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Ouch!

June 11, 2019Hikeadmin

Ignore the adhesive tape on the big toe which is to stop the nail from cutting into my sock. The big toe is fine. This morning I caught my foot in a root. Not just any root but one that bent my little toe out. It hurt like heck! Yesterday the nail on my little toe bumped against the inside of my shoe and made it very sore. Then today I jammed it on the root. This was early in the morning. However I had to get my miles done so I hiked 10 more miles this way. By the end every step was painful. Going up was not awful because my foot slid back toward the heel. But going down was bad. Each step I had to use my poles to break my forward momentum as my foot slid forward and applied pressure to that little ol’ pinkie. OUCH! This is the first time on trail that I took medicine (some Advil) to relieve the pain and reduce the swelling. Do you think I’ll lose the toe nail? I do and that’ll make number 3.

P.S. The next day I took Advil, a miracle drug, and was able to hike 18 miles with little discomfort. I’m amazed how a person’s body repairs itself. Especially one that is under such stress.

P.P.S. As of 6/18 I stopped taking Advil.

800 miles

June 9, 2019Hikeadmin

I only post when I get cell service. It’s been sporadic at best.

Going into Glasgow VA and had to cross this pedestrian bridge and take a shuttle from the trailhead

Can you tell I like bridges. Must be why I’m an engineer. This is a suspension one.

New fallen tree totally across the trail. Had to crawl through the branches.

Lots of hiking through the clouds with the recent rains

Has been raining for three days and is planned to rain for at least three more. Remember: “No pain, no rain, no Maine”

Ten by ten

June 3, 2019Hikeadmin

A couple of days ago I finally did 10 miles by 10 o’clock AKA “Ten by ten”. Whether it was my prowess, the weather, the trail, I’ll take it!

Just outside of Daleville I came across this “sign”. Yup, I’ve complete 1/3 of the Appalachian Trail.

Early morning from up high. Almost all the time I’m in the “shaded green tunnel” so when I pop out and have a view I can’t help myself and have to take a picture.

I found this AT thru-hiker on the trail and could resist taking his picture. Now I can honestly say that I’m not the slowest hiker on the trail!

Wow, another view of valleys and thousands of green trees. Again I must have broken through the tunnel and got a glimpse of the bigger world around me

So I’m standing on the trail looking down and all I see is a sea of green leaves. Somehow that struck my fancy and so I took this picture of it. Why you ask? I have no idea.

At the top of today’s climb I expected to be in a forest or maybe even a meadow. I didn’t expect to see this “installation”

Hmmm, should I go under this? Sure, what the heck hundred or thousands of other hikers have chanced it. Would you? By the way, a hiker was climbing up as I took this picture to sit/stand on this precarious boulder

Home for Hamilton

May 31, 2019Hikeadmin

Got to the Quality Inn in Roanoke thanks to Lyft. Switched into my travel clothes. Had a nice Prime Rib and Scallops dinner at Coach & Four restaurant again thanks to Lyft. Slept in until 6 AM. Packed my backpack with everything inside including poles, bottles, and smelly sweaty dirty clothes. And flew to Chicago and arrived in Austin at 6:30!PM.

Here’s what I look like at home after a shower and hair trim in my civilian clothes. I’ve lost weight and it shows in my cheeks. But I’m happy to be here with my sweetheart and going to see Hamilton tonight – special treat!

Here’s a full body shot. I’m so skinny. But all I do is eat and eat.

Back to civilization

May 29, 2019Hikeadmin

Because you are in the “Green Tunnel” for miles and miles each day then it’s exciting to have any view happen. As a result I felt compelled to take this picture. Afterwards I felt it was a nice composition with the flowers and trees in the foreground and the valley and rain clouds behind.

Small Slice told me the night before about the Catawba Grocery being only about 0.5 miles off trail which is unique since most stores are miles off trail. In addition I was tapering in preparation to flying home and was only hiking 8.5 miles. So why not stop for some treats!

What treats you ask? Well two 16 oz. Cokes (yup, the biggest ones) and a pint of cherry ice cream at 8 AM. I call it a special trail breakfast.

I thought the trail drop off. looked especially steep but now looking at it in this picture it look about average yet it did go down and down and down.

The night before we had a downpour about 10 PM. The wind blew rain into my tent. Lightning struck nearby which was frightening. However in about an hour it was over. In the morning I packed up my wet and damp things and hiked on. When I was done hiking (I was tapering and did 9.4 miles) I hung up my things to dry. This included my tent and sleeping bag among other things. In less than an hour all we’re dry.

My left shoe now has a large gaping hole after the tape fell off. Luckily not much trail debris has been getting in and bothering me. Kathy is sending me new shoes and inserts to my Daleville hotel.

One of the “famous” spots on the AT is McAfee Knob. I got there early in the morning and had no one to take my picture standing or sitting on the edge so a selfie has to do. Actually I’m afraid of heights and wouldn’t be caught anywhere near the edge so a selfie is just fine.

Water from a culvert – yum! The pipe is especially helpful because has less sediment and grunge coming out of it. I’m drinking 4-5 liters a day so planning and getting water is a necessary daily ritual.

The next sight after a descent and ascent from McAfee Knob is Tinker Cliffs. Although we have many needless ups and downs I felt these two were worth it.

Just another scenic picture from up high of green valleys mottled in sunlight.

Today’s hike, the last of my taper hikes, went by these massive granite boulders at the top of a mini-climb. The sunlight, lichens and mosses make interesting patterns on them.

At 8 AM I took a snack break on the rocks behind the tree with the white blaze on it. I took off my pack, sat on the rocks, mixed orange flavoring in my water, ate a Chocolate Brownie Clif Bar, and drank my yummy water. I only had 9.3 miles and soon I was back in civilization with traffic, shopping centers, and the busyness we call daily life.

Chewed up feet

May 26, 2019Hikeadmin

A few days ago leaving Pearisburg early in the morning I had to cross a highway bridge just as the sun appeared. I was lugging 6 1/2 days of food, my heaviest

This is my sad attempt at repairing the hole in my left shoe. It didn’t work and the tape is now lost somewhere on trail. Since then I’m hiking with a big hole there and accepting the debris I collect.

Getting ready for bed. I wear a fleece hat. My pillow is my cold gear stuff sack with a handmade pillow case on it. My hat is behind me and hold all my pick stuff including my phone, glasses, etc. That’s a nasal strip to help me breathe at night – I got small nostrils. And I sleep in my hiking clothes – yup I wear the 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Simple trail magic. The cooler had more fruit, sodas, Gatorade, beer, and candy. They even provided a garbage can. Unfortunately I didn’t have anything but should have.

The trail becomes rock. I’m not very stable, that is, I have terrible balance. I use hiking poles to help me – I call them hiking canes. Do you see the white blaze on the rock? I’ve got to get up and go that way. And do it very carefully!

TRAIL MAGIC EXTRAORDINAIRE: tents, chairs, gas stove, sodas, pizza, donuts, and on and on and on. Hosted by Briar Patch and his friend John. It brightened the spirits of all hikers and put a bounce in my step as I left smiling and full.

This is Scribe. He is a trail maintainer. Today among other things he was painting WHITE BLAZES! Thank you Scribe.

Hamilton

May 22, 2019Hikeadmin

Even before I started hiking the Appalachian Trail Kathy and I knew about Broadway Across America’s performance of Hamilton on May 31st. So as part of my hike plan I said I would return to Austin to attend this special musical.

I started the trail on April 14th and found that it was much harder than expected. On average I was doing 16 miles per day unlike my 20 mpd on the PCT. So on May 1st I had enough experience and I calculated that I need to do 16 mpd EACH AND EVERYDAY UNTIL I LEFT FOR AUSTIN! OMG! No zero days! So that’s what I did. I needed to grind out those miles.

I’m now seven days from leaving. And it looks like I’m going to make it. I’ve reserved a room at the Roanoke airport for May 29th and a flight on May 30th. Kathy is sending me travel clothes to the hotel. All is set.

Then I return on June 1st and right back into it, because I’ll be meeting Art and his family on June 21-23 at Greenbrier State Park in Maryland. Again this is going to be all I can do to get there on June 21st. But that’s what I want to do. No zeroes. I need to grind out those miles again.

In Pearisburg VA

May 22, 2019Hikeadmin

Down, down, down I hiked into the outskirts of the town of Pearisburg VA. Then a 0.7 mile hike on Cross Avenue to the Plaza Motel where I got my laundry done and a shower. Across the street I resupplied at the Food Lion. I got 6 1/2 days of food. OMG it is so heavy. And tomorrow I have to lug it back up into the mountains.

In the early morning before descending. Somewhere down thereto the left is Pearisburg VA. The descent was rocky, steep and treacherous.

This is what 600 miles of hiking does to Brooks Cascadia trail running shoes. Note: holes in toe box that let in dust, dirt and small stones; oh, and sticks can get stuck in the holes. P.S. you can’t appreciate the shocking aroma that they produce.

Another mature hiker, Wilson – as in the volleyball, who I have been camping and talking with for the past few days.

Heading into Pearisburg VA

May 21, 2019Hikeadmin

Almost to Pearisburg VA for my next resupply. I am camping 16 miles away to be there after finishing tomorrow’s hike. Then Lex and I will share a room, get showers, have our laundry done, do our resupply, and leave the following morning – Me to begin my staging for home in seven days, and Lex to continue hiking north solo.