Blood Mountain
October 1, 2001
Hiking four miles in three hours, my legs screamed for rest, my throat was parched, and a 50-pound backpack was rubbing a fast-rising blister on my shoulder. My hiking buddy and I were making a steady ascent up Springer Mountain, where we hoped to spend the night. We were also discovering that a week's hiking was going to be tougher than we thought. The top of Springer was still a mile away, and the finish line of our journey an incomprehensible 32 miles beyond that. Watching the sweat fall from my brow, it occurred to me that I was going to a great deal of trouble to get away from my ministry obligations for a few days. The idea to hike a portion of the Appalachian Trail had come to me on one of those weeks when the phone rang incessantly, when a long list of administrative duties and counseling needs filled my Daytimer, and when Sunday's unfinished sermon was bearing down like a line of thunderstorms toward my Central Georgia home. Dream big, plan well, choose companions carefully
You can only take so many thunderstorms before you look for cover. Day One:
That week had been remarkably similar to the week before it, and it promised to be much like the week that would follow. I felt some relief as soon as I made the phone call."Darrell," I said to a member of the church, "what would you think about spending a week on the Appalachian Trail?" Darrell is a Master Sergeant in the U.S. Air Force. He has sleeping bags, backpacks, and food for the trail. More important, he has years of camping experience. Calling Darrell was like packing extra confidence in my bag. With him along, I would not likely go hungry, die of thirst, or lose a battle with a bear. For the next several weeks, we gathered all we'd need for the journey. We drank in the ...
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