wife came down with vertigo. Turns out it had nothing to do with the trail and was fixed with PT.


Rangers and hunters in the woods were (a) not observable but (b) meant no bears or wildlife anywhere.

If you saw the Rangers somebody screwed up. They see you more than you see them.

[Gritty]

People taking motorcycles up into the trail area and trashing out the only spring for miles in order to go mudding in the midst of a drought -- not so cool.

That's the part of your post that most concerns me. Is there no way to control these yahoos?

[Venchka]

That's the part of your post that most concerns me. Is there no way to control these yahoos?

"You can't fix stupid."
Wayne


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Hosh]

I think horses and mules cause far more damage to trails and water sources. I don't bitch because most areas are multi-use and I would prefer to keep them that way.

I don't need some mindless bureaucrat in Washington DC dictating what everybody can and can't do, so I just shut up and tolerate it.