SubmittedHere we are in the stinging wind at Unicoi Gap just before starting the second half of our Appalachian Trail hike in 2019. The shuttle driver spoke the truth as we really were about to hike the toughest section in Georgia. I had never used KT Tape (Kinesiology Sports Tape) before this hike. Before we left the hostel that morning, one of our trail friends from Colorado offered it to me and it worked great for my sore knees. Once again, this reinforced the saying I had always heard on the AT: “The Trail Provides.” Pictured with Brad Dyle, from left, are Jared Hertel and Dan Dye.

“For us is the life of action, of strenuous performance of duty; let us live in the harness, striving mightily; let us rather run the risk of wearing out than rusting out.” –Theodore Roosevelt

“You folks are about to hike the easiest section in Georgia,” the kilt-clad shuttle driver from the Top of Georgia Hostel and Hiking Center explained as about half of the group offloaded from the van at Dick’s Creek Gap.

I knew there was more to come and, as he pulled the van back onto the highway heading to our destination at Unicoi Gap, the driver, who based on his attire looked ready for a day in the Scottish Highlands, eyed each of us in the rearview mirror as he said, “You folks, on the other hand, are about to hike the hardest section in Georgia!”

The Roosevelt quote immediately came to mind. I had read it prior to the hike and it seemed fitting. The night at the hostel had come at the midway point of our fifty mile hike and had been a much needed night of recovery.

Sitting in the back of the van the day before as we awaited the other hikers that were coming off the mountain, we listened as the shuttle driver explained our dining options for the evening. When she elaborated that the local Mexican restaurant had the biggest beers she had ever seen, I was sold.

As I sat there dreaming of the cerveza and chimichangas that awaited us later that evening, it began to rain. Dry and comfortable inside the van, I was reminded of another saying I had heard since beginning to hike the Appalachian Trail a few years ago: “The Trail Provides.” Indeed, it had.

One by one, many of the friends we had made along the trail over the past days began to hike down from Blue Mountain and join us. As the van filled, the driver continued to regale us with tales of the feast that awaited in Hiawassee.

The accumulated group in the van ranged in age from early 20s to mid-60s and covered a diverse section of the world ranging from Florida to Pennsylvania to Colorado to Japan. Our disparate bunch included, among others, a recent Harvard graduate, a doctor, a telephone company repairman, a retired Japanese couple, and two college students from Mississippi. However, in spite of our diversity, we were united by the commonality of the trail.

After a wonderful meal at the Monte Alban Mexican Restaurant, we walked to the local Ingles Market to restock our supplies for the remainder of our hike. I was yet again amazed at the support of hikers by the local communities along the trail.

Obviously, our group, wearing the medical scrubs that were provided to us by the hostel to wear while our trail clothes were laundered, was easy to pick out from the crowd of locals in the grocery store. We were either a group of AT hikers staying at the Top of Georgia Hostel or we were a ragtag bunch of misfits from the dayshift at the local hospital. While waiting for the group to finish shopping, we had several strangers ask if we needed a ride back to our lodging for the evening. I was reminded, once again, that “the trail provides.”

Back at the hostel that night, I iced my aching knees and studied the elevation changes for the remainder of the hike. Rocky Mountain, Tray Mountain, and Kelly Knob all awaited us and would certainly be challenging. With the ice packs soothing my knees, I felt as though I definitely fit the “wearing out” category Roosevelt had described.

However, I noticed that several of the younger hikers, including my son, Dan, and his friend Jared Hertel, were also moving a bit gingerly about the room in preparations for the remainder of the hike. If the youngsters were hurting, the “old man” would be fine!

Sleep came easily that night and after a quick breakfast the next morning we gathered our gear and loaded it into the van to head out. Soon, we were stepping into the stinging wind that was funneling through Unicoi Gap and I pondered the driver’s words from the ride over.

We were about to embark on the toughest section of the AT in Georgia. Making our way to the trailhead, we paused for a quick group picture in the frigid wind and were greeted by a stranger with hot donuts. The donuts were the first “Trail Magic” that our Japanese friends had experienced and the man’s statement gave me reassurance. “I got a donut,” he said with a big smile. Again, I realized “the trail provides.”

The AT is an amazing place. If you have never experienced the magic it offers, then make it a part of your outdoor plans. I look forward to my next AT experience in 2020 and I look forward to seeing you out there in our great outdoors!

Email Outdoors columnist Brad Dye at braddye@comcast.net.