Made it through the Roan Mountain Highlands.  I’ve been through here before, and its the most beautiful place I’ve hiked.

I had finally made it to US19. If memory served, there was an Ingles nearby. so I put out my thumb to hitch. A few cars passed but then a beat to hell Honda Civic rolled to a stop on the shoulder. I approached the passenger side window and a cute little brunette with dreads and aviator sunglasses greeted me.

“Where you headed smelly man?”

In no time we were on the road. She told me she lived near by and offered the use of her shower before my resupply. This is not a terribly uncommon occurrence on the AT, so I agreed.

We stopped at a small, single story, brick house and made our way inside.

“Shower’s in there. My roommate left a bunch of stuff under the sink so help yourself.”

The shower had real soap, real shampoo, etc. I ventured under the sink just to see. That’s when I found a real gem; a brand new loofa still packaged and everything! Elated, I began the best shower I had had in weeks. As I was about to turn the water off, I heard the bathroom door open.

“Hey, you clean yet?” she asked.

“This is the cleanest I’ve been in a month!” I excitedly replied.

“Cool, can I join you?”

My eyes opened and adjusted to the moonlit tent canopy above. I woke to a cruel reality. No shower. No dreadlocked trail babe. No loofa. My watch read 2am. US19 wouldn’t be for another 2 days. …

Soon I heard what woke me initially. It was the last thing any hiker wants to hear; the sound of their friend’s projectile vomit hitting the forest floor.

I smelled what seemed to be three day old, spilled milk and wondered if my tent had become a casualty to my neighbors sickness. Upon further investigation I realized it was just my armpits. Relieved, I rolled over and went back to sleep. It’s a shame you can’t resume dreams.

Norovirus is a big deal out here. It runs rampant on the AT every year. Privies, shelters and limited access to soap provide the perfect environment for these bugs to spread. Hikers are friendly people and all the handshaking, food sharing and “safety meetings”, spell disaster for many a stomach.

I drag myself out of bed around 7am and walked over to the fire pit. Turtle Goat told me to watch my step and sure enough, there was gastrointestinal minefield near his hammock. He was pale and weak. Firebird sat on a log with her head in her hands speaking to no one in particular. “It’s just….I NEED those calories. I cooked that meal, I dehydrated it, I mailed it all the way from Texas!”

“Now it’s ant food.” OSHA replied.

Firebird looked like she was on the edge of tears. So not one, but two sick friends now. The rest of us were worried and kept our distance. Firebird and Turtle Goat shared a beer yesterday but I shared some wine with them as well. I felt fine though.

Soon enough the culprit was identified. Neither had been treating their water in over a week. I cannot believe the amount of hikers who are already getting lazy with their water. Probably one in five are doing this and we’re not even in Virginia yet.

Thankfully, there was a hostel .5W so they decided to head there and zero. Ladybug, Lt. Safety and I decided to make for the Barn some seventeen miles away.

The Barn is one of the largest shelters on the AT, and a known party spot.  As you might guess, it’s a huge converted barn.  I had been there before and I was looking forward to seeing a familiar place again.

When I arrived, some twenty thru-hikers were there, along with “Gentle Ben” -a former thru hiker.  Ben gave us pizza and beer trail magic the day before.  He lost all of his food to a bear on Max Patch during his hike.  Now he does trail magic to repay the kindness of a stranger.  This stranger fully resupplied him for free at a gap the next day.

The shelter was hopping.  Every conceivable hiker-trash dinner concoction imaginable was being prepared.  I saw Knorr Side filled tortillas with peanut butter, pop-tart sandwiches with peanut butter and Fritos, an entire pack of Oreos, etc.  I had hiked out an entire pound of sharp cheddar.  My dinner was salmon and cheddar in a tortilla, with a Snickers, and a blackberry turnover.  Have I mentioned that I’ve lost thirteen pounds out here?

I slept in the loft with fifteen others, and signed the shelter log before bed.  Nearly every shelter has a log (notebook) in it, that people sign and leave messages in.  I left a note for Firebird and Turtle Goat, wishing them a fast recovery.  Hopefully they’d be there to read it within a couple of days.

On a side note, Joe (The Canadian) still writes to Black Sheep to encourage him along the trail. He draws a sheep and writes “Keep Going!”  Joe’s trail name is now Lumberjack, and I’ve not seen him since Franklin.  Black Sheep should be a few days behind me.

I see Flo, Pretzel, and Hatchet in the logs too.  They’re about three days ahead of me now.  Flo simply draws hearts, Pretzel leaves some wisdom, and Hatchet is always telling one of them to catch up.

What’s really fun is catching up to people you’ve read entries from, before meeting them in person.  It adds a whole new level to the instant camaraderie.

Tomorrow I’ll write about the amazing Roan Mountain Highlands, and share some pictures.

Take the best of care my friends.

May 23rd, 2016

Refreshed and Refueled. In the past 24 hours I’ve eaten 15 slices of pizza, a side salad, two beef burritos, rice and beans, three eggs, two slices of toast, hashbrowns, two country fried steaks, 8 glasses of sweet tea, and 11 PBRs.

One month on the trail will close at 354 miles. Headed out to Damascus, VA, 115 miles away. Trying to get there before June!

This is home for the night. I’m with a group of six and we just can’t pass this up:

I’ve got good neighbors to chill with!

Best evening on the trail. A great way to close out my first month out here.

Cheers!

I’m writing to you from Uncle Johnny’s Nolichucky Hostel in Erwin, TN.  The trip in from Hot Springs was rough, with rain every day.  Many fellow hikers compared it to the Smokies, and I’d agree it was a tougher section than I had expected it to be.  I fell in with a nice group of hikers for the first couple of days, and then the group gradually fragmented.  The rain and mud made a town stop more and more desirable, and we spread out fast.

I ended up stopping into a bar before departing Hot Springs, which was a mistake.  I had a few beers and a sizable meal consisting of a turkey club wrap and a massive salad.  Another thru-hiker bought me a couple of more beers.  Then a man with a failed run for the Tennessee State House came in, and we got talking about the nature of corruption and power.  I corrected him on something (I can’t remember what) and he bought me a beer as well.

“You know your history young man!”  He shouted across the bar as I left.

Drunk and hiker-hunger satiated for the time being, I realized I needed to find a place to stay.  I asked around, and decided to stumble my way back into the woods.  I found the white blazes soon enough, and made the substantial climb out of Hot Springs at 9:30pm by headlamp.  Firebird and Ladybug were also late getting out of town, and I hiked with them for a bit.  Firebird was adamant about night hiking without any light, and I tried it for a while.

Eventually I found a nice clearing and bid the others goodnight.  I slept about ten feet off trail, with a very nicely hung bear bag nearby.

The rain started the next day, and soon the trail was a muddy mess.  I stopped keeping close track of my mileage.  Many of my fellow hikers believe AWOL is off in this section, and I’d agree.  With the amount of obviously recent trail redirects in the last thirty miles, that’s not a stretch.  It could be that we’re just tired, cranky, smelly thru-hikers too.

I stopped into a brand new hostel called Hiker’s Paradise a couple nights ago.  The rain drove hikers off trail in droves, and we ended up with some twenty people there.  A pizza and Star Wars party ensued.  It was grand.

I’m seriously considering opening a hostel after my hike, and Hiker’s Paradise was one of my favorite so far.  Built off the side of what is essentially a double-wide trailer, it was a converted sun room.  The floor was gravel (very smart for people with muddy boots) with bunks along the walls.  Three mini pizza ovens, a microwave, and a picnic table adorned one side.  On the other was a small TV, internet area with a charging station, and a washer/dryer combo.

They had a full, cheap resupply, with a kitchen and a shower.  They had real soap and real shampoo in the shower, which is rare, let me tell you.  That was the cleanest I’ve been on trail.

I set out the next morning at 9am, in a failed effort to keep pace with Firebird.  I made it to one of the shelters the next day and found a note she wrote in one of the registers.  She said she was going HMOH (hike my own hike) till her friends caught up, and closed with “come and get me.” A small drawing of a checkered flag followed.  The rest of the group was doing 12-15’s and I too felt the need to up my mileage.  I’ve had a hell of a time getting the kind of rhythm back, that I had hiking with Flo.

Yesterday, for the first time ever, I listened to my .mp3 player while hiking.  What a game changer!  Prodigy got me up the hills, Radiohead saw me across the flats, and Chopin and Yoko Kanno got me across the balds.  There were absolutely gorgeous balds yesterday, framed in by thick fog.  I watched Jane Eyre before I left for my hike, and the scenery may as well have been from the same time and place.

Listening to the “Into the Wild” soundtrack while thru-hiking the AT is a crazy and epic feeling.  Music took my mind off of being wet and cold.  It gave me a rhythm with which to dance (slip, slide, and nearly fall) across the muddy trail.

 

I slept about three miles out of Erwin last night, and the rain caught me again.  Packing up this morning was cold, everything was filthy.  I can deal with wet and cold, but muddy boots, socks, gaiters, legs, shorts, pack, etc gets old really fast.  As wet as my tent has been inside and out, my down bag has stayed remarkably dry though.  I am immensely thankful for that.  The difference between discomfort and danger in those conditions is a wet sleeping bag.  The importance of having something dry to crawl into at night cannot be understated.

I strolled into Uncle Johnny’s at 10am this morning and took a nice hot shower.  There was no soap, just multiple bottles of hair conditioner.  That’s about par for the course out here.  I claimed a bunk, shuttled into town, and devoured about fifteen slices of pizza at an AYCE (all you can eat) place.  I bought  very cheap resupply at Priceless Foods.

I’m just waiting for the evening shuttle for dinner, and to visit a Walmart.  How I’ve missed Walmart!  I’m going to head off, do some laundry, and recharge both myself and my phone.

This is not an easy challenge, but a beautiful one.  I have a post about that coming later.  A phrase I heard earlier this year is that “happiness is not always comfortable.”  That sums up my hike so far.  Supposedly I’ve lost 13lbs so far.

Stay warm and dry my friends.

 

 

 

 

A big thanks to my friend Amy for this!

I had a blissful one hour soak in the hot tub.

I am headed out of Hot Springs now with Lt., Rev, Firebird, Ladybug, and Turtle Goat.  If only we used trail names in real life, people would be much easier to remember!

 

Hey Guys,

I’m writing to you from the library in Hot Springs, on one of their many public computers.  I made it into town this morning, with a short 3.2 mile hike from the nearest shelter to town.  I ended up pulling two 15(ish) mile days.  I did a partial laundry stop, resupplied on food and fuel, and am about to head over to get a soak.

I’ve been hiking with a pretty laid back group of guys for the past two days.  We’re looking at 17-18’s to Erwin, which sounds really good to me.  Flo, Pretzel, and Hatchet left Hot Springs today, with an 18, 30, and a 19 planned, if I heard correctly through the grapevine.

It’s rainy, and as tempting as it is to go into Laughing Heart Hostel for the night I have decided to press on.  About half the group I am with now are staying, while the rest of us are headed 1-5 miles out of town for the night.  The highlight of this town stop was Bluff Mountain outfitters.  They are by far the most comprehensive outfitter I’ve seen on the trail, with a full food resupply as well.  I bought a cheap light watch there (not having a watch has been driving me nuts) as well as some Valerian root supplements and fish oil for my knees.  They had a great tea selection too, so I banked on that as well.

I also got to meet Blueman’s wife today, which was pretty cool.  His whole family came in to spend a few days with him in Hot Springs.

With clean socks, and a clean wash cloth, I am ready to do battle with the woods today.  I am rolling out of here fully loaded for five days at 30lbs.

Here are some pics:

Mountain Laurel Blooming

FAA NDB marker with TRAIL MAGIC!!!!  Homemade Icecream, Apple Fritters, Beer, and lots of other goodies.  Homemade Fudge, Etc.

Headed towards Max Patch

Max Patch.  The most peaceful place I’ve found on the AT so far.

 

Power Nap!

 

Looks like a good place for hiker food!

My breakfast

 

I left no survivors!

 

I should be out 4-5 days to Erwin.  Will update as able.  Take the best of care!

May 15th, 2016-

I just left Standing Bear Farm. I am going to try to make it to Hot Springs in two days. The Post Office lost one of my mail drops which is a blessing since I still have food left from the Smokies and food is heavy. I told Maria at Standing Bear to throw it in the hiker box if it arrives so other hikers can make use of it.

I’m thinking 18 miles today and maybe 10-13 tomorrow to get to Hot Springs. I have a one hour soak waiting for me at the resort there; a gift from my friend Amy.

Cheers!

Tent City

May 14, 2016-

Heading out from Trail Days. A girl named Firebird made me this fine tiara while she was cutting a baking pan down into a stove wind screen. That’s Hatchet in the foreground. I met back up with Flo, and Pretzel as well and got the last spot on the shuttle from Standing Bear. It was a nice way to cap off a very mentally draining week in the Smokies.

Rolling back in from Trail Days.

From left to right, Hatchet, Flo and Pretzel

This is how you know you’re in a trail town!

I was told today that I am on one of the FB pages for returning Blueman’s lost phone to him. A lady at the trail recognized my trail name instantly. Kind of cool.

Blueman’s journal where he mentions Dirty Girl and his lost phone

this is the conclusion of the lost phone story

Headed out to Hot Springs tomorrow.

Cheers!