Thank you to all of the moms out there who support us, even when we sound like we're crazy.
Happy Mother's Day Mom.
Special shout out to Tree Hugger VA who made sure us hikers had a mom to take care of us on Mother's Day.
Today's forecast calls for a 100% chance of rain. I intended to go out this morning but decided that was a good enough reason to stay. More rest is probably a good idea anyway.
While I was heading over to the Kroger to get some food for today, I saw a welcomed blast from the past. Moonshine was there! I thought for sure he was long gone, but he took some time off to hang out with a friend in Blacksburg. I was glad to see him again, and we caught up while I grabbed some things at Kroger. My new hotel is across the street from him, so he let me hop in his Uber back with him. We're planning on grabbing breakfast in the morning and getting back to it if everything goes to plan.
He's also blogging for The Trek, and his most recent article is a great read.
What a month and 400 miles looks like
Miles Today: 6.3
Mile Marker: 728.1 Howard Johnson
I got started around 6:00 this morning to try to beat the rain and get into town quickly. Around 7:30 the rain came in buckets. After about an hour the rain stopped, but the trail was still a marshland. The trail dumps right into Daleville, and I made it to the Howard Johnson around 9:00. They let me check in early and gave me a hiker discount.
I showered and set about getting my errands done. I made it to the post office and collected my new shoes. (Thanks Sis!) Then I went to the outfitter for a new shirt. My old one had several holes already, but when the shoulder ripped out yesterday I decided it was time to let it go. Next stop was the BBQ joint for more meh BBQ. I honestly thought the “Texas has the best BBQ” thing was typical Texas pride. I knew it was great, but figured surely everywhere had some decent BBQ. but most of what I've tried has been a truly sad showing by comparison. BBQ and tacos are top of the list of return home items. Lastly was the grocery store for a resupply.
I got settled into the room and was about to take a soak in the tub when I got a knock on the door. Forest decided to stay in town and asked if I wanted to split my room. I said sure and let him take the bathroom while I collected all of my stuff I had exploded all over the room. I've learned from Mom how to truly own a hotel room, but when Forest walked in all I could think was “Please don't tell people I live like this”.
Game plan is to keep the ankle iced and elevated and relax till tomorrow. It has been okay, but I don't want to push it. The new shoes also have more ankle padding and a more durable sole, so I hope that helps.
Cool overlook for dinner time.
May 10th: Trying Again
Miles Today: 19.4 + 0.30 from hostel
Mile Marker: 721.8
The hostel I was zeroing at wasn't particularly great. I was anxious to get out of there and head to Daleville. My sister sent my new shoes there, and I really need those shoes. My current shoes felt like they were starting to die just after 300 miles. They will have around 400 on them by the time I switch. I'm hoping they are a leading factor in my ankle pain, because it would be an easy fix.
I didn't really have any issues hiking today. I took more breaks in the later half of the day to let my feet rest. The trail wasn't particularly difficult, and there were only a couple of small technical sections. Hopefully that keeps my ankle happy overnight. I slept with it elevated last night and will again tonight.
If all goes to plan, I'll nearo into Daleville tomorrow and stay in a motel. There I can keep my leg elevated, iced, and rested in a real bed. If that doesn't work I'm probably going to find a doctor to check. I've got to assume it's just an overuse injury, but the thought of taking off an extended time to rest isn't appealing. But ultimately I'll do whatever I need to do.
My brain was ready to go, but my ankle wasn't ready. Reluctantly I stayed another day. It took a lot of finagling to work out how to do it, but eventually we got an Uber into town to see Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 2. Not a complete waste I guess.
I don't know what is going on with my ankle. Yesterday I felt great. I didn't take any Advil or anything and felt good hiking all day. Last night about an hour before I went to bed my ankle started to hurt again. This morning I woke up to it swollen and in pain again. It didn't hurt as much as two days ago, but it is visually more swollen. I took a zero at the hostel, and I'm hoping rest will help. I'm worried this is going to be an ongoing cycle. If it is I guess I'll need to take a few days rest in a row. Really annoying though. 10/10 hiking weather today. Tomorrow is supposed to be rain all day. I was supposed to be nearoing into Daleville tomorrow.
Miles Today: 16.8 + 0.40 to the grocery store
Mile Marker: 685.6 702.4
I woke up feeling refreshed with my ankle about 90%. Apparently a 14 hour nap on level ground was all I really needed. I took my time getting started, but quickly fell back into rhythm. A few miles in I bumped into C-Biscuit who was very happy to see me. Apparently he's been hiking for three days without seeing another thru hiker. He saw a few Southbound day hikers, but was starting to feel like he was all alone. There is a pack of about ten hikers just a day ahead of us, but it is really weird there had been no one behind him. It is definitely starting to thin out from where we started in Georgia a couple of months ago. He was already four or five miles in by the time he saw me, so we wouldn't see each other again for the rest of the day.
We chatted for a bit, and then I headed on. My goal today was the Catawba Grocery store for a resupply and a pizza. I ended up making it there by 6:00. Turns out the pizza is $9.99 and all toppings are free. I got every topping but pepperoni (eat that on trail). So good.
I was hanging out front charging my phone, as hiker trash does, when Craig showed up. He asked if I'd checked out the hostel down the road. I had seen it in the guide, but I was planning on hiking back into the woods. He said it was a great place to hang out and everyone was there. As a bonus he was being shuttled there; I hopped in the van and headed back. Cool place with loads of hikers I thought were ahead of me. Plus a super friendly cat. Definitely the right choice.
Miles Today: 5.6
Mile Marker: 685.6 Niday Shelter
I woke up this morning with my left ankle in agony. Any way I turned it caused shooting pains. I rolled that ankle about a year ago on a canoeing and hiking trip, and it hasn't been the same since. I'm not sure why it hurt so much this morning. I didn't do anything differently yesterday that should have aggravated it. It was a bit swollen the other day, and I did sleep on a slight decline. Perhaps the blood pooled down to my feet. Or maybe I slept at a funny angle with my foot pressed up against the tent oddly. Either way my ankle wasn't having it.
I took an Aleve and had a protein bar and waited. Finally around noon I knew I had no choice. I was 5.6 miles from water and had to get there at least. I took two advil and hobbled my way around packing up gear. It took me 4 hours to hike the 5.6 miles to the next stream. I setup my tent and went and soaked my foot in the ice old water. Then I went through my food bag and decided if I was careful I could make it 2-3 days if I had to. I tried to charge my phone, but my battery bank went from 32% to 0% right after I plugged it in. I guess that is the next piece of gear to replace. I went to bed shortly thereafter and skipped dinner. Rough day.
Second largest tree on the AT. Over 300 years old
Trekking poles for scale. That downed branch is the size of average trees in this area. Just bananas.
Miles Today: 17.0
Mile Marker: 680.0
Last night the winds and rain picked up significantly. Where I was camped was really rocky, and I was having difficulty getting one of my tent stakes to stay in place. In the middle of the night it came loose, and the rain fly started whipping water into the side of my tent. I had to get out, resecure the fly, and find something to weigh down the stake. Ironically there were no surface rocks available, so I used a downed branch. The wind kept waking me up off and on, keeping me from getting a good night's sleep. Silver lining though, it pushed the storm west of us. Clear skies all day today.
Hiking was pretty uneventful. There was one section that was rocky and all uphill. That was rather frustrating. Then at the end of the day I was debating if I would stay at the shelter. Once I got there I realized it was 0.45 miles off trail, but it was also the last water source for the next 6 miles. I decided if I was going to hike that far off trail I would just stay. That is until I finally got down to the shelter. There were six switchbacks and the trail was basically straight down. While I was filling up water I pondered the choices, and I decided I'd rather fight the hill back up to the trail tonight instead of first thing in the morning. Once I got to the top, I hiked another half mile or so, and then found a decent spot to camp. Another late day today due to a slower morning start. I've got to get back in the habit of leaving earlier.
Miles Today: 13.3
Mile Marker: 663.0
Last night the wind was howling. I finally put in ear plugs to get some sleep. Then of course I overslept. When I woke up, I noticed my left ankle was a bit swollen. Occasionally as I'm walking down the trail I'll step on a stick with my right foot causing it to lift up and be caught by the front of my left foot forward. This causes the stick to pivot and push the front of my foot out as it comes forward, and that causes my knee and ankle to twist in a direction they weren't prepared for. For some reason this happened about five times yesterday. It happens with my right foot too, but I've had problems with my left ankle since the beginning so I notice it more. I try to avoid taking painkillers because I don't want to mask any warning signs my body is trying to give me. However because it was a bit inflamed, I took some advil and laid back down for a while.
Finally around 11:00 I got going. I had some pretty good momentum going until I ran into The Captains. The Captain is a Trail Angel who lives next to the trail, but with a creek in between. He rigged up this cool little zip line trolley for hikers to get across. He lets you camp in his yard for free, use his WiFi, electricity, and has free sodas in the fridge on his back porch. Initially I was only going to stop and take a picture of the zip line. Then I saw free soda, and that was the perfect excuse to try the trolley. I had a “Dr. Peppy”, an orange soda, played fetch with his dog, and then zip lined back to the trail.
Later in the day it started to rain, but not too badly. I was going to hike until I hit my fifteen mile goal, but I started to develop a hot spot on my left foot. Normally I would tape over it and keep moving, however I can't really do that in the rain. Not wanting the hot spot to become a blister I called it a day an hour early and set up my tent.
One final insult to injury, I ran out of stove fuel halfway through cooking. Thankfully I have ramen for dinner right now, and it rehydrates pretty well without heat. Two more nights of cold meals before I can buy more. And yes I could cook over a fire, but I'm not about to go to that level of effort for ramen.
Seeing more and more snakes every day.
Home for the night.
Miles Today: 15.6
Mile Marker: 649.7
Apparently I forgot to refill my water while I was in town last night. I had a little less than a half of a liter when I got packed up this morning. Water was either three tenths behind me or six miles ahead of me. I left my backpack and headed back toward the stream. It was completely dry when I got there. Six miles ahead it is then. I was quite thirsty by the time I got there, but it was a nice water source. I actually passed a stream a mile before, but it was on private property with cattle. I was thirsty enough to trespass, but the cattle being near the water deterred me. No reason to take the chance of getting sick… or I guess shot for that matter.
The rest of the day was rather nice. There was one climb early in the day, but the rest of it was spent going down a ridgeline. There were some rocky areas that hurt my feet, but otherwise not too bad. Toward the end of the day I ran into Liam who had somehow passed me during the day. He said George’s foot was hurting and he was further behind. I got to my mileage goal for the day and set up camp. About thirty minutes later George showed up and I offered him some Cheezits if he wanted to take a break. We sat and talked for a while and then he headed back down the trail.
Old vs new
My inner fat kid ways forgets to take a picture until after I've started eating.
Miles Today: 15.6
Mile Marker: 634.7 Just Outside of Pearisburg
This morning I woke up unsure of where to hike. I ordered new trekking pole tips from Amazon, but it looked like they wouldn't be in Pearisburg until tomorrow. For perspective my trekking poles have become an extension of my body. They are a part of my cadence, and I generally hike slower without them. They help pull myself uphill and help brace myself on the downhill. It is to the point where I was hiking with them tucked under my arm while checking my guide in a flat spot and tripped, but instead of bracing with my hands I flipped my poles forward and caught myself. I use them like four foot chopsticks to pick up small limbs and throw them off trail. I use them to probe the ground and test for insects and animals around where I am going to sit or camp. I take one with me every time I go to collect water. I legitimately struggle when walking into town and I put them away. (They can scuff up the sidewalk, and it is poor form to use them off trail.) They are important.
Four or five days ago the carbide tips wore off, and I was left with plastic nubs. The carbide tips are what give purchase on rocks and other slippery terrain. Without them they are worthless. I ordered new ones in Bland, but my timing was off. I started to debate getting into town and working out slackpack options to stay on schedule. Around 12:00 I took my phone out of airplane mode to check for signal and call hostels. Immediately a message came through my package was delivered! I checked the guide and saw I had eight miles to cover before the post office closed at 4:30. I finally had direction for the day and got there at 3:30 and got my package. In order to remove the old ones you have to bash them off with a crescent wrench. I popped over to the Exxon service station and asked if I could borrow one of theirs. The guy working on a truck out front was super cool and took me into the shop and gave me one to use. All is right with the world again.
Next stop was the Mexican food place for a jumbo burrito, a carnitas taco, and a Margarita on the rocks. Best Mexican food place so far. Good salsa too. While I was eating Liam and George, aka Cotton and Fubar, walked in. We had lunch together, hung out chatting, and then played a few rounds of pool. Next thing I know it's 8:00 and I still haven't resupplied. I headed over to the Food Lion and grabbed my supplies and headed back to the woods. I ended up having to hike with my headlamp a while until I found a decent spot to camp. It was a bit of a downhill slope, but it worked out. Turned into a pretty solid day.
Miles Today: 13.1
Mile Marker: 621.1
We got a little rain early this morning. I packed up but left my tent up to dry, and headed to grab breakfast from the grocery store. I ran into Cotton and Fubar who got in this morning. They were sleeping in their hammocks last night without their rain tarps. When the rain hit this morning they immediately got packed and hiked three miles to the grocery store. Normally they don't get started until 10:00 - 12:00. Wonderwoman came up and we all hung out at the breakfast table discussing the 100% chance of rain today.
I ordered a double cheeseburger to go and got back to hiking around 10:00. I made it to the Wapiti shelter 8.5 miles away by 1:00 for lunch. Halfway through my burger it started to rain. Shortly after Wonderwoman, Fubar, and Cotton caught up. I hung out way too long waiting for the rain to stop and didn't get back on trail until 2:45. Wonderwoman headed out too, but Cotton and Fubar stayed behind. As we were getting back on the trail we met Hickory. All of us were going to head to the next shelter 9.5 miles away, so we hiked together chatting for a bit. The rain held off for a while but eventually started back up for an hour or so.
About 4:00 I decided I was over hiking for the day. It was still gloomy, and I was worried if I didn't stop soon I would end up being forced to set up in the rain again. Normally I don't like stopping so early because I get bored in camp. Especially if I'm camping alone. I try to hike until at least 6:00 for that reason. I checked my guide and saw a flat spot should be coming up in a mile, so I hiked there and hastily set up my tent. Just barely beat the next round of rain. I have enough snacks, and I'm going into Pearisburg tomorrow, so I'll likely skip cooking dinner due to the rain. I cooked in the vestibule last time, but I spent the whole time paranoid I was going melt something or inhale dangerous gasses.
It has now started to pour down rain and is lightening. Really glad I stopped when I did.