#101 Section Hike Seven - Damascus VA to Mountain Lake Road (195 miles)
Preparation and Staging Vehicles
Appalachian Trail Section Hike - Spring 2021
Each year when winter gives way to spring my mind begins drifting towards the Appalachian Trail (A.T.) miles away, the trail itself begins to come alive - blooming with plant life and new animal life. Snow begins to melt. Browns give way to greens. Hikers appear, eager to begin their long treks along this winding path.
I am anxious to join them, to leave my footprints in the trail’s soil, to begin my next section hike this June. I stand on my balcony at sunset envisioning myself high on a mountain, as though I’m watching the light fade from the sky after a long day’s hike from there. I begin going over my gear list, thinking of thing I need and don’t need on the next wilderness excursion, forever thinking of ways to lighten the pack. I begin inspecting my gear to make sure each piece is in good condition. I study the maps to prepare mentally for the elevation changes. I change my exercise routines to prepare my body for those same elevation changes.
This year is no different. Thousands of hikers are beginning their long trek from Springer Mountain in Georgia, in hopes of making it to Mount Katahdin before sickness or injury or loss of interest or family issues or a myriad of other unforeseen events cause them to leave the trail. They push ever forward at the pace of a couple miles an hour for six to ten hours a day. They sleep in tents and shelters. They eat from small food bags while sitting on a log or a rock or the ground or picnic table, or even while walking. They catch rides into town to resupply or stop at hostels to do laundry, shower, and reset for the next five or seven-day section. They make friends with other hikers. Some find themselves surrounded by the same group of hikers day after day. Some find their personalities blend as well as their hiking speeds, so they decide to hike together, making decisions together, moving as a group. These groups become a tramily (trail family).