On-Trail Update No. 2

2/26/11     Day 7     Miles: 9.5Relatively short day but felt like toughest so far.  I can tell my legs are tired since I am slipping and tripping more than usual.  Tomorrow's nero will come at the perfect time.  I'm still hiking with Face, Guido Blanco, and J.T. Hill.  We ran into two hog hunters from "No-Colina" w/ pit bulls right on the trail.  They use the pit bulls to hold the hog down while they slit its throat with a knife.  Dogs get gutted and killed on a regular basis when people use them to hunt like this, and I honestly don't know how it is still legal.  These guys' dogs were in pretty bad shape.  We also ran into two scout troops on the trail.  knees hurting pretty bad, swelling worse than ever.  Climbed Kelly's Knob today, 1,000-foot elevation gain in under a mile, the toughest climb for me so far (probably as much mental as physical since we are so close to our first town visit).  I think lots of people out west underestimate how big these mountains are.  The Southern Appalachians are FOR REAL, people.  Staying tonight at Deep Gap Shelter, leaving a short 3.5-mile hike into Hiawassee tomorrow.  Temperature dropped below freezing for the first time last night.

2/27/11     Day 8     Miles: 3.5
Woke up early and headed into Hiawassee to stay at the Blueberry Patch hiker hostel.  Owners Gary and Lennie Poteat are wonderful people who open their home to tired and hungry hikers out of the goodness of their hearts.  There is no fee to stay at the hostel - you are free to either leave a donation or to work for your stay.  The hostel had a box of old clothes for wearing while ours were in the laundry, so we went into town looking... interesting, to say the least.  I was wearing camouflage pants about ten sizes too big held up with parachute cord and a red t-shirt two sizes too small with a picture of a train on it.  J.T. Hill was wearing a pair of black jean cutoff shorts (held up w/ parachute cord) that looked like the legs were gnawed off by a raccoon.  Face and Guido looked like Eastern European and Italian mobsters, respectively.  We hitched a ride into town where we absolutely demolished the China Buffet AYCE (all you can eat, a favorite term among A.T. hikers).  We then hit up Dairy Queen for blizzards and the grocery store for resupply.  I have given up on wearing contacts on this trip; it is just too difficult to keep your hands clean when putting them in/taking them out, and I have heard some horror stories about nasty eye infections on the trail.  I also mailed home my sunglasses.  I iced my knees tonight at the hostel, but I am not sure how they will hold up.  They are swollen pretty bad, and the package with my refill of anti-inflammatories has not arrived yet (I will have to have it forwarded to Fontana Dam).  Also, the doctor refused to give me a brace for my left knee since I only saw him for pain in my right knee.  This is beyond frustrating.  I had my first shower in eight days and my first clean clothes in twelve days.  The Face summed it up when he said, "I feel like a human being again."  I can't wait to sleep in a bed tonight, even though it is technically just a wooden bunk with egg-crate foam on top.  Headed back out tomorrow morning.  Some pretty bad weather forecasted for the next few day: thunderstorms, 30-60 mph winds, large hail and heavy rain, possible tornadoes.

2/28/11     Day 9     Miles: 4.5
Got a late start, had to hitch back into Hiawassee to go to the post office (closed yesterday - Sunday).  Sent my bounce box ahead to Fontana Dam.  Breakfast at the Blueberry Patch was AMAZING: pancakes with blueberry sauce, eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, biscuits with sawmill gravy, coffee and orange juice.  Hit trail at 12:15 and decided to stop early at the Plumorchard Gap Shelter to ride out the worst of the storm.  Heavy rain, hail, lots of lightning right now.  Met Coach and Professor tonight, both are trying to finish their thru in four months and are averaging over twenty miles a day already.  Their feet look pretty bad; I don't know if they will be able to keep up the pace at this rate.

 3/01/11     Day 10     Miles: 12.2
NORTH CAROLINA!!!  We reached our second state at around 10:15 this morning.  It was awesome; checkpoints like this make you feel like you are really making progress.  The climb out of Bly Gap (the GA/NC border) was insane, so steep that I almost had to drop my poles and start using my hands.  It was almost like a big "Welcome to North Carolina, suckers!"  Got started early, around 8:15 AM.  Starting to become more streamlined and efficient setting up and tearing down camp.  Staying at Standing Indian Mountain shelter tonight.  Beautiful weather today.  Built a HUGE campfire tonight with a local named Keith.  My appetite is continuing to increase - I am starting to eat enormous amounts of food without ever feeling full.  I am going to have to start making more room in my pack for food.  I have also stopped noticing how bad I smell for the most part.  I feel like I stink the worst for the first day or two after a shower, but then I either stop noticing or just stop caring (although to non-hikers I'm sure that my stench is immediately apparent).  Tonight is supposed to be the coldest night so far.  I have two small blisters, one on the front of each 2nd toe, but neither is serious or even particularly painful.

3/02/11     Day 11     Miles: 11.3
Cold morning, slept in a bit.  Started hiking around 9:30.  We were in no hurry today, so we just took our time.  On the trail, you are almost never in a rush to get to any particular place - you are just walking.  Took a short side trail to the summit of Standing Indian Mountain, the tallest mountain in the area with a beautiful view..  On top I got out my iPod for the first time and listened to a piece by Native American composer and flautist Douglas Spotted Eagle; it provided the perfect soundtrack for thinking about the Cherokee who once lived here.  It was one of the most powerful moments of my trip so far.  Now that we are in our second state, the scenery is gradually beginning to change: there is more mountain laurel and rhododendron here, and we are also starting to see our first pine trees.  The trail is not as well-maintained north of the state line: lots of blowdowns crossing the trail, and many of the blazes are faded and difficult to see.  I zone out a lot while hiking; it is a lot like driving on the highway.  You're thoughts are not focused on staying on the trail (or road), so you just allow your mind to drift wherever it likes.  I think about lost of things: I replay movies and books in my head, think or sing songs in rhythm with my hiking pace, think about the past, the present, the future.  I feel absolutely NO STRESS while on the trail.  All that really matters is eating, finding water, staying healthy, and finding a good place to camp.  It is wonderful.  We are tenting at Betty Creek Gap tonight.  Total trip miles so far (including approach trail): 104.3 miles.  This is already the longest trip I've ever taken by far and I am still less than 5% done.  There is a small and pleasant creek a few hundred yards from our campsite, and I sat there alone for twenty minutes or so just watching and listening to the water.  I like to imagine where I would hike if I were a brook trout.  My feet hurt all the time from the constant pounding, but this is something that every thru-hiker experiences.  Pain is simply an unavoidable reality on the trail.  I am still in great spirits.

3/03/11     Day 12     8.4
Could have easily made it into Franklin today, but took it easy because I didn't want to spent any money on lodging after being in Hiawassee so recently.  Climbed Albert Mountain today and it was quick but absolutely insane - an elevation gain of 500 feet in three-tenths of one mile.  I had to put my poles down and climb with my hands at several points.  The 360-degree view at the top was incredible, though.  I was bonking before lunch today (bonking refers to the lack of energy as your body runs out of fuel.  It makes you feel like one of those wind-up toys that needs to be rewound).  You really begin to appreciate out here that food = fuel.  Even a quick energy bar makes a huge difference.  Staying at the Rock Gap shelter tonight.  Took a side trail after reaching the shelter to see the second-largest poplar in the United States.  With a circumference of 27 feet, it was easily the biggest tree I have ever seen in person.  My left knee was the worst it has ever been today, and I walked with a bad limp the last mile or so to the shelter.  Supposed to be cold again tonight with lows in the mid-twenties.

3/04/11     Day 13     Miles: 4.7
Hiked 3.8 miles to Franklin to resupply today.  The guys at Outdoor 76 outfitters were amazing: they picked us up at the trail, drove us to their outfitter in town, drove us to the restaurant and grocery store, and drove us back to the trail - all for free.  They are very intent on helping hikers and I will recommend them to everyone I meet.  Ate ridiculous quantities of food at the Shonie's AYCE buffet: fried chicken, fried fish, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, corn, cornbread, shortbread cake with fruit and whipped cream.  Then went to DQ for a second dessert.  I am amazed at how much I can eat now without feeling full; when I stop eating, it's usually either because I've run out of time or because I've just gotten tired of eating.  After hanging around town for a bit too long, we hiked out 0.9 miles to a tent site, carrying a 12-pack of Yeungling beer to enjoy at camp.  It rained on us for most of the day and it is supposed to continue for the next several days.  It looks like our stretch of amazing weather is about to end.  Apart from the knees, I'm feeling good physically, and I will try to start picking up the pace soon.  I wanted to make sure to avoid injury by giving my body time to acclimate to all-day and everyday hiking.  The saying is true that the only way to get in shape for a thru-hike is to do a thru-hike.  A few hours at the gym everyday is simply not going to cut it.  It feels like the "Gypsy Caravan" (a term coined by I'm not sure who to describe the group of me, Face, Guido, and J.T.) is beginning to bond more closely than before.  We are all excited about reaching the Smokies, which will be coming up in about a week.  I might try to drop a bit a few more unnecessary items from my pack in Fontana Dam.

3/05/11     Day 14     Miles: 10.1
Woke up to rain this morning, packed up and left camp around 8:30.  It hasn't stopped raining for a second all day long.  I feel like we have finally been "initiated" as A.T. thru-hikers: I have now set up camp in the rain, torn down camp in the rain, and hiked all day in the rain.  Rain makes EVERYTHING more difficult; even otherwise simple tasks like eating lunch become logistical nightmares as you try to keep everything as dry as possible.  Even so, I was in my highest spirits of the trip for most of the day, but the rain began to wear on me by the end of the hike.  There is a common saying on the trail that "nothing is waterproof on the A.T.," and that is proving to be true.  Although I was wearing my raingear all day, I was soaking wet by the time I reached Wayah Bald Shelter at 1:30.  Some water also got through my "waterproof" pack cover and my "waterproof" pack, so I will have to start using a trash bag as a pack liner on rainy days.  I still feel fresh, and I am anxiously awaiting some better weather so that I can start upping my daily mileage.  The rain is pouring outside as I am writing this, and I am very happy to be sitting in a shelter right now.  I reached the first two balds (unique mountains with treeless tops that are common around the Smokies)  of the trip today, but there were no views to enjoy due to the heavy fog.  Met three local day hikers on the trail today with a friendly golden retriever that jumped up on me and tore two holes in my rain jacket which I will have to patch up with duct tape.  Stayed in shelter tonight with the Caravan plus J.C., a very friendly retired English fellow who was born in India, educated in England and Switzerland, and now resides in Louisiana when he is not traveling around the world and hiking the A.T.

3/06/11     Day 15     Miles: 10.6
Rained all night last night, woke up this morning to a snowstorm.  Putting on a wardrobe of soaking wet clothing is not fun.  Snowed, rained, and sleeted alternatively for most of the day.  To a certain extent, though, weather doesn't really matter to a thru-hiker - after all, it's not like you're going to wait for the next sunny weekend to do your hike.  You just keep walking.  Met White Fang this morning, a thru-hiker who is otherwise studying to be a personal trainer at the University of Georgia.  Super nice guy.  The temperature plummeted into the low to mid-twenties in the early afternoon.  The good thing about snow is that it doesn't get you as wet as rain when it is falling.  Rain is worse while it is falling, but snow is worse once it is on the ground.  I can't remember ever seeing nonstop precipitation for two straight days.  I summited Wesser Bald in the afternoon, but visibility was only thirty feet or so - no views again.  It's kind of cool hiking through such dense fog, though; since you can't see anything in front or behind you, it feels like you are hiking from nowhere and going into nowhere.  The forecast said it was supposed to clear up this afternoon but it never did.  I passed through a burned area in the early afternoon, and the fog seemed to make all the colors - blacks, greens, oranges, browns, and yellows all covered in frost - seem all the more vibrant.  Several miles of the trail were overtaken by springs and runoff, which made hiking literally like walking up a creek.  In some places the water was so deep that you could have literally filled your water bottle in the middle of the trail.  Staying at the Wesser Bald Shelter tonight with the Caravan plus J.C. and White Fang.  The rain finally ceased in the early evening, and there was a good supply of dry wood under the shelter, so we were able to get a fire going to dry out some of our clothes.  I bought some portable speakers for $20 at the outfitter in Franklin (a half-pound of shameless luxury), and I used them tonight to introduce my fellow hikers to Townes Van Zandt, Miles Davis' Bitches Brew, John Prine, and Old Crow Medicine Show.

3/07/11     Day 16     Miles: 5.7
Last night was the coldest night on the trail by far.  When I woke up my socks, shoes, bandanas, pant legs, and two of my water bottles (the ones I didn't put in my sleeping bag with me) were frozen solid.  Hiked a short day into the Nantahala Outdoor Center (NOC), will spend the night at their hiker hostel and take the rest of the day to dry out all my wet gear.  Saw the sun this morning for the first time in four days.  Enjoyed some high-elevation ridge walking today where the trail followed a narrow ridge with steep dropoffs on either side.  It was clear up high, but the fog was still settled lower down, making the tops of the tallest peaks look like islands in a sea of clouds.  I came to a gorgeous view at the perfect time, and it was one of my favorite experiences of the entire trip so far.  Although I was eager to get to the NOC to dry out, I lingered at that spot for a long time.  Such places are hard to pull yourself away from, but as a thru-hiker I know that hundreds more equally beautiful places await me.  What a wonderful feeling.  I reached the NOC around midday.  Had a burger, fries, and icecream at the restaurant, set out my stuff to dry, washed my clothes, and took an exceedingly long shower.  I have never felt so clean.  Face, J.T., Guido, White Fang, and I then hitched a ride into Bryson City for dinner and resupply.  We bought some Fat Tire and Dogfish Head 60-Minute IPA and brought it back to the hostel to enjoy.  Spirits seem high all around.  White Fang is pushing to reach Fontata Dam one day ahead of us, but I hope we meet up again at some point in the future.  We are all looking to finish in the same time frame, so a reunion is a definite possibility.  Since hikers all move at different paces and stop at different towns, a lot of leap-frogging occurs on the trail.  Between that, the shelter registers, and stories from other hikers, you begin to get a pretty good idea of who the hikers are around you.

3/08/11     Day 17     Miles: 10.5
Woke up at the NOC, had an enormous breakfast of bacon, eggs, homefries, grits, biscuits with gravy, sweet potato pancakes, and coffee.  Hit the trail around 10:00.  Could make Fontana by Wednesday night but wouldn't make it in time to resupply at grocery store and don't want to spend money on another night in town so soon.  Tenting at Locust Cove Gap, will make Fontana by Thursday morning.  Big climb out of the Nantahala Gorge today - over 3,300 feet in 7 miles.  Felt very strong and energized today.  A few good meals and a night indoors make all the difference.  Also, I listened to my iPod while hiking for the first time today and it was almost like aural adrenaline.  I flew up the climb, feeling the best I have physically felt on the entire trip.  Summited my first bald in clear weather: Cheoah bald, with great views to the southwest.  White Fang pushed ahead, trying to reach Fontana ASAP for new sleeping bag (had been using an old 30-degree  bag that was not cutting it in the cold weather).  J.C. decided to stay an extra night at the NOC to zero.  It started raining tonight around 7:00, and it is supposed to continue all night, all day tomorrow and possibly the next day before clearing up for a few days.  I am crossing my fingers for good weather to start the Smokies!

3/09/11     Day 18     Miles: 11.6
 It rained hard all last night, and the downpour didn't slow until around 2:00 PM today when it finally and suddenly stopped.  Guido has been picking up flood warnings on his portable radio and I am not surprised.  It rained so hard that I was soaked to the bone in less than twenty minutes despite wearing my raingear all day.  We all were.  The term "waterproof" does not exist out here; being wet is simply a part of life on the A.T.  We camped with some spring breakers yesterday.  They were nice enough guys, but the presence of spring breakers gives us a sense of foreboding since the Smokies might quickly become crowded.  Hikers are required to stay in shelters while in the national park, and we have all heard horror stories of thru-hikers getting crowded out of Smokies shelters by crowds of drunken college students.  Had lunch at Brown Fork Gap Shelter to escape the rain for a bit.  staying tonight at Cable Gap Shelter.  Supposed to be more rain until Friday.  Face's sleeping bag got completely soaked despite being packed in a waterproof stuff sack in a waterproof backpack with a waterproof pack cover.  Fortunately, it is not supposed to freeze tonight.

3/10/11     Day 19     Miles: 6.6
Ate a dry breakfast to save time and got on trail to head into town.  Just as nothing stays dry here, nothing dries out here once it is wet.  You can hang up wet clothes for a week, but it hardly matters, as they will be just as wet when you put them back on.  The new "100% waterproof" bear bag I bought at Neel's Gap to replace my old bag that was only "water-resistant" had a pool of water in the bottom this morning.  Fortunately, all my food was in ziplock bags so none of it got wet.  When we arrived at Fontana Dam, we received the frustrating news that the grocery store was closed and wouldn't open for another three weeks when the tourist season began.  Luckily, a really nice guy named J.P. (an employee at the Fontana Village Resort) offered to drive us to Robinsville (40 miles away) to eat dinner and resupply.  Since he couldn't take us until 5:00, I spent the downtime visiting the post office and finding a computer to post a blog update.  At the post office I went through my bounce box, filled my bottles of soap and water treatment, replenished my medications, and picked up my heavy gloves and anti-inflammatories (mailed by my parents).  I also shipped home my baseball cap (hadn't worn it), book (hadn't read it), and most of my maps (I decided to cut out the elevation profiles and mail the rest home since that was the only thing I have been using).  I had lunch at a gas station where I tried to cram the most calories into my body with the least amount of money possible: I settled on two chili-cheese hotdogs, a bag of chicharrones, a 600-calorie honey bun for 69 cents, and a powerade.  In addition, my grandmother sent me some cookies in the mail, so I had about a dozen of those.  Once in Robbinsville, I bought enough food to make it all the way through the Smokies without resupply - about 72 miles of trail.  I still probably bought too much, so I will be eating like a king for the next week.  After returning to Fontana Dam, J.P dropped us off at the trail around 8:00 PM, and we did a quick 1.1 miles in the dark and light snow to the next shelter.  Hikers have dubbed it the "Fontana Hilton" since it is a huge shelter that sleeps 24 people and is located a few hundred yards from public restrooms with running water.  Four or five other hikers were already asleep there when we arrived.  Before we left Fontana, J.P. told us that the surrounding area has received over four and-one-half inches of rain in the past 48 hours.  After hiking through all of that rain, I definitely believe it.

3/11/11     Day 20     Miles: 13.8
Today was the longest day of the trip so far and we did it through 1-2 feet of snow.  Go figure.  I left the Fontana shelter in the early morning, crossed Fontana dam, and entered Great Smoky Mountains National Park at around 9:00.  It immediately looked like a different world.  We had a few inches of snow before the Smokies, but I feel like I suddenly walked into a winter wonderland here.  I'm not sure why this is; the elevation isn't any higher, and the topography doesn't look much different, but the Smokies are covered in snow while just a few short miles away the mountains are clear.  Had over 2,000 feet of climbing in first three miles out of Fontana.  At the top, I came upon the first good view in the Smokies, and just as I turned the corner to see the view the sun came out for the first time in four days.  It happened as if on cue.  For the first half of the day I postholed through someone else's footprints.  At lunch I passed a few other hikers.  They seemed pleased to let me pass - it was my turn to break trail.  Breaking trail through snowdrifts - often up to two feet deep - is much more difficult than following in someone else's footsteps, and even that is much harder than hiking on solid ground.  The snow takes a lot out of you.  However, there is also something fun about breaking trail, almost like being the first skiier to cut through fresh powder.  I had a big goofy grin on my face for most of the day.  It is bone-chillingly cold right now and is supposed to remain below freezing all night, but it is supposed to warm up a bit at some point tomorrow.  Another long day ahead.  Staying at Russell Field Shelter tonight (hikers are required to stay at shelters in the Smokies).

3/12/11     Day 21     Miles: 9.2
It froze last night, and when I woke up this morning my socks were frozen stiff like boards.  I had to wear a clean, dry pair because I couldn't get them on my feet.  My shoes were also frozen solid, and I had to work them with my hands for about five minutes to make them malleable enough to allow me to shove my feet inside them.  Today was the toughest day of the trip so far.  It took 6.5 hours to do 9.2 miles (that is slow).  The trail featured lots of big, steep climbs and descents today, and all of them were covered in a foot or more of snow.  By the afternoon, the sun had melted some of the snow so that the trail turned into a big slippery river of water, mud, and slush.  Staying tonight at Derrick Knob Shelter.  The park requires that hikers stay in shelters each night, but they are not spaced out well - they are either 2 miles or 15 miles apart with not much in between.  The rest of the Caravan went on to Siler's Bald Shelter (another 5.5 miles), but it was getting late and I did not want to hike in the dark.  I'm a morning person - I'd rather wake up at 5:30 AM and make up the distance then.  Big day tomorrow.  I hiked a lot with a section hiker from Austin today (trailname Lucky).  I made a fire tonight at the shelter tonight to dry out our socks, and as a thank you she made me hot chocolate.  Meeting other hikers is part of what makes the A.T. so special.  Hikers here all share a common bond.  Really, it's like we are one big family (cliche, I know, but true).  I have resigned myself to the fact that it is literally impossible to carry enough food to keep muself from being hungry all the time.  Hungry, wet, tired, smelly, sore - all are unavoidable aspects of an A.T. hiker's daily life. 

3/13/11     Day 22     Miles: 13.2
Big day of milestones today: I completed my 200th A.T. mile, I bagged my 3rd state (Tennessee), and I reached the highest point on the entire trail, Clingman's Dome (6,643 feet).  I felt AWESOME today, completely opposite from yesterday.  It was my best physical day of trip despite being one of the toughest.  I woke up before sunrise, added an extra outmeal packet to my breakfast (up to 5 packets per meal now), and hit the trail at 7:18, just before sunrise.  I reached Siler's Bald Shelter before the other guys left and hiked with them for much of the day.  The snow/slush didn't seem as bad today, but the going was still pretty rough and strenuous.  Heavy fog rolled in just as I reached the summit of Clingman's Dome, so I didn't get any views there.  Oh well, there will be other views tomorrow, and the next day, and the next...  Saw lots of bear tracks on the trail today.  Supposed to start raining tonight and continue for the next three days.  I hope it doesn't slow us down much; I want to try to make it through the Smokies as quickly as possible.  Apparently daylight savings time started today, but it doesn't really matter much out here.  Regardless of the time on the clock, hikers get up when the sun rises and go to bed when it sets.  It's pretty nice, really.  I used my new portable speakers to introduce everyone at the shelter to Ravi Shankar tonight.

3/14/11     Day 23     Miles: 14.9
Raining when I woke up.  Supposed to rain all day, so I wore my sweaty rainsuit all day, but not a drop fell on us.  I'll take it.  Got down to some lower elevations today and saw the ground for the first time in the Smokies.  About half of today's hike was on solid(ish) earth and the rest was on snow.  We descended to Newfound Gap and crossed the road that leads to Gatlinburg (a super touristy town near the park boundary).  It was kind of bizarre seeing so many people all of the sudden.  Even all the towns we have been through have been relatively quiet.  I'm sure all the tourists thought it was equally bizarre seeing me - sweaty, covered in mud, rain suit patched all over with duct tape, with a dirty bandana wrapped around my head.  After about a week on the trail, you completely cease to care about how you look and how you smell.  Good weather today allowed me to push on to Peck's Corner Shelter, Face is with me.  Word reached us on the trail that Guido and J.T. Hill decided to hitch into Gatlinburg for some real food.  We met up with Stormsong and Treebeard at the shelter tonight who we haven't seen since Hiawassee.  They were a few days ahead of us but got forced off the trail in the Smokies due to bad weather (80 mph winds and chest-high snowdrifts).  Also met Delaware Dave tonight, super cool guy, very energetic, talkative.  Full bottle of Jim Beam left at the shelter tonight, some of my first trail magic of the trip (trail magic refers to a tradition in which non-thru-hikers, referred to as trail angels, do nice and unsolicited things for thru-hikers.  Trail magic often comes in the form of food and drink left on the trail).  Great view today at Charlie's Bunyon, one of best views of trip so far.  Another full shelter tonight (same as last night).  Starting to see more and more spring breakers with each passing day.  Delaware Dave had a good idea for getting more calories: he eats tubs of icing with a spoon.  He told us about a small, thin thru-hiker he met who had to resort to eating sticks of butter to keep from losing too much weight.