20th March, 2000
Dad phoned today about 12.30pm to say he'd arrived safely. He managed
to get a 2 hour earlier flight out of L.A. but in Atlanta it was bucketing down
with rain and the plane had to circle the air for an hour. Delta airlines have a
good reputation for cramming in passengers like sardines and have nice hard
seats so that would have been loads of fun for him. He spends the next day or two
in Atlanta before hitting the trail. That's when the real fun will begin!
22nd March, 2000
Dad phoned today. He is at Amicalola Falls Lodge. The weather is 70-75 degrees
and the forecast for the next few days is nice weather. He has found himself a
friend and they've both organised to get a ride up the mountain in the morning
together, which is around
Wednesday PM our time.
27th March, 2000
We've received an e-mail from a lady called Sarah. She said she met up with Dad
a few nights ago at a Shelter area called Woods Hole and offered to contact Mum to let
us know he is doing fine. He is hiking at about a rate of 10 miles a day and is in great spirits. His equipment is
holding up well, in fact, he chose to use his tent at Woods Hole instead of the shelter. After the night in Woods Hole,
they all hiked 4 miles over Blood Mountain into Neals Gap. At this point, there is
was an excellent resupply station, one of the best on the Trail. Sarah stopped
there in order to return home, although her son continued on as a Thur-Hiker. Most of the other
Thur-Hikers spent the night in a local camp ground, got hot baths, and washed clothes. However,
"Downunder", David's Trail Name, chose to continue
hiking that day after resupplying. She said they wished him well and no doubt, some of
the Thru-Hikers will meet up with him later on in the trip. If she hears of any
further updates via her son, she will kindly keep us informed.
28th March, 2000
Dad has wandered into a small town in search of food (he should of taken his bow and arrow so he could spear the
odd berry or two). With a population of approximately 300 it is very much a swiss type village. Dad says he has met lots of people on the trail with their dogs - one in particular caught his fancy - a Siberian Husky. He is avoiding all "Aussie's" from here on because he has determined they are a bunch of whingers! Fancy that! The afternoons have been the most difficult for him as his body gets very tired but so far he is enjoying tent life (well it's been less than a week).
