Just sitting in the morning woods,
I listen through my ear,
Amazing what all can be heard
Without some humans near:
The rustle of the leaves,
Discussion of the birds,
The steaming of my tea
And stunning lack of words –
Perhaps this way is better;
Perhaps this way is worse;
I don’t intend to answer
In this final verse.
Today was an odd day. I didn’t see many other hikers. Now, I know many hikers don’t hike the whole trail, but I knew of at least five hikers who were close ahead, who will likely make it the whole way, yet I did not see them, not see their entries in the logbooks at the shelters.
It’s possible I passed them, especially if they decided to go into town. I doubt they all did though. Even so, I did not see many hikers today – less than ten total. The only one I hiked with, Peaches, was a really cool guy. As we hiked, he revealed to me his plan of finishing the trail in 100 days in time to return to school. That figures, another cool hiker shooting for 100 days. Just like Indiana, I will probably never see him again – unless it is on another trail.
I was surprised to see a bench along the trail in the middle of the woods, but sitting in it helped me understand why it was there.
Damascus is coming up soon, a big trail town. After nearly twenty miles today, I have less than sixty to get there. My spirit and my feet are currently debating how many days it will be. I am in no hurry, and tomorrow might be a good day for making tea. When I wake tomorrow, I’ll see how I feel.
For the first time, I am sleeping by myself in a shelter (Peaches was doing another ten miles), unless you count the mice. I hope they don’t keep me awake.
It is difficult to express the wonder of hiking. Every day is just about the same, yet it never gets bought or feels repetitive. Perhaps it is meeting new people each day, or the thrill of not planing exactly how far I will hike.
Today, I got an early start, which are my favorite starts. A former thru-hiker I met told me he used to aim for 10 miles by 10:00, 20 miles by 2:00, and then finish out the day with a few more. I really like this idea. Though it is pretty extreme for my body to do every day at this point, I thought I would try it today. For the most part, I was right on schedule. The forecast called for rain all day, but it only came down a little, right before I got to Elk Park. I tried to speed up to avoid the worst of the rain, which is a pretty bad idea. The result was my first major fall. Slipping on a wet root, I wet down. No injuries, but a good deal of mud stayed on my hands and knees.
After 23 miles, I got to the road just before 3:00 p.m. The post office closed at 4:00, and since nobody wanted to give me a ride, I set a brisk pace toward town, another 2.5 miles.
I made it in time, and was pleased to receive some Easter candy from home! With the rain still threatening, I wondered what to do. I ended up finding J’s Market, run by an extremely friendly man (J?). He was very helpful and let me stay under the roofed picnic table to cook dinner and charge my phone and charger. What was dinner? I bought it at J’s: Chili, Duncan family style.
Though not as good as a home cooked meal, it was pretty good… and over 2000 calories.
Now, I am back to the trail (might wait out the rain just in case). I will probably set up camp as soon as I step on the trail, as I’m exhausted. Today was awesome though. Despite the overcast day, there were still beautiful sights.
Not a record day, but I did get 20 miles done, which was good, considering my late start. I slept for about 15 hours last night. I guess my body wanted some more rest.
The weather was awesome today, but the word is thunderstorms for tomorrow. We shall see. I might be able to outwalk them. I also might be able to get into town during the rain, but hiking in a storm might be fun.
Tomorrow brings me back above 6000 feet, so I am expecting wind and good views. Goodnight.
What an absolutely gorgeous day it is today. It’s warm, sunny, and it is the perfect day for both hiking and leisurely enjoying the company of hikers, and a holiday too! People are celebrating the holiday in all sorts of ways out here.
However, what I am struck by most on this day is the simple joy of being where I am and doing what I am doing. A year ago, most hikers never would have anticipated their lying on the grass in the sun in a small town in Tennessee. They probably did not expect that they would have fewer deadlines and fewer bills and less stress, nor that they would have perfect views of mountains every day.
Alright, so I’m bragging a bit, but I am the happiest I have ever been. Whenever a local asks me about hiking, I feel a rush of excitement, reminding me of my awesome adventure. Standing on a mountaintop, I realize the magnitude of my journey.
While in town this weekend, I watched a movie called “In Time.” Yes, it was the cheesy action movie with Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried. It was based in a futuristic world where the currency is time. JT had to spend his time to buy coffee and bus rides, but his poverty made decisions difficult. If you ran out of time, you died. Amanda was rich with time but envied JT, who always lived for the moment and spent his time assertively. It inevitably turned into a love story with a lot of action, but the message was clear: do not take time for granted.
Even though it was a fictional world, the premise is true. When you run out of time, you die. Being on the trail is where I want to be above all other places, and it made me realize that is how I should always live my life. If I am not living with a specific purpose – currently self-fulfillment and happiness – then I am wasting the sacred time that I have left. People keep telling me that I will always remember this trip. While I very much agree, I don’t plan to go back to a boring life after. I plan to begin my next adventure, to spend my time in a new, exciting way.
I am literally living my dream right now. There is nowhere I would rather be, and I cannot recommend this way of living enough. I don’t just mean just hiking the trail. I mean spending time in the best way possible, experiencing freedom and true joy. If you want to do something with your life, do it. Before you run out of time.
In honor of the holiday or weekend or something, I decided to take a full day off. I actually blame another hiker, Dog, who was at the same hotel. He told me it would probably rain and that he was pulling a zero, so I decided to join him and a few others.
We spent the early part of the day doing laundry and buying food, and the latter part of the day eating and watching the new Captain America movie at the theatre.
There were rumors of a country music concert, which we never found, but we managed to have a good amount of fun without getting kicked out of the hotel. And I acquired a new piece of gear:
And it’s super lightweight too! I may try to get rid of some other weight while in town. I have been moving faster and packing lighter. But for now, Forrest Gump.
What I didn’t mention in yesterday’s post was part of my motivation for hiking so far. My brother Zack had texted me and wanted to meet up today. I pushed the last 11 miles to the town of Erwin, where Zack and my friend Danny were waiting on the bridge.
We talked about the symbolism of meeting on a bridge, ate a few racks of ribs, and just generally horsed around. It was so great to see them. It’s always good to have a bit of home out here.
After spending the afternoon with them, I got a motel room. The original idea was to split the room, but the other hiker ended up just staying at the hostel nearer the trail, so I got a single room for myself instead. For now, I am living in luxury, with all the ice I could ever want, and a bed that is about five times larger than necessary.
Normally, I would have finished my routine and would be ready for sleeping now, but tonight I am watching X-Men, a nice change from the usual evening. And actually, it is surprisingly quiet. I am accustomed to socializing with hikers for a few hours before I sleep, but the quiet alone time has been nice.
The next town, I will probably just pass right through, so I am enjoying being in town today.
Today was such an awesome day. It may have been the best yet, though I feel like I might say that most days. What can I say? It’s awesome out here.
This morning, I had an average start, around 8:00 a.m. The weather was pretty good, and I caught up to Dog to hike with him for a while. Though it got warm today, it was not hot, which is the best for hiking. I am slightly worried about the heat coming, and I’ve heard rumors of hikers night hiking and sleeping during the summer days because it is too hot to hike.
Well, I had hiked 18 miles by mid-afternoon, when I ran into none other than Bandit! She began hiking this year and had to leave the trail because of a foot injury. I thought she was so cool, and even cooler for coming back to bring trail magic to hikers! I was so happy to be hiking through when she was there.
With her friend Remix – he hiked the trail in 2007 – they brought the best trail magic I have experienced. They were both so generous and great to spend time with.
Energized by the surprise, I decided to hike farther than I intended, and farther than I had yet. I did a 31 mile day.
It was tiring, but it felt awesome. I ended up finishing the hike with my headlamp, and set up camp at a gap, where a road crosses the trail. Sleeping will be easy after that.
Well, as I said, the hostel was an interesting experience, but we made it out alive. The owners cooked pretty well too.
The trails were still mostly muddy from yesterday, so I ended up hiking a lot of the “secondary trail,” which is just the area on either side of the trail, where it is usually less muddy.
There was also still a good amount of snow left in some areas, so we had a snowball fight, among other fun activities.
Because of the mud (my excuse), I only hiked ten miles today, but I am planning on pushing a bit faster to get to the upcoming towns and catch some other hikers.
Hoping for a big hike tomorrow. Tonight is supposed to be cold (last night was record low), so I am getting all my warm stuff ready now.
Well, one form of motivation to hike quickly is weather. There was plenty of it today. I woke up to rain, and as I am still learning how to master my new equipment, the take down process this morning was long and wet.
The rain continued for a while, and as I climbed to a higher elevation, the wind picked up quickly. As it got colder, the rain turned to sleet, then hail, and eventually snow. It was cold, wet, and windy for a good portion if the hike. As my hammock was still wet, my options were to aim for a shelter or to aim for a hostel, which sounded very appealing. It was 15 miles, which was definitely doable, but the bad weather made it seem a lot longer.
I stopped for a few minutes at the shelter, where Impact had started a fire! It was an awesome few minutes, steam emanating from my body. I had to brave the cold again for another five miles to reach the hostel.
I’m here! It’s a work-in-progress sort of hostel. I was told only floor space was available, and the shower did not produce water, but hey, there’s heat and dry surfaces, and that is worth it to me.
It was a rough hike. Despite the crazy weather, I am still enjoying myself and my new gear. The tarp I showed yesterday. I also got some new titanium stakes and a silk sleeping bag liner. It is awesome because I can add warmth to my sleeping bag or use it solo if it is super warm out.
Also, I got these!
Another hiker makes them. They’re called Trek Pouches and are exactly what they sound like – pouches for your trekking poles. They provide easy access and move the weight from the pack to the poles. So far, I am pleased with them, and they lasted pretty well through the humidity of today. And they are 100% from the USA! sweet!
Also, I have been talking to some fellow explorers recently who have blogs of their own. Here are a few:
A friend who will be hiking/hitching his own trail
Check them out if you have time! Dinner is soon, so I will write more later.
Human Living 