Carolina on my mind....

For the next week or so, we’ll be heading right down the line between Tennessee and North Carolina. Today, we spent a frigid, snowy day hiking over Bald Mountain, from Sams Gap to Spivey Gap. We’ve been in Erwin, TN for the last few days, visiting with my parents and getting in a couple of days of slackpacking. A very good thing, since yesterday was cold and rainy and today was worse. It’s always good to be able to come back, take a hot shower, and dry out after a day like this.

Before we reached Erwin, we had some spectacular weather—perfect, sunny fall days. Earlier in the week, we stayed at the Mountain Harbor hostel in Roan Mountain. Mary, Terry, and Lula take amazing care of the hikers passing through, especially with their incredible breakfast. We also got to hang out with some great section hikers and reconnect with Beanpole, another flip-flopper we originally met in NJ. And this last section had my favorite hike so far, up around Carver’s Gap, crossing some of the beautiful balds.

The Cat Lady. At Mountain Harbor in Roan Mountain.

Pancho and Beanpole on Jane Bald.

Heading across the bald. NC/TN.

Nachita on Jane Bald.

Rocky Top, you'll always be...

the singlemost irritating song on the planet. Especially when performed at karaoke, at Quincey’s Pizza, by a group of senior hikers. Many of whom also apparently clog. A very special experience. One of many out on the trail.

Fortunately, we slackpacked today, so we could come back to town and take a hot shower after 15 miles in the snow, our first snowfall on the trail. Though it’s always great to hit a new state, Tennessee didn’t exactly welcome us with open arms. With high, swirling winds, freezing temps, and what the meteorologists call a “wintry mix,” yes. What the hell does that mean anyway? Isn’t it just the weather guys saying we have NO IDEA what will happen, but it’s going to be cold and there will be some form of precipitation. Well, we experienced all forms of precip today, in all states.

Unfortunately, at this point, we need to head back into the woods.  It has become clear that inertia is going to become a serious problem on our south bound leg.  Once in town, we want to stay in town.  Perhaps it is the shorter days, or the turning leaves, but we are finding it more difficult to get off our asses and head back into the woods.  As a result, despite the fact that the weather is not the best and not likely to get better for a couple more days, we're off tomorrow!

500 miles to go....

Less than 500 miles from home! We arrived in Damascus, VA, yesterday. One of the best known towns on the trail, famous for the big hiking festival held here every May, Damascus is a mecca for fishing, hiking, and biking. In addition to the AT, the Virginia Creeper trail, a rail-trail, passes through town. It’s amazing to see a town this (very small) size with 6 or 7 bike shop/tour companies. If only there were more than one bar….

We’re definitely starting to experience some wintry weather. We’ve had some very cold and windy nights out on the trail, fortunately tempered by some glorious, sunny fall days. The colors have been beautiful, though now most of the leaves are off the trees and on the trail. And leaves are a pain in the ass. Slick as glass when wet. Covering rocks and roots and all manner of ankle-turning obstacles when dry. And LOUD. Crunching through the leaves is making me a bit nutty—it’s hard to even hear yourself think. I do enjoy seeing the change of seasons on the trail, though. One of the advantages of flip-flopping and splitting up the hike.

Vista outside Pearisburg, VA.

After leaving Pearisburg, we went to Woods Hole, one of the best hostels on the AT, run by Michael (who gave me a fantastic massage!) and Neville. A beautiful, serene location, delicious meals, and great company(including the puppies and kitties) made for a terrific evening. We had another relaxing stay in Marion, VA, a surprisingly neat little town. We headed into town to escape the pounding rain and wait for some clear weather. As usual, we went straight to Mickey D’s, for Quarter Pounders and Wifi, where we came across the General Francis Marion Hotel, an historic inn in downtown Marion. A well-restored and lovely hotel, with a hopping little bar, in a very active main street area. Even considering the source of all evil (I’m looking at you, Walmart) is in town. Marion also has a restored theatre (didn’t get to go in) that is one of only 3 remaining Mayan revival theatres in the country.

Woods Hole hostel, VA.

Pancho and friend at Woods Hole.

Pancho setting up camp at Old Orchard (VA),
where we spent a crazy windy night, pondering the
wind rating of our tent.

Mt. Rogers high country (VA).

Wild ponies along the trail, Mt.Rogers high country (VA).

Nachita and friend. Much better than encountering a
 bear parked in the middle of the trail.

We rolled into Damascus just before the temperature dropped and the rain started. Of course, the forecast now predicts snow showers on Friday. Yikes! There may be a second zero in Damascus. I’m more than willing to suck it up and hike through rain, snow, etc., if I’m already out on the trail. But heading out of town into crappy weather? That’s a totally different ballgame. For the moment, we’re warm, dry, and comfy. We’ll see how long it lasts!

On the trail again...sort of...

Heading out, Take 2. And dressed for safety.
"I'm not a turkey--please don't shoot me!"

Once again, we’re availing ourselves of the free WiFi at Mickey D’s—this time in Pearisburg, VA. It’s been a bit of a slow start, since we headed out almost 2 weeks ago. The 2½ weeks of downtime definitely took a toll. It really is amazing how much fitness you lose in such a short time.

When we reached our starting point at Thunder Ridge, it was eerily similar to our first day back in May: zero visibility, zero sun, and heavy mist. And much like that first day, we didn’t go all that far. It definitely took some time to get the legs moving again. After three slow, painful days, we decided it was time to go to town and busted out an 18-mile day into Daleville. We took a day off, then slackpacked 19 miles, to help get our groove back. A very cold 19 miles, with seriously high winds. Unfortunately, our plan to avoid the incoming cold front by slacking another day was thwarted by the Hokies. Apparently, Daleville fills up on VA Tech home games, so we had to head back into the woods. The Hokies could have at least won, since we had to freeze our asses off.

Under The Guillotine. Yikes!

Admittedly, I was NOT prepared for the unexpected cold front, having sent most of my warm gear on to Pearisburg. So we found ourselves back in Daleville, making a trip to Gander Mountain to score some more winter gear, and taking another zero to avoid the cold rainy weather. There was actually snow and sleet in Pearisburg. It’s only the beginning of October! It’s way too early for this! Of course, now, it’s back up around 70. Oy.

McAfee Knob

Tomorrow we leave Pearisburg, heading to the hostel at Woods Hole, supposedly one of the best places to stay on the entire trail. And I’ll be getting a desperately needed massage there. Yay! I hate to cheat on Selina, but it has to be done.

Down Time

Just a quick update on our hiatus, which has been quite hectic and more than a little overwhelming. We rolled into Pancho’s mom’s place near Annapolis in the middle of the night, after a long, stressful drive from Maine. Then came three solid days of shopping. Oy. We were both in need of clothes and supplies for our trip to Amsterdam, especially Pancho, who had no pants that fit anymore. Losing 6 inches in the waist seems to necessitate a trip to the mall. And WOW is the mall a horrible, anxiety-inducing nightmare after four months in the woods. The noise, the light, the ridiculous consumerism were pretty overwhelming for us both.

These boots are no longer made for walking....
 I was just hoping to make it up Katahdin in them.
It's never a good thing when you can see your socks through the top....

Manscaping in process--the mutton chop phase.
Thankfully short-lived.

Fortunately, we survived the mall (actually 3 of them, with which I am now WAY too familiar) and headed off to Amsterdam. Much like Vegas, there is very little that I can reveal about the trip J, just that Pancho really freaked out some of our friends and we still have no answer to the eternal question: how many entrepreneurs does it take to find a brothel in Amsterdam? (More than you might think….) We do have an answer to the question of how comfortable wooden shoes are—not even a little bit. Especially when you’ve been pounding the hell out of your feet for months. Yikes.

Sue rocks the clogs.

Dean, Eric, and their special friend.

On the party boat.

We’ve been delayed a bit this week in our preparations to head back out onto the trail. We’ll be taking off from central Virginia on Sunday, heading south this time. Actually a touch nervous about changing directions—we’re so accustomed to looking at the map and the guidebook in the other orientation. Hopefully, we’ll stay on track the right way—if not, we sure won’t be publishing the fact here! 



Before--in Buenos Aires, right before we started hiking.

And after--4 months, 1400 miles, and 56 pounds later, in Amsterdam.

The Last Stretch (Part 1)

Warning sign at the end of the 100 Mile Wilderness.
Love the ending: this trail is fraught with peril, but "good hiking!"
Oh, those wacky Mainers and their dry sense of humor.

Ahhhh…Maine. What can I say about Maine that would be fit for family consumption? OK—moving on now.

For the moment, we’re on hiatus. A nearly 2 week break, spending some time here in the DC area with the mother of Pancho and a brief jaunt to Amsterdam for EO University.

The slog—and yes, that is the best word I can choose—through the 100 Mile Wilderness was the toughest part of the hike so far. How to describe the trail through Maine?

Wet:  Often, the trail just runs along a streambed, which during heavy rains like there have been in the last few weeks, can be well over ankle-deep.

Muddy:  Hopping from rock to rock through pits of slime. Putting your pole out for balance, then having it sink 2 feet or more into the muck. Tiptoeing across bog-boards (planks or sawn logs, frequently of dubious stability) that become slick as glass when wet. The boards are also all too often submerged, and thus, not so helpful.

Rooty:  There are exposed roots everywhere, so that at times, your feet are nowhere near the ground. And like the bog-boards, the roots are deadly slick when wet.

Unfortunately, we had a bit of a schedule heading into the Wilderness, trying to get to Katahdin right after Labor Day. So we had to push some big mile days through some very nasty weather. Several straight days of rain—non-stop, drenching rain. Everything was soaked. Us. All of our gear. Our tent. Few things are as dismal and miserable, and we had some really tough, long days. We pulled through together, though, which is a pretty big accomplishment :).

We arrived in Millinocket, the town closest to Mount Katahdin on Tuesday evening, unpleasantly moist and terribly ripe. After hot showers, laundry, and a reunion with our friends Swift and Deja, we were ready to summit the next day.

Katahdin, from Abol Bridge.

Our hearty band, ready to summit.

Wednesday morning, the four of us took the long drive back out to the trail at Katahdin. When we set out, we were wearing shorts and tees and the weather looked, well, not so bad by Maine standards. The hike is 5 miles up, with some very rocky, challenging parts in the middle. Naturally, it started to drizzle about halfway. About 2 miles from the summit, the climbing stops and there is a relatively flat tableland. Around that point, the wind kicked in, the visibility dropped to zero, and the temps started to plummet. By the last mile, I had layered on long sleeves, full raingear, hat, and gloves. Still freezing. After a hurried lunch and the requisite photo shoot at the summit sign, we headed back down. Fortunately, the descent was not quite as treacherous as I had anticipated, though there was still much butt-scooting and dangling from trees.

View on the way up Katahdin, while there was still some visibility.

Pancho, Swift, and Deja heading up toward the tableland on Katahdin. 

Pancho on the tableland, approaching the summit.

The standard summit shot, looking a touch chilly.

The (limited) view from the top.

We met up with my folks at the base, who drove up from ATL to meet us and drive us down to Maryland. (Best trail parents EVER. :) ) Now we have to regroup a bit, doing laundry, cleaning up all our gear, shopping for new clothes for Pancho (always traumatic) who has lost well over 50 pounds.

There may be a post from Amsterdam—sort of the anti-AT experience. Otherwise, we head back onto the trail around the 23^rd, to complete the southern leg of our journey. Stick with us—we really appreciate all the support and encouragement y’all give us!

Hurricanes, river crossings, and mooses...oh my!

Here are some belated photos and details of our stay in Caratunk during the hurricane and our hike from there to Monson, the start of the 100 Mile Wilderness.

Loading up the Kennebec Ferry with Hillbilly Dave.

Swift and Deja sport the latest hurricane fashions. 

One of our primary concerns in the post-Irene world was the water level of the streams north of Caratunk, many of which can get dicey in high water conditions. Since we waited in Caratunk an extra day, the levels dropped some, so that we weren’t carrying our packs overhead, while picking our way across a chest-deep channel, as some others did.

We did have an exciting beaver dam crossing, aided by our buddy Who Knows, who happened to encounter the rather hostile beaver, apparently somewhat irritated by the constant flow of hikers.

Who Knows crossing the beaver dam with a pack. 

Pancho on the beaver dam

We also experienced the pristine ponds and rivers of Maine. Dining al fresco takes on a whole new meaning sitting beside a crystal clear pond, listening to the loons.

Bald Mountain Pond.

West Carry Pond.

And I finally got to see a moose, instead of just the copious amounts of poop littering the trail!

Moose!