{"id":960,"date":"2015-04-25T18:01:02","date_gmt":"2015-04-25T23:01:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maxheap.net\/at2015\/?p=960"},"modified":"2022-01-02T10:10:10","modified_gmt":"2022-01-02T18:10:10","slug":"penultimate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maxheap.net\/at2015\/penultimate\/","title":{"rendered":"Penultimate!"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"At<\/a>

At the Georgia border. Photo by Dirty Bird who- with Ducky- came to cross into the 14th and final state with me!<\/p><\/div>\n

…as in, the post before my final post. I’m writing from the ‘Top of Georgia’ hostel near Hiawasee, Georgia where I’m enjoying my final ‘zero’ on the trail. Today is Saturday 4\/25 and I’ve got 69 miles left of my hike, 2116 miles behind me. I’m in the 14th and final state on the trail and assuming all goes well, will summit the AT’s southern terminus (Springer Mountain, Georgia) Wednesday morning, have dinner with a couple of trail brothers (Dirty Bird and Ducky) that evening and then hitch a ride with them to the Atlanta airport where Wendy has already booked me a flight home early Thursday morning. I should be sleeping in my own bed again in a few short days!<\/p>\n

With the end now so close, I’m very emotional about the experience. I was asked this morning to sum it up for Cappy, a great young north bound hiker at the opposite end of her journey. I could hardly get out a sentence without choking up. So, rather than wax melodramatic, I’ll leave this post brief and save any pontificating for my final remarks in my upcoming last post, probably about a week from now.<\/p>\n

Before I leave you with a bunch of new photos, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude. I’m struggling to express how sincerely I’ve appreciated the support, encouragement and interest from so many along the way. And at the very top of that list of people to thank is Wendy. There is simply no way this journey of a lifetime would have happened without you. Though I’ve said it privately a bunch of times, I want to say it publicly too, so that everyone else knows how amazing you’ve been throughout the trip. Thanks again Wend!<\/p>\n

Ok, so ends my\u00a0second-to-last installment and once again, your comments are very welcome. Enjoy the pix and happy trails, wherever your feet find you. Max<\/p>\n

\"Waterfall<\/a>

Waterfall near Georgia border<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Me<\/a>

Me on the observation tower<\/p><\/div>\n

\"From<\/a>

From an observation tower- my pack and poles on the wall<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Observation<\/a>

Observation tower just before Georgia border<\/p><\/div>\n

\"No<\/a>

No sir, officer, I didn’t carve it<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Rolling<\/a>

Rolling hills, North Carolina style<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Stone<\/a>

Stone cistern near Georgia border<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Moth<\/a>

Moth on a bathroom stall, NOC<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Reunion<\/a>

Reunion with Campfire (middle) and Young Guns, who I met on day 1 of the hike<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Misty<\/a>

Misty water<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Fontana<\/a>

Fontana dam from above<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Peaks<\/a>

Peaks awash in fog south of the Smokies<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Muddy<\/a>

Muddy trail 1<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Turkey<\/a>

Turkey or small ostrich<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Muddy<\/a>

Muddy trail 2<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Klingman's<\/a>

Klingman’s dome in the rain<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gatlinburg<\/a>

Gatlinburg street 1<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gatlinburg<\/a>

Gatlinburg street 2<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Gatlinburg<\/a>

Gatlinburg street 3<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Newfound<\/a>

Newfound Gap, Smoky Mountains<\/p><\/div>\n

\"More<\/a>

More Smoky Mountains<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Mist<\/a>

Mist again<\/p><\/div>\n

\"The<\/a>

The trail on a clearer morning<\/p><\/div>\n

\"20<\/a>

20 plus people hiding from cold rain in a shelter<\/p><\/div>\n

\"I<\/a>

I love misty mornings on the trail<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Debris<\/a>

Debris from airplane crash in Smokies<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Muddy<\/a>

Muddy trail 3<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Ridgerunner<\/a>

Ridgerunner Andrew, Animal and Chip Monk<\/p><\/div>\n

\"4th<\/a>

4th pair of shoes-wounded<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Always,<\/a>

Always, the mountains<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Max<\/a>

Max Heap enjoying sunrise at Max Patch<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Moon<\/a>

Moon just before dawn<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Trail<\/a>

Trail angel Greg and his dad George…last time I saw them was on Moosilauke in New Hampshire!<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Mav's<\/a>

Mav’s love note to Birdie in a shelter log…awwww!<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Yukon<\/a>

Yukon Cornelius, the 100th Nobo hiker I met on the day I left hot springs<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Just<\/a>

Just a nice view<\/p><\/div>\n

\"4th<\/a>

4th pair of shoes- still healthy<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Nice<\/a>

Nice plaque<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Clearly<\/a>

Clearly God wants me to wash my hands<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Hot<\/a>

Hot Springs- a great trail town<\/p><\/div>\n

\"Maxheap<\/a>

Maxheap on the move<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

…as in, the post before my final post. I’m writing from the ‘Top of Georgia’ hostel near Hiawasee, Georgia where I’m enjoying my final ‘zero’ on the trail. Today is Saturday 4\/25 and I’ve got 69 miles left of my hike, 2116 miles behind me. I’m in the 14th and final state on the trail […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-960","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-trail-notes"],"yoast_head":"\nPenultimate! - 2015 AT Sobo<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/maxheap.net\/at2015\/penultimate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Penultimate! - 2015 AT Sobo\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"…as in, the post before my final post. I’m writing from the ‘Top of Georgia’ hostel near Hiawasee, Georgia where I’m enjoying my final ‘zero’ on the trail. Today is Saturday 4\/25 and I’ve got 69 miles left of my hike, 2116 miles behind me. I’m in the 14th and final state on the trail […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/maxheap.net\/at2015\/penultimate\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"2015 AT Sobo\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-04-25T23:01:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-01-02T18:10:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/maxheap.net\/at2015\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/IMG950035.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Maxheap\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Maxheap\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Maxheap\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/026dc760066c95524e529e890ddfe23a\"},\"headline\":\"Penultimate!\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-04-25T23:01:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-01-02T18:10:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":880,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/026dc760066c95524e529e890ddfe23a\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/04\\\/IMG950035.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Trail Notes\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/maxheap.net\\\/at2015\\\/penultimate\\\/\",\"name\":\"Penultimate! 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