Tis' the Season

At this time of year, I would be making the final push at school and preparing for summer vacation. A year ago my grades were steadfast after 3.5 years of studying, barring a two month long academic meltdown. This meant I was anticipating mid-week trips to the Indiana dunes, bonfires, the 9am baseball club, and campus golf. Most of these activities required missing a class or an entire day of classes. This was acceptable. My senior year management professor told me the most important thing about senior year was building relationships. I cannot think of a better way to build a relationship than waking up for class, walking out the door, seeing a housemate return from class, replacing our books with gloves, and throwing the baseball around for 2 hours. Thank you Professor Stuck.

Ironically, I feel like I am beginning college for the first time all over again, not finishing it. Many of the same questions are going through my head. Will I like it? Who will I meet? Will I like the food? At least this time I am fairly certain I will not like the food.

I could not be more anxious. Obviously there are common concerns when hiking the AT. Bears, poisonous snakes, freezing temperatures, theft, injury, etc. My biggest fears are none of those. Instead I am worried about rodents. I have heard horror stories of mice and skunks climbing, in, over, and through peoples gear, including the bag they are occupying. If a skunk climbs into my sleeping bag while I am in it, I am dropping my gear and going home. Although it may be more repulsed of my scent than I of it's.

In a couple days I will be joining about 1500 others on the AT. Some have been on the journey for weeks, some are weeks away, some have already quit. I chose my departure time in order to avoid large crowds and the cold as best I can. My sister Sarah is graciously driving me to Amicalola Falls GA, and will join me for the first couple days of the hike.