For my birthday this year, I wanted to do something different. For the past several years, I was limited by an arthritic hip, and was really unable to enjoy most activities which required physical exertion. Now that I have had my hip repaired, I decided it was time for a test, and what better test than walking in the foothills of the appalachians, toting a 35 lb backpack?

The intriped crew included my brother in-law, Tony, a friend from work, Mike, and two more friends John and Kevin. We decided on this particular trail as it was rated as easy to moderately difficult, and it was relatively close. We got up late Thursday night so we had booked a cabin for the evening. We enjoyed a few cold beers after a long trip, and decided that in the morning we would eat a nice breakfast and head to the ranger station to get our campsites for the weekend and head out. Although the morning came too soon (that happens when you crash at 3:00 AM and you aren't 19), we made a hearty breakfast, drank off the last of the beer, and proceeded out to the ranger station.

We were the first ones there, so we got our choice of campsite which helped, because now we could pick our campsites based on the loop we wanted to take, rather than the other way around. With map in hand, we headed out to the site where we would begin our great adventure.

If you haven't ever been to FDR State Park in Pine Mountain, GA, I would highly recommend that you take a look at the website. It was a beautiful park with close to 30 miles of hiking trails, horse trails, campgrounds, cabins, and lakes.

Anyway, we got under way and within two and a half hours, had made our way 9 miles to our campsite. We set up our campsite and decided to go back to explore one of the other campsites that we had passed on the way. Although the other campsite had some level ground (most of ours was slanted towards a small creek), it wasn't very big. We did manage to get a few good looks out over the trees where we could see into the distance. It was a beautiful view, especially for someone who has lived in Florida for way to long. We got back to camp and decided to eat our MRE's and build a campfire. The meals were good and filling, and the fire was roaring pretty good when the rain started to fall. Unfortunately it came down to hard, and we had to move to our tents. This normally wouldn't be an issue, but my brother law and I both bought small hiking tents that weren't even big enough for us to turn around in! Needless to say, that made for a long night. The morning came around soon enough, and although the sun was shining, our equipment was pretty wet. We decided to hike up to Dowdell's knob and give the gear a chance to dry. It was a four mile round-trip, with the first two miles being up all the way. It certainly was a good way to start the day. We got a really nice view from the top, and even got some pictures with a bronze bust of FDR himself.
After we got back, we broke down camp and ate lunch, and then we set off for our second campsite some 8 miles away. Another two and a half hours later, we arrived at our campsite. We quickly set up our camp and gathered some wood for a fire later that night. However, we had already agreed that tonight we would make our way back to the car, so we quickly grabbed our packs and headed the remaining two miles back to the car, and then to town. A quick trip to the convenience store for water and gatorade, a liquor store, and then dinner. The restaurant was a little whole in the wall, but I would definitely go back. I had a blackened ribeye that was outstanding, and the beer was cold!

After our dinner we headed back to the park, and hiked the two miles back to our campsite. We started a fire, had some drinks, and shared some laughs. The next morning it was raining, and continued to do so for the next hour without stop. We all agreed that it was unlikely to stop, so we got up and packed in the rain. A two mile hike out to the truck, and then a quick stop at the ranger station and we were on our way. We made one stop for lunch on the way home, and the perfunctory refueling stops. Although the bed was soft and warm that night, I can't wait until my next (longer) trip out in the wild!

Pictures will be posted soon.