The Hiker Slump

Everyone on the trail is currently experiencing what I call "the hiker slump".  This isn't the Virginia Blues because we're not far enough into the state to be sick of it yet.

This hiker slump comes from having already hiked over 600 miles and being very used to the routine of the trail.  We have started spending too much money, drinking too much beer, and spending too many days in town.  It's hard to tell how long it will last.  I'm currently trying to pull myself out of the slump, but my theory is that others will remain in this slump until the end of Virginia or until they check their bank statements.  I think Trail Days this weekend will only worsen it for some.

I'm hoping we get out of this pattern soon, so we can continue to Maine.  A ridiculous amount of people have already dropped off the trail, so on the positive side, its a big accomplishment that we're even still on the trail.

Start of Virginia

I hit the Virginia state line about 2 miles before getting into Damascus.  Damascus is a very hiker friendly spot.  They hold the annual Trail Days festival, which is coming up in two weeks.  I reunited with Cheese Water and Sir Towelie there, and we hiked on into the Grayson Highlands.

The day we entered the Grayson Highlands we also hit the 500 mile mark.  The Highlands are known for their ponies.  I thought I would just be seeing them from 20 feet away.  That wasn't the case.  They came right up to us wanting food.  They were licking the salt off our legs and packs.  I would compare them to over excited puppies.

It's been a rough week because the heat has been killer.  I've drank so much water throughout the days.  My Platypus holds 3 liters so I don't really run out.  I get to be picky about my water sources though, since I can carry so much.  I still haven't treated my water yet.  It seems like its going to be a hot, dry summer.  I might have to start treating if the water sources become few and far between.

It's crazy how quickly the weather has been changing.  A few weeks ago we had some crazy snow.  A lot of people had already sent home their cold weather gear, but I was lucky because I still had mine.  I had one really bad day in the snow.  I had to do 16 miles to a shelter, and it was getting dark just as I was climbing Roan Mountain.  The shelter should have been at the top, but it wasn't well marked.  By the time I checked my data book, I was almost 2 miles from the shelter.  It was dark out, and I had to set up camp where I was.  There were no trees to block the wind, so my tent was blowing all over the place.  I was by myself, and I woke up with my tent covered in several inches of snow.  I met up with my buddy Subway in the morning, and to top it all off, we got lost for 2 hours on the top of a freezing, cloudy mountain. Virginia is supposed to be pretty mellow compared to what I've already hiked. It's still pretty rough because I'm doing more miles than I was before. The next big thing is Trail Days. After that I'm aqua blazing the Shenandoahs. That's when you take a kayak or canoe down the river. hours

Tennessee and North Carolina

Within a week or so, I should be getting into Virginia.  For the past few weeks, the trail has been weaving between North Carolina and Tennessee so we never really know where we're at.  Damascus, VA is coming up though.  It marks the forth and longest state.  I'll also be hitting the 500 mile mark shortly after getting into VA.  So, I have a pretty exciting two weeks coming up.

Stryder left to go back to Georgia right after the Smokies.  Before he left though, we did some trail magic.  We built a fire close to Standing Bear Hostel and spent the day cooking.  I made 16 calzones over the day.  Stryder made fried zoo-zoos.  They're these cinnamon rolls wrapped around Snickers, fried in oil, and covered with icing.  Good stuff.

I booked it into Hot Springs because I was trying to ditch a swarm of annoying dudes.  I didn't realize that getting hit on all the time could be such a pain in the ass.  Three miles from Hot Springs, my friend Slopes (not one of the annoying people) caught up to me.  We went into town, got some bunks in the hostel, and went in search of food.  We ran into Tyvek who had just got a jar of apple pie moonshine, then we walked down towards to bar.  It was my friend Tarzahn's last night before he went off the trail, so that pretty much decided my plans for the evening.  A big group of us hung out at the bar until closing time.  When Tarzahn was going to bed, he yelled back at me, "I'll see you up the trail!"

The next day it took a while to get out of Hot Springs.  Once we did get on the trail, it took about 6 hours to hike 8 miles.  I got to a camp spot in the dark with my friends Cheese Water and Sir Towelly.  It was Pace's birthday, so I made calzones for her and everybody else.  Watermelon made cake-in-an-orange on the fire as well.  It was a pretty sweet evening.

It took a few more days to get to Erwin, Tennessee.  I pulled a 21 mile day into town.  I don't normally like to hike that much, but it was raining and I was cold.  I went to Uncle Johnny's hostel and got a spot in a cabin.  The next day, Cheese Water and Sir Towelly talked me into doing a slack pack.  Basically, the hostel drives you ahead with small bookbags and you hike back.  Unfortunately, a guy named Just Jim fell and hurt his ankle on the slack pack.  We were luckily with a couple called Sun Kissed and Jesse.  She's a nurse and he's a Wilderness First Responder.  So, the took care of his ankle and hiked him back to the road crossing to be picked up by the hostel.

My parents came into town for the weekend to visit me.  They replaced my broken headlamp and spork for me.  On Saturday, we went to a road crossing to do trail magic for everybody.  We had stuff for Troyer's trail bologna and swiss cheese sandwiches for everybody.  Dad made beans and we had tons of cookies, snacks, pop, and beer.  The hikers loved it.  Everybody that hiked by spent several hours hanging out.  We had started the day with about 5 cases of beer, but those were all gone by the time we packed up.  Our bottle of wine was drank too.

On to Virginia!

Smokey Mountains

My trip through the Smokies has been pretty interesting.  I camped out with Stryder and two other guys called Detour and Slopes one night.  Well apparently you're only allowed to sleep in shelters in the Smokies.  A ranger came along in the morning and slapped us all with $75 fines each.  That was pretty lame.

Other than that, the Smokies have been really beautiful.  We hit the 200 mile mark and reached the highest point on the trail in the same day.  Clingman's Dome is the highest point.  It's a cool tower that has a 360 degree view over the entire park.  It's also a tourist attraction, and us hikers are quite the spectacle.  I think people really get a kick out of talking to us and checking out our gear.

The weather has been COLD.  It's the worst at night and in the mornings.  I've been sleeping with all my clothes on in my 30 degree bag, and I still wake up cold at night.  It's been hard to get started in the morning.  We've also had a few bad thunder storms that have just soaked e everything.  I don't want to complain though because I know I'll be missing the chilly weather when its hot this summer.

There's about three rotations of hikers leaving in the morning.  There's the old guys that get started at 6:30 or 7 am. There's the people that leave at the most reasonable times, 8:30 or 9.  Then there's the group I'm part of: we don't hit the trail until 10 to 11.  We generally stop in the middle of the day, get distracted, and take a 2 or 3 hour break.  We've been rolling into camp only a little before dark.  We still do the same miles as everyone else.  It's just that a lot of people get to camp around 3 pm.

I ran into some awesome trail magic today.  This couple made all the hikers grilled cheese and they had brownies, fruit, chips, and pop.  Then they gave a bunch of hikers rides into town.  They said they do this every Saturday and Sunday.  They were really nice people.

My next town is Hot Springs, and its not for 70 more miles so who knows when I'll get there.

Starting the Smokies

So, I'm sitting in some fancy lobby of this Lodge at Fontana Dam, the start of the Smokies.  I sort of randomly ended up here.  Stryder and I were trying to hitch into town for our resupply, and this is where we got dropped off.  Turns out, they had a buffet breakfast, so I hit that up.  Then another hiker bought me a very strong screwdriver.  There are a few other very hungover hikers here, and nobody has made very much progress toward getting to the trail yet.

Yesterday I did an 18 mile day because we really wanted to stay at the Fontana Hilton.  It's a huge, really nice shelter with a 24 person capacity.  There were free showers, restrooms, and lots of benches.  You never get that at shelters, so it was worth the hike. 

I stayed at the NOC a few nights ago.  They had bunks in the cabins for hikers to sleep on.  I spent way to much money at the outfitter because I needed a new pack cover.  Mine was too small.  Pack covers are normally $25, but I had to pay $45.  I guess the prices are higher because its the peak of the season and the outfitter was right on the trail. 

Coming out of the NOC was an 8 mile uphill, which sucked.  But I have a 9 mile uphill to look forward to today.  It's hard to get into the Smokies, but once you're up there, apparently its all ridge walks with awesome views.  Ridge walking just kind of means you're high up in the mountains and you hover up there.  You don't have to go all the way up and down every mountain.

So, I've been getting these awful T-shirt tan lines, and I wanted to get a tank top so it wouldn't be so bad.  Stryder found an abandoned tank top at a shelter for me.  It's the right size, but its cotton and it kind of smells bad.  But I guess beggars can't be choosers.  It'll do for now.

First Week

Ok, so I've had an awesome first week on the trail.  The Wolf Pack and I covered 53 miles.  Monk and Thumper (or Trey and Foreman) hit their personal 100 miles on the AT mark.  Ruth got the name Inch Worm, and Dana became Trooper.  We met some pretty cool people.  We also celebrated Monk's birthday with fire roasted cinnamon rolls and my trail calzones. 

We had rain for about 3 days straight, so we spent a lot of time being cold and wet.  Every time our clothes, tents, and sleeping bags would dry out it would just rain again.  It wasn't too miserable though.  We came across some trail magic on one cold day and got to sit under a tent.  I don't mind the rain too much.  I keep telling myself it's the trails way of weeding out the people that aren't gonna make it.  I think there's a phrase: No rain, no Maine.

A few days ago, I crossed the border into North Carolina.  It was kind of funny, because there was a huge group of hikers sitting on a rock by the sign.  No one said anything to me as I hiked up, then when I crossed the border, everyone started cheering.  I joined them on the rock, and we did the same for the next few hikers.

I also hit the100 mile mark, so that was exciting.  My friend Stryder came out to the trail and is hiking the Smokies with me.  I also met a cool group of boys from Long Island I've been hiking with. 

What To Wear Hiking

You're going to need some durable clothes for your hike.  Clothes designed for athletics tend to be more pricey than normal clothes, but you'll be wearing the same stuff everyday.  Consider good clothes to be an investment.  Synthetic materials are the best because they're lightweight, and they dry quickly.  Cotton is the worst.  If it gets wet, it will be cold and take a long time to dry.  Also, remember to layer your clothes if it's cold.

Keep in mind that the first month or two will be colder than the rest of your hike.  It's likely that you'll run into snow in the Smokies.  Some of your clothes can be mailed home or ditched in a hiker box once the weather warms up for good.  These are just suggestions.  You'll probably have your own preferences.

-synthetic t-shirt: this is pretty much a staple, and you'll probably wear it everyday.
-rain jacket: this is great to have because it not only keeps you dry, but you can wear it when you're cold too.
-convertible pants: they zip off above the knee, so they can be shorts or pants.
-long-sleeved shirt: good for nighttime or cold weather.
-synthetic shorts: something loose and breathable.
-wool socks: bring 2 or 3 pairs; you'll probably have to replace them a few times during your hike.
-sports bra (if necessary)

Other options:
-running skirt: these are getting pretty popular on the trail because they're super comfortable and they look cute.
-hiking kilt (for men): most guys think these are for wussies, until they give them a try and see how comfortable they are; I thought they were nerdy until I ran into one hiker that looked like a Gladiator in his kilt.

Cold weather clothes (send home when weather warms up):
-beanie/cap: keep your ears warm.
-gloves: you can probably get by without them if you don't want to carry them, but they're nice to have.
-yoga pants/ long underwear
-fleece/ flannel/ long-sleeve shirt

Of course you'll need a comfortable pair of hiking boots or shoes.  A lot of hikers like to have a pair of sandals to wear around camp, as well.