5/21/13 - Day 36 - Goodbye NC!

Roan High Knob Shelter to US 19E (Mountain Harbour Hostel)
15.8 miles, 391.6 miles total

Today was pretty long. I woke up bright and early to start hiking. The hike today was filled with balds. I believe there were 4 or 5. I also visited the Overmountain Shelter, which is a barn converted into a shelter which can hold 20 hikers, possibly more. It also had a great view.

The two main obstacles of today's hike were Little Hump and Hump Mountains. Hump Mountain has a few false summits, so basically you think you've reached the summit, but then realize you have 100 more yards to go. That happened three times.

About halfway down from Hump, I saw a sign that says "Leaving NC." Technically, I have probably left NC a few dozen times so far (since the AT follows the NC-TN border for a few hundred miles), but this will be the last time. Alright, two states down, twelve to go! Let's do this! And goodbye NC! See you later!

Also, when I was on top of Hump, I could see Grandfather Mountain and Sugar Mountain (where Lutherock is), so that was pretty cool.

Tonight I am staying at a hostel, but it's full so I am tenting. There was a free shuttle into Roan Mountain (the town), so I went to a restaurant called Bob's Dairyland, and had the Holy Cow burger. It had three 5 oz hamburger patties, six slices of bacon, three slices of deli ham, three slices of cheese, two onion rings, and one scoop of chili. I also got a 32 oz mint chocolate chip milkshake. All worth it.

When I got back, some people in the hostel were watching Back to the Future, so I joined them, then we watched The Mask. It was all in all a pretty good night.

Unfortunately, around 10PM, a huge thunderstorm passed over. I was in my tent, in a deluge, and it didn't leak at all. I was bone dry all night, but the thunder and lightning were a bit unnerving, especially with a piece of fabric being the only thing separating me from them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

5/20/13 - Day 35 - Highest Shelter on the Trail

Cherry Gap Shelter to Roan High Knob Shelter
16.8 miles, 375.8 miles total

Overall, today was a good day. The weather was excellent, clear and sunny. But this morning was rough. Putting on soaking wet underwear, pants, socks, and shoes, and then hiking in them is quite possibly one of the most miserable things about the AT. Luckily, everything pretty much dried throughout the day.

Since it rained all night, some wildlife came out onto the trail that doesn't normally appear. I saw a lot of earthworms, as well as quite a few small orange salamanders.

Roan Mountain is one of the tallest mountains on the AT, and there is only one way to get to the top: climb. Okay, well, hike, but it was one of the most challenging ascents so far, especially since it was at the tail-end of my day.

This shelter is the highest one on the AT, sitting at nearly 6200 feet above sea level. Unfortunately, there isn't really a view to anywhere since the shelter is surrounded by pines. Tonight, in and around the shelter are Ninja, Mess, MacGyver, and Sugarpie (or something like that, I didn't really catch her name, she's headed south).

5/19/13 - Day 34 - Some Rain, Some Hail, the Usual

Nolichucky River to Cherry Gap Shelter
17.5 miles, 359.0 miles total

I got dropped off this morning at River Rd, where I left, by my "friend" Zack, who promptly wish a hailstorm to open up on me. More on that later.

Today, I hiked a route that Lutherock does with campers, but backwards (uphill) and longer (twice as long). Anyways, about 10 miles in, right around Beauty Spot near 3PM, it started to pour, and then guess what happened... it started to hail. Thanks, Zack.

So it was miserable and raining for the next 2.5 hours, but I just kept hiking to the next shelter so I wouldn't have to set up my tent in the rain. There was also quite a bit of thunder and lightning. That was actually kind of scary and nerve-wracking. Most of the afternoon I was hiking up what was pretty much a creek at that point. Luckily the last hour that I was hiking, it stopped raining. Nothing really dried, but it wasn't as miserable, just muddy and slippery.

Fortunately, there was room for me in the shelter, so I hung up some stuff to dry and set up my bed. I ate dinner, hung my food bag, filtered some water and went to bed. Tonight, in the shelter with me are Beetnick, Bushy Bear, Mess, and Ninja.

5/15/13 - 5/18/13, Day 30-33, Camp Lutherock

0.0 miles, 341.5 miles total

For the past four days, I have been working a retreat at Lutherock, It was nice to not have to hike all day, but it was anything but a few days off. Working at camp is a completely different kind of exhausting. But it was definitely nice to see friends and I wish the best for this summer's staff!

5/14/13 - Day 29 - To The Nolichucky

Bald Mountain Shelter to the Nolichucky River
16.4 miles, 341.5 miles total

I woke up at 5:30 today because I knew I had to meet my dad at the Nolichucky at 1:30. I started hiking by 7AM, so I basically hiked 16 miles in 6 hours. It was quite exhausting. But there were a couple of cool things about today's hike.

To start, it was mostly downhill - the overall descent today was about 3500 feet. Second, I hiked from Spivey Gap to the Nolichucky River today, and since I have hiked that section 2-3 times per summer for the past 4 summers, I felt quite comfortable with it. (For those of you that don't know, we hike this section with campers at Lutherock, a summer camp where I worked.) Also, pretty random, but I saw a lot of butterflies today. They would just stay with me for a couple feet and then go on their way.

Around 1:30PM, my wonderful father picked me up, and we ate lunch and he drove me to Camp Lutherock, where I will stay for the next four days. Time for some rest!

5/12 and 13, Days 27 and 28 -- Slackpacking and Remembering Sam's Gap

May 12, 2013

Day 27 - Devil Fork Gap to Log Cabin Drive (Hemlock Hollow Inn)
18.8 miles, 309 total

 What?!?  I started at someplace different?!  And ended at the same place as yesterday?!  Say what?!

So today, I tried something a little different called “slackpacking.”  After scarfing down eggs, bacon, toast and home fries (and chocolate milk, of course), I hopped on a shuttle to take me up the trail North almost 19 miles.  Then I hiked south back to my starting point.

This approach has a couple of nice benefits:  1) You get to stay at a hostel two nights in a row, 2) you can hike farther because 3) YOU BARELY HAVE TO CARRY ANYTHING!!  That’s right.  Since you start and end at the same place, all you really need is food and water (and a first-aid kit).  Nice and light, so you can fly down the trail.

A lot of today’s hike was along a ridgeline, basically meaning the mountain goes down in elevation on both sides.  It’s like you’re walking on the tip-top of the roof of a house, but with mountains.

About a mile and a half of the ridge hike was all rocky and extremely exposed, so that you could see for miles on your left, and miles on your right.  It was like being on the rocky summit of a mountain for 1 ½ miles.

Slackpacking was really fun, and I may do it again sometime, but it kind of felt like cheating.  But it still felt amazing to be able to hike 19 miles with a five pound pack instead of a 35 pound pack, especially since my feet didn’t hurt or ache a single time.  Oh, the small things in life!

For dinner, I had a huge burger with fries and sweet tea, and I watched “60 Minutes.”  It was a good night.  (I don’t normally watch “60 Minutes,” but it was a moving picture on a digital screen, so what the heck!?)

Oh, and HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY to all the moms!!  (A tad late, in real life, but I wrote this on 5/12, I promise.)

 

May 13, 2013

Day 28 - Devil Fork Gap to Log Cabin Drive (Hemlock Hollow Inn)

16.1 miles, 325.1 total

Today was a really nice weather day for hiking. It was a tad cold to be standing around, but for hiking – great.

This morning, I had another great breakfast at the hostel, and then got shuttled to Devil Fork Gap again – this time to hike north, with a full pack.

I was in a really good rhythm all day and the miles were just flying. One minute, I was at 1 mile, next thing you know, 6 miles had passed.

There were a few meadows today, just some treeless areas, which is a welcome change to the constant forestland. There was also a nice bald near the end of today called Big Bald (they’re so creative with the names!). But I didn’t stay very long because cold and windy don’t mix very well, even with the sun.

I also passed Sam’s Gap today which was the section I did with James and Janna a few years ago. That trip was kind of what ignited the whole AT dream, I guess.  Nice to be doing today what I dreamed of then.

Didn’t do much tonight, although dinner was what I would describe as “epic.” I started with one package of Ramen and a package of tuna mixed in. I was still hungry, though, so I made two more Ramen noodle packages, added one tuna package, AND mixed in a thing of Velveeta liquid cheese sauce. And, of course, I had a Twix bar for dessert. I was quite uncomfortable for a while because I was so full.

Once again, it was a good night!

 

 

 

 

May 14, 2013

After today, I’ll be leaving the trail for a couple of days to help with a retreat at Lutherock.  I won’t miss a single one of those 5 million steps though, because on May 19, someone from LRock will bring me back to the exact same spot I left the trail, and I’ll continue the journey!

 

 

5/10 and 11, Days 25 and 26 -- Hot Springs, Sunnybank and Hemlock Hollow

May 10, 2013

Day 25—Max Patch Summit to Hot Springs, NC
19.8 miles, 273.9 total
 

Today, I woke up to the sunrise right outside of my tent door.   So I woke up, had breakfast in my tent while watching the sunrise from the summit of Max Patch.  Stuff like that makes me realize why I’m doing this and why I should press on.

The hike today wasn’t too interesting, lots of ups and downs, but I’ve noticed that whenever I reach about 16 miles, I start to get grumpy and mad at the trail and the uphills and such, just because it’s taking so long to get to my daily destination.  (Today’s destination was Hot Springs since the trail goes straight through the middle of town.   On the sidewalk there, you even find little plaques denoting the trail.)

Once I arrived in Hot Springs, I got a room at a hostel, Elmer’s Sunnybank Inn.  This building as it stands today has been here since 1875, and in some form since 1840.  It has been a summer home, a boardinghouse, and now an Inn.  In 1980, it was placed in the National Register of Historic Places.  Pretty cool.

After I settled in, I went to do my laundry, got some internet time at the library, and then went to Spring Creek Tavern for dinner.  I had a Guinness, fried pickle spears and fried cheese sticks which had salami wrapped in with the cheese.  Amazing.   Afterward, I just went to get some snacks and soda at Dollar General and then returned to my room – it was a really relaxing night.

 

May 11, 2013

Day 26 – Hot Springs, NC to Log Cabin Drive (Hemlock Hollow Inn)16.3 miles, 290.2 total

 

So this morning, I started off with a wonderful homemade breakfast by Elmer Hall, the owner of Sunnybank Inn.   It was a veggie omelet, toast, granola and cantaloupe.  Lots of food and delicious.

After, I resupplied a Dollar General (for real! – lots of cheap pasta and other food) and called the fam and Lauren.  I stopped in at the local outfitter for a bit just to check it out, but got distracted and eventually left around noon.   Quite a late start if you want to go 16 miles.  Oh well.

The trek out of Hot Springs was a killer.  Pretty much eight miles uphill, and it did not feel good on my feet.  They really ached today for some reason.   After the final eight miles dragged on for what felt like forever, I reached a gravel road, and 0.7 miles down the road was a hostel!  Suh-weet!

This hostel is another honor system, pay at the end type thing, and they have a restaurant/café.  And WiFi!  But no public computer.  So I ate dinner (fried catfish, cole slaw, hushpuppies, fries), got some internet time, took a shower, and hit the hay.  All in all, a pretty good day.

I’m still meeting an awful lot of people, but we don’t tend to stay together so I haven’t really found a group hiking the same pace as me.  Oh well, I guess you gotta hike your own hike!

 

5/9/13 -- Day 24 - Just me and the stars, on top of a mountain.

May 9, 2013

Day 24 – Green Corner Rd (SBF) to Max Patch Summit
13.3 miles, 254.1 total

This morning I had my leftover pizza for breakfast, and two microwave Bacon, Egg and Cheese biscuits.  I also took another shower in that wonderful hot rainfall shower.  Once again, it was amazing.  Then I resupplied, and paid my bill (all on the honor system).  I was then ready to hike.   So I did.

About seven miles in, I reached a shelter, along with a guy who said he didn’t know if he wanted to keep going.  We talked a little, and I told him that some days are definitely miserable especially with the cold and rain, but if every day is miserable, then maybe you actually don’t want to hike the Appalachian Trail.  It’s something you have to discover for yourself.  For me – I have loved every day on the AT so far, even the miserable ones.  Seriously!

Around 4 p.m., I reached Max Patch Summit.  It is a grassy bald with 360 degree views for miles.  Absolutely gorgeous.  Everyone has said it is their favorite part of the trail so far – so I decided to camp here.  I set up my tent – by the way, the wind was at about a constant 20 mph, if not more – taking care not to let anything blow away.  The wind was gusting so hard it actually started to cave in one side of my tent.  Great.  So I got a trekking pole and made an anchor to hold that side out – I was on a bald, so there were no trees to tie it to.  I felt pretty cool.  I was the only one out there.  I don’t think anyone else wanted to deal with the wind.

So I spent most of my evening sitting outside and reading a book I picked up at the hostel, and just staring at the amazing views.   I watched the sunset.  Gorgeous.  After the sun went down, I could see hundreds of stars.  Amazing.  And on the edge of the world, I could see the lights of a town sparkling in the distance.  Absolutely breathtaking.

What was even better was that when I lay down outside, I could see nothing in my peripheral vision.  It was like I was in my own personal planetarium.

Just me and the stars, on top of a mountain.  Just livin’ the dream…

 

 

5/8/13 - Day 23 - Standing Bear Farm

May 8, 2013

Day 23 – Cosby Knob to Green Corner Rd (Standing Bear Farm)
10.7 miles, 240.8 total
 

Today’s hike was really good; the trail was pretty smooth and 90% downhill, so I just flew through most of it.  I started hiking around 7:30 and finished around 11 a.m. – I stopped after 10 miles to stay in the Standing Bear Farm hostel.

This hostel is really cool.  They have a resupply shop, and everything is done on the honor system. They also have an open air kitchen with a little pizza oven.  So today, I have had two microwavable chimichangas, five slices of a Digornio pizza (three for breakfast) and way too much soda (Yoohoo, too.)  I also ate an entire tube of Lays Stax.  This AT is a hungry business.

And when you’re hiking, it’s amazing that the small things can really impress you.  Take the shower head, for example:  it was about six inches in diameter and straight above you.   The water was really hot, and had really great pressure.  Ahhh.   And it’s open air as well!

Standing Bear also had quite the collection of books.   Today I read Artemis Fowl – yes, the entire book.  And yes, I know it’s for middle-schoolers, but I liked it, okay?  Read it!

Tonight, joining me in the bunkhouse at the hostel are Chris, Strider, Lost, Island and 10 others.

5/7/13 -- Day 22-- a 20-Miler in beautiful weather

May 7, 2013

Day 22—Icewater Spring to Cosby Knob Shelter
20.3 miles, 230.1 total

Today was great.   The weather was excellent.  The views were amazing.  And the hike itself wasn’t anything too difficult.  I even saw two deer this morning while I was cooking breakfast.

The trail went everywhere today, on ridges with 50 feet down on each side, through pine forests with trees blown down everywhere.  With the fog, at times it looked quite eerie with the clouds swirling around the pine trees, reminded me of a haunted forest.

Other than that, it was my first 20-mile day!  And I could really tell the distance was longer than usual.  After hiking about 17 miles, my feet were really starting to ache, and I was becoming a little grumpy.

But once I got to the shelter, I set up my bed in the shelter, made my first of two dinners, and was comfortably stuffed by the end of the night, especially after my two candy bars….Mmm.

Tonight, there are once again many new faces.  Ringmaster made it the 20 miles, and now there are Strider, Lost, Island, Patch, and Scout, among about 15 others.

5/6/13 - Day 21 - Crossed 200-mile mark; at 5900 feet

May 6, 2013

Day 21 – Double Spring Gap to Icewater Spring Shelter
13.8 miles, 209.8 Total

Well, today I crossed the 200-mile mark!  And the weather was great!  The skies really cleared up, about half sun, half clouds.   My shoes, however, stayed wet all day, and by the end of the day, my feet were wrinkly and soggy.  Sounds terrible, but it wasn’t that bad.   Just gotta keep hiking to stay warm.

I summited Clingman’s Dome today, the highest point on the AT.  But, of course, I was in a cloud at that moment!  Most of today’s hike was in a forest of pine trees, and that was a great change in scenery.

The shelter I’m staying at tonight is over 5900 feet in elevation, and it has a great view.  Wonderful background for cooking dinner.  Great phone signal for once, too.

Tonight, once again, is a completely different crew:  MacGyver, Wings, Phoenix, Bonjour, Ringmaster and about 15 others.

 

5/5/13 - Day 20 - Rain, Rain and More Rain...but not discouraged!

May 5, 2013

Day 20 – Spence Field to Double Spring Gap Shelter
13.5 miles, 196.0 total

 Well, today was miserable, I guess.  It was cold, windy, and raining from 8 a.m. pretty much straight through to now, at night.  But I, on the other hand, was not miserable.  As long as I was hiking hard, I was warm, so it wasn’t that bad.  That’s especially true, since as of today, I have less than 2,000 miles to go to Mt. Katahdin.  Isn’t that awesome?!  WooHoo!

Yeah, today was something.  Constantly trudging through mud puddles, streams in the middle of the trail, everything soaked down to the bone.  It was an experience.  That’s for sure.

But to be honest, I was not discouraged, not even once.  Every now and then, the Big  Guy up above would throw me a ray of sunshine to let me know He had my back, even though it was usually followed by a brief downpour and a quick 40 mph gust of wind.

Anyway, all my stuff is soaked now and hopefully it will be dry in the morning.  Fingers crossed.  If not, I’ll just have to hike in wet clothes and wet shoes tomorrow.  Oh well, I’ll just have to hike hard, No Pain, No Maine!

Tonight, I am with a completely different group; a few thru-hikers and a few weekenders.  Only caught one name, honestly, and it’s because I’ve met him before.  His name is Wonder Boy.  I guess he hikes fast or far or something….but I caught up with him, so I’m not so sure about the “Wonder Boy.”