Blast Off!

We all met up in Chattanooga and were reunited with another fellow Peace Corps Volunteer.  We had the pleasure of seeing the St. Chatty's Day Parade in Chattanooga while decked out in St. Patrick's Day gear.  Of course Chattanooga Choo Choo was running through my head and then we saw this in one of the parks!

We got our groceries and fuel for the stoves before loading up our packs.  I was disappointed to learn that my pack was the heaviest of the three of us.  Despite the advice of multiple thru-hikers assuring me that a 45 liter pack would be plenty big, my first packing attempt resulted in hysterical laughter from my fellow hikers.  It was stuffed to the max and towering over me. We had a great at our friend's parents house before heading off to bed.

In the morning we were driven to Springer Mountain accompanied to the top by a fellow PCV and her dad. The weather was beautiful! We took pictures, said goodbye in the parking lot, and were on our way to hike the Appalachian Trail.