My Mind’s Musings

I just returned from a week long Backpacking trip on the Appalachian Trail. We hiked from Carver’s Gap near Roan Mountain Tennessee 37 miles to Dennis Cove Road in Hampton TN. It was a wonderful time of enjoying the beauty of God’s creation. We had rain and overcast for the first couple of days and it kept the temperatures nice and cool. Everything was pretty wet the first half of the week, but I managed to keep my clothes dry and in turn my body dry, which is extremely important to a person’s comfort while hiking. I went with a group from St. Andrew’s Baptist Church in Panama City FL, where my wife and I attend church on Sunday nights sometimes. We had 13 people, mostly experienced hikers (they have been hiking together for almost 15 years now). This was my 3rd time on a section of the Appalachian Trail and probably my 15th trip since my first at 13 yrs old. I purchased several pieces of new equipment for this hike, including a Eureka! Solitaire tent, a North Face backpack, a Therma-Rest, and a North Face Sleeping Bag. I was very happy with how each performed and highly recommend products from those brands. I had borrowed similar items in the past, but I finally broke down and bought my own.

I thought I would post a few pictures of the trip for your enjoyment. There is nothing like the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains!!

This is a view from the trail. God’s masterpiece of creation was quite evident in the majestic mountain scenery!

This little fawn was lying beside the trail. There were signs that its mother was nearby, but we never saw her. We heard from hikers behind us that the fawn was still there two days later, so unless the Forest Service helped out, unfortunately it probably died from something.

This is me beside a marker at the top of one of the hills that we crossed. This was the second day of the hike and my pack still weighed 50 lbs or more! Way too heavy!!

We hiked up to the top of another hill, and got an unexpected surprise when we ran into this motley crew of cows and steers. Notice the Texas Longhorns in TN.

This is Jones Falls, which is only seen by hiking on the Appalachian Trail. It is a beautiful waterfall, and it made for a nice lunch spot.

I would encourage anyone who has never done much hiking to get up off the couch and start getting out into nature and seeing all the beautiful creation around us.