In scouts growing up day three was always considered the hardest day of any adventure. Day 3 is usually the day when the wonder has worn off, you're tired from having your sleep disturbed, and you're getting tired of dealing with the people around you. So when a quarrel between an owl and a whipperwill woke me at 5am I wondered if i was going to have a day 3 experience or not.

The night before had high winds and dipped into colder temps down to 38 degrees, so my rest was occasionally interrupted by a cold draft under my quilt. I could have clipped it into my sleep system, but a tired backpacker doesnt always make the best decisions. You see, my sleeping arrangement is a closed-celled foam accordion mat with an inflatable backpacking mattress on top. Then i have a sleeping quilt, not bag, that comes with basically a fitted sheet. The quilt clips into this fitted sheet, which slips over the top of my sleeping pad. The quilt allows more movement and is less restrictive than a sleeping bag. Additionally, when you sleeps in a sleep bag, you compress the filling that you are on top of, removing most of the warming ability. However, quilts can be drafty, as I was reminded last night.

So, after my morning serenade i was up and got to work breaking down camp before a warm breakfast. Breaking camp with Milo in the morning after breakfast my legs felt a bit stiff, but my spirits were high. We made good time to the next gap, 3 miles away, and refilled water. I decided I should stretch before starting back up, so Milo and I said our farewells. Im glad I stretched as the trail up Blood Mountain was rough. The veiws at the top were worth it, however, what goes up, must come down. Hiking down the mountain was harder than going upnit, I however I was still glad to be going down the side it did. There were many rock faces that I had to guide myself as I slid down them. Thank goodness for treking poles, or else i would have fallen on my face several times before I reached the bottom.

After the peaks leading to and from Blood Mountain i was happy to find myself at Neels Gap and Mountain Crossing Hostel. This was my first stay at a hostel and my first resupply on the trail. Thankfully, my next resupply was only 2-3 days away, and I overpacked food for the first leg of my journey, so I only had to buy a day's worth of food. Even better was the frozen pizza and breakfast foods i got so i didnt have to pack and carry them either.

Even though I was only 3 days in, I took full advantage of the hostel life. For the uninitiated, a hostel is like going to summer camp. You get a bed in a bunk house with a bunch of other hikers. Thankfully, there was only one other hiker I shared the hostil with, named Boston. The older gentleman was section hiking up to Hotsprings, NC. (Section hiking is where you hike one portion of the trail at a time.) We spent our time chatting about the trail and other places we have backpacked as we I did laundry, took a shower, and ate my frozen pizza. It was nice to get into a rhythm and routine of resupply chores, something I hadn't had the chance to practice before getting on the trail.

Additionally, it was nice to be able to prep my pack the night before. My nightly routine on trail is making sure I remove all food from my pack pockets and clothing to put into my bear canister. At the hostel, I was able to pack just about everything other than my charging electronics, morning pills, and bedding for the night.

As I got into my bottom bunk for the night, it seemed as if day three wasn't so bad after all.

Summary of Progress:

• Miles Completed: 13.5

• Total Miles Completed: 37

• Location: Georgia

• Weather: Chilly and cool morning. High of only 60