Wednesday

Here's a re-cap from Wednesday since we were so focused on staying warm.

It was quite a chilly morning and packing up camp seemed to take forever. Our hands felt the cold the most as we rolled our sleeping pads and tent.

We started immediately up Blood Mountain into bear country. It was a nice 2.5 mile climb up but the 2.5 miles downhill was brutal with lots of rocks. We gained a greater appreciation for our trekking poles after that.





There is a great shelter at the top but due to the regulations set by the Chattahoochee National Forest, a hard- shell bear canister is required.




The ground has been frozen over along with the mountainside streams.

5 miles into our day we passed through Neel Gap where Mountain Crossing, an outfitter's store is fully equipped with hiking gear and a hostel.

We were pretty well prepared so we purchased a hot shower for $3.50 and kept on hiking for another 7.9 miles.

We were happy to have a spot at the shelter that night since many other hikers stayed at the Neel Gap Hostel.

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Location:Crossing Blood Mountain