so here we all are heading down the pidgeon river, had a great time laughing and falling(jumping) out of the raft. in several of the pictures you can clearly see debbie resting , instead of paddling. just when we needed her the most too!! but we somehow managed to get the raft safely through the rapids . no one died of was seriously injured, trip was a success!!
Categories: Uncategorized
after a 15 mi hike into erwin, 5 miles on the road before someone would pick me up. I made it to the holiday inn and checked in. did laundry sat in the hot tub, and of course took a shower and stocked up on beer and snacks. deb and the girls arrived at 7 pm and then we headed to dinner, where I proceeded to devour 2 dinners. seems only right given my anemic apperance. the girls are grossed out by my slender form? told you ,I now have the body of an 18 yr old!! it even grosses me out. we went for a ride on weds up to the smokey park and drove to klingmans dome. had to hike to the top and ,of course, it was socked in by rainy foggy misty clouds. I proceeded to cache some busch beer in a secret hiding spot so’s I’ll have something to celebrate with when I summit the highest elevation on the appalachian trail. pictures to follow in a couple of weeks. hilary was sick with the strep, so we had to wait at the local medstop while she recieved treatment. seems to be ok today,(thursday) , so we headed to the raft hq and headed down the pidgeon river for a short and somewhat tame raft trip. what the hey, it was entertainment for an hour. we are now in knoxville and at the hampton inn downtown and expect to attend a free concert in the park tonite,weather permitting. tomorrow maybe a movie,I heard that angels and demons is out? I gotta see that!! and the girls head back to st loo by greyhound fri night. deb and I will head back to erwin where we have reservations at uncle johnnies hostel, and hit the trail sat morning . she will hike for a few days (5) and drive back to st loo on thursday. then its on to the smokey park and the remaining 300 mi south to springer mtn. judging by the terrain profiles I’ve seen, there will be some pretty good climbs coming up. stay tuned!!
Categories: Uncategorized
I’ve had a pretty good week since stopping in damascus. 8 days of hiking and am now at mile 650. thats about 350 left to go in this southern half of the trail. the girls and deb,(my honey) , are coming for a visit and a rafting trip. we’ll spend a few days hanging, then deb and I will spend the balance of the week hiking as far as we want between erwin and hot springs. hopefully the weather will cooperate and give us some nice clear skies. the rains have returned over the past 2 days. but its been , thankfully warm, and not unpleasant. just a tad inconvenient, when it comes to packing up in the morning. I’ve been camping near shelters so I have the use of the dry space in the morning to pack, and at night to cook. but over all the rains have been sporatic and not a big deal. the terrain, however, has been getting steeper and steeper. looks like the smokey mtn park will be a week from now and quite challenging. the weather concerns me more, since I can do nothing about that and feel confident that I can climb just about anything!! have heard some stories about bears hovering near several shelters and harassing campers and stealing all their food. one such bruin chased a lad from his hammock and then proceeded to trash his gear. all for the taste of a little toothpaste!! thats one hungry bear!! so extra care will be taken to hang my food away from the tent area, and cooking in a different place. The scenery continues to be amazing, with the exception of roan mountain, with its proported 360 deg views, it was totally socked in, like a 50 ft view, instead of miles and miles. oh well, thats the chance you take. hope the temps stay mild, as they have , and not go ballastic. although a bit warmer would make swimming in the tasty tropical,(looking), springs so much more inviting.
Categories: Uncategorized
with week 6 done, and 450 mi gone past. I can hardly believe how far I’ve come. Its really been a journey. Its been the hardest adventure I’ve ever been on. I’ve expended 10 times the effort of last years bike across america. I can’t believe how thin I’ve become. My chest and shoulders are puny, my waist and love handles….GONE!! absolutely getting whittled down to my absolute lowest weight since high school.but the sights I’ve seen!! everyday something new and beautiful. pictures really do not do this trail justice. always a new wild flower,view,or animal to see. some people to talk to ,occasionally, and the serenity of being surrounded by the forest and the mountains. OH,MY GOD!!! there is always a huge climb to tackle ,everyday. and with my powerful legs and lungs and heart,(along with weak mind) ,up the climbs I go. I keep my head down and puff along,one foot ahead of the other until, POP! I’m at the top and cruising down the otherside. here we go again! because what goes down must come up! but not before visiting a beautiful stream valley, where I will probably rest awhile , collect some water, or stop for a visit with a fellow hiker. to me , this is one giant campout! because the one thing that I love about backpacking? STOPPING!! setting up camp, writing in my journal,reading a novel,listening to the radio, and most of all???? EATING!!! I’m becoming quite the back country chef! one pot meals are my speciality. heres a new one! lipton soup with instant mashed potatoes and a foil pack of tuna. YUM!! fills up my TUMMY!! and thats the name of this game isn’t it? food is fuel. big bang up breakfast of bagel with peanut butter and honey,a load of oatmeal and a cup of coffee. my morning is complete. lunch usually is gorp and a pop tart or granola bar. I carry so much food the average load for these kids hiking north is 3-4 days worth of ramen. I carry 7-10 days worth of good eatin and usually get to town with a day or more left in my bag. these kids now-a-days! always lookin for the short-cut! bye-bye for now!! mt rodgers becons and I’m drawn to the challenge!!
Categories: Uncategorized
Categories: Uncategorized
Day 24 – Zero day in wildwood campground. Re-supply, EAT! Rented a cabin and got a fringe, wave, and T.V. Awesome. (Zero day means no miles this day in Trail lingo)
Sat around all day eating veggies & dip, pasta, fried chicken, tater salad and beer, with Chips and salsa. Was joined by another hiker from Connecticut and a gang of campers. It was a Friday and the weather was nice, so a RV club was there and the place was full! Terry was nice enough to drop us both at the trail head at 7:30
Day 25 – James River Foot Bridge – Thunder Ridge Shelters
14.5 Miles
60 – 85 degrees
Hilly / tough
Critter Count: 2 Deer
Its always a tough day directly after a resupply day! With a full to over flowing pack. There are always huge mountains to climb. Towns are always down in the flats. The poison ivy seems to have gotten worse! Must be a zillion blisters on my elbow. Damned crap the Dr. Prescribed doesn’t seem to have any affect at all! Hopefully tomorrow will be better! First day I hiked all day in shorts. Forecast is warm and dry thru Wednesday with a chance of thunder storms Wednesday, Thursday but continued warm.
Day 26 – Thunder Ridge Shelter – Jennings Creek
14 Miles
8:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Critter Count – 1 Turkey
60 – 85 degrees and sunny
Today was another hot one. I was sweating as I climbed, and even now at 6 p.m. its pleasantly warm. I’m in between shelters again. As I passed two shelters in the first 10 miles, the second one was the Taj Majal? A triple decker. Big front porch and stream right outside. I was tempted but it was only 2 p.m. and since I had been walking downhill most of the day * decided to move on 3.5 miles further. Tomorrow looks like a 1500 ft climb but then levels off for a good bit, should be another day of 15 miles or so.
Day 27 – Jennings Creek – Wilson Creek Shelter
17.5 miles
60 – 85 degrees
Hot and Sunny
Not to hilly
Critter Count: 1 Deer
Got lazy 8:30 start and climbed for an hour. Got hot fast! Was sweating soon, leveled off for a couple of miles then a gradual climb to Cove Mountain Shelter. Passed her by and moseyed for 11.5 miles more. Lots of level walking, ridge tops. Saw the Blue Ridge parkway a lot. Here with 3 others, Down Hill 19 year old girl, Fish 35 year old guy and unidentified 45 year old male from Breckenridge, CO. Should be a good night!
Day 28 – Wilson Creek – Daleville
11 miles easy
9 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Had an easy 11 miles into Daleville / Troutville. A fellow I spoke to last night in the shelter inspired me to book a flight home from Roanoke. Inspired! Left Roanoke at 5:50 and arrive in St. Louis at 9:30. Got Laffe to pick me up and drop me at Debs. She was happy to see me! Got good hugs!
Day 29 – Zero day in St. Louis, MO
Went by the house and picked up some stuff. Got a new lighter camera, new sleeping bag and mattress, also boots. Backpack should be shedding some major lbs without winter clothes a zero bag and my new boots have to weight 2 lbs less.
Day 30 – Zero day, Half day in St. Louis, Departure at 1:30 pm arriving in Roanoke at 10:55 pm. Where did the time go? I made $200 by giving up my seat in Cincinnati. Was going to have a 4 hour lay over in Detroit anyway, why not?
Day 31 – Danville to Lamberts Meadow Campsite
9 miles, easy hike, no big climbs
11 am – 4 pm
Critter Count – BIG Snake, deer
After a quick breakfast at the Hojo’s, I scurried to Kroger’s and shopped and to the outfitters for Gas, packed up and hit the trail. New boots and a lighter loaded backpack. Am next to a nice stream and have a picnic table. Might rain some but I don’t think so.
Day 32 – Lamberts Meadow – Johns Spring Shelter
60 – 70 degrees
1 good up
Critter Count: 2 Deer
8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
Got a good early start after a big breakfast. Some excellent scenery along tinkers cliff and MacAfee’s Knob. Left boot started paining me on the downhill’s due to a misaligned tongue. Don’t know if I can reshape it for tomorrow or am stuck with a pain on top of my ankle. When down hilling. Big pain too! Will really suck tomorrow – Dragons tooth big climb more excellent pictures!
Day 33 – John’s Spring shelter – Pickel Branch
14 Miles
10 a.m. – 5:15 p.m.
55 – 65 degrees Rainy
Critter Count: 4 turtles (2 north bound and 2 south bound)
After a late start, it was a raining and was waiting it out. I didn’t want to summit Dragons Tooth in the rain. As well as working on my left boot. It has been very painful on the downhill’s yesterday. I set off and hiked easily for several hours. Eventually the rain quit and the boot didn’t hurt at all. I had a good climb up dragons tooth, It was very steep, but short. I sat on the top of dragons tooth and took some great pictures. With 4 – 5 miles to go and already 3:30 I had to make tracks. And of course it started pouring down for at least an hour. This time I put my rain coat on was going to be a soaker tonight. I am with 5 other hikers, all north bounders, four are young and one other gent is maybe mid 40’s and one female.
Day 35 – Miday Shelter – War Spur Shelter
17 mile
45 – 55 degrees no sun / heavy rain
Good Step up hills
Critter Count: 3 Deer
8 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Got up at 6 a.m. and wanted to pound out some miles. Since it pretty much rained all day it has perfect for keeping at it. Crossed the Eastern Continental Divide. Walked along some nice streams, would have been nice if it was warm enough to get in! With four folks in the shelter. Supposed to rain some more! Crap!
Day 36 – War Spur Shelter – Pine Swamp Shelter
13 Mile
50 – 60 degrees and rainy
Some difficult terrain (very Rocky)
8:30 a.m. – 3:30 a.m.
Got a sort of late start seeing everyone else off ,all north bounders, I headed out to a pretty long climb. Not so steep but for first thing in the morning, not a welcome start. After climbing for 45 minutes or so I crested the hill into a cloud fest. Just a repeat of the last 4 days, not quite raining but drippy off the trees and no place dry to sit down. Doesn’t matter much as I’m wearing my swimsuit anyway. But a wet butt all day is not the best. I meet at least 15 north bounders today. All young and one older lady doing a section hike for a month. Walked across a newly completed bridge an absolute work of art! No cell coverage for sometime, maybe tomorrow as I near Pearisburg!
Day 37 – Pine Swamp – Pearisburg, VA
19 Miles
50 – 75 degrees, partly cloudy – sun!
Ridge top / one climb
7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m.
The rain fell so hard last night. Sounded like we were under a waterfall! It has rained everyday since Troutville. Hope we get a stretch of sun soon; it gets boring walking up a mountain right into the clouds. I need to start wearing long pants because the poison ivy is getting heavy. Been lucky so far, and I think I’m getting bit by chiggers.
Day 38 – Pearisburg VA
Zero Day
Time to resupply and get filled up by Dairy Queen, Hardees, and food lion! My thirst for fresh fruit veggies and a host of junk foods is strong. Have a package from St. Louis with a pair of new boots. Need to shop around for a pair of long pants that will ward off the poison ivy and protect my legs while staying cool.
Categories: Uncategorized
eastern contential divide
Categories: Uncategorized
mcaffee knob
nice view
Categories: Uncategorized
|
