Bad Weather Pictures (the last 2 weeks)

Pictures: A little comic relief; fog & rain; Coffee & cupcake trail magic up on Bald Mtn.; View at the top of Hump Mtn. (scenic!); Trail going up Iron Mtn.

More Pictures

Pictures: Rabbit at Rocky Top, TN in the Smokies; Smokies view; Deer in Smokies; Wildflowers; Self-portrait on top of the world at Max Patch

Smokie Mountain Pictures

Pictures: View from Clingmans Dome, 6643ft. (Happy Birthday Dad!); Privy at Mt. Collins Shelter; Newfound Gap; Charlie's Bunion; Jefe, me and Gnormal atop Charlie's Bunion

Goodbye North Carolina, Adios Tennessee ... Hello Virginia

Well, I crossed the Virginia state line yesterday and walked into Damascus, VA in time for lunch. I'm so happy to have left two more states behind, but I'll be in Virginia a while. It stretches about 550 miles or approximately one-fourth of the entire trail. I walked in with Jogle, Vegas, Campfire, and Samson. We made an immediate stop at Subway for as much food as we could handle and then walked next door to a coffee shop for a nice big mocha. Ahhh ... real coffee. After realizing that I had hiked 300 miles in 16 days without a day off I decided it was definitely time for a zero day (as in zero miles hiked for the day). No wonder I was a little weary. I woke up this morning feeling truly relaxed physically for the first time in days. I've been feeling great, but waking up to the idea of not having to really do anything is nice. Everybody needs a day off and I probably should have taken one a while ago, but now is as good a time as ever. I can finally put some pictures up so enjoy and I'll talk to everyone soon! Pictures: Me and Jogle at the VA state line; Jogle, me and Vegas upon arriving in Damascus, VA; Samsom and Campfire at the Hiker's Inn hostel in Damascus

A Little Magic Just in Time

For those of you who don't know, we have a couple of things out here called "trail magic" and "trail angels". At various random spots you may run into a trail angel or angels sitting at a roadside or a gap that have food and drink (trail magic) for the hikers as they come by. Some of them might be out there for a day and some of them might camp out a week or a month to provide much needed goodies for the hikers.

I hiked out of Hot Springs on Saturday morning (May 10th) and the weather was overcast and cool - perfect. I saw a couple of cute snakes and began to run into people that had been a week ahead of me. The next day I woke up to 37 degrees and 30-40 mph winds (outlook did not look good). From there it got worse. There were strong winds, hail pelting me between the eyes, and rain. I made it to another shelter by 3:00 and would normally have hiked on, but instead I threw down my bag, turned around to the trail and told it that I was not going to take another [insert expletive] step. I figured that tomorrow was another day and the hiking could wait until then. After that I called mom and wished her a Happy Mother's Day ... it's always good to hear mom's voice.

Mother Nature did not exactly cooperate the next day. The winds increased, but at least there was not any hail or rain, but it was still colder. And then it happened ... there on the trail was a storage container full of cookies, cupcakes, and hot coffee with just a note instructing the hikers to warm up and eat some goodies. I'm truly not sure if I've ever been so happy in my whole life. Just as things were going downhill, an anonymous angel provided cupcakes and coffee - really good coffee, too. I helped myself, wrote a thank you note, and then had renewed energy with the help of the caffeine and sugar to push forward up the damned hill. I made it to the top of Bald Mountain where I was blown off the trail a couple of times by the big winds and made it to the nearby shelter. There I learned that the night before another hiker measured the wind speed to be 50 mph and a temperature of 19 degrees. Still hyped up on my trail magic, myself and three others decided to push on to lower elevation so as not to freeze in misery. We went another 6 miles and found a great meadow by Spivey Gap (1700 feet lower)and threw up a couple of tents. In the end, I hiked 25 miles that day, my longest so far. I was tired and my knees were a little sore, but I felt good. I made it in here to Erwin, Tennessee today after 11 miles of crawling over trees that were blown over in the storms during the previous two days. Only a little blood was dropped in the process. I'm showered again and have some clean clothes for at least 12 hours and then I'll be back out there - smelling up the trail.

Again, I'm unable to post pictures, but don't worry - I'll get some on at some point.

Into the Smokies and Out

Well, myself and others hiked through North Carolina where we saw our first black bear, a very young adult - a little guy. I was also introduced to ramps, wild onions that have a bit of a garlicy taste - yumm. I also learned about may apples and wintergreen. The weather continued to be a bit chilly for me, but I'm used to it now ... 50 degrees is tank top and shorts weather. We made it to Fontana Dam, NC (the dam where "The Fugitive" was filmed), which marks the southern boundary for the Smokey Mountain National Park. After taking a day off due to bad weather, we headed out and made it about 2 miles until my hiking partner twisted his knee. It was back to Fontana for us. A week later his knee was feeling better, but he and another former thru-hiker decided they wanted to stay there another week to catch a bluegrass festival. For me, it was time to go, so I headed out into the Smokies on my own on May 4th for the 70 mile trek through the park. Luckily, the Smokies were not too smokey and I had fabulous weather for the 4 days it took me to cross them. I also caught up with lots of other AT hikers that I know (I know just about everybody 2 weeks ahead of me and 1 week behind me). No one is ever really alone on the trail. Gnormal, Jefe, and I finished up the Smokies together. If you've never seen them, then you have to go. I saw lots of wildlife (rabbits, deer, birds, etc.), but no bears. I never really knew which state I was in as the trail follows the Tennessee/North Carolina border. I stood on the peak of Rocky Top, Tennessee (as in the song). I also hit the highest point of the Smokies and the entire trail, Clingman's Dome, on Dad's birthday (May 5th). I even got a birthday call through to him from the tower - at 6500 feet you would hope to get some kind of service! The wildflowers are carpeting the ground in every color. I wish everyone could see it. After four days (23mi, 14mi, 20mi, and 18mi - I don't care who you are - that's good) I left the Smokies behind. I will definitely return to them.

A day after exiting the Smokies I got to stand on top of the world. I climbed to the top of Max Patch, NC. At 4629 ft it's not the highest point I'll hit, but it's like standing on top of the world. It's a large bald on top of the mountain - think "The Sound of Music" intro scene. I sat there for an hour with a grin on my face ear-to-ear. Due to the weather, I couldn't cowboy camp on top so I headed on. I made it into Hot Springs, NC where I am now in a day and a half. I've showered and feel almost human again. I'd write more, but the outfitter is closing and I've got to wrap it up - the library in town is already closed. I'm out of here in the morning and might be back in touch in 4 or 5 days. Take care everyone. Sorry I haven't had cell service in a couple of weeks and have no access to a ground phone here. I'll call people the first chance I get.

Again, Happy Birthday Dad! I love you.

Sorry no pictures are accompanying this post, but the computer I'm on is apparently a throwing a bit of a tantrum. Next chance I have I'll post a bunch of photos.