Winter is Dying: Testnatee Gap to Cowrock Mountain via the AT
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Our adventures began on the Appalachian Trail at Testnatee Gap off Highway 348, a few miles northwest of Helen, Georgia. Gadget & I, along with our friends Paul, Alissa and their pup Cachi, got to see the last remnants of this harsh winter fading away into spring in the bare wilderness. We navigated through slushy snow in the parts of the trail covered in shadows, and watched each step for rocks covered in layers of ice. This 2.25 mile out-and-back hike is a good climb to the top of Cowrock Mountain any time of year, but the ice and snow certainly adds to the difficulty in winter.
Cowrock Level Up: Ice & Snow
Gadget smiles (?) for the camera. I love this beardo weirdo!
I'm not sure where the 'Cow' part of the name comes from, but there's no doubt about 'Rock'. The summit is one giant rock, which makes for a wonderful spot to rest, and of course CARB UP! You don't want to do all that hiking on anything less than a full stomach, do you? #HealthyAtEverySize
Amazing view from the Cowrock summit - not a cloud in the sky.
It was our buddies' first time on the Appalachian Trail, and they loved it! Cachi enjoyed stretching out his legs, too, and was a fun hiking partner for our Lily.
A quick "Where Are They Now?" update on Alissa & Paul: Since this hike, these lovebirds have gotten engaged! Congrats, guys.
Goose, Gadget & Lily
Chilling, like we do.
Lily would give anything for us to let her off the leash so she could explore.
Walking sticks were mandatory for the steep hike down the mountain.
Estimated time reaching the summit: 1 Hour Estimated time reaching the bottom: 20 Minutes
Another beautiful day in the North Georgia Mountains comes to an end.
A Hello The past five months have been an absolute whirlwind. Gadget & I have had so many life changes, and while we haven't been hiking or camping a whole lot, I want to finally write about how our lives have been flipped upside down in some crazy ways & begin to document this journey more frequently.... mostly, so that I myself do not forget these days, when life inevitably speeds up even more over the coming months and years. I know there will be tears as I write this recounting of events; some happy tears & some sad. Since May we have experienced massive gains & losses, and now our hearts have healed enough to reflect on what all has happened, and to realize the net gain we have been awarded. Gadget & I decided earlier this year that our roots had peacefully settled in our careers, our home, and our marriage, and it was time to build our relationship in a new way: we wanted a child. After a few months, I became prematurely impatient with the process, a...
WARNING : Very little hiking (or much of anything, really) went into the making of this vacation. But for the sake of documenting our adventures, I decided to go ahead and write about this wonderful trip anyway. After weeks of fidgeting in anticipation of our summer vacation, on a Wednesday morning, the time had finally arrived. The Camry was loaded the night before, and the alarm was set for 5:30am, like any normal week day. In the early morning fog, Gadget, Lily & I set forth on a 4 and 1/2 hour drive to Edisto Beach, South Carolina. When Gadget and I first met almost eight years ago, I was practically a part-time mermaid, and on the other hand, he was neither a fan of swimming, nor sandy, hot, sunny, crowded beaches. But, give the boy a stunning, untouched, lonely beach like this, and he'll never want to leave. There are two camping areas at Edisto Beach State Park, both of which accommadate tent camping & R...
Every weekend, if not sooner, the urge hits to be away from people and into quiet bliss. On the weekend, I want to be out exploring nature, running my hands over the trees, smelling the wildflowers, feeling the crunch of leaves beneath my feet. Most particularly, on the weekends, I crave mountain vistas -- to the point that my loved ones likely think I'm shady because I visit the mountains more than I visit them. But sometimes, our adult lives milk us dry of the want to travel long distances by the time Friday rolls around, so... we explore locally. Lucky for us, we live in a college town that has quite a few options for hiking. Granted, there's a lot of give and take for me and Gadget when we hike locally -- there's no two-hour drive involved as with our mountain hiking, but obviously, solitude and silence are harder to find in a park that lies smack dab in the middle of a city nicknamed "Little Atlanta". Despite the contstant reminder that we weren...
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