GA Appalachian Trail - Section 11 - Bly Gap to Dicks Creek Gap

Date	Distance	Time	Elevation Gain	Average Moving Time	Year to Date Miles
5/2/2017	13.2 miles

Map: Appalachian Trail Conservancy, North Carolina-Georgia

Directions: Dicks Creek Gap to Bly Gap. Backtrack 3.2 miles to Blue Ridge Gap. Leave AT and hike 1 mile west on forest service road for shuttle pick up spot.

We are excited to finish Georgia today! Our hostel doesn't shuttle north of Georgia, so we are ending up having to backtrack after we reach the North Carolina border. I looked at the map, and it kind of puts us in a weird spot when we start up again in North Carolina next time. We had a rest day yesterday to miss the rain. Today we had great weather. My body still feels a little slow after our rest day. This section has no views, but is an enjoyable hike. We saw a lot of pink lady slippers along the trail. We went through a burn section as well today.

We took a break at the North Carolina border and had lunch to celebrate. We decided to hike a little further to Bly Gap in order to finish the section. Then we turned around and hiked back to Blue Ridge Gap. Since our hostel changed ownership, the new owners are not yet familiar with all of the pickup spots. On some of our hikes, the shuttle drivers were going to those locations for the first time. Yesterday, another section hiker had gotten picked up at Blue Ridge Gap. The shuttle driver tried to drive to Blue Ridge Gap. I guess they made it, but decided not to do it again! They had us hike a mile down the forest road until it hit pavement. Yeah, driving on that road looked like it would be impossible! We arrived 2 1/2 hours before our shuttle pick up time. We had no cell reception to call them. The hostel is still trying to figure out how to work their shuttles. Luckily, our shuttle driver decided to come an hour early figuring we'd probably finish earlier than our pick up time. Their temporary shuttle driver was the new manager's father. He came to help out his son until they get more organized. We really enjoyed talking to his father and learning about his photography business.

Starting the burn area

I bought this last night as a sugary treat to celebrate making it to NC.

Awkward position to get 1 foot in each state

Hiking down the forest road to our shuttle pick up spot

Chickens at our hostel (fresh eggs every morning for breakfast!)