Plan for the worst

I had told The Girl that I wanted to go on a short backpacking trip this weekend.  I told her a couple weeks ago.  As the date neared, and the forecasts were made (highs in the mid forties, lows at or below freezing), she began asking with increased frequency whether I still planned to go, and laughing harder each time I said Yes.

I felt better when I looked at the forecast for Suches, GA.  If I had left when I intended this year, I'd be a little north of there by now.  It's a worse forecast than where I plan to hike.  I can't decide whether my favorite part is "much cooler than yesterday," or "70% chance of precipitation."  Snow is ok.  Cold rain can ruin you.

Forecast for Suches, GA on March 21, 2013, around 8 AM.  20 miles north of Springer Mountain on the AT.

I checked the weather in Suches because I wanted to get an idea of how bad it might be, and it turned out to be even worse than here.  That's good news for a lot of reasons.  First and foremost: it's worse than here, where I plan to hike.  Second, I'm only out for a couple days this weekend.  I can test my gear, see how it performs, and never be too far away from my car if I need to bail.  Not that I expect to bail--I also need to test myself.  Next summer, I won't have the option of fleeing bad weather.  I'm going to live in whatever happens for four or five months straight, and will only see my car when it comes to bring me cookies.  I need to make sure that I can handle a few days straight of being really unhappy and cold, because it could just as easily become a couple weeks.  I'm actually happy that it's going to be so cold this weekend.

I'm also happy it's not supposed to rain where I am.  I don't mind being tested, but we only need to test so much at a time.  This should hold me for the weekend.