It has been a couple of weeks since I was able to get back to hiking. I received my new sleeping bag, but discovered that even compressed it would not fit in my Atmos 65 pack. The compressed size is 12"x12" and the Atmos throttles down in the center. After another trip to REI, I now have a Gregory 75 pack. I can fit the compressed sleeping bag into this pack, especially since it opens from the back of the pack also. It is slightly heavier than the other pack but seems to fit better. Total pack weight loaded was close to 40 lbs. I will see what I can omit to lesson the weight, but for this hike I wanted to maximize the weight I was carrying. Since this was a day hike my son, Jason, and his dog, Brooks, joined me.
We hiked from Clairmont Gap to Adams Gap a distance of about 6.5 miles. Most of the trail was rocky terrain. This was made more difficult by the leaves that covered the rocks which made footing unsure. This meant that because I travel so slow it made me go ever slower. The extra pack weight and being out of shape contributed to that also. We only averaged about 1 mile an hour. I could not walk and enjoy the views without tripping on the rocks, so I stopped alot to look around. It was a beautiful day and the views from the trail were fantastic. I have included a couple of pictures below.
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