Expect the Unexpected
We’ve recently taken up hiking as a hobby. I might’ve sparked the idea one weekend when I mentioned that I wanted to get out in nature. At the time, I was thinking more along the lines of running, but then I think Krissy started doing some research and we settled on hiking.
Thus far, we’ve completed 2 hikes. The first one was at Fort Yargo, which was close to our house, but not really a true hike. It was more like a nature walk around a lake that was also attached to a huge park/outdoor recreational area. I think the total route was 6 miles and it was a nice big loop so there was no way to get lost. There were benches throughout and it was a well-maintained path with not many rocks, roots, or obstacles.
Since it was our first hike ever, it was a pretty good litmus test. I figured if we could walk a long distance on mostly flat ground, we’d do alright walking shorter distances that require bigger changes in elevation, more obstacles, and whatnot.
When we went to Fort Yargo, it wasn’t too hot. I wore biker shorts and my quarter zip jacket since it was actually kind of cool that day. Krissy wore some regular shorts and a long sleeve shirt in case he got hot. There weren’t too many bugs (thankfully) and we finished right at 2 and a half hours. We both got some hiking boots to protect our feet and ankles from the rough terrain. I never knew how beneficial they were until we recently got out on the trails. You could really sprain an ankle or get seriously injured without the proper footwear.
My feet have always had an issue fitting into some shoes. My left foot is definitely bigger than my right and it’s sometimes a struggle keeping my feet from sliding down into the toes of certain shoes like heels. Usually, I just suck it up and walk around with a cramped pinky toe. That’s what happened on the first hike when we were going downhill. My left foot was stagnant in my shoe, but the socks I wore made my right foot slide into the toe of the shoe and caused me more grief than not. The fact that my toenails needed to be clipped might’ve also added to my discomfort. A couple of days later, we went to Academy to get me a proper pair of wool hiking socks since we had another hike planned for that next weekend.
The next hike was far away near Dahlonega. We went prepared (or at least we thought we did) with water, a change of shoes, snacks, and sweat towels. First off, it was a struggle finding the trailhead. Google Maps and Waze incorrectly marked it, but since we wanted to do some off-roading in the 4Runner anyways, we eventually found the trailhead by continuing down a dirt and gravel road. We lost cell service halfway down this road, but thankfully regained it towards the end. Then, when we found the parking area, there were 3 different paths that also confused us for a second.
We were using AllTrails as a guide, but there were some moments we had to put our brains together to figure out. We started off down the trail and immediately spotted the difference between this moderate trail and the easy trail from Fort Yargo. It was waaaaay rockier. There was barely room for people to pass since the trail itself wasn’t as wide. The inclines and declines were super steep and there was no way anyone would be able to complete that trail unless they were in decent shape.
We also got the length of the hike confused. The internet said the trail was a 3 mile out and back route. In our novice minds, that translated to 1.5 miles there and 1.5 miles back. Unfortunately for us, it actually meant 3 miles there and 3 miles back. We were trucking along pretty well up until the halfway point. We were promised a scenic waterfall that never appeared. We did get a scenic view of the mountains, but got swarmed by mosquitos. There were literally sooooo many bugs at that clearing. It was almost like they were all congregating in that one small area and pounced on any and everyone that stopped to catch their breath.
After the lackluster view, we decided to call that our victory and head back to the car. As we started our trek back, it literally started pouring on us. Not drizzling, not misting, but whole pouring rain lol. We kept going to try and make it to the car, which was still close to 2 miles away. There were no shelters to get to or anywhere to take cover, and since the trail was so rocky, we had to be careful where we stepped since the rocks were slippery. After a while it stopped and we started to dry off. We rung the water out of our hats, shirts, and got ourselves together to finish the hike, but right when we were 10 minutes away from the car, it started pouring AGAIN.
Krissy was checking the weather report every day for the area and there was no rain projected so the fact that we got drenched was crazy. Safe to say, that was a hike for the memory books and it taught us to invest in a waterproof bag, bring a rain jacket AND an extra pair of clothes, and to expect the unexpected when out in nature.
Signed,
Jessica Marie
