tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29151697167042672732024-03-14T06:29:40.482-04:00Walk for H2OBrian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-47738975662563351982013-08-27T17:40:00.001-04:002013-08-27T17:40:35.685-04:00Katahdin- A Year LaterKatahdin is more than a mountain. From my couch it was a dream. From Georgia, it was a destination. For thousands of stinky, optimistic hikers, it was hope. From the morning of August 27, 2012, it was an accomplishment. As I look back on Katahdin, the day wasn't about the hike at hand- to take the final step on an epic adventure. It was about the journey. The first step. The millions of steps in between. The friends. The experience. It was the final episode of Seinfeld. Remember that one? The whole gang went out with a bang, but they took you through all those old clips to show you how they got there. <div>
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The Appalachian Trail was life changing, but it was not life DEFINING. My life is defined by One much greater than myself, which is why I hiked in the first place- to make a difference in the lives of others. It impacted me as much as it did the hundreds who now have clean water in their villages in Africa. Looking back, I am greatly blessed with the friends I made on the trail and even more blessed to be able to stay in touch with them. I discovered that when I felt there were limits physically, emotionally, mentally, and even spiritually, they helped push me to see that I was capable of much more. </div>
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The truth is Katahdin seems like a distant memory. I still think of the adventure from time to time, but it doesn't consume me like it did. That joy I experienced a year ago was that first snow flake that would eventually snowball into a joyous avalanche. In God's perfect timing, I came home to the Cairn opening up, and an opportunity to work there. I wake up every day in love with life, my wife, my God, my job, and all the people around me. Sure I get tired and even grumpy from time to time, but overall it has just been too incredible a year. I walked up Katahdin with the humble offering of a rock that was carried from Georgia and left with a reminder to live each day with passion and to make a difference in the lives of people around me and to continually have joy in all things. That is what I have tried to carry with me this last year, and it has only made the journey sweeter. My hope and prayer is that you will not fear the Katahdin in your life, but approach it humbly, ready to learn the lessons it has for you, and embrace the joy that will overflow as you journey down.</div>
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Love, joy, and peace always,</div>
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The Flash<br /><div>
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Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-28200192528662648402012-11-04T10:12:00.000-05:002012-11-04T15:08:58.686-05:00ChangeChange is a word we are hearing a lot lately. It is posted all over because of the election. You may already have in your head who you are voting for on Tuesday, and that is great. I, on the other hand, am still indecisive. I am not a political person at all. I am also smart enough to not buy into the promises of candidates to make me want to vote for them because I know that when your congress and House of Representatives is divided, change is hard to come by. It has gotten ugly with all of the attack ads and last minute attempts to get a vote. Someone will win, but at what costs? What good is it to gain the whole world, but lose your soul?<br />
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I have experienced a lot of personal change over the last year. I stepped out of my comfort zone and onto the Appalachian Trail. 2184 miles later, my attitude, my confidence, my worldview, even my body, has changed. Coming back into civilization was another hard change. Getting back into the habit of changing my underwear every day was also a change (and difficult too when they didn't fit anymore). My job has even changed...kinda. I went from a corporate coffee house setting to an independent coffee house. Outside of myself, change is happening all over. Our iPhones are getting longer while the ipad is getting smaller. Change happens. It's a fact of life; sometimes bad, sometimes good. Change for the sake of change is a silly thing, but change with purpose behind it can change the world.<br />
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When I set out to hike the AT, I wanted to change the world, at least a small part of it. I wanted to see people have a new lot on life. I wanted to see children have hope to grow up. I wanted to see moms be able to start a trade instead of spending all of their time walking to get dirty water. I wanted to see God do something incredible through me and sure enough, He did...and He still is. When you get to the root of it all, the change is LOVE. I want to love the way that I have been loved. It's easy to say that we love, but it takes work to show love. I can tell my wife I love her, but it speaks louder when I pitch in around the house, not because she nags me about it, but because I take initiative.<br />
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Love changes everything. Love built 2 wells in Zambia thanks to us. Love is going to impact the lives of hundreds of people because of this last year. I have said many times that though my hike is over, my journey is not. Now I seek to continue on bringing dignity, respect, and basic needs to others. My friend Linsey has a heart for people who are caught up in slavery. 27 million people are caught up in the slave trade right now. Women and girls are used sexually several times a day and thrown away. Young children are forced into factories, possibly making some of the items we take advantage of every day. She recently had a chance to spend a week in Cambodia and see first hand the need for change in the lives of many. She saw poverty in a way she had never imagined. She saw local governments not doing anything about the problem because it would mean they wouldn't be able to earn a paycheck. Change is needed. Love is needed. I don't believe it is coincidence that the organization Active Water is also investing in communities in Cambodia, helping provide clean water and sanitation education where it's needed. Love has a way of breaking through, and we allow it, it can move us to be agents of change. Love people the way we want to be loved- thats an idea that could change the world.<br />
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Even though another long distance hike is out of the question right now, I am looking for a way to raise the funds to provide a well in Cambodia. Change is possible. In a dirty political season, love can win. Be the change you want to see in the world. Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-39844005751955381332012-09-10T17:20:00.000-04:002012-09-10T17:20:50.334-04:00Bazinga!A problem a lot of hikers have after the trail is suffering through post trail depression. It's a funk that is easy to find yourself in because life has drastically changed. I look at it like Newton's Third Law in physics. It states "for every action, there is an equal or opposite reaction." For me, I got to experience a new location, new scenery, and new adventures and opportunities every day for the last almost 6 months. When I came home, everything was just as it was when I left. It's like a speeding car running straight into a brick wall. The psychological impact of that is what causes hiker funk. <br />
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Luckily, my wife and the people in my life who love me have made it easier for me to not sink so far down in the funk. I have only found myself a few times wishing I was back on the trail rather than being at home. And in those times, I was overwhelmed by crowds of people given into the hustle and bustle of life. Luckily, those times have been few and far between. When I do start feeling weird or awkward about being back, I have to remember that I can choose to still practice the parts of the trail lifestyle that I loved and keep that joy alive (I just have to make sure no one is around when I pee outside). <br />
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It has been nice to have some time to readjust as well as catch up with people. It is a weird thought to know I start working again tomorrow. I have to make sure that in everything I do, I hold on to the trail. Many times in life we fall into the traps and ruts that are hard to get out of. I was in a few of those and I had to find the courage to change that. But if I can take what I have learned about life and myself and most importantly, God, then whatever I do, I can find joy and peace. I am a different man coming off the trail, a man in motion and I am approaching a brick wall. Maybe, just maybe, I can crash through the wall unscathed. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_qtD6yM7WP8/UE5ZpUEx2vI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Q6ZTWw9mAig/s640/blogger-image-1721314876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_qtD6yM7WP8/UE5ZpUEx2vI/AAAAAAAAAXA/Q6ZTWw9mAig/s640/blogger-image-1721314876.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-55115204074989497522012-08-27T18:42:00.001-04:002012-08-28T08:39:26.068-04:00To Katahdin and BeyondDay 169 (8/27) - Katahdin (5.1 mi)<br />
Today was the second greatest day in my life, right after my wedding day. Words cannot express the emotions of today. I will be processing it for days to come. All I can say is that it was as perfect as perfect could be. Katahdin was challenging, but was the epic ending to an extraordinary adventure. I got up it in 3.5 hours. Afterwards, I spent an hour with 15 other thru hikers just soaking in victory. The climb down was even harder, but just as rewarding. I try to be witty in my writing, but I struggle to find just a few words to describe today. Just know that there is nothing large enough to contain the joy that is overflowing from me at this moment. <br />
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To all of you who have been following this adventure- thank you so much. Your support has meant more to me than you will ever know. I am not done with this blog yet, though. As I process through all that I have experienced, I will share on here; plus i have a ton of pictures to post. Who knows, maybe the next adventure might be to write a book about it. <br />
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One final thought before I put my phone down and party with my fellow hiker trash- the only way I was able to hike all this distance is because I try to be a guy who loves God. He has blessed me so much to the point that I can't help but want to do things for Him and the people He loves. He loves all of us and He loves people in Africa who are dying daily because of preventable diseases. That is why I walked, so women and children wouldn't have to walk miles for dirty disease water. I walked so they might experience some of the joy and blessings that I have gotten to. I got to combine two passions into an incredible, life changing adventure. Please consider continuing this adventure by giving just a few bucks to Active Water. You can click on the support tab on this page and it will direct you to where you need to go.<br />
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Until next time...<br />
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Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-4618050006376691202012-08-26T20:09:00.001-04:002012-08-26T20:09:22.797-04:00The 100 Mile Wilderness (and Baxter)No catchy title this week, just some hardcore reality. This past week I got immerse myself in the middle of all the beauty Maine has to offer. I know I have whined and complained the last few weeks about Maine, but it decided to play nice and totally redeemed itself. The 100 Mile Wilderness quickly climbed up to one of my favorite sections of the trail. There were incredible views, great terrain, easy miles, and of course, the first major views of Katahdin. Excitement fueled the week, which I think caused me to fly through the wilderness in 5 short days. I see the finish line. Every blister, every chafed area, every drop of blood and sweat, every strained and sprained muscle has led me here- to the place I have dreamed about and gotten choked up about countless times. When I doubted myself, others believed in me. When it hurt to walk, the thought of those in Zambia getting water pushed me on. I am 5 miles from two dreams coming true. Honestly, I am a little choked up right now. Never in my wildest dreams did I think this entire experience would happen, and it has and in some weird way it will continue to. This journey will continue far beyond Katahdin, because it has never been about the destination, but the transformation, and I am a different man for having done this. <br />
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I need to stop stuffing my face with these delicious animal crackers my cousin has while writing this, so here is the awesomeness of this last week:<br />
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Day 162 (8/20) - Shirley-Blanchard Rd to Monson, ME (6.3 mi)<br />
Today was a walk in the park- literally. I just took a water bottle and took off. It was the easiest, quickest slack packing I have ever done. I hung out with Dad and Ryan and we did some trail magic. The rest of the day was laundry, resupply, and then hanging out with our big bubble of Nobo's at our Hiker Trash Bash. <br />
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Day 163 (8/21) - Monson, ME to Long Pond Stream Lean-to (15.1 mi)<br />
Welcome to the 100 Mile Wilderness. I got off to a somewhat late start but was feeling real good this morning. It rained some last night and into the morning, but I was not going to let it get me down. I am in the final stretch. I have to enjoy every last step. The terrain was pretty decent and I made good timing, almost to the point I thought about pressing on and making it a 20 mile day, but I was fine stopping where I planned. The crazy part of today- I officially have less than 100 miles left of the AT. [Remaining miles: 99.4]<br />
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Day 164 (8/22) - Long Pond Stream Lean-to to Carl Newhall Lean-to (20.8 mi)<br />
Today I had to kick some major trail butt. There were mountains to climb and big miles to be had. I honestly wish I would have done those extra 4 miles yesterday so I wouldn't have had to push hard to get to my destination before 8 pm. The mountains today got relatively smaller the further I got. Barren Mountain was a bit of a climb, but had amazing views. Then came Fourth, Third, Columbus, and finally Chairback. When I reached the top of Columbus I didn't even realize I had gone uphill. I had a nice surprise on the way up Fourth Mountain. I ran into Wolfe. I haven't seen him since somewhere in southern Virginia. The last I had heard was that he got off the trail, but here he was. He had gotten off for about a month and a half, but wanted to finish it up so he is doing a flip flop, where he went on up to Katahdin and is working his way back to where he got off. The other highlight of the day came from a lady who is turning 45 tomorrow. She is hiking the wilderness with her daughter. We had all arrived at a river crossing at the same time and out of nowhere she asked Meat, Banjo, and myself if any of us "indulge in cannabis." Those were her exact words. I'm thinking "really lady?" These Maine people and their weed. The other day a guy picked Pedestrian and myself up when we were hitching to the restaurant outside of Caratunk. He said he was going to water his plants. We asked him what kind he was growing and he said weed. Pedestrian asked if it was medicinal and the guy said he just likes to get stoned. It's a crazy world we live in kids! Up with hope, down with dope! [Remaining miles: 78.6]<br />
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Day 165 (8/23) - Carl Newhall Lean-to to Cooper Brook Falls Lean-to (18.9 mi)<br />
Today was awesome- plain and simple! I had some climbs right from the start. None of them were much effort. The big payoff came as I started down Whitecap Mountain- there, in all her glory and only about 30 miles away was Katahdin. Even though it was that close, the trail snakes to get there, so it's twice the distance by foot. Whitecap is the last significant mountain before Katahdin, so once I was down from the top, the trail was pretty flat the rest of the day and will remain that way for the next few days. I have to say that I absolutely love the 100 Mile Wilderness. I wish I had a few more days to play around in it, though I wouldn't want to carry that much more food. It did rain for about a half hour, but the day was so perfect it didn't seem to phase me. I made it to my destination for the night and will get to fall asleep to the sounds of a cascading brook behind me. Life is so good! [Remaining miles: 59.7]<br />
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Day 166 (8/24) - Cooper Brook Falls Lean-to to Wadleigh Stream Lean-to (21.5 mi)<br />
Another absolutely perfect day. Have I mentioned that I love the 100 Mile Wilderness? Today led to some pond side walking, a long stroll along a river, and a breathtaking view of Katahdin. All of this wrapped up in a 21 mile day and done by 6. The only sad part about today is that this is my last night sleeping in my tent (the next two nights I will be in the camper with my dad and cousin). My little tent did the job well on the trail. It kept my dry for the most part during storms and it survived the constant set up and tear down. So kudos to Six Moon Designs for making a quality tent! I celebrated my last camping night by cooking double dinner- ramen and mashed potatoes (and I made them together). It was delicious. Tomorrow will be double breakfast and finish the remaining peanut butter after I make lunch. That way I will not waste any trail food. [Remaining miles: 38.2]<br />
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Day 167 (8/25) - Wadleigh Stream Falls Lean-to to Abol Bridge (23.1 mi)<br />
Remember that scene in The Goonies towards the end when Mikey finds One Eyed Willie's chamber and has that moment of respect before all the Goonies take the treasure? I had that moment today on top of Rainbow Cliffs with Katahdin. It was just me and her and I let her know that I would treat her like a lady as I conquer her in a few days. I am so excited. It's weird because just a month ago I was feeling a bit depressed about this journey almost being over. These last few days in the wilderness, though, have just made me too excited. The finish line is in site and nothing can stop me. I am not ready to be reintroduced to "real life," but i am so ready to be with Wendy. If only I could convince her to be a mountain woman (as long as she would still shave) and I could make a living by hiking it would be perfect. As I made it out of the 100 Mile Wilderness and was crossing Abol Bridge, I got the best view of Katahdin yet. I have to admit it looks a bit intimidating, but it's just going to be the icing on this already super sweet cake. I made great timing with all these miles and met my dad and cousin almost immediately as I crossed the bridge. We went into Millinocket and I tore up some McDonalds (and later it tore me up). I thought Dad was going to make me sleep in my tent one more night. [Remaining miles: 15.1]<br />
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Day 168 (8/26) - Abol Bridge to Katahdin Stream Campground (10 mi)<br />
Today was a day of mixed feelings- somberness and excitement. It basically resulted in lack of motivation to hike. I got to the trail head around 10:30 but didn't start hiking until around noon. I met up with the gang and we snacked and hung out and tried to find motivation to hike. Meat, Banjo, Sting Ray, Pedestrian, Houdini, and myself finally headed out and all talked about what life is going to look like on the other side of the hike. Once we got to the ranger station at the campground and registered, I hitched a ride out to meet up with Dad and Ryan and camp with them. I am excited about tomorrow, but I guess the nervousness of "real life" is starting to get to me. I will just have to deal with it as it happens. I have one day left to take in all that the trail can give me, so that is my focus and motivation tonight and tomorrow. [Remaining miles: 5.1]<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-yfmhgqGXZhI/UDq4F5s8P1I/AAAAAAAAAVk/xbpaIZupMQQ/s640/blogger-image--1885362431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-yfmhgqGXZhI/UDq4F5s8P1I/AAAAAAAAAVk/xbpaIZupMQQ/s640/blogger-image--1885362431.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Luz_vJvQ1JI/UDq6bboKcaI/AAAAAAAAAV0/C8wifABGAIs/s640/blogger-image-95706366.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Luz_vJvQ1JI/UDq6bboKcaI/AAAAAAAAAV0/C8wifABGAIs/s640/blogger-image-95706366.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-qKRZ_5LWSyE/UDq6o5xjyXI/AAAAAAAAAV8/Bj-rsSco_vg/s640/blogger-image-1331893343.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-qKRZ_5LWSyE/UDq6o5xjyXI/AAAAAAAAAV8/Bj-rsSco_vg/s640/blogger-image-1331893343.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-35762727612230686652012-08-19T21:45:00.001-04:002012-08-19T21:45:06.987-04:00It's the Final CountdownWow, it has been a crazy week full of ups and downs. The Maine rain continued for most of the week, but when it didn't, I got to see just how amazing this state really is. I also got to reunite with some family, as my dad and cousin Ryan have come up to explore New England and bring me home when I finish. <br />
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As you are reading this, I am almost to the finish line. I caught my first glimpse of Katahdin from Moxie Bald and it really dawned on me how far I have come, even more so than crossing the 2000 mile mark this week. I remember dreaming of the time I would be getting to this point. It just seemed like it was so far away and now it's a little more than 100 miles away. I am not ready to get all emotional and nostalgic yet, though. This hike has always been more about the journey than the destination. It's about every person I have met, every experience I have had, taking a huge risk and following a dream, and being a voice to those in Africa who don't have one. The destination is the journey and this journey has been one heck of a ride. All that's left to do is to walk- walk hard!<br />
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Day 154 (8/12) - South Arm Road to Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to (17 mi)<br />
It's official- Maine hates me! I don't know what I did to it, but it has been taking out its fury on me. The old saying is "no pain, no rain, no Maine." I would go even further and say that Maine is rain and pain. It was supposed to be nice out today and it started out that way. The trail was still wet and muddy and that took its vengeance by making me slip and fall and bust my other hip. When I got within 3 miles of the shelter, a storm just opened up on top of me and just soaked me head to toe. The trail became a stream and I ended up stepping ankle deep into a mud bog. I hate to admit that I could have probably filled up two swear jars full of quarters today. I don't know why Maine has it out for me. But obviously it didn't get the memo on how stubborn I am. None of the other 13 states could stop me (and they tried), so what makes you think you are so special Maine? <br />
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Day 155 (8/13) - Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to to Piazza Rock Lean-to (11.2 mi)<br />
Wow, a day of good terrain and sunshine. I guess I shouldn't get too used to it because another storm system is moving in. I was able to regain my pace this morning and got 9.5 miles in in 4.5 hours. After a hitch into Rangely, I resupplied, ate lunch, and dried out stuff. I also walked down to the outfitter and switched out my Darn Tough socks. They have a great lifetime warranty on their socks and since mine had holes in them, I got a new pair. I felt bad for the girl who switched them out because these were the socks I was wearing last night when I got soaked and muddy. I spent way more time than I planned on in town, so I wasn't even going to attempt to climb the next few mountains, so I just hiked about another 2 miles to the next lean-to. This is home to the two-seater privy with a cribbage board. If I could remember how to play, I would definitely get in on a group poop!<br />
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Day 156 (8/14) - Piazza Rock Lean-to to Spaulding Mountain Lean-to (16.9 mi)<br />
I was a man on a mission today. There were 4 mountains I had to tackle and 3 were right from the start- Saddleback, Horn, and Saddleback, Jr. I actually made it up and over the first too pretty easily. I started feeling pretty hungry after the Horn, so I broke for a quick lunch and then tackled Jr. There were some great views and you could really see just how vast the wilderness is in Maine. I was trekking along until I started hitting a wall as I was climbing Lone Mtn. This was the smallest and easiest mountain to tackle and I was struggling. Once I got up and over, I was only a mile from my destination and I booked it. The Flash was ready for his Ramen! Dinner entertainment came in the form of a trashy romance novel left in the shelter and Miss Maggie reading us excerpts from it. I thought I was going to have noodles come out my nose. <br />
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Day 157 (8/15) - Spaulding Mountain Lean-to to Stratton, ME (13.5 mi)<br />
Well it decided to rain again. I was still able to make it up and over Spaulding with no problem. Then came the Crockers. No problem. The mountains seem to be getting a little easier, and after the Bigelows tomorrow, it's going to start flattening out a bit. The sun finally came out and the sky was blue and I was just rocking down the trail. I got down to the highway and decided to hitch a ride into Stratton. Once I got there, it decided to pour down rain again. That made it a lot easier to make the decision to get a room in town for the night. I just need to push hard these next 4 days to get to Monson and meet up with my dad and cousin. <br />
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Day 158 (8/16) - Stratton, ME to Horns Pond Lean-to (5.1 mi)<br />
Today was a wash- literally. It poured rain all night and morning. We were actually under a flash flood warning. After waiting as long as I could for the rain to die down (and before I would get charged for a second day in the motel room), I hitched back to the trail. The first 2 miles weren't that bad and the rain was starting to quit, but then it all changed. Before I knew it, the trail was looking like a rushing stream. There was no more chance of keeping my feet dry and the possibility of reaching the 15 mile lean-to was washed away like the trail. The best I could do was make it to the first shelter and call it an early day...a very early day. This is so frustrating because it now puts me another day behind schedule. The only ray of sunshine for this day was that I crossed the 2000 mile mark. That's kind of a big deal. I just wish that the weather would cooperate for the rest of the miles. <br />
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Day 159 (8/17) - Horns Pond Lean-to to West Carry Pond Lean-to (17.9 mi)<br />
Today was the last of the big mountains until Katahdin. Surprising enough, they were all pretty easy to get up and over, especially considering the nonstop rain from yesterday. The Bigelows provided amazing views of a huge lake and back at Sugarloaf Mountain and the Saddlebacks from a few days ago. What made this day even more exciting was that I got to see my dad and cousin, who were providing a little trail magic for us. There is nothing like an iced cold Ale-8 when you have been hiking over 2000 miles and its been months since you have had one. I got to hang out for a little over an hour and then had to get back to the hike. The last 3.5 miles were quick, but draining at the same time. And just like Maine, it started to pour down rain again. It's getting old Maine! I barely got my tent up in time. The terrain tomorrow looks pretty flat, but with all this rain and the typical Maine roots, rocks, and mud, I am sure it will be anything but easy and quick. <br />
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Day 160 (8/18) - West Carry Pond Lean-to to Pleasant Pond Lean-to (19.7 mi)<br />
Sometimes there are days where the stars are lined up perfectly, prayers are being answered, and God looks down and smiles. Today was that day. Even Maine couldn't ruin today. It rained most of last night so the morning started out wet with endless mud and water puddles. But as the day went on, the sun was shining and the trail stayed pretty flat. I was in a groove and nothing was stopping me. I got to the first shelter which was 10 miles away thinking it was noon and lunchtime. When I checked my phone, it was only 11. I hiked a 2.5 mph pace for the first time in a very long time. This was the Pierce Pond lean-to which holds a memorial to Parkside- a hiker who drowned in the pond this year. He had finished up a 20 mile hike and went for a swim and cramped up bad and just couldn't recover. It's a pretty sad story and it seems every hiker has paid their respects one way or another through the shelter journal. From there it was a quick 3 mile hike to the Kennebec River. You have to cross this river to continue the trail, but the problem is that there isn't a bridge. It's too dangerous to ford as well so they offer a ferry in the form of a guy named David and his canoe. This is the official way to do this section of trail (it's also official by the white blaze painted on the floor of his canoe). This put us to the town of Caratunk, which pretty much has nothing in it. There was, however, an adventure base camp that had a microbrewery and restaurant and hot tub, pool, and showers, so about 8 of us hitched over and ate. While i was there, i ran into a hiker I haven't seen since Hiawassee- General Custard. He was a very encouraging guy that helped me push through a lot of early pain. He couldn't believe it when he saw me. He probably couldn't believe I was still on the trail and he definitely couldn't believe how different I looked from the last time he saw me. We had a great visit and my ego got fed a little. We all spent way too long hanging out, especially knowing that we still had 6 miles to hike. It was fun to just relax and enjoy life at a different pace today, especially after dealing with all of the frustration due to deadlines and weather. I did have to do some night hiking to get to the shelter, but that was ok. I made it just fine and got set up. I have had 2 good mileage days in a row and am going for some more big miles tomorrow (weather permitting).<br />
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Day 161 (8/19) - Pleasant Pond Lean-to to Shirley-Blanchard Rd (24.7 mi)<br />
Wow, what an incredible day. First off, this was day two in a row that it didn't rain. Secondly, I put in some huge miles. After hiking 6 miles, I met up with my dad and cousin and they hooked me up to slack pack. From there it was smooth sailing. The highlight of the day came from sitting on top of Moxie Bald just enjoying the views of the surrounding wilderness. There were no roads or towns, just lakes, ponds, and vast wilderness. The sky was crystal clear and on my way down the mountain, I caught my first glimpse of Katahdin. I have to say I had to hold back some tears. It really put all the miles I have hiked into perspective and made me realize how close to the end I really am. After several river crossings and constantly wet feet, I met back up with my dad and cousin and we went out for dinner. A great end to a great day. Tomorrow will be a short 6 mile day to Monson, and then some rest and relaxing before I enter the 100 Mile Wilderness and then summit Katahdin. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-14zOHwhdQYM/UDGWnqFEPPI/AAAAAAAAAVE/EVuN7W8HgwY/s640/blogger-image--982635545.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-14zOHwhdQYM/UDGWnqFEPPI/AAAAAAAAAVE/EVuN7W8HgwY/s640/blogger-image--982635545.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YSOZ8KsMAr4/UDGWocBgG-I/AAAAAAAAAVM/whBocv5hBXI/s640/blogger-image-24897463.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YSOZ8KsMAr4/UDGWocBgG-I/AAAAAAAAAVM/whBocv5hBXI/s640/blogger-image-24897463.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-72896869179576907062012-08-11T20:01:00.001-04:002012-08-12T07:15:07.803-04:00Here I Am- Rock You Like Southern MaineSo I have to say that it has been a slow moving week. All of the southbounders I have run into always said the Whites and southern Maine were hard. I always thought they thought Maine was hard because it was their first encounter with mountains, plus they don't have their trail legs yet. Well, it turns out southern Maine is hard and it doesn't matter if you do have your trail legs or not. I feel like I have just started hiking for the first time. <br />
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I guess most of the frustration has come from trying to finish the trail by August 25. This was a deadline I gave myself around 5 weeks ago. I thought I could safely hike 100 miles a week, allowing me to finish by this date. I was able to stick to this plan up to last week. Oddly enough though, even finishing this week around 45 miles shy of my goal, I could still potentially finish by the 25th or 26th. <br />
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I have been encouraged in a big way this week by getting a few more donations for the wells. It is a nice reminder of why I am hiking and that makes every step, as slow and tough as it might be, a good step. I am now around $1300 away from completing a second well, so if you have been waiting to see if I will finish before you give, I am less than 250 miles away, so I am pretty sure it's gonna happen. ;)<br />
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Here is what this week long butt kicking looked like:<br />
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Day 148 (8/6) - Zero Day<br />
Today I caught up on some calories and relaxing. It was a good day!<br />
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Day 149 (8/7) - Gorham, NH to Carlo Col Shelter (16.9 mi)<br />
Forget the ladder to success. I climbed the mountain of success- literally. The last mountain of New Hampshire was called Mount Success. But along with that came the fruits of success- hitting the 1900 mile mark and entering Maine. I would love to say it was an easy and relaxing day, but it wasn't. I wasn't motivated to hike, even knowing I was entering Maine. I was also very tired all day. I stayed up a little too late last night. The miles seemed to drag on. I almost called it a day about 5 miles before my goal, but decide to press on because I know the miles would pile on an already challenging week. As soon as I got into Maine, I had to slide and crawl down some big boulders. What made it even more challenging was that it was almost dark. I made it into camp right at dark to find that it was completely overrun by Outward Bounds groups. I had to find any piece of ground large enough to fit my tent so I am laying at a downward slope. By tomorrow morning my feet will be pushing out of the bottom of the tent I bet. As excited as I am to finally be in Maine, the reality hasn't sunk in yet. Maybe tomorrow it will. And maybe I will finally see a moose. <br />
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Day 150 (8/8) - Carlo Col Shelter to Mahoosuc Notch (7.2 mi)<br />
What a hard day! That mileage absolutely sucks. It started with a terrible night of sleep. What I predicted came true. And not only that, there was so much pressure on the foot of my tent that the stake holding in the head of my tent popped out and my tent collapsed on me. I got going this morning and had to tackle several steep climbs and steeper descents. I did get some good views. After lunch, we had a quick mile before tackling Mahoosuc Notch. This notch is unlike anything I have seen on the trail. It is a mile long valley with a bunch of giant boulders all through it that you have to crawl over and under. I saw a lady looking exhausted and frustrated and I asked her how long it took her to get through and she said 5 hours. 5 hours to get a mile! I didn't do much better- it took me 2.5 hours. It was tough. I used every muscle I had and some that I didn't know I had. There were times I would have to take off my backpack and push it through a small opening just to get through some rocks. It was the longest mile. The AWOL guide said it was the most difficult or most fun mile on the trail. Difficult rating was definitely a 10, fun rating though I would give a 6. It was way more fun at the beginning and then it just got frustrating. I got to a campsite and decided since it was already 5 to call it a night. My knees were killing me and I knew that there was a very difficult climb up ahead that I didn't want to risk doing in the dark. I had a nice long conversation with a south bounder and then hit the hay early. I now have some big miles to make up after this disappointing day. <br />
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Day 151 (8/9) - Mahoosuc Notch to Grafton Notch (6.9 mi)<br />
Wow, the disappointment continues. I made it up Mahoosuc Arm like it was nothing and even didn't have much problem climbing up Speck Mountain. But for some reason the trail continued to kick my butt. My knees were killing me too and that didn't help. Yosemite and I discussed trying to set up some slack packing to attempt to get in more than 7 miles. Once we got down to the notch we had to hitch a ride to a hostel. Finally after about 20 minutes, a van pulled over. As we were driving down the highway, a black bear came running across the road. It was awesome. I haven't seen a bear since Shenandoah. I spent the remainder of the night icing my knees. Hopefully, the slack packing will help me get some miles without the added weight of my pack. I am nervous because it has been storming all night too, so that means it will be a slick mess tomorrow and that's not good going up some of these 30 foot rock faces. Oh Maine, why do you hate me so? On a somewhat positive note, the trail is kicking everyone else's butt too so it's not just me. <br />
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Day 152 (8/10) - Grafton Notch to East B Hill Rd (10.3 mi)<br />
So every once in a while you have to make a tough decision that could be the difference in life and death. Today I had to make one of those. I slack packed today, which was perfect since it stormed pretty much up to leaving. The trail was very wet, which made Baldpate Mountain even more difficult, since it was slick rock. I took my time going up and it rained more once on top. I had to go even slower going down. I only fell once. Other than that it was smooth sailing. About a mile before the road, there was a creek and a waterfall. Since it rained all night, the creek was completely swollen and flowing at a very fast rate. I walked up stream a little to try to find a safe place to cross- Maine apparently doesn't believe in bridges. There just wasn't anyplace to cross. The current was really pulling towards the falls. I had a choice- I could try to ford the creek or I could take a blue blaze trail not knowing exactly where it was going (it didn't show up on my gps). If I did try to ford and I slipped, I would have pretty much either hit my head on rocks on the way down the falls or drown (or both). The reason this was even up for debate was because I have stayed on trail for the entire trail- no shortcuts, no bypasses. So today, for my safety, I took the blue blaze trail, which led me down and around the heavier current. I still had to cross in knee deep water, but it was in a safer cross zone. The side trail met back up with the AT and I wrapped up the hike for the day. This tells you how hard the terrain has been- I was averaging 2 mph with my full pack before the Whites- I didn't even do that pace without a pack. We got some trail magic on the road and then hitched a ride back to the hostel, which happened to fill up while I was hiking. I ended up having to call The Cabin, another hostel in town and make arrangements to stay there. Glad I did because it was way nicer. <br />
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Day 153 (8/11) - East B Hill Rd to South Arm Road (10.1 mi)<br />
It rained all night long again and was supposed to all day today. Instead of taking a zero, which was tempting, I decided to slack pack again. I did the next 10 mile stretch. It was nothing special, but the trail was completely flooded. My feet were soaked within the first mile and that wasn't even due to creek crossings. The trail had only one small section of rock slab climbing, so I am hoping that is a sign of things to come. There were 2 creek crossings that were unavoidable. My feet were already wet, so it was easy to just jump in to water up to my knees to get across. Again, I didn't have a 2 mph pace. Tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day, so hopefully I can get an early start and get some bigger miles in tomorrow and the rest of the week. Today is my 5 month trail anniversary too. 5 months of living the dream, even though the dream has been a nightmare this last week. <br />
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<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-CwXbkyMnnnQ/UCbyNLHNYeI/AAAAAAAAAUY/5Z-vxes3C-E/s640/blogger-image-474756849.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-CwXbkyMnnnQ/UCbyNLHNYeI/AAAAAAAAAUY/5Z-vxes3C-E/s640/blogger-image-474756849.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xNtlPw7qjbI/UCbyN56-eNI/AAAAAAAAAUg/blcIXEB0ZS4/s640/blogger-image--873400248.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-xNtlPw7qjbI/UCbyN56-eNI/AAAAAAAAAUg/blcIXEB0ZS4/s640/blogger-image--873400248.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RzFbV1TJ69k/UCbyOtxCRuI/AAAAAAAAAUo/NRNKlvSCdDQ/s640/blogger-image--172905169.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-RzFbV1TJ69k/UCbyOtxCRuI/AAAAAAAAAUo/NRNKlvSCdDQ/s640/blogger-image--172905169.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-mDJhMMPMZKc/UCbyPXheVjI/AAAAAAAAAUw/I06X05W5HyI/s640/blogger-image--1189903988.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-mDJhMMPMZKc/UCbyPXheVjI/AAAAAAAAAUw/I06X05W5HyI/s640/blogger-image--1189903988.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-86271437541172947052012-08-06T06:42:00.001-04:002012-08-06T06:42:34.283-04:00Castles, Stripes, and Now Mountains (My Favorite Whites)If I could sum up the Whites in one word, it would be "majestic." It would be easy to use "hard," or "butt-kicking," but at the end of the day, these views needed to be earned to be seen. <br />
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I use the term "earned" because this was definitely the hardest section of trail yet. I have been trying to maintain 100 miles a week, but that just wasn't possible. There were several days that I did 10 miles or less, but it felt like I had hiked 20. The steep ups and downs worked muscles I hadn't used much on the trail, not to mention the abuse my feet, ankles, and knees took. <br />
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As incredible as these mountains were, knowing that I just finished them means only 1 thing- it's time for Maine. There are still a few miles left of New Hampshire, but those shouldn't take but a day. But before I cross into the 14th and final state, I am taking a much deserved and needed day off. <br />
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Here is my painful and glorious review of the Whites. <br />
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Day 140 (7/29) - Glencliff, NH to Beaver Brook (9.1 mi)<br />
Today was a tough day. But before I get into that, I had the most incredible mountain top experience. This was a literal one that easily turned into a spiritual one. It was cloudy/rainy all day but the rain had stopped once I reached the top of Mt. Moosilauke. I was eating my lunch with absolutely no view and all of a sudden I felt a little sunlight peek through. I turned around and the clouds were slowly breaking up, revealing miles and miles of mountains and valleys. It was incredible. Sad how the incredible can sometimes get overshadowed by the crappy stuff like having to cross a stream getting my shoes and socks soaked first thing this morning then the descent down Moosilauke, which was almost straight down and nothing but wet rocks. I slipped and fell once, banging up my left hip and leg a bit. I will definitely feel it in the morning. Needless to say, my first day in the Whites was a mixed bag, but I am excited to push on tomorrow, hoping I will get even more of a view!<br />
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Day 141 (7/30) - Beaver Brook to Lonesome Lake Hut (13.5 mi)<br />
So first off, I passed the 1800 mile mark. Secondly, man my hip hurts. I don't have nearly the padding I used to. And that is the side I sleep on so I was pretty miserable last night. And speaking of last night, it was the first night I camped by myself on this entire trek. Back to today, there were two mountains to climb- Mt. Wolf and Kinsman. Wolf was a nice, mild climb and Kinsman was a bit steeper, requiring the use of hands and feet to get up some of the climbs. I was more worried about the downhill on both. After yesterday, I was hiking a little too paranoid. But luckily the sun was out all day and the rocks were half way dry so it wasn't as bad. I pushed hard to hit the hut with hopes that I could get work for stay. It's kind of a race to get to the huts since most only take 2-3 hikers. I was number 3 and they let me in. All I had to do was clean out the pantry. It took 15 minutes and with that I got dinner- lots of dinner and could sleep in the dining hall. I can have breakfast too if I want to wait around, but these last 2 days have shown me that if I want to do any more than 12 miles, I will need a real early start. <br />
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Day 142 (7/31) - Lonesome Lake Hut to Stealth Camp (15 mi)<br />
All I can say about today is INCREDIBLE! The weather was perfect, the pancakes at the hut for breakfast were perfect, and the views were beyond perfect. Starting off, I had to climb my first 5000 footer since Tennessee. The climb was actually pretty easy compared to the last few days. But once on top, my world was rocked. I have never seen the kind of views I saw today. I was looking down on the world as if I was in Heaven watching. There were mountains and valleys as far as the eye could see. And looming off in the distance was my first look at Mount Washington, towering above all other mountains. The views were so amazing I sat on top for several hours. I even got sunburned a little. This was the money shot of all views and it worked out that everything was perfect to make it spectacular. The climbs down even seemed easier since the rocks were dry. I wanted to shoot for another hut since I had a lot of fun last night, not to mention all the food I ate! Unfortunately, I didn't get there quick enough so it is stealth camping for me tonight. It's been a while since I camped at almost 4000 feet so it might get chilly.<br />
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Day 143 (8/1) - Stealth Camp to Crawford Notch (14.7 mi)<br />
It definitely got a little chilly this morning. I must have hit the snooze button 5 times because I didn't want to get out of my sleeping bag. I finally forced myself to get up and going, starting my morning with an 1100 foot climb. It took a while for my feet and knees to warm up today. I think they were just to sore and tired from all the rocks they have had to bounce on for the last few days. After the climb, the rest of the day was relatively downhill. I stopped at a hut for lunch and had a bowl of soup, then pressed on to get to the notch. I hiked with Hot Shot quite a bit today and got to know him some. We met for the first time in Dalton, MA and have been crossing paths since. We decided since both of us were sore and tired, we would hitch a ride to motel and grab showers, dinner, and laundry. It's amazing what a night off the trail plus getting clean can do for your soul. The girl at the front desk at the motel even let us borrow her car to get around. Amazing! I guess even 2 burley hikers can look trustworthy. <br />
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Day 144 (8/2) - Crawford Notch to Lake of the Clouds Hut (11.2 mi)<br />
What an amazing day. This has definitely ranked up in the top 3 best days on the trail. The hotel last night worked its magic and helped give me the energy to push up mountains all day. It started with rock climbing up Webster Cliffs then catching the ridge line up through the start of the Presidential range. A small thunderstorm popped up to make the rocks a little slick, but it moved out quickly. The views were absolutely amazing. I have never hiked so slow just because I wanted to soak it all up. I finally made it to the hut where I hung out with Meat, Banjo, Trips-a-lot, Hot Shot, Konan, and Pedestrian. Our early evening entertainment came from watching Meat blow up his NeoAir to see if he would be able to float in the lake. It worked, and it was very entertaining. The poor guy is probably going to get hypothermia now. There was so much food left for all of us hikers. We feasted like kings. My stomach is so full. And the sunset was absolutely gorgeous as well. I think I will make the call and say that this may actually be my favorite day on the trail.<br />
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Day 145 (8/3) - Lake of the Clouds Hut to Osgood Tent Site (10 mi)<br />
So how could the trail change so much that I went from my favorite day to the hardest day? After a huge breakfast I started the climb to the top of Mt. Washington. It was cake, though it was hard to see anything because of cloud coverage. Once on top, I hung out with Meat, Pedestrian, and Banjo in the visitor center. We got geared up to hit the summit and then begin the descent. I actually put on a long sleeve shirt and my winter puffy coat. The temperature on top was in the low 50's and the wind speed was hitting 45 mph. Mt. Washington holds the record for the fastest recorded wind speed and it can snow every month of the year there. We climbed to the summit and I almost fell over because of the combination of wind and uneven rocky ground. Actually, those were the two bad words for the day- wind and rocks (plus a few other bad words that came out of my mouth due to frustration). The wind gusts would make it hard to keep balance, especially in the higher elevations. The temps got back to normal after we descended around 1200 feet, but the trail continued to stay rocky through the Presidentials. We didn't summit all of them, which was good or it would add another 2 days of hiking. This is how bad it was- my average pace was 1 mph. The end of the day was a steep 500 foot climb up Mt. Madison followed by 2.5 miles of steep descents all on rocks and most on an exposed ridge line. I couldn't be happier to get to the campsite and set up and get in my tent. Tomorrow is a new day and I am praying it will be a lot better than today. <br />
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Day 146 (8/4) - Osgood Tent Site to Carter Notch (11 mi)<br />
Today wasn't too bad...which was really good. It was pretty smooth sailing (with rocks and roots of course) all the way to Pinkham Notch. The temptation here was to just hitch a ride into Gorham and call it an early day and try to arrange a slack pack tomorrow. Instead, I just ate my lunch at the visitor center and continued up the trail. The climb up Wildcat Mountain wasn't too bad. There were several stretches of climbing that required hands and feet. Now this isn't like regular rock climbing, where you wear a harness and have rope. These rocks are at just enough of an angle that someone deemed it safe to climb without safety gear. Luckily my pack weight was down a little with hardly any food or water to not pull me backward as I climbed. It did get harder when I would turn around and see the highway I just came from like 1200 feet below. Wildcat Mountain is a ski mountain so there was the temptation of riding the gondola. I fought it off and pressed on. The plan was to do work for stay at the Carter Hut so I wanted to get there to try and get a spot. Once i did I found out I was too late. They only could take 4 and there were 7 of us. Meat, Banjo, and myself had to find a stealth site to set up camp. As soon as we did, a storm popped out of nowhere right on top of us- lightning and thunder at the same time kind of storm. Thank goodness we are below the tree line and not on the exposed ridges like we have been the last few days. I had to wait it out for about an hour while it hailed and poured rain and soaked everything. All of us had puddles inside our tents. We cleaned up and dried up as best we could before cooking dinner. I guess the Whites had to get one jab in today. Tomorrow will be the last day through this challenging stretch. I am excited because that means a zero day and Maine are just around the corner!<br />
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Day 147 (8/5) - Carter Notch to Gorham, NH (15 mi)<br />
I guess the hut workers felt bad for us since we had to sleep out in the storm and offered us breakfast. I am not one to turn down free food so I got a little later start than I wanted. 15 miles in the Whites is not an easy task. The hike today proved that. I climbed up the three points of Carter Mountain and then a nice long down, then the climb up Mt. Moriah. Once I started climbing Moriah, the skies started clouding up and I was afraid I was going to get caught on top of the mountain with a storm like last nights. So I started running. I hauled tail up some steep climbs, only getting up mostly on momentum. That was one long mountain. Every time I thought I was on the top, there was another climb. Finally the trail took a downhill turn and luckily all it did was lightly rain. Unfortunately, that's all it takes to make the rocks slick. After about 2.5 miles down Moriah, the trail turned into a nice gentle slope with hardly any rocks. It was almost like the Whites letting me pass in peace. I did it. I made it through the most prestigious mountain range I have ever experienced. Now, it's time for a much deserved zero!<br />
<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-b7UZMUIcC0w/UB8e2lb5xoI/AAAAAAAAATg/oTpke8W2HtU/s640/blogger-image--425539642.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-b7UZMUIcC0w/UB8e2lb5xoI/AAAAAAAAATg/oTpke8W2HtU/s640/blogger-image--425539642.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-PKeLXzZSQAU/UB8fLbqM3II/AAAAAAAAATo/GNcFA68NfGo/s640/blogger-image--184198302.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-PKeLXzZSQAU/UB8fLbqM3II/AAAAAAAAATo/GNcFA68NfGo/s640/blogger-image--184198302.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Fb1NDe2_NXE/UB8f-95dZNI/AAAAAAAAATw/Jw8PXMdLvGM/s640/blogger-image-775661984.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Fb1NDe2_NXE/UB8f-95dZNI/AAAAAAAAATw/Jw8PXMdLvGM/s640/blogger-image-775661984.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lj2Qocw2NTw/UB-flyWIRAI/AAAAAAAAAUE/v5XmjUqrvMA/s640/blogger-image--1010950407.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lj2Qocw2NTw/UB-flyWIRAI/AAAAAAAAAUE/v5XmjUqrvMA/s640/blogger-image--1010950407.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-81394634617338386162012-07-28T20:17:00.001-04:002012-07-29T07:33:06.471-04:00Gold Medal in HikingIt's Olympics time! I am not able to watch them, but I am sure I will have a pretty good idea of what's going on through Facebook. With the difficulty and ever changing terrain, the Olympics should add long distance hiking as an event. It would just be the one event that would be too boring to watch for most people. On the bright side, I get a similar experience as I get to participate with hikers from around the globe on this trail. Speaking of the trail...<br />
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Up to this point, they say you have hiked 80% of the trail, but only have done 20% of the work. That is all about to change as I get ready to climb into the White Mountains. This is a major milestone and one of the highlights of the entire trail. It feels surreal to know that as I enter the Whites, I only have 400 miles left. They won't be easy miles, but they will be incredible!<br />
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Here is the story of my week, leaving Vermont and entering New Hampshire. <br />
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Day 134 (7/23) - Zero day<br />
The hostel I am staying at offers work for stay opportunities, so for 2 hours of work I would get to stay the night for free and get breakfast. This hostel runs a deli too, so my 2 hours were spent bussing tables. I did it like a pro! Afterwards, I went to pick up my third pair of shoes, courtesy of Salomon. So impressed I hiked over 800 miles in each of the previous 2 pairs. That's quality and customer service right there!<br />
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Day 135 (7/24) - US4 to Winturri Shelter (18.9 mi)<br />
Today was a day that started gloriously! Meat and I caught the first bus towards Killington to where we needed to get back on the trail, but we had to make a stop first to a little restaurant called Sugar and Spice. This place makes their own maple syrup- the real, pure kind. It was the most majestic plate of pancakes I have ever eaten, and I have eaten some good pancakes in my day, like the ones my old babysitter Helen would make with the crispy edges, but I digest, I mean digress. Afterwards, I was ready to do some major miles. There were a few good sized climbs today, which felt pretty good. I just couldn't find a good pace, mainly because I was finding myself chatting with sobo's as we crossed paths, and after meeting around 15 of them today, that took some time. It was a great day to break in my new kicks, but I almost broke them in the wrong way, by stepping in some scat. This wasn't just any poo though, it was moose poo! It's similar to elk poo, but larger (trust me, I read Everybody Poops a lot as a kid). So I am getting close- close to seeing a moose. I have never seen one and am excited!<br />
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Day 136 (7/25) - Winturri Shelter to West Hartford, VT (16.4 mi)<br />
Today was a great hiking day. The terrain was nice, though it was full of ups and downs. I just absolutely love the trail through Vermont. As I got close to a road, I remembered in the guide book that there was a market so I automatically started craving a Coke. I walked down the road and it turned out this market was more of a farmers market, and it was closed. I sat there and ate my lunch and continued down the trail. It eventually led me to the very small town of West Hartford. There is a nice market there that caters to hikers. I grabbed a few slices of pizza that looked about a week old...tasted like it too. To a hiker though, it doesn't matter. I ran into Dakota Dan while I was eating and he told me he was camping in the back yard of a house just down the road so instead of putting in the last 4 miles I wanted, I called it an early night. I am attempting to wake up and be on the trail by 6 tomorrow. We will see if that happens. <br />
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Day 137 (7/26) - West Hartford, VT to Etna, NH (15.7 mi)<br />
I actually woke up before 6 this morning. I was ready to get the miles in to enter New Hampshire. There was adventure to be had, along with some free food. As I said goodbye to Vermont crossing the Connecticut River, I entered Hanover, home of Dartmouth College. It is a beautiful town. I guess it was also freshman orientation or something because I saw a lot of kids with their parents. I hit up the Bagel Basement for a free bagel and then moved on to the pizza place for a free slice of pizza. Did I mention I love this town? I farted around a little too long which threw me off schedule. As I was hiking out, I had to make a call on staying at a hostel in Etna or hike in the dark to make the next shelter. I decided for the hostel, since I could really use a shower. I called and left a message from the trail and walked the mile towards town to the general store. After waiting a bit in a garage while it was raining, they called back and made arrangements to pick me up. Let me tell you about my accommodations. I am staying in "The Tank." It's an old run down RV but it has electricity and a little TV and VCR. Since I am the only one staying here tonight, I get to pick the entertainment, which is an old VHS of Flight of the Navigator. Score! Plus add a shower and laundry and I chalk this up to a good day!<br />
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Day 138 (7/27) - Etna, NH to Fire Warden's Cabin (17.5 mi)<br />
I was sad to have to leave the Tank. I slept so good with the rain beating the roof all night. I needed the rest to help me tackle today. It was a doozy. There were two 1000 foot climbs and then the big one- the 2400 foot climb up Mt. Smarts. As much as that climb sucked, I know it was good practice for what I'm getting ready to experience in the Whites. Once on top, I climbed the fire tower and watched the sunset. The views made me forget about how hard the climb was. The only other highlight of the day was visiting Mr. Ackerly, a nice old guy who lives off the trail and gives you ice cream. Any other time or place, I guess that would be pretty creepy. <br />
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Day 139 (7/28) - Fire Warden's Cabin to Glencliff, NH (20.1 mi)<br />
Today was one of those days where I knew I had to get the miles in. The terrain was better than yesterday so there was no excuse, except for the pouring rain that came down the last 3 miles I was hiking. I was absolutely soaked. I just put my head down and pushed on to make it to a hostel in Glencliff. This is the last stop before climbing into the White Mountains. I am pretty excited about the Whites, but not excited about climbing into them on wet rocks. I will just need to be careful. I have allowed myself to reduce the miles through the Whites to allow for the difficulty and the amazing views. It's about to get crazy!<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-OCMiVrjoEu8/UBSA_I5kA7I/AAAAAAAAATE/bbgXATdTl3A/s640/blogger-image--1148116441.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-OCMiVrjoEu8/UBSA_I5kA7I/AAAAAAAAATE/bbgXATdTl3A/s640/blogger-image--1148116441.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YiZ_WItgU2I/UBSA_chdoZI/AAAAAAAAATM/zPB_5l0KMtw/s640/blogger-image--21726153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-YiZ_WItgU2I/UBSA_chdoZI/AAAAAAAAATM/zPB_5l0KMtw/s640/blogger-image--21726153.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Lvw8bbbhgCA/UBSA-01xahI/AAAAAAAAAS8/E2rReXqnqkA/s640/blogger-image-954855250.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Lvw8bbbhgCA/UBSA-01xahI/AAAAAAAAAS8/E2rReXqnqkA/s640/blogger-image-954855250.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-4913451032614521872012-07-22T22:00:00.001-04:002012-07-22T22:00:27.825-04:00Conquering the VermonsterThis week has been a bit of a challenge. Physically, there have been some bigger climbs and steeper descents, but none compared to the mental challenges. I knew entering Vermont was a huge victory, but deep down I was kinda bummed. That meant the hike was starting to wrap up. I am normally never a "glass half empty" guy, but it just hit me hard earlier this week. I have fallen in love with this lifestyle, if you can call it that. If only there was a way to be paid while I was doing this, it would be perfect!<br />
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Vermont has mesmerized me, much like the Smoky Mountains have. The endless mountain ranges I have seen from up top of some of these mountains have literally taken my breath away. It has been such a welcoming change from the green tunnel. And do you want to know the even cooler part? I haven't even hit the Whites yet! It's only going to get better! That has definitely changed my attitude from being sad the hike is almost over to getting excited because the best is yet to come. <br />
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This week has also given me the chance to meet a lot of SOBO's (south bound hikers) along with a few NOBO's (north bounders) I hadn't met yet. I also got to meet a super awesome family that are hiking part of the Long Trail. Their energy and excitement have also helped this week get so much better! So here is the rundown of this rollercoaster of a week. <br />
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Day 126 (7/15) - North Adams, MA to Seth Warner Shelter (6.9 mi)<br />
I should have taken the day off. I was still very exhausted from the miles I did yesterday. The motivation to hike on was completely gone. I should be excited- I was entering Vermont today, but I just wasn't. After eating a late breakfast and topping that off with an early lunch, Tom drove me back to North Adams to continue my journey north bound. It was a gradual climb leaving the town and crossing state lines. The speed I was going made it very doubtful that I would make it to my destination. And then to add to this overly joyous day, this wet liquid began falling from the sky. I couldn't believe it. Rain! That was all the reason I needed to make it a short day. Unfortunately, the shelter was full of weekend hikers so I had to set my tent up. The rain refused to let up, which just meant that I can go to bed early and recover more from yesterday. Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully my attitude will be better. <br />
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Day 127 (7/16) - Seth Warner Shelter to Bennington, VT (11.5 mi)<br />
12 hours of sleep does a body and attitude good. It did rain all night long which made my tent absolutely soaked and I hate packing up a wet tent. After letting my tent dry a bit and breakfast, I finally got started on the trail around 9. There was a lot more uphill and I was handling it better than yesterday. As I was leaving from my lunch break, Sanhican rolled in and we started hiking together. He needed to go into town to put some of his food weight in a bounce box and he was going to get a room. I decided I could use a hotel break for a mental break to help me tackle this tougher section so I joined him. It was a good call since it started pouring down rain in the mountains. <br />
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Day 128 (7/17) - Bennington, VT to Kid Gore Shelter (14.5 mi)<br />
I didn't think we would ever leave the hotel today, which I wasn't completely opposed to. We let the hotel do our laundry and apparently their dryer didn't work. So we were hanging all of our stuff by the ac unit to try to dry. When we finally did get on the trail, it was all up. But Sanhican and I tried to stay positive and we took the hike in stride. We kept a great pace and had great conversation throughout, which helped the time fly by. We finally got some awesome views of the mountains and got to watch some cool heat lightening off in the distance. It was a much needed good day. It was also the first day we met Mercury Man, his wife Penny, and their daughters Varsity an Lioness. They are hiking the southern end of the Long Trail (which goes from the Massachusetts border to the Canadian Border and the AT is the same trail for a little over 100 miles). They are an incredible family who all love the outdoors and everything it has to offer. We will flip flop with them all week. <br />
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Day 129 (7/18) - Kid Gore Shelter to William B. Douglas Shelter (19.9 mi)<br />
With a huge thunderstorm last night, it was smart we stayed in a shelter. We were able to hit the trail rolling this morning. Our biggest challenge of the day was Stratton Mountain. At almost 4000 feet in elevation, it's the highest point I have been for a long time on the trail. I climbed the fire tower on top and took in 360 degree views of mountains on top of mountains, including two ski slope mountains. I can see why Benton McKay would dream up the concept for the Appalachian Trail from up there. Sanhican and I spent a little over an hour taking in the view. It was the perfect opportunity to let our sweaty clothes dry. From the top of Stratton, it was a quick down hill and then a nice, fairly level trail. Darkness was sneaking up, so we had to haul tail on the last 5 miles. I was definitely worn out when we finally arrived to the shelter. There is a small chance of rain tonight, but we are mainly sleeping in the shelter to help us get an early jump into Manchester Center tomorrow for resupply and to hopefully get my worn out shoes switched out. <br />
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Day 130 (7/19) - William B. Douglas Shelter to Bromley Mountain Ski Patrol Lodge (8.8 mi)<br />
We hauled tail to get into town this morning with the hope of breakfast. Once in Manchester Center, we hit up McDonalds at the perfect time- the end of breakfast and the beginning of lunch. So I had both! We then headed to the outfitter and then to the grocery store. After a quick hitch out of town, we got to the trail head and ran back into Beeker and Fievel. We all started the summit up Bromley Mountain, which surprisingly is a ski mountain. Part of the trail was actually up one of the ski trails. On top, we had 360 degree views of all the mountains around. There was also a chair lift and a ski patrol cabin, which happened to be unlocked. With the promise of an incredible sunset and sunrise, we all decided to stay up here. So now I can say I have stayed on top of a ski mountain!<br />
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Day 131 (7/20) - Bromley Mountain Ski Patrol Lodge to Little Rock Pond (16.8 mi)<br />
So after the second morning of sub 50 degree weather, the temps today only topped off at 75. It was perfect hiking weather. Plus my body was processing all that McDonalds I ate yesterday so I was a ball of energy. I was flying through the trail until I landed at Little Rock Pond. Beaker, Honest Abe, Chicken Little, Scrabble, Sanhican, and I created a tent city, setting up our tents wherever we could fit them in the small space next to the pond and Fievel had her hammock up. On a different note, even living in the woods, I occasionally have access to news or Facebook whenever cell signal allows it. Today I was saddened to hear the news of the Colorado shooting and also the passing of a good friend's dad. My prayers go out to all those families for their losses. <br />
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Day 132 (7/21) - Little Rock Pond to Rutland, VT (17.6 mi)<br />
Today followed the theme of the last few days- I planned on hiking more miles than I actually did. The first seven miles were unbelievably gorgeous with some great views, mostly downhill terrain, and White Rocks. White Rocks was one of the most incredible things I saw. First, you come up on this huge cairn garden. There were at least fifty different cairns built all along the side path that led to incredible views of the valley. After stopping to build a cairn myself, I got to a road crossing where Penny took my pack and I slack packed with Mercury Man and their two daughters. It was a nice break as we had to climb up a mountain, get a cool view of the Rutland Airport, then descend again. Once I hit the bottom, Fievel and Beaker were trying to figure out how to go on into Rutland tonight instead of waiting until Monday like we planned. We came up with a plan solely based on watching The Dark Knight Rises and we made it happen. The crazy thing about planning out here on the trail is that sometimes it's good to throw it out the window and just enjoy what the trail offers you! I still got my hundred miles in for the week so all is well!<br />
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Day 133 (7/22) - Rutland, VT to US4 (18.4 mi)<br />
After we figured out the logistics over breakfast, we got a ride to US4 and slack packed back to Rutland. All of us have errands to run tomorrow (I have to pick up my third pair of shoes). The highlight of the day was climbing Killington Mountain. It was pretty steep and a butt kicking climb, but once we got to the top it was totally worth it. There were some more incredible views. There was also a side trail that took us around the mountain to where all the ski slopes are. We checked those out and enjoyed even more views and then the coolest thing ever- a free gondola ride! The mountain is a mountain bike course in the summer and it was full of people riding down, so they keep the gondola running to facilitate that and they also allow hikers to ride down and back up free of charge. We checked out the bottom of the mountain, ate our lunches, and rode back up. Hiking down, we did have some challenges as parts of the mountain were still pretty messed up from Hurricane Irene, even to the point of the trail being detoured to about 3 miles of road walking. Once we finally got done, we hitched a ride back into Rutland, and enjoyed the little trail luxury I like to call a shower!<br />
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<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-GrCNAivhkac/UAywNKBt9xI/AAAAAAAAASQ/LeCqFb8xq60/s640/blogger-image--828418925.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-GrCNAivhkac/UAywNKBt9xI/AAAAAAAAASQ/LeCqFb8xq60/s640/blogger-image--828418925.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-tkaDOfGYQ2g/UAywNuNjpMI/AAAAAAAAASY/4Ayykk86G0c/s640/blogger-image-75571756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-tkaDOfGYQ2g/UAywNuNjpMI/AAAAAAAAASY/4Ayykk86G0c/s640/blogger-image-75571756.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-K1dLaglVq2c/UAywOBRIyOI/AAAAAAAAASg/sJzc0NGikIE/s640/blogger-image--1043280578.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-K1dLaglVq2c/UAywOBRIyOI/AAAAAAAAASg/sJzc0NGikIE/s640/blogger-image--1043280578.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-iE15RGF7UgA/UAywOqVm6sI/AAAAAAAAASo/tT06mfKE7pE/s640/blogger-image--779621409.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-iE15RGF7UgA/UAywOqVm6sI/AAAAAAAAASo/tT06mfKE7pE/s640/blogger-image--779621409.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-56761348638593065382012-07-14T23:30:00.001-04:002012-07-15T09:11:58.599-04:00Entering the Land of Milk and Maple SyrupSo first off, I want to thank you. I happened to look at my blog statistics page today and saw that I have over 10,000 hits to this little wacky story of my hike I have been sharing on the interwebs. I am truly humbled that people are following what I am doing and, not to sound like a broken record, really hope it inspires you to chase after your dreams and do something that will better the world. So from the bottom of my sweat covered, mosquito bitten heart, thank you! <br />
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And please, if you haven't had a chance to donate to Active Water, please check out their website and consider it. Together, we have raised enough money to build a clean water well in Zambia, Africa and we are now a little over half way to building a second one. That is truly amazing. Hundreds of lives are going to be impacted in a huge and tangible way. I have seen and experienced a fraction of what they are going through. Many of the water sources that I have to rely on have dried up or are reduced to mud puddles. I have had to drink standing swamp water and some other very questionable water this week, including sulfur water out of a water spigot just to stay hydrated. But none of it compares to the disease filled nastiness that our African friends have to walk miles upon miles to gather and carry back. This, my friends, is why I am walking. It's the entire purpose of why I am out here. And even if all the water on the trail dries up, I will push on, because this hike is not just my story to tell, it is their story too. It just takes a few crazy people willing to step out to give a voice to it. I want to share a few lyrics from a Katie Herzig song called "Make a Noise."<br />
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Believe, that you can change the world<br />
Your dreams, have been living in a code of silence, So let them out<br />
Find your voice, find your voice and make a noise.<br />
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So along with making a noise out on the trail, I am making some miles disappear too. As you are reading this, I am taking my first steps in to Vermont. I have breezed through Connecticut and Massachusetts and now get to experience the final 3 states. It's about to get all kinds of crazy up in here as the trail goes through big mountains again and I get some big elevations. So here is what has happened since last time:<br />
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Day 117 (7/6) - Ten Mile River Shelter to Kent, CT (8.7 mi)<br />
Today was a magical day. The miles seemed to just disappear quickly, mostly because we played brain teaser games while we hiked. It was a lot of fun and sometimes frustrating trying to solve some of these riddles. Around 1, we made it down to the road that goes into Kent and there was a picnic table set up with a bunch of homemade food. A trail angel named Mom had prepared a huge lunch buffet for hikers to enjoy. It was amazing. She said she was doing it for all the moms because as a mother herself, she was blown away by the kindness of other trail angels taking care of her son when he thru hiked a few years ago. After a nice visit and awesome lunch, we walked to Kent so everyone could pick up their drop boxes and resupply. I didn't need much, so I spent a good amount of time just sitting in the park. Time passed by pretty quickly and the temperature seemed to get hotter and we still would need to hike 8 miles to get to the next shelter, so we decided to ask the Vicar at the Episcopal church if we could camp in the church yard for the night (the 2 hotels in town were extremely expensive). He gave us permission so we set up. Another trail magic experience today! We met up with Rocky and Sunshine (who were waiting on Sunshine's sister to pick them up and take them to Baltimore for a few days) to go to dinner. We ate at a pizza and pasta restaurant. While we were in there, a real nice family was sitting next to us, asking us questions about our hike. They were very fascinated by how far we had come. This was a typical conversation we have on a normal basis now. After they left, the waitress came by and told us that the family had paid for our meal. We couldn't believe it! How amazing that a family would pay for 5 stinky hikers to eat! I was just blown away. The kindness of strangers goes a long way and it's just another way the trail is teaching me some valuable life lessons. Am I willing to be as giving to a total stranger, especially one that is extremely stinky? It is something I need to get better at. <br />
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Day 118 (7/7) - Kent, CT to Pine Swamp Brook Shelter (17 mi)<br />
Today started out nice- some breakfast, cooler temps, and a nice walk out of Kent. The terrain was as expected- a big uphill, a downhill, and more uphills. Then it got completely flat for about 5 miles. This was nice with the exception of the ten billion gnats that were flying around me. To make matters even crazier, I was soaked head to toe, not due to the light sprinkling, but because of all the humidity. Everything was drenched. I dried out a little during lunch, but it didn't take long to get soaked again. It was bad enough where everything, and I mean EVERYTHING in my downstairs area was rubbing and chafing. This made for an absolutely miserable last few miles. Once I set up camp, I stripped all the way down in my tent and gave myself a wet wipe bath. I am hoping that my clothes, especially my underwear, and my downstairs area will dry out nicely tonight. I am going on and saying that I doubt it...and it's supposed to rain. I need a magical day like yesterday again. <br />
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Day 119 (7/8) - Pine Swamp Brook Shelter to Brassie Brook Shelter (21 mi)<br />
So with all the damage done yesterday, I was a little nervous about the hike today. I have heat rash almost everywhere between my waste and knees. I had to walk a little funny to keep things from rubbing. Luckily, we caught a break in the weather. It only got to the upper 80's and we had a nice breeze all day. The terrain was great so we pushed. I actually averaged a little over a 2 mph pace which I haven't done in a while because of the heat. If these temps stay like this the next few days, I can put a huge dent in Massachusetts by the end of this week!<br />
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Day 120 (7/9) - Brassie Brook Shelter to Great Barrington, MA (16.8 mi)<br />
Two huge milestones were hit today. First off, I hit the 1500 mile mark. Holy crap I have hiked a long way. Still have just under 700 miles to go, but the end is getting closer and closer each day. The second milestone was entering Massachusetts. This is the 11th of 14 states. I have to say, Connecticut was gorgeous and had great terrain, but Massachusetts beats it as far as views go. From the peaceful, story book atmosphere of Sages Ravine to the endless views from atop of Mt. Everett, I was in heaven. The descents from Bear Mtn and Mt. Everett were challenging, but it didn't get me down (except literally I guess). We came across some trail magic in the form of ice cold Cherry Pepsi and while we were enjoying it, the trail angels responsible, Bearwalker and Buttons, stopped by to check up on the cooler and offered to take us back to their place for showers and laundry and to stay the night. They had me at shower and laundry, since I had done neither since July 4 in New York. Sorry Connecticut.<br />
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Day 121 (7/10) - Great Barrington, MA to East Brook Stealth Site (14.7 mi)<br />
We got off to a later start than normal, but that was fine. We ate breakfast with Bearwalker at Dunkin Donuts before he took us back to the trail. The terrain wasn't bad, but I think all of us were hurting a little. We have pushed some big miles and its been a while since any of us had a zero. Instead of making it 17 miles like we planned, we stopped early and found a flat enough spot to set up our tents and hammock next to a creek. I could have gone further, but my feet will probably thank me for it. We will try to tag those miles on to tomorrow. I am looking forward to a day off in a few days and sadly have been planning ahead to see when I want to take my next day off too. There are a few cheap places coming up with hot tubs and swimming pools- both of which my body would enjoy, but I have to earn it first!<br />
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Day 122 (7/11) - East Brook Stealth Site to the Cookie Lady's House (23.9 mi)<br />
It was a go big kind of day; after all it's my four month anniversary. When I was looking at the guide last night, I saw that we would be close to the Cookie Lady's house. It was a little further than what we were going to push, but there was a guarantee of water and cookies. Add that on to the 3 miles we didn't do last night, and it easily made for my second biggest mileage day. The first half of the day involved a few decent climbs, but the second half was fairly flat. It was a matter of keeping the feet cranking while keeping the bugs off. The mosquitoes, flies, and gnats are killing us out here and the bug sprays are not working. I almost skipped dinner tonight because there were just swarms of gnats. Hopefully I can pick up a bug net in a few days, or at least a flame thrower. <br />
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Day 123 (7/12) - Cookie Lady's House to Dalton, MA (9 mi)<br />
Sometimes you get to a town and you just want to stay there. Today was a day like that. The terrain was completely flat for the 9.5 miles I hiked and the other 9 to Cheshire looked easy too. I have a package waiting for me in Cheshire so that was the goal for the day. But once we got to Tom Levardi's house, there was no leaving. Tom is the definition of trail angel. He has opened his house to hikers for 30 years now. When you walk up and the first thing he asks is if you would like some ice cream, you know your day is over. He offered a shower and laundry which is always awesome and much needed. So the plan now is to get a ride to North Adams and slack pack back to Tom's which will be a 24 mile day, but without the big ol heavy backpack. <br />
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Day 124 (7/13) - Zero Day<br />
Today was a day of errands- I had to pick up a drop box in the next town, get fitted for a tuxedo, and treat myself to a movie. Spider-man was awesome! I also got a bug net so all those pesky insects will quit bombarding my face. <br />
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Day 125 (7/14) - Dalton, MA to North Adams, MA (24 mi)<br />
I think I overestimated my speed ability today. I hit the trail around 10:45 with a light day pack that only had my 2 liter bladder, lunch, a few snacks, and my camera. I was ready to fly. With the amount of miles I was planning on doing plus an average speed of 3 mph, which is easy when slack packing, I thought I had today in the bag, but sometimes there are hidden variables that can derail that bag. The big one was climbing up the north face of Mt. Greylock. That sucker was steep and it's also the highest peak in Massachusetts. Once to the top there were amazing and breathtaking views. You could see 5 states and the surrounding mountain ranges and towns way off in the distance. I also got to pass several hikers I hadn't seen in a while like Dakota Dan, Steamer, Sparrow, Pedestrian, and Wall-e. They were all heading north while I was trying to speed south. Hopefully I will cross paths with most of them tomorrow or the next day. I started getting a little nervous when I arrived in Cheshire at 5 and I still had 9 miles to go. At best I could get there by 8, but at 8 in the woods it looks and feels like 10 and I didn't bring a headlamp. I was just going to have to be careful. When I almost got out of the woods, I met Mrs. Maggie and Sasha. We had all heard of each other but never met. We talked for a few minutes while the mosquitoes feasted on us and then parted ways. They were hoping to hit 12 miles, all of which would be done in the dark. When I finally hit the road, I had a lot more light to see where I was going since there was no tree cover. Around 8:15, I made it back to Tom's, and after a nice long shower, crashed hard. It was great to get those miles in without my pack because that puts me in position to enter Vermont within a few miles of hitting the trail tomorrow!<br />
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<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GCDT4gE6VWQ/UAI5u9nFeoI/AAAAAAAAAR4/24s29B7Lk4g/s640/blogger-image--47833514.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GCDT4gE6VWQ/UAI5u9nFeoI/AAAAAAAAAR4/24s29B7Lk4g/s640/blogger-image--47833514.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-VY8O8A9Fvrg/UAI5vSicqKI/AAAAAAAAASA/qlolueek57I/s640/blogger-image-896408538.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-VY8O8A9Fvrg/UAI5vSicqKI/AAAAAAAAASA/qlolueek57I/s640/blogger-image-896408538.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-R_5azt7AIic/UAI5uQMiqZI/AAAAAAAAARw/igj0dLPdY7U/s640/blogger-image-453179160.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-R_5azt7AIic/UAI5uQMiqZI/AAAAAAAAARw/igj0dLPdY7U/s640/blogger-image-453179160.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-12411812031741550972012-07-05T19:21:00.001-04:002012-07-05T19:21:03.014-04:00The Empire Strikes BackSooner or later it was going to happen- the trail was going to get challenging again. New York- the Empire State was ready to bring it. It was a deadly combination of the terrain and the heat. It made for a tough week, but with a little magic, it got a lot better. I found myself hiking with a new crew who I have enjoyed getting to know. <br />
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As I write this, I am relaxing in a shelter in Connecticut. I have now completed 9 states and only have 5 to go. But this journey is far from over. There is still over 700 miles left, and it's only going to get tougher. But until it does, and even after it does, I will stay positive and thankful that I has been blessed to be part of this journey!<br />
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Here is New York in a nut shell...<br />
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Day 110 (6/29) - Wildcat Shelter to Harriman, NY (9.9 mi)<br />
There was nothing about today that was good. We had a thunderstorm early, which resulted in a late start. Then the heat came. Now I know 93 doesn't sound too hot, but when you are on top of the mountains in the open, the sun just wears you down. Plus the terrain absolutely sucked. It was like the Rollercoaster in VA, not as high in elevation, but straight up and down. With the amount of physical exertion combined with the hot hot sun, I was moving super slow and just beat. The water sources were few and far between too, but thanks to a few trail angels leaving jugs of water at a few road crossings, I was able to stay hydrated. When I reached the 9 mile mark, I sat down to take a break. Now at this point in the day, I should have already made it 14-15 miles. It just wasn't going to happen today. I was weighing my options. I obviously wasn't going to make it to the shelter I planned on. There was a shelter 4 miles away, but at the speed I was going, and with very little energy, it was going to take all night. My other option was getting a hotel room in the next town. I went on and headed down to the road and met up with Einstein and Coffee-To-Go, who also wanted to get a room. After about a half hour of failed hitching attempts (which is illegal in NY), a guy finally offered us a ride. After a long shower and the AC all the way cranked, I started to feel a lot better. I am going to take it slow tomorrow and keep my mileage low again just to not overdo it. The temps and terrain will get a little better in a few days hopefully. <br />
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Day 111 (6/30) - Zero Day<br />
Einstein and Coffee-To-Go went to do laundry this morning and when they got back they were soaked with sweat, so we decided to zero and stay in the air conditioned hotel. <br />
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Day 112 (7/1) - Harriman, NY to Bear Mountain Stealth Camping (17.9 mi)<br />
My original plan for today was I keep the miles down to about 13. I knew it was going to be another hot day and I didn't want to overdo it. The day started with squeezing through the Lemon Squeezer. It was a very narrow pathway through two huge rock walls. Luckily I squeezed through without having to carry my backpack over my head. It went straight from there to a straight up climb. There was a sign that said "easy way" with an arrow pointing to the left, but I figure why start now? The trail has some rocky climbs but it wasn't as bad as it has been. Once I got up to the West Mountain Shelter, I had to make a decision on whether to stay or keep going. It was still early in the day and I wasn't dying from the heat so I kept going. I was staying on pace with Einstein and Coffee-To-Go so I just kept walking with them. The next big climb was up Bear Mountain, which promised views of New York City. Being a Sunday, it was very crowded on top, but I got my views. It wasn't as awesome as I thought it would be, mostly because there was a mountain blocking most of the city. You could see what was around the Hudson River though. We started the trek down the mountain with our eyes open on a good place to stealth camp. We came across the old AT route that had been abandoned, but luckily was flat and wide enough for 3 tents. We set up and to our surprise had a little bit of view of the night lights coming out of the city. If these darn trees weren't in the way...<br />
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Day 113 (7/2) - Bear Mountain Stealth Camping to Dennytown Rd Stealth Camping (16.4 mi)<br />
Well we thought we would try to beat the heat by hitting the trail at 7. It didn't work. When we got to the bottom of Bear Mountain, there was a huge park that looked like a tornado passed through leaving trash everywhere. It must have been a busy weekend. We were out of water so we tried getting some out of the bathroom sink. It came out yellow, so we all had to filter. It still tasted a bit chalky, but it was going to have to do because there wasn't water for a while. The trail passes right through a little zoo, but it wasn't open yet, so we had to take a blue blaze trail around. The real challenge was finding where the blue blaze trail was. We lost a little time trying to find it, but once we did, we were on our way to cross the Hudson River. After that, it was more ups and downs with the heat rising. Sometimes the trail runs places that make you question what in the world trail designers were thinking, and then there are moments like today where the trail comes right out next to a gas station/deli. It was like Christmas. After a huge sub and a Dr. Pepper, my stomach was happy. We sat under umbrellas for about 2 hours. It was hard to get motivated to hike after eating and avoiding the sun. I had to force myself to start hiking again. The terrain actually started to get a bit better for the second half and we had a few more water options, though we waited for our last one, which came from a pump house off a road. The water was already treated and so I filled everything, packing 5.5 liters to our campsite. I learned a valuable lesson today- eating one Fiber One bar a day is good for you- it has 35% of your daily fiber. Eating four is not. It makes you have to poop really really bad. The more you know!<br />
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Day 114 (7/3) - Dennytown Rd Stealth Camping to Hosner Mtn Rd (14.2 mi)<br />
I fell a little short of my mileage goal today, but there is a great reason- Trail Magic! I made it to the RPH shelter, which was the 10 mile mark for me and there was a poster for a 4th of July cookout and inviting hikers to come early today. We weren't really planning on stopping because we wanted to hit the deli/market to resupply and eat dinner and make it to the next shelter which would be a 20 mile day. We ran into Rocky, Sunshine, Feivel, and Beaker on the trail and all arrived to the road where this cookout was going to be. None of us wanted to cut our day short because we all have some sort of schedule, but at the same time we were all wiped out. None of us were really up for the idea of taking a zero tomorrow either. We weighed our options and decided to at least stop by and see what it was about. As soon as we got there, we were invited to a fridge full of drinks, showers, and laundry. Dinner was on the way as well. We were sold on staying the night. They even drove us to a Walmart to resupply. And to top the night off, they told us they would slack pack us tomorrow after breakfast so we could all still get some miles in before the cookout. I have to say these are the perfect trail angels. Feeling so blessed to be able to enjoy a 4th of July with good food and easy hiking with some new friends. <br />
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Day 115 (7/4) - Hosner Mtn Rd to West Dover Rd/Dover Oak (14 mi)<br />
Today I got to slack pack from the Dover Oak (the largest oak tree on the AT- 20'4" girth) back to Bill and Amy's house. It was a quick 14 miles (4.5 hours) and it wiped me out. When I finished, several more hikers, including Cave Man, whom I haven't seen since Gatlinburg, was there. The grill was fired up and the festivities began. It was a great day and glad I was able to get some good miles and some good food in!<br />
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Day 116 (7/5) - West Dover Rd/Dover Oak to Ten Mile River Shelter (12.1 mi)<br />
Of course the last day in New York would be the easiest and nicest terrain. We said our thank you's and goodbye's to Amy and Bill and hit the road back to the trail. I have to say I was excited to be getting out of this state. With the exception of the wonderful trail magic we had the last 2 days, NY was hard. I know the heat played a huge part in that and it won't magically get better. Today's weather was a bit cooler and there was a nice breeze, but I was still covered head to toe in sweat. Crossing the CT line was a very good feeling. I now have 9 states completed. It has also been cool to hike with Rocky, Sunshine, Beaker, and Feivel. We all hike a pretty similar pace (they are a little faster, but I try to keep up). I was glad to just hike 12 miles today, though I could have gone around 5 more. It gives me a little more time tonight for a mental break, which is needed from time to time. <br />
<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7MZGEazn9jA/T_YhWrYmEmI/AAAAAAAAARQ/LgVJXnGdAfs/s640/blogger-image--972262396.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7MZGEazn9jA/T_YhWrYmEmI/AAAAAAAAARQ/LgVJXnGdAfs/s640/blogger-image--972262396.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hoU_UZwcolQ/T_YhW-RcMXI/AAAAAAAAARY/vrLEi6sVrFM/s640/blogger-image--1207892011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-hoU_UZwcolQ/T_YhW-RcMXI/AAAAAAAAARY/vrLEi6sVrFM/s640/blogger-image--1207892011.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OCCjXLBGYIo/T_YhXb_2mJI/AAAAAAAAARg/bKKgKtgOtWw/s640/blogger-image--1784338729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-OCCjXLBGYIo/T_YhXb_2mJI/AAAAAAAAARg/bKKgKtgOtWw/s640/blogger-image--1784338729.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-43627689660254464092012-06-28T21:32:00.001-04:002012-06-28T21:32:48.770-04:00I Heart the (Rock) Garden StateSo this is a first. I get to deliver New Jersey in it's entirety in one blog post. I have to say, other than the rocks (which still weren't as bad as PA), NJ was a nice state. It was full of beautiful views from the constant ridge line the trail followed. It also had many beautiful lakes and marshlands full of wildlife. <br />
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On a random tangent, today I was listening to the Fat Man on Batman podcast (that's what I do to make time go by faster while hiking) and Kevin Smith was trying to figure out the age of Bruce Wayne in the Batman cartoon. Paul Dini, who wrote most of the episodes said that he envisioned him Jesus's age, which was 33. I know I am getting into a lot of need talk here, so bear with me. I also happen to be 33, and then I got thinking back on a sermon my pastor preached a week or 2 ago (see Brian I am listening) and he talked about the verse when Jesus said that we will do greater things than him right before he died (at age 33). Obviously, we cannot die for the sins of the world, but what Jesus was saying is that because of our numbers, we can be many places at once teaching, healing, giving hope, where Jesus could only be one place at one time. I look at my life and I feel like I am doing a great thing right now, but I know I have some more great moments left. I am not exactly sure what that will look like, but I know that there are still so many blessings to give out. My walking will not solve the global water crisis, but I now have confidence that I can do more and hopefully make an impact in many more ways, in my community and in the world. I hope that through this hike, you too will see that you were made for great things. What are you passionate about? What is that secret dream you are too afraid to share with anyone or step out and follow? Believe me, if this fat man can walk all the way to freaking New York, you can do anything! <br />
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*that was a glimpse into how my brain travels from listening to a podcast about Batman to Jesus and his plan for all of our lives. Thank you Jesus and thank you Batman!<br />
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So if I haven't completely lost you yet, here is Jersey all wrapped up with a bow.<br />
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Day 104 (6/23) - Zero Day<br />
I wasn't planning on a zero, but before I got out the door, I finally met Sparrow. Sparrow is also hiking for Active Water and we have kept missing each other on the trail. We grabbed some breakfast and hung out. I was still thinking I could get the 13 miles in I was planning on doing. I had everything packed and just sat in the hostel and felt totally relaxed. I have been wanting a zero day that involved no resupply, no laundry, and no running around. I just want a day to do absolutely nothing. And as more and more hikers rolled in that I actually knew (Steps, Pancake, Frodo, Wall-e, Big Sky, and Diesel), it made today the perfect day to do it. So here is to a day of absolutely nothing! Snookie will have to wait until tomorrow. <br />
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Day 105 (6/24) - Delaware Water Gap, PA to Rattlesnake Springs (13.4 mi)<br />
Hello New Jersey! You were hard to get to. I had to fight the temptation to take another zero. I grabbed some breakfast and then attended the church service. It was nice and everyone there was so incredibly welcoming. Afterwards, I was ready to get going but it was lunch time, so I went down and grabbed lunch with everyone. I still wasn't motivated to hike, so I had to just force myself. I grabbed my gear and headed across the Delaware River into Jersey. The park and the trail were crowded with families on this gorgeous day. I had actually hiked 6 miles before I stopped seeing anyone. The trail is still rocky (I was hoping all the rocks would magically disappear). It climbed up along a ridge line and I could see down into a valley into the backs of a bunch of houses. Several of them had pools and I thought to myself what I wouldn't give to go swimming. I pressed on knowing it was going to be near to impossible to get to my campsite before dark since I didn't get on the trail till almost 2. Luckily, I had enough light left to set up camp, but the mosquitoes were so bad I grabbed some non-cook food out of my bag and ate in my tent. I saw 5 deer and 8 rabbits today. I haven't seen any Jersey bears yet and I hope I don't, at least tonight because my food bag is in my tent with me...please socks be stinky enough to scare any and all critters away tonight!<br />
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Day 106 (6/25) - Rattlesnake Springs to Gren Anderson Shelter (17.9 mi)<br />
I awoke in the middle of the night to Sparrow yelling. Apparently a bear was right up against his tent sniffing and scared the crap out of him. The bear took off. We were all up at that point laughing about what had happened, especially since only 2 people heard it. I didn't. I was a little nervous since I was sleeping with my food. I don't think a single critter came sniffing around my tent at all last night. Around 6:30 I was awoken by another sound- the sound of a thunderstorm. I tried to ride it out in the tent but finally 8 am came around and I needed to get going. I packed everything away dry for the most part except for my tent. It was soaked. With the combination of the rain and rocks, I felt like I was moving a little slower than usual. After lunch, I was on top of a ridge line, where the sun was shining and the wind was blowing pretty hard. I decided to take advantage of the situation and let my socks and shoes dry out for a little bit. Nothing bothers your feet and toes more than wet socks and shoes and all the rubbing that happens (with the exception of all the rocks). After about an hour, everything was dry and I took off again, setting my sights on getting to a little coffee shop outside of Branchville, right along the trail. By the time I got there it had just closed. But to my delight there was a little tavern just down the road that was supposed to be hiker friendly. I arrived and bought a Dr. Pepper and went out back and let my phone charge for a bit, watching the waves splash around on this beautiful lake that sat right behind the tavern. Since it was taking a bit to charge my phone, I pulled out my cooking gear and fixed my dinner. 7:30 rolled around and I knew I had to get going. I still had 3 miles to hike, so I booked it, making it to the camp site in a little over an hour with just barely any daylight left. The only thing as bad as tearing down a wet tent is setting one up. I was at the tavern for an hour. Why didn't I think to get it out and let it dry. Oh well. I am just going to get a little damp tonight. <br />
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Day 107 (6/26) - Gren Anderson Shelter to Murray Farm Cabin (18.4 mi)<br />
It got cold this morning. Huge wind gusts brought the cold air. I zipped myself up in my sleeping bag but it didn't help. On the bright side, the wind dried my wet tent up. I got up and tried to get moving so I could warm up. The weather stayed cool which helped me pump out the miles. The day was full of great views. I have to say I really enjoy New Jersey. It's still rocky, but not as bad as that last stretch of PA. It was a quick 18 miles, which found me getting to the Murray cabin right around 5, which is the earliest I have gotten in this week. It is still pretty chilly out, but hopefully sleeping in this little primitive cabin will help me warm up. <br />
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Day 108 (6/27) - Murray Farm Cabin to Vernon, NJ (13.5 mi)<br />
Today had to be the most perfect weather day on the trail. It wasn't too hot and the terrain only caused me to break a sweat only a few times. The theme of today's trail was swampy. The trail wrapped around the Wallkill preserve, where I saw many different types of birds. Many times the trail was made of planks and boards to keep me from hiking in mud and marsh, but my favorite part came right before the end today. The trail actually turned into a boardwalk. For a little over a mile I was walking through a beautiful, scenic swamp on a boardwalk. It was actually really serene. As this section of trail wrapped up, I rewarded myself with a chocolate shake from a farmers market, where several other hikers were doing the same thing. From there it was a quick ride into Vernon to the church hostel. Luckily, it was equipped with a washer and dryer and shower, so I was able to take care of the funk in all aspects. To make the night even better, the church next door was having a community dinner and invited us over so we got a huge meal for free. Afterwards, I did my grocery shopping and relaxed the rest of the night. It was a good hiking day and my feet are thanking me for the low mileage. Tomorrow I will be fully into New York. Jersey was a lot cooler than I expected- great terrain, great views, and boardwalks. If only I would have seen a few more bears. <br />
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Day 109 (6/28) - Vernon, NJ to Wildcat Shelter (17.1 mi)<br />
My last day in Jersey started with a little trail magic. Rusty, a section hiker I met yesterday, invited and treated me to breakfast. We had a nice conversation and it was cool hanging out with him. While in the restaurant, I saw the lady who invited us to the church dinner and asked if she knew of anyone who drives hikers back to the trail and she volunteered to drive me herself. So it was back on the trail I went, with a nice big climb ahead of me. The rest of the trail consisted of a lot of big boulder climbing and hopping. I actually felt very slow all day. I made it to the shelter by 8, but still. But halfway through the day, I crossed from the Garden State into the Empire State. 8 states down now. I have to admit I got a little emotional when I got to the border. There was nothing significant about crossing over, but it was a major victory none the less. I guess I still can't believe I have come this far.<div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GfH01ahXOIM/T-0FrbeF8NI/AAAAAAAAAQw/j_f_iooMpuM/s640/blogger-image-2089633207.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-GfH01ahXOIM/T-0FrbeF8NI/AAAAAAAAAQw/j_f_iooMpuM/s640/blogger-image-2089633207.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-utR0GEyzX-0/T-0FvRBqcWI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/NtMCEjfNU94/s640/blogger-image-76384393.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-utR0GEyzX-0/T-0FvRBqcWI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/NtMCEjfNU94/s640/blogger-image-76384393.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CBk2lS4Gio8/T-0Fv5HitYI/AAAAAAAAARA/YndAFCmO7ks/s640/blogger-image--596451640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-CBk2lS4Gio8/T-0Fv5HitYI/AAAAAAAAARA/YndAFCmO7ks/s640/blogger-image--596451640.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-7880500623707626462012-06-22T21:23:00.001-04:002012-06-22T21:23:19.889-04:00Into Jersey, Like a Boss (err The Boss)Well almost...I need to walk a quarter mile over the Delaware River to officially be in New Jersey, but I'm close enough. This has been a tough week mentally and physically. Mentally I have been struggling with motivation. This hit me hard coming out of Hamburg. Physically, the heat has really been turned up and water sources have been a lot more spread out. Also, the PA rocks that i have hear so much about finally showed up and put my feet through all sorts of pain. I have been suffering from some dehydration, not just from the lack of water, but from the food poisoning I had too. But there is nothing like hitting a big goal- like making it to Delaware Water Gap, that can really turn things around. I am about to enter a new state and with that a new state of mind. Wow, 7 states down, 7 to go!<br />
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Here is the breakdown of this super hard week. <br />
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Day 97 (6/16) - Pine Grove, PA to 501 Shelter (12.8 mi)<br />
Good news! I was able to keep my breakfast down this morning, so back on the trail I went. It was tough saying goodbye to Stefan. On this journey, many people come in and out of your life on a daily basis. Stefan was one of the special ones. He was my hiking partner for the first 3 weeks of this hike and pushed and encouraged me every step of the way. I may not have made it this far if not for hiking with him. It was a bit emotional for both of us to part ways, but we are hoping he will<br />
come back to the States and finish the trail in a few years. Right after he left, I was greeted with some trail magic- ice cold Cokes and snacks. I was also greeted by a few familiar faces- Steps, Pancake, Domino, and his friend. With the exception of Steps, I haven't seen the others since the Smokies. After a short reunion, I took off. I started hiking around 1:45 and had to shoot for 13 miles today. I knew this was going to be a challenge, not just because of the late start, but also because I only had a little food in my system. Luckily, I kept a good pace and made it to where I was camping by 8pm. I thought about pressing on another half mile but it wasn't worth it. I am camping with a bunch of weekend section hikers and one guy kept telling everyone that they had to hang all their food and anything with smell so the bears wouldn't get to it. I didn't have the heart to tell him my food was staying in my tent...oh bad habits. On a real happy note, I am now in the triple digit countdown- less than 1000 miles to go!!!<br />
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Day 98 (6/17) - 501 Shelter to Hamburg, PA (24.4 mi)<br />
So somehow we need to educate section hikers on the rules of quiet hours and common courtesy. Just because the sun comes up at 5:15 doesn't mean you should begin talking as loud as you can. So I woke up on a grumpy note. I was also still having some stomach issues. I knew I had to hike at least 15 miles, and if I really wanted to push myself, I could try to get to town, which would be just about 25 miles. It was a head down and hike kind of day. The weather was perfect and I just pushed. I texted Dirty Girl to see where he was and he got a room in Hamburg so I asked him if he wanted someone to go in half. Now the challenge was getting there and hitching a ride and trying to do it all before dark. I pressed on and sure enough made it! It has been my biggest mileage day yet! I feel good, but exhausted. Happy to get a shower and some Wendy's.<br />
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Day 99 (6/18) - Hamburg, PA to Windsor Furnace Shelter (5.4 mi)<br />
Today was a day I wish I didn't have to hike. I had a great night sleep and a great continental breakfast, but even they couldn't get me motivated today. I had to go to Walmart to resupply and that seemed to suck even more out of me. I ended up getting on the trail and just went into autopilot to get me to the shelter. After a quick setup, it was nap time, dinner, and back to bed. I think the combination of big miles yesterday plus my feet killing me plus just needing a mental break from hiking caught up to me. Tomorrow is a new day...and a day I will need to make up some miles. <br />
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Day 100 (6/19) - Windsor Furnace Shelter to Allentown Hiking Club Shelter (16.5 mi)<br />
I felt a lot better today! I actually thought about getting up when the sun was out at 5:30. I thought about it, but then went back to sleep. Then it decided to rain. Crap. That just delayed my start. There is nothing worse than packing up in the rain. Luckily it didn't last too long and I was on the trail by 8. The trail stayed more consistently rocky today. With the exception of a 2 mile stretch of forest road, it was rocks. There was also a lot more boulder hopping today as well. It was a little scary because they were wet. I slipped twice, but luckily caught myself both times. With 3 days left of hiking in PA, I am expecting nothing less than rocks and boulders until early Jersey. So, it turns out that this is day 100 for me. What a huge milestone I guess. Glad I have survived this long and will keep on trucking until I am looking down from Baxter Peak on top of Katahdin. <br />
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Day 101 (6/20) - Allentown Hiking Club Shelter to Palmerton, PA (17.9 mi)<br />
This morning started out rough. At 3 I woke up to pee just to see the biggest spider I have ever seen sitting on my air mattress. It was all I could do to not scream like a little girl and wake everyone up. I took my sleeping bag liner and tried to fling it out of the tent, but it caught on to the tent and crawled around the outside wall. After peeing, I grabbed my camera to take a picture then sent it to spider heaven. Actually, I believe spiders, especially huge fuzzy ones go back to the depths of Hell from where they originate. So after not being able to sleep after that, I waited till about 6:30 and took off. It was a gorgeous day. The trail stayed rocky and got real bad up on Knife Edge where you had to balance and watch your step on these huge sharp rocks. One bad step and you were probably breaking a bone. It took me a while to get down from there. Eventually the trail smoothed out a bit and eventually descended to Leigh Gap, where I had my choice of 3 towns I could hitch to. I chose Palmerton, home of the hostel in the jail basement. After hitching a ride in the back of a pickup (my first attempt at solo hitchhiking), i found myself in this very cute little town and then to the jail hostel. It was everything you would expect it to be. The bonus for me was that it was in a basement and it was cool temp-wise. Did some laundry and enjoyed some Subway before turning in for the night. The joys of town food. It is enough to make you walk extras miles sometimes. <br />
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Day 102 (6/21) - Palmerton, PA to Leroy A. Smith Shelter (15.6 mi)<br />
After a great night's sleep (with no giant spiders), I hitched a ride back to the trail and mentally prepped myself for what was going to be a huge climb. The trail ascends Lehigh Gap pretty much straight up for 1000 feet. I actually collapsed my hiking poles and put them in my pack and did some good old fashioned rock climbing. It was a great upper body workout. I climbed up and over the front of the mountain and then balanced on loose rocks as the trail gently ascended to the very top. Once up to the top, the trail was flat and, for the most part, rockless. It was also shadeless, as I found myself piling on the sunscreen for the first time since Georgia. The trail actually followed the town of Palmerton all the way down. The rocks picked up again and then, after another rocky climb, I followed the ridge line some more. I decided to take a break because I noticed how bad I was sweating and how dark the color of my pee was getting (TMI I know) and didn't want to pass out on the trail. Water was very sparse today. I was kicking myself for not drinking a liter or two at the hostel before I left. I finally got to a side trail that led to a spring. The problem was that it would add 1.2 miles of hiking on. But knowing I didn't have enough water to make it to the shelter, I didn't have a choice. Making that side trip reminded me of why I am hiking in the first place. I shouldn't complain about a 1.2 mile round trip for water when women and children in Zambia are walking 10 miles sometimes just for dirty water. I rehydrated on the spot and made it to the shelter. From here I had to decide if I wanted to stay or hike around 5 miles more to get to Wind Gap. I would have to stealth camp, but it would mean I would only have to hike 15 miles tomorrow. I just didn't have anything left in me and set up camp for the night. So I need to do 20 tomorrow. Maybe I can wake up extra early and beat the heat. <br />
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Day 103 (6/22) - Leroy A. Smith Shelter to Delaware Water Gap, PA (20.3 mi)<br />
I attempted to wake up early this morning. That didn't happen. But I did get on the trail by 6:45. I was a man on a mission today. I needed to get to DWG and to the hostel, simply because I want to hit Jersey on Saturday. I checked my guide to see where my water would be today. Luckily, I had a source a little closer than yesterday. I put in a little over half my miles by lunch and still had some water left. I should have drank more. I am still dehydrated. I finally refilled and made myself drink a liter before finishing the last 7 miles. I almost made it into town before a little thunderstorm popped up. At least it cooled the temperature down, but I will probably be feeling the humidity tomorrow. I am staying at a church hostel with several of my new friends- Meat, Dakota Dan, and Steamer. You have to make new friends at this point because all your old ones have either fallen behind or dropped off. We got a ride to Walmart and then walked down to a nice little ice cream shop and treated myself to a chocolate milk shake. I don't feel guilty about this at all because when I stepped on the scale, I weighed in at 200 pounds. This fat boy has lost 65 pounds out on the trail. Now I need to come up with a plan to keep it all off when I get home. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-mfUl9a5GNUA/T-UahI_veFI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/66gBneF732Q/s640/blogger-image--1705081137.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-mfUl9a5GNUA/T-UahI_veFI/AAAAAAAAAQQ/66gBneF732Q/s640/blogger-image--1705081137.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-stCH5AUZyaA/T-UahePZxpI/AAAAAAAAAQY/eFHDU5mcz_c/s640/blogger-image-1040200631.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-stCH5AUZyaA/T-UahePZxpI/AAAAAAAAAQY/eFHDU5mcz_c/s640/blogger-image-1040200631.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-aDotJh0FLiA/T-UahrCcKCI/AAAAAAAAAQg/37HWLN6n5OY/s640/blogger-image-279234769.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-aDotJh0FLiA/T-UahrCcKCI/AAAAAAAAAQg/37HWLN6n5OY/s640/blogger-image-279234769.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-73528583399560375802012-06-16T12:07:00.001-04:002012-06-19T20:06:10.547-04:00Reunited and It Feels So...BittersweetSo after too much time, I caught up to my friend Stefan. I haven't seen him since I dropped him off at Newfound Gap in the Smokies on April 1. I wish I caught up to him under better circumstances. He had to get off the trail because of an infection from getting dirt in a bug bite and also a case of tendinitis. We were hoping he would get back on the trail with me, but just walking without a backpack on made his leg swell. He has made arrangements to fly back home to Germany next week and hopefully will return in a few years to finish the trail. I can't imagine how tough it is to make it this far and have to call it quits, but as he said, at least it's his body telling him to quit and not his brain. Injury has forced way too many friends off the trail. Even I had a taste of it when I sprained my ankle. <br />
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On a happier note, I am now 3 months in on this incredible journey. I cannot believe I made it this far. I also cannot believe how close I am to raising enough money for a second well in Africa. Hundreds of people are going to be able to have a better quality of life simply because they will have drinkable water. The thought of this makes every step I take, even the ones on the sharp Pennsylvania rocks, easier to take. I desperately hope that my journey will inspire others to step out and make a difference, whether directly, indirectly, or insanely (like me). This journey is not just changing their world (Zambia), it's changing my world. I have a new confidence that I never had- not in my abilities, but God's. I genuinely believe that I have the ability to make an impact in the world. My story is full of blank pages ahead of me with endless possibilities ready to be written. <br />
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Here is what happened the last few days...<br />
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Day 92 (6/11) - Ironmasters Mansion Hostel to Boiling Springs, PA (19.6 mi)<br />
Today I celebrate my 3 month trail anniversary. It started with some Eggo Waffles from the hostel and then some quick miles. I felt great and found my groove quickly. I have to admit I got a little emotional this morning as I reflected on the first 3 months and then thought about summiting Katahdin. That will get here soon enough. The terrain was pretty easy at the beginning and then it turned into a mini version of the Rollercoaster, complete with rock mazes. The rock mazes had arrows and blazes on the boulders to help you find your way through, over, or around. It was pretty fun, but I lost one of my crocs in it. Luckily, Crush came up behind me with it. The trail came out off the mountains and right into corn and wheat fields. I had to hike right in the middle of them. Right before getting into Boiling Springs, there is a campsite between the farms and railroad tracks. Just as I finished setting up camp, Nokey called me and told me a guy was offering to let us sleep in his garage. I tore everything back down and hiked into town where they were all waiting. The guy's name was Snow, and he thru hiked last year. He is a super cool guy and he gave us a ride to the grocery store and let us take showers and do laundry. Talk about great trail magic and a great way to celebrate my 3 month!<br />
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Day 93 (6/12) - Boiling Springs, PA to Cove Mountain Shelter (21.6 mi)<br />
RAIN! All day it rained. The flattest, easiest 14 miles of trail was today, and what could have been quick miles took almost the regular amount of time because of all the drops of watery torture falling from the sky. About 10 miles in, I stopped for lunch and turned on my phone. I had a text from Nokey saying that they stopped in Carlisle at a diner for lunch. I was already 3 miles past them so I told them they could catch up when they were done. Then I get a call saying that they went on and got a hotel room because it was supposed to keep raining and possibly hail. I told them I was already wet so I was just going to keep hiking. I was definitely not going back 3 miles just to hike them again tomorrow. So I pressed on. The easy terrain eventually came to an end and there was some climbing and then eventually some rocks. In the back of my mind I was thinking if I could get some miles in a little quicker I could push 4 more miles in and make it to Duncannon tonight. But by the time I reached the shelter I was too wet, too tired, and a little to chafed to push on. Dos was at the shelter too and as we were cooking dinner, a cat came out of nowhere and wouldn't leave us alone. It finally went away, but then I had my first encounter with a new critter...a porcupine. It crawled up the steps and into the shelter. We quickly put our shoes up because they are attracted to salty things and have been known to steal shoes. Hopefully it will leave us alone so I can get some sleep. <br />
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Day 94 (6/13) - Cove Mountain Shelter to Peter's Mountain Shelter (15.3 mi)<br />
After a terrible night of sleep due to a porcupine gnawing loudly at the edge of the shelter for 5 hours, I hit the trail anxious to get into Duncannon. I was treating myself to breakfast since I hiked all day in the rain and survived the great porcupine invasion of 2012. It was a quick 4 miles to get to town, where I stopped at a little diner and got one of the best ham and cheese omelets I have ever eaten. My next stop was the Doyle. The Doyle is a hiker hotel that everyone is supposed to stay at. I broke that tradition. I just needed to pick up a package. I went into the main entrance which is a bar and restaurant. The lady who runs it told me I could hang out and charge my phone and stuff, so I did. I sat there long enough I thought I might as well eat lunch there too. So with an extra full stomach I trekked my way through the town, which reminded me a lot of home. After crossing two huge rivers by bridge, the trail crossed some railroad tracks and then escape back in the woods straight up a mountain. Because of the time I spent in town, I wasn't going to make it as far as I wanted, but I could make it as far as Dirty Girl was going so I could hang out and catch up after a week and a half of not seeing him. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for hiking and somehow I had the magical soundtrack to accompany the hike, which included Tom Petty, Avett Brothers, Beck, The Ting Tings, Steve Perry, and The Monkees. Some stuff I hadn't listened to in a long time and it gave me a good rhythmic stride along the trail. <br />
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Day 95 (6/14) - Peter's Mountain Shelter to Pine Grove, PA (22.7 mi)<br />
I got off to a late start this morning mostly because it was pretty cold out. I was warm for the most part in my sleeping bag, but only because I was fully zipped up in it. After hitting the snooze on my phone too many times, I got up and going. It didn't take long to warm up once I started hiking. It was another wonderful terrain day today. I was cranking out the miles. By lunch, I was only 8 miles in. I like to be at least half way done, but because of my late start that wasn't possible. I had 10 miles to go if I wanted to be safe, or 14.5 miles to go if I wanted to hit my goal. I was walking with Dirty Girl again, so we talked and caught up about our week and a half that we didn't hike together. Before we knew it, we were at the area he was calling it quits for the day. I decided to go on and cook my dinner so I could press on and do the other 4.5 miles, just get into camp, set up, and crash. Before I left, Dirt Girl wanted to take a few pictures with me because he is convinced he will not see me any more on the trail. He isn't doing the miles I am trying to do. I took off ready to knock out that last stretch quickly. When I was about half a mile from camp, it dawned on me that I was going to be at the mileage point my German friend Stefan got off the trail due to injury. I was supposed to call him so I did and told him I was at the road, and the family that has been keeping him said that they would pick me up and I could stay there. They were only 10 minutes away when I realized I was not at the right road. Crap! I had 3/4 of a mile to go. So I bolted. It is not easy running with a backpack on, but I did it and made it just in time. I stayed up way too late catching up and am going to take a zero to spend one more day with him since he will be returning to Germany earlier now. <br />
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Day 96 (6/15) - Zero Day<br />
Today I feel like crap. I am another victim of food poisoning. I ran into Stingray yesterday and he only hiked 13 miles because he wasn't feeling good. When I asked him what he ate, he told me a BBQ sandwich from the Doyle in Duncannon. I ate the same thing. So this morning when I ate breakfast, it came right back out. With no energy, I still attempted to tour the Yuengling Brewery- the oldest brewery in America. I came back from there and took a 2 hour nap, hung out with Stefan some more, and went to bed. Very thankful for John and Kathy for taking me in. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zX-xcEauGCs/T9yvWaqKzDI/AAAAAAAAAP0/kZ3CEFOAp4k/s640/blogger-image--949245739.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-zX-xcEauGCs/T9yvWaqKzDI/AAAAAAAAAP0/kZ3CEFOAp4k/s640/blogger-image--949245739.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-pVFgvlwp3qI/T9yvXOqHdaI/AAAAAAAAAP8/6iqv8fh1mcg/s640/blogger-image-174452982.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-pVFgvlwp3qI/T9yvXOqHdaI/AAAAAAAAAP8/6iqv8fh1mcg/s640/blogger-image-174452982.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-19047934585579848632012-06-10T21:07:00.000-04:002012-06-10T21:07:02.196-04:00Ohhhhh We're Halfway There...I am just as excited to post this blog as much as the last. This week, I passed through West Virginia, Maryland, and entered Pennsylvania. I also made it to the official half way point of the trail. I have an aggressive plan for the rest of this month, which will hopefully allow me to knock out a few more states. I am pumped and ready to go. I just hope this hot weather doesn't persuade me otherwise. <br />
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Day 85 (6/4) - Zero Day<br />
I went to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy first thing to get my picture taken and be officially in the books. It was good to see pictures of a lot of friends I have met along the way in there too. Nokey and Sprinkles met me there and I got to see them for the first time in a few weeks. Spent the day with them exploring Harpers Ferry and then going back to Leesburg to spend the night. <br />
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Day 86 (6/5) - Zero Day<br />
This was an unplanned zero (technically yesterday was too), but I did a lot of planning for the month of June. I have an aggressive plan to get in 500 miles in the month, helping me hit 5 states and get another 25% of the trail complete. If I can pull it off, it puts me in a great position to finish mid August. <br />
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Day 87 (6/6) - Harpers Ferry, WV to Dahlgren Backpack Campground (17.8 mi)<br />
We left the house this morning and got back to Harpers Ferry around 10:30. After a quick stop in the ATC to see what other hikers made it to town, we started on our way. The trail actually travels just on the outside of town behind several buildings. It finally turns right into the old historic part of town. Here you see people dressed in 1800's garb telling stories of the first freed slaves in the area. I really enjoyed the history and atmosphere of the town. Once we saw the railroad tracks, we followed them out of town where the trail crosses the Potomac and is also used as a bike path. As we got to the end of that section, we said goodbye to West Virginia and hello to Maryland. I have to say I really like Maryland so far. The trail has been real good to us. We got to a state park where a couple on motorcycles were intrigued with our hike. We must have talked with them for about 15 minutes. I remembered running into a guy last Saturday offering trail magic at this park. He gave me his number and so I decided to call. I left a message and soon after he called me back. He and his wife had been taking hikers to their house for pizza and swimming and camping. We were already 4 or 5 miles past the park when he called but he was willing to meet us at the next road about 2 miles from where we were. Once we got there, he told us of a situation that had occurred which was going to prevent him from taking us tonight. He felt bad since he promised us trail magic, so he took our backpacks so Nokey and I could slack pack down the mountain the next 3 miles and because Sprinkles knee was hurting, he gave her a ride too. Once we got down to the road (3 miles in 40 minutes), Sprinkles was waiting with our backpacks and $25 that the guy gave us for pizza. We ordered 2 pizzas to be delivered and were they ever delicious! At the campground, there was one other couple there and I got talking to them and it turns out they are from Lexington. They were real cool to hang out and talk with for a bit. <br />
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Day 88 (6/7) - Dahlgren Backpack Campground to Ensign Cowall Shelter (13.9 mi)<br />
So though this wasn't a day after a zero, it sure felt like it. We were slow to get going this morning after stomachs full of pizza and basically putting all our miles in after lunch yesterday. I think cockiness set in and we thought we would kill some big miles quickly today. That wasn't the case. We spent a little time at the original Washington Monument. It is a stone tower with a great view from the top. We experienced some long stretches of rocks which I think is a precursor to Pennsylvania (which we will star hiking in tomorrow). We then got to a road that went into Smithsburg and decided to hitch in for some dinner. While we were there a huge storm hit. Talk about timing. By the time we got back on the trail it stopped but we were left with a dilemma- hike the 5 more miles and stay on target and get in after dark or stay at the shelter we are closest to. We ended up staying because we did not want to tackle walking on wet rocks in the dark. So we have some miles to make up, which may mean I don't stay at a hostel at the half way point, but I am fine with that...it will save me a few bucks too. <br />
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Day 89 (6/8) - Ensign Cowall Shelter to Tumbling Run Shelter (18.1 mi)<br />
I got up this morning feeling pretty good and found my groove quick. Maryland has been beautiful, but it wasn't going to let go until it made me work for it by hiking down a lot of rocks. This was the big sneak peek of Pennsylvania I bet. Once I got down the rocks, it was smooth sailing into PenMar park. This big beautiful park was made even more beautiful by the Pepsi machine in it. And this time I had some dollar bills. I ate my lunch alone, trying to figure out how Nokey and Sprinkles hadn't caught up to me yet. As I was on my way out of the park, they finally came in and so I waited as they ate. Not even a quarter mile from the park we saw a sign that said Mason Dixon. I was now officially in Pennsylvania. Luckily, this first stretch was not very rocky. The couple of shelters we passed looked real nice and had plenty of green space for camping. But we pushed on. We made it into another park and just relaxed. After that, it was a super quick mile (I did it in 15 minutes) to the shelter I was staying at. It was nice getting in around 6:30. I didn't feel so rushed to set up camp and cook dinner. Tomorrow is another good stretch, and then I hit the half way point. I am super excited about that!<br />
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Day 90 (6/9) - Tumbling Run Shelter to Birch Run Shelter (19.6 mi)<br />
It got pretty cold this morning. I woke up shivering in the middle of the night. It was actually the first time in a while I zipped myself up in my sleeping bag. I tried to get packed and ready as fast as I could so that I would warm up with all the movement. I didn't get the early start I wanted, but I wasn't too late either. I like to be on the trail no later than 7:30 so I can get in half of my miles by lunch time. After a climb up a very rocky mountain, the trail went down again to another park. This park was crowded with families cooking out and kids at the pool. The pool was very tempting as hot as it was today. We took about a 2 hour lunch in the shade and found it hard to get motivated to get going again. I finally got going, and though the terrain was relatively flat, I just seemed to be dragging. I finally made it to the shelter and set up, ate, and got in the tent. As soon as I did, I noticed a small frog jumping around my tent, and eventually in my shoe. Frogs must have a sense of smell because he jumped out just as fast as he jumped in. <br />
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Day 91 (6/10) - Birch Run Shelter to Ironmasters Mansion Hostel (9.5 mi)<br />
Today was a big day, though the miles don't show it. After forcing myself to wake up (it was chilly and I was sleeping so well), I got going. Anticipation was killing me the whole way. Today is the day that I will be officially half way done with the trail. The AWOL book showed the halfway point sooner than it should be. When I got to that point, I was confused that there was no sign. I pushed further to the next shelter, which was basically a quarter mile past the official halfway point. Still no sign. After a short break, I left the shelter, and sure enough right after the shelter was the sign. I made it. I have walked half of the AT. What an awesome feeling! I am trying to ignore the fact that I have only gone halfway and still have half to go. Shortly after the sign, I made it into Pine Grove Furnace State Park- home of the Half Gallon Challenge. This is a tradition for thru hikers. You buy a half gallon of ice cream and try to eat the entire thing. Luckily, the only ice cream they had left was chocolate. I dove right in with my spork and the first scoop broke it. Fail! I kept diving in. Thirty one minutes and fifty seconds later, I finished my half gallon. The prize? A little wooden spoon! I washed the ice cream down with a cheeseburger and coke. I had to sit and let all that dairy settle in. I also had to wait till 5 for the hostel to open so I could pick up my drop box. The plan was to keep going another 7 miles, but that just wasn't going to happen after consuming 1600 calories of chocolatey goodness. I decided to stay in the hostel so tomorrow, on my 3 month anniversary, I can start at the half way point. It's a new beginning. I feel great (with the exception of all that ice cream in my belly), and I am ready to tackle this second half. <br />
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To all of you who have been keeping up with my hike, sending me support and prayers, and cheering me on- Thank You! Every step I take is a blessing. To know that I am able to make an impact half way around the world through hiking the AT makes this adventure so worth it and one I will never forget! If you haven't had a chance to check out Active Water, please do so. I am halfway through the hike and halfway through raising the support for a second well in Zambia.<br />
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lMGfQAXS9Jc/T9UsW3gzweI/AAAAAAAAAPk/ggy8QfReiJI/s640/blogger-image-316465789.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lMGfQAXS9Jc/T9UsW3gzweI/AAAAAAAAAPk/ggy8QfReiJI/s320/blogger-image-316465789.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-55531040007259732332012-06-04T11:38:00.001-04:002012-06-04T11:38:34.069-04:00When Dreams Become RealityI have a confession to make. When I started this trail, I honestly did not think I would make it 100 miles, let alone 1000 miles. I didn't have a lot of confidence in myself. Luckily, I had others who believed in me. Now, 1000 miles later, I have no doubts of finishing. I have been tossing around the the idea of writing a book about the spiritual journey of the trail and was joking with Dirty Girl that I could call it "The Sins of the Flash" and Dirty Girl said I could call it "The Spirit is Willing but the Flash is Weak." How appropriate. I believe to this day that it has not been by my own abilities, but from a little help from above that I have been able to make it this far and beyond. It is also from the people who believe in my hike and the reason I am hiking (clean water in Africa) that makes every step I take (even the hard ones on the rocks) easier to take. So thank you for the first 1,016 miles, and here is to 1,168 more! Cheers!<br />
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Day 78 (5/28) - Zero day<br />
I got to go into Fairfax, VA to an REI and it was awesome!<br />
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Day 79 (5/29) - Elkton, VA to Big Meadow Lodge (17 mi)<br />
I have said it before and I will say it again- it is always hard hiking after a zero day. I was in zombie mode most of the day. There were not a lot of sights to see and minimal Skyline Drive crossings. It was nice that the park was quieter. You didn't hear motorcycles speeding down the road every fifteen seconds. We did meet a few thru hikers that we haven't met before like Houdini and Five Pair. Five Pair got her name because when she started she had five pairs of everything. The day was a hot one, but around 5 it got a little overcast, which cooled everything down a touch. Around 6, we were getting within 2 miles of where we wanted to stop for the night. We didn't have any real goal or end point but that soon changed when the skies opened up and just dumped rain all over. It came down so hard and fast the trail became a creek. We got to a sign post that pointed to a wayside which is like a convenient store in the park. Dirty Girl started going towards that but then Houdini appeared out of nowhere and told us about the lodge. I figured it was worth checking out so we hiked another mile to get there. Once we got to the lodge we were able to dry off and warm up a bit. We checked on pricing and said we were hikers and the clerk told us the hiker rate was more money. What? I guess it included breakfast. The price was more than I was willing to pay and then Stingray showed up and asked if we wanted another roommate. We signed him up and split the room 3 ways. I hung all my wet stuff up to dry and decided to cook my ramen in the room. No sense paying for a meal when I have plenty of food in my food bag. I needed to shave some weight out of it anyways.<br />
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Day 80 (5/30) - Big Meadow Lodge to Pass Mountain Hut (18.8 mi)<br />
I woke up this morning ready to take advantage of that free breakfast. And did I ever! It gave me the juice to get going this morning. We finally got on the trail around nine which is late for us. I actually had a destination in mind unlike yesterday. The trail followed along the side of a mountain just below the ridge line, allowing many views of the valley below. The further we went, the different the angle. It made for a nice enjoyable hike today. About halfway through the day we stopped at the next lodge for lunch. I figured why not? I will be out of Shenandoah tomorrow night, I might as well enjoy it. A nap would have been preferred after lunch, but we still had too many miles left. I knew today would be a long day with the timing of starting and how long our lunch took. We got to the shelter right at the end of dusk. There was just enough light to set up my tent. And I am pretty sure there are some bears very close by (there was some commotion going on in the woods not too far from where I set up). So tonight I followed the rules and hung my food bag. As much as I would love to see more bears, I don't want to see them in my tent. <br />
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Day 81 (5/31) - Pass Mountain Hut to Compton Peak (20.1 mi)<br />
It's really crazy that the sun is up at 5:30. But that is not what woke me. I kept hearing critters walking around. When I finally did get up, I walked towards the woods to pee and the first thing I saw was a huge black bear. This one was bigger than the momma bear I saw a few days ago. It was 50-60 yards or so away, so nothing to worry about. The hike today was just as pleasant as yesterday. We made it to Elkwallow Wayside for what was just going to be a snack and soda. It turned into an hour and a half long lunch break. It was nice just hanging out with Dirty Girl, DW, Five Pairs, and Pedestrian chatting and planning miles. I realized that I only needed one day of food for resupply so instead of hitching a ride into Front Royal tomorrow I could just get everything at the wayside. We got back on the trail knowing that there was not enough daylight to push for the 23 miles we wanted to do. I didn't want to say that in front of Dirty Girl even though I am sure he knew that. I just pressed on thinking that if we kept our pace we could make it in right before 9. Well, we didn't quite make it to the shelter, but we are within a few miles of it. After a stop at a small dirty spring to get water, we found a nice stealth camp site about a mile up. I am happy that I was still able to do 20 miles and won't have to tag too many extra on tomorrow to stay on track. It also helps that tomorrow was going to be a 12-14 mile day because of resupply, but that is taken care of. Feeling good and excited about hitting Harpers Ferry Sunday night/Monday morning and the real half way point next week!<br />
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Day 82 (6/1) - Compton Peak to Manassas Gap Shelter (17.1 mi)<br />
Two mornings in a row with bear sightings. This one snorted at Dirty Girl as he was trying to poop. Then he walked through our camp looking for food and I just watched from my tent. He stayed about 20 yards from us and then moved on down the mountain. I love bear encounters! Speaking of encounters, I ran into a big group of kids and parents who were all part of a 4H group. Their camp had a trail that went up to the AT and their leader was talking about the trail. Enter The Flash at just the right time. I spent about 5 minutes answering questions for them. They asked me questions like how many miles a day I hike, where do I sleep, what do I do about water, and several others. It was fun talking to them. Shortly after that, we made it to the highway that went to Front Royal. I resupplied yesterday but there was the temptation of fast food. I made a deal with Dirty Girl. I will work the magic thumb for 3 minutes. If we get a ride we go eat, if not, we keep hiking. So The Flash got him some McDonalds! There were a ton of flies in there though. I had to take a mcpoop and felt I was out in a privy on the trail with all the flies attacking. It started raining while we were in town, which really hurts the motivation. We hitched a ride back to the trail and sucked it up. Once we made it to the shelter it started pouring hard. I am glad to be sleeping in a shelter tonight so I won't have to pack up a wet tent tomorrow. <br />
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Day 83 (6/2) - Manassas Gap Shelter to stealth camp site (22.3 mi)<br />
I didn't get a good night's sleep at all. Actually I should say nobody at the shelter except for one guy got a good night's sleep. A hiker who shall remain nameless snored all night long very loudly. The only time he stopped was when he peed in his Gatorade bottle or when he got up and got ready at 5:30. And who packs everything in plastic grocery bags where you have to take them out of your pack and stuff them back in several times? So even after this guy woke up he was making as much noise as when he was asleep. Sorry, enough of the rant. We put in some big miles quickly today, which was needed because we knew we would get slowed down by the Rollercoaster. The Rollercoaster is a series of ups and downs for around 13.5 miles. None of the climbs were too strenuous, but when it's one after another it starts to beat you down. We tackled 9 miles of it today and will finish strong tomorrow, where there will be a few major victories...<br />
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Day 84 (6/3) - Stealth camp site to Harpers Ferry, WV (20.3 mi)<br />
We finished up the Rollercoaster with ease this morning, which was good because we wanted to blow through the rest of Virginia pretty quickly, and quickly we did. First major victory- we finished Virginia (state #4) and entered West Virginia (state #5). A quick trip down the bottom of the mountain led to major victory number 2- 1000 miles. We looked for a market of some sort but none was found until a mile or so past that point, where there was a sign on the tree. The mileage changes every year so I imagine it's hard to keep track each time. After the Rollercoaster the trail stayed a little rocky, but the terrain stayed pretty flat. After lunch at the PATC Blackburn Center (they gave us free Dr. Perky), we set off to wrap this day up. I had plenty of energy and excitement to get to town, but Dirty Girl was struggling. I shot down the trail skipping over rocks and not having a care in the world. I would stop and wait for Dirty Girl and encourage him to keep trucking and then shoot off again. Once we got to the bridge over the Shenandoah River, the trail made us go down a lot of steps, walk under the bridge, and walk back up a bunch of steps. It was a little frustrating. Once we got over the bridge, we entered major victory #3- historic Harpers Ferry. This town is the psychological half way point of the trail. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy is located here so it's the hub for all things trail related. Since we got in late, exploring town will take place tomorrow. I am not planning on zeroing here, but my feet are a little tender from all the rocks, so we'll see. It was a big day and plenty to be proud of and thankful for...I will celebrate tomorrow because I am too tired tonight. <div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5nKc83DThhg/T8zWdYtB8iI/AAAAAAAAAOk/PKvFUEQ5EeA/s640/blogger-image-1391924575.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-5nKc83DThhg/T8zWdYtB8iI/AAAAAAAAAOk/PKvFUEQ5EeA/s640/blogger-image-1391924575.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-TA0aI9m6q1k/T8zWdq8nIaI/AAAAAAAAAOs/IjTVpE9pLr0/s640/blogger-image-1768438728.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-TA0aI9m6q1k/T8zWdq8nIaI/AAAAAAAAAOs/IjTVpE9pLr0/s640/blogger-image-1768438728.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xwfqD0hSVIM/T8zWd6-arbI/AAAAAAAAAO0/an_2dC0Rm7c/s640/blogger-image-361389089.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-xwfqD0hSVIM/T8zWd6-arbI/AAAAAAAAAO0/an_2dC0Rm7c/s640/blogger-image-361389089.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator"style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-p1k9PsDHGDc/T8zWeSeHbLI/AAAAAAAAAO8/IjWkub2I0mw/s640/blogger-image-1707183547.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-p1k9PsDHGDc/T8zWeSeHbLI/AAAAAAAAAO8/IjWkub2I0mw/s640/blogger-image-1707183547.jpg" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-31949435872453347322012-05-27T19:30:00.002-04:002012-05-27T19:30:56.522-04:00Rested and Ready for the Next 1284 MilesThis week has been a lot easier than last, mostly because I have taken a few days off. My dad and wife came to visit me in Waynesboro and it felt so good to be a regular person and not stinky hiker trash for a few days. It also felt real good to wear cotton. I weighed in for the first time since Johnson City and I have lost 53 pounds. I am not hiking to lose weight, but it is a nice benefit. I really started feeling the importance of a day off. So many times we are on the run and constantly going that we forget the need to pause, not just physically, but mentally. Call it a day off or Sabbath or what have you, but everyone should take one and stick to it. It's amazing how rested and refreshed you will feel. I hit mile 900 this week as well, which is a pretty big victory. But keeping with what I just talked about, no matter how many miles I push, unless I give myself a chance to rest, I could do more damage than good. I just need to find a balance between a zero and too many zero's to stay on schedule.<br />
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Day 73 (5/23) - Zero Day<br />
Incredible day with Wendy and my dad. Ate at Chick-fil-a and Wendy's. We also went and watched the Avengers. Weighed myself and I have lost 53 pounds on the hike. I possibly put some of that back on today!<br />
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Day 74 (5/24) - Zero Day<br />
Another great day! We took a drive into Shenandoah and saw some great views in the valley. We also saw two good size bucks and a turkey. I got some good rest and relaxation in and then tore up some Outback Steak House. Oh yeah, I also had Starbucks for the first time since very early March. It was awesome!<br />
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Day 75 (5/25) - Rockfish Gap to Calf Mountain Shelter (6.8 mi)<br />
I took my sweet time this morning getting everything packed and ready. That allowed me more time with Wendy and my dad. I have my eyes on the prize now- finishing this beast. Even though I am not halfway yet, it won't take long to get there. Life on the trail is fun, but life with my wife and family is even better! After some Chinese buffet for lunch, it was time to part ways and hit the trail. This was a hard goodbye, since this stretch will be a long one. The time on the trail flew by quickly, mainly because we just hiked a little over 6 miles. I wasn't feeling it, mainly because I was just thinking of my time with Wendy. We made it to the shelter and I started planning out my next stretch, which includes Harpers Ferry (the psychological half way point) and the actual half way point. <br />
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Day 76 (5/26) - Calf Mountain Shelter to Campsite off Frazier Trail intersection (21.5 mi)<br />
Sometimes I feel the trail has turned me into an animal. We are so blessed to be surprised from time to time with trail magic- the act of providing hikers with snacks, drinks, meals, rides, shelter, etc. It should not be an expected thing but sometimes you come to expect it. This happened to the bears in national parks. They were free in their habitat and then people started visiting and feeding them. This was unusual to the bears and then every time they saw a human they expected food and could get aggressive about it. Now it is illegal to feed the wildlife. Just like the bear, I sometimes get my hopes up when I get to a road crossing and see people. It was especially bad today being that I am in the middle of Shenandoah National Park and it is Memorial Day weekend and there are tons of people. All day long with all the Skyline Drive crossings I would hope for a cold drink or a snack and it never happened...until the very last road crossing. Trail magic!!! I had 3 cans of soda and a lot of nachos. It was awesome! It gave me more than enough juice to deal with the disappointment of not getting a campsite at the campground and having to walk an extra mile and a half. It was worth it in the end to have a beautiful sunset to watch right next to where we set up camp. Tonight we are stealth camping, which means we are camping in a spot that has not been designated for camping. This is allowed as long as you practice Leave No Trace guidelines and don't stay for more than one night. This is the first time I have had to do this so luckily we knew where to look and no one else was there. <br />
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Day 77 (5/27) - Campsite off Frazier Trail intersection to Elkton, VA (16.3 mi)<br />
Funny I mentioned bears on yesterday's journal, because finally on day 77 (today) I saw my first three bears. I first spotted momma about 20 yards to my left and then a cub came bouncing out from behind her. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Dirty Girl take a picture to the right and sure enough another cub was there. He began walking and I made him stop because if he would have been in between the mom and her cub, she would have probably come charging. The little guy posed for a few pictures and went on down in the woods with his family. It was awesome! I have waited and waited to see some bears on the trail. Now all I need is to see a moose when I get into Maine. Do you want to know what else is awesome? 900 MILES BABY! I have to say that I walk with a little more confidence knowing that I have walked that far. The trail was relatively easy except for a long climb that would have been easier if it wasn't 90 degrees out. There were a lot of people on the trail, and most of them were loaded down with perfume and cologne. We made it to the Elkton entrance of the park where we waited on Dirty Girl's parents to pick us up. Tomorrow we are heading to REI and enjoying what will be my last zero day for a while (at least until I get out of Virginia). <br />
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-hfQN3OB9Y-M/T8K07jcvxrI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/jv-nh1GTJ7Q/s640/blogger-image-1104566015.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-hfQN3OB9Y-M/T8K07jcvxrI/AAAAAAAAAOQ/jv-nh1GTJ7Q/s320/blogger-image-1104566015.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-50572802583178074762012-05-23T07:53:00.001-04:002012-05-23T07:53:04.460-04:00Your Mission- If You Choose to Accept ItThis week I was on a mission- to hike 134 miles in 7 days. This was a huge stretch goal for me. First off, I would be hiking 7 days straight. Second, I would have to average 19 miles a day to make it. My partner in crime is Dirty Girl, who usually hikes an average of 15 miles a day. He also wants to make it to Waynesboro by Tuesday night. We had our work cut out for us but we were up for the challenge. The payoff is huge- I get to spend two days with my wife who I haven't seen since Gatlinburg (April 1). So here is how the week shaped up...<br />
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Day 66 (5/16) - Daleville, VA to Bobblet's Gap Shelter (18.5 mi)<br />
Today was a great hike, not only because of the terrain and weather, but also because we officially hit the 1/3 completion mark of the trail. We got off to a late start (around 9:30) but we were energized after a great night's sleep and a huge continental breakfast at the HoJo. It was also great to catch up with Secrets and Shenanigans. We knocked out the first section, which was getting away from the town and cicadas, as quick as we could. After some climbs and descents, the trail started to level off. The second half of the day we found ourselves walking parallel to the Blue Ridge Parkway. Today was also a great wildlife viewing day. We saw a mother turkey running around like crazy trying to protect her babies when we walked by and also spooked four deer right before we got to the shelter. I was impressed we got in right before dark with the late start and miles we did. Today was just the first day of this marathon. Six more to go!<br />
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Day 67 (5/17) - Bobblet's Gap Shelter to Cornelius Creek Shelter (18.4 mi)<br />
Today was another killer day. I have to say I really enjoy hiking with Dirty Girl. For the most part I have hiked alone and would just meet up with everyone when we stopped for breaks or for the night because we all have different paces, but with Dirty Girl we hike the same pace so we are able to hike together. We had a great conversation today about God, faith, and how that looks for someone who is homosexual. The great thing about walking with him is because we walk the same pace we can have conversation during the entire hike and it keeps our minds off of the hard climbs like the 2400 foot one we had tonight. This was the second day in a row we have done over 18 miles and we have several more. I just hope we don't run out of things to talk about. <br />
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Day 68 (5/18) - Cornelius Creek Shelter to Glasgow, VA (19.9 mi)<br />
I woke up this morning to see the sun starting to rise. I checked the time and it was only 5:30. Wow it is getting light early! Luckily I fell back asleep. We hit the trail right at 8 this morning with plans to push about 20 miles. We originally weren't going to go that far but we figured we could make it into Glasgow for resupply tonight and not have to worry about it tomorrow. We had a couple big climbs- none as big as last night, but enough to make it annoying. We flip flopped a few times with some weekend hikers and their dogs but finally passed them when they stayed behind at Matt's Creek Shelter. That is where we were going to stay but we pushed on. We walked along James River for around a mile which put us at some of the lowest elevation we have been on this entire hike (which means we will have to do some climbing to get back up- suck!). We crossed the river on the longest foot bridge on the trail and made it to the highway that took us into Glasgow. We made great timing to hike almost 20 miles by 6:45. I have been feeling my legs getting stronger and stronger this week. I stuck out the magic thumb and the second car to pass us pulled over and gave us a ride. This elderly black gentleman liked to drive fast and hug the turns on this windy road. I sat in the front seat and it felt really weird seeing everything move so fast. What would have taken us 2-3 hours to walk took only 15 minutes by car. The town of Glasgow isn't much but it had a restaurant that closed right before we got there and it had a Dollar General. After a quick resupply we headed over to a shelter just for hikers run by the parks department. It is complete with a hot water shower, a porta-potty, and fire ring. I saw it listed in the guide but had my reservations until I saw it. It is actually a pretty sweet service offered by this town. They are taking pride in being an official Appalachian Trail town. So even though we missed dinner, we were invited back for breakfast so I am planning on getting my carb overload on before hiking another 20 tomorrow. <br />
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Day 69 (5/19) - Glasgow, VA to Brown Mountain Creek Shelter (20 mi)<br />
So I feel a bit like a homeless person after last night. I basically slept in a shelter right in a town and you could hear people talking, sirens, car horns, and all other noises of a small town. We got up and ate our big breakfast at the restaurant and hitched a ride back to the trail. With stomachs full we started the long trek up and then up some more. Today was just one of those days that no matter how far I walked I didn't feel like I was getting anywhere. There were some nice views of the James River and the town of Buena Vista from up high. I could tell Dirty Girl was getting tired and in some pain so I was trying to get him in some good conversation to take his mind off of it. In the last stretch we saw a sign that said the shelter was 2 miles off but the guide said it was only 1.2 miles. The further we walked the more I was seeing that the book was wrong in the mileage. Once we finally made it to the shelter, we were both too exhausted to make the side trail climb up to the shelter so we pitched our tents. Tonight I am excited about being in my tent and even ate my dinner in it (shame on me). My food bag is camping with me too so hopefully I won't get visited by any critters. I'm a rebel. <br />
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Day 70 (5/20) - Brown Mountain Creek Shelter to Seeley-Woodworth Shelter (15.8 mi)<br />
So what is the difference in eating dinner and not eating dinner? It's about 5 miles. Since I didn't eat a real meal last night, just a few snacks, my caloric level wasn't where I needed it to be to start off today which meant I was dragging. The plan was to push about 22 miles to the Priest Shelter and that would put us in a great position to do 19-20 miles tomorrow and coast into Waynesboro on Tuesday with about 15 miles. That was an aggressive take on our schedule- it was based on hitting the all you can eat Chinese buffet that night. Finishing where we did still puts us on schedule, it just means we have to do 20 miles the next two days. The big victory today was hitting the 800 mile mark. With keeping with the theme this week, we started with a big climb (2500 ft). That pretty much sucked the life out of me. I got a second wind after lunch but it didn't last very long. I slipped into zombie mode where I was just walking and not much else, but was quickly snapped out of it by a big fat rattle snake. It jumped into coil position and started rattling its tail. I think I pee'd a little when I jumped back. We had to walk off trail to get around it and Dirty Girl "persuaded" it off the trail so it wouldn't bother any hikers coming up afterwards. That was pretty much the highlight of the day. Hoping for more energy and no rain tomorrow. <br />
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Day 71 (5/21) - Seeley-Woodworth Shelter to Maupin Field Shelter (20.4 mi)<br />
Today was a tough day. It didn't start out that way, though since we knocked out the first half plus lunch in 5.5 hours. That kept our pace right at 2 mph. But we knew what we were dreading and it was a 3000 ft climb over a span of 6.5 miles. This was the big daddy of the week. This was the one big hurdle that stood in the way of eating some awesome fast food in awesome amounts tomorrow. I tried to make sure I was putting enough calories in my system before making the climb. It helped, but I was quickly drained. As I started making the descent off the mountain I was getting light headed and weak. Luckily, Dirty Girl came to my rescue with some peanut butter. Talk about gone in 60 seconds, I tore up 2 peanut butter wraps very quickly. That gave me enough energy to make it the last 2 miles. I didn't even go to the shelter because there was a nice large camping spot right by the little trail that went there. Now if the rain will hold out, the 21 miles tomorrow should be cake!<br />
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Day 72 (5/22) - Maupin Field Shelter to Waynesboro, VA (21 mi)<br />
Ah, to experience mind over matter is most often a good thing. Today it wasn't. In my mind I was going to be arriving in a town with a ton of food options and going to see my wife and dad. But the reality was I had to hike 21 miles first. No matter how hard I pushed and how fast I went, it would not make my arrival any quicker than evening. So of all things to get my mind off of town, it was my stomach. And it wasn't that I was hungry, it was that I had to go. I have made it the entire journey without having to go in the woods. I pressed hard to make it to the next shelter with a privy. I was not successful. So my small victory for the day- I pooped in the woods for the first time! After that, I was able to focus on the task at hand- finish this stretch. I met Dirty Girl down at the shelter and we filtered water and got mentally prepped for the last 5.5 miles. I have to say I was so ready to get to town I finished that stretch in about an hour and a half. I flew...probably because I was about a pound lighter. We made it to the highway and I put the magic thumb to use. After getting passed by too many times, a truck pulled over and delivered us straight to McDonalds where I ate like a king! Tonight I am staying at the Grace Lutheran Church in their makeshift hiker hostel and had the best shower I think I have had on this entire trip. Looking forward to spending a few days with family and relaxing- I earned it!<br />
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-6J-q03phnPs/T7xMgefQsdI/AAAAAAAAANw/Hyq797FDlZI/s640/blogger-image-1655341327.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-6J-q03phnPs/T7xMgefQsdI/AAAAAAAAANw/Hyq797FDlZI/s320/blogger-image-1655341327.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-43095654956429487062012-05-22T20:27:00.000-04:002012-05-22T20:27:29.523-04:00And I would walk 500...I mean 600 miles...This has been a huge week and some change even though it started out questionable. Damascus was a hard town to get out of, but once I did, I started getting some miles knocked out of Virginia. This week alone, I hit mile 500 and 600 and had my first 110+ mile week. This week has also been a big week for me spiritually. I have been listening to several different church's sermons through iTunes and God has just really been speaking to me through a lot of different ways. I have had several things I have been praying for each day while hiking (how to be a better husband and man of God, God's blessings for my wonderful wife each day, how I can be a better servant, how I can be a better steward of creation, and several other things). Let's just say that after almost 2 months of walking, the flood gates have opened. There is a huge jumble of God-stuff going on in me and so now I guess it will slowly make more sense the more I press on. All I can say is that I am excited to get home so some of this stuff can start happening, but I still have a lot more miles to walk first and I am sure God is far from finished with what He is doing in me. So thanks for hanging in there for a little spiritual update, here is what hiking looked like.<br />
<br />
Day 48 (4/27) - Zero Day<br />
Damascus is such a cool little town. Glad to have been able to take a whole day off and enjoy it. I definitely want to come back and bike the Creeper Trail.<br />
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Day 49 (4/28) - Damascus to Beech Mountain Rd (18.4 mi)<br />
Every day coming off a zero is a tough one, especially when the people you are hiking with drink a lot. Everyone was slow moving this morning. I will be honest- I was not opposed to taking another day off (I even tried to get Wendy to come down for the weekend). Yesterday was so beautiful and today was too, but a day off means money you have to spend so we needed to hike. We gathered at a coffee shop trying to plan out the day and it was getting close to 10 and no one was feeling motivated. So then the idea of slack packing (see last post) was thrown out and quickly everyone was liking that idea. We found a ride up the mountain and by 1:30 we were on the trail. All we needed to do was hike the 18 miles back to town. And we did- and it took only 6 hours. I will admit that it felt like it took just as much energy to do those miles in such a short amount of time with no backpack as it did to do them with a backpack and take all day. Now tomorrow we will just get a ride back to where we started today and continue north towards Maine! On a side rant- there are way too many pot heads on the trail. I think probably 70-80% are carrying and smoking it. So when you are staying at a hostel run by a church that has the rules of no smoking or alcohol on property, you would think a little respect would be in order...you would think. Nope- they just get upset when cops hired by the church come in to do a random check up. It's one night. Can you not go without for one freaking night? Maybe it helps the hike go better. I will be proud of the fact I will finish the trail without performance enhancing drugs (except 800mg ibuprofen). <br />
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Day 50 (4/29) - Beech Mountain Road to Thomas Knob Shelter (9.9 mi)<br />
Today was hard- not because of a climb or trail terrain (rocks and mud) or any physical means, it was hard mentally. Because we slack packed yesterday, it meant another night and morning in town. Even though we did almost 19 miles, I was still in town mindset. Our shuttle didn't leave until 2 so it was more wasted time in town. I actually went to a church service which was nice, except it felt like empty routine and ritual. I won't say what kind of church it was, but I got the idea since it was a little old lady church and only about 30 people there the minister just didn't have his heart in it. Still, I was happy to be there since I haven't been to a service in almost 2 months. It was good to see a few other hikers in there too. So back to the hike...mentally I just wasn't feeling it. I was feeling about as empty as that church service. I knew we could only do 10 miles because of the terrain and time we had so I just went through the motions of hiking to get to my destination. I had a chance to call home which was nice and then I heard there were some bears spotted so I was on the lookout. No bears, but I caught my first glimpse at some wild ponies. I am hiking in the Mount Rogers area (highest peak on Virginia) and knew Grayson Highlands was close by. Once I saw the ponies my mindset got a lot better. I started cranking out the mileage just under the peak of Mt. Rogers and saw what looked like a small ranch. I saw a glimpse of a cabin and some fence for horses. The closer I got I discovered that that was our shelter. The fence was to keep horses out of the spring. I was quick to eat and quick to go to bed because I was excited for what was about to come.<br />
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Day 51 (4/30) - Thomas Knob Shelter to Hurricane Mountain Shelter (16 mi)<br />
PONIES! Wild ponies everywhere. I know what you are thinking...you live in central KY surrounded by horses. Why are you excited about ponies? Well I just am so get over it! They were awesome. There were 5 (1 being a newborn) within a quarter mile from our shelter. They would come up and nibble on your shorts and shoes and loved being petted. I was shooting some video and one of them started peeing. You bet I got that on camera! Other than the wild ponies, Grayson Highlands was beautiful but very rocky. There was one section called Fatman Squeeze which I made it through easily (yes!). After that you could look out over the fields and see around 20 more wild ponies off in the distance. The trail continued to mix it up through fields and forests. I stopped at the Wise Shelter for lunch with a huge smile on my face because that was the official 500 mile mark! Wow, this fat boy has walked 500 miles (and I will walk 500 more...). You know that crazy song was then stuck in my head the rest of the day. After the shelter I saw 2 deer up close. This was turning into an incredible day. With about a mile and a half to go I started hearing thunder. Within 5 minutes a storm was right on top of me. I almost had to drop my bag and wait it out. Then the hail came. These chunks of ice were about twice the size of a pea. I tried to walk faster hoping to make it to the shelter or outrun the storm at least but the trail would have none of it. Instead it turned right toward the hail and it took 1 large ice ball to the downstairs for me to walk in a defensive pose. Finally I made it to the shelter and wouldn't you know the storm passed. Oh well. That's another day in the office for me!<br />
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Day 52 (5/1) - Hurricane Mountain Shelter to Partnership Shelter (19.7 mi)<br />
When you wake up knowing you are going to do a 20 mile day, you get rolling pretty quickly. I did get ready pretty quickly but then got sidetracked by campfire biscuits. Some section hikers who stayed at the shelter with us were making them and they were delicious! But then it was time to roll! I made it to the first shelter with average speed around 1. I made my lunch and filtered water (I had already drank 2 liters) and visited the privy...so glad VA shelters have privies. The next half of the hike had several landmarks that helped break up the hike and help me stay on top of where I was. There was supposed to be an old abandoned school bus that we could see but it must have been removed because no one saw it. Then there was a river and bridge and a cooler with trail magic and it was full! I love that there are a bunch of churches that love hikers to do all the trail magic that I have received. It's funny how trail magic works- the majority of the time it is either church groups or former hikers. The Pepsi I drank was enough to give me a nice energy boost. Once I hit the last landmark I knew I only had 1.5 miles to the shelter, the possibility of pizza, and a shower. Partnership shelter is next to a visitor center so it is loaded with amenities- shower, phone, privy, and pizza menu. Before I got to the shelter I saw several tents set up, but it was just because they all wanted to tent camp instead of shelter camp. No one was really up for ordering pizza and instead a few went to town and bought a bunch of groceries so we feasted on brats, burgers, and hotdogs. It felt like hiker thanksgiving. It was one of the most fun nights not in a town. Everyone pitched in, everyone participated (around 13 of us), and all had a fun time. We then fired up the old hiker television (campfire) and just let the night wind down. I felt great for all the miles done today and look forward to picking up my first hiker box tomorrow in Atkins. <br />
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Day 53 (5/2) - Partnership Shelter to Atkins, VA (11.6 mi)<br />
I woke up today feeling great! It was probably due to all the food I ate last night. Once I hit the trail I was rolling. Again we had a nice rotation of forests and fields to walk through. Once we got within a mile of Atkins you could see several barns. We crossed some railroad tracks just in time because a train came trough about 5 minutes after we were over them. I also got to see some old fighter planes fly over. It was a neat welcoming into this small town. Just before I stepped onto the highway I encountered a guy in full marines garb with a gun. I said hi and kept going and he didn't even acknowledge me. No big deal. I walked over to the Shell station where everyone else was and told them about it and it turns out that that was my first encounter with Turtle. His reputation has far preceded him on the trail- and not in a good way. He was hiking with another guy named Machete Mitch an the two of them together were nothing but trouble but Mitch got arrested and I am not sure if he is still on the trail or not. No one was too thrilled about the idea of camping outside of town if he was going to be around. While at the gas station, i decided to take advantage of having cell signal and called Saloman. They are the makers of my hiking shoes. They have been very comfortable but have started falling apart. They were very cool with setting up a warranty for them and I should have a new pair of shoes at home within a week. We went down to the Relax Inn to pick up my hiker box (Wendy sent me a food resupply) and made the call to get a room for the night. 5 of us split a tiny bed bug infested room. Dances With Flies may be the only safe one because he slept in his sleeping bag on the floor. We went up to The Barn for dinner. It is home to the 16 oz Hiker Burger. It was delicious and reminded me of the Smoky Valley Burger from the Smoky Valley Truck Stop in Olive Hill, KY. <br />
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Day 53 (5/3) - Adkins, VA to a streamside campsite (14.5 mi)<br />
One word is needed to describe today- HOT! It was hot and humid right out of the motel room. Again Virginia treated us to a nice mix of forest and fields. There were several climbs today that the heat made even more difficult. I got to a nice little area by a creek where I saw Snagglefoot and Dances With Flies and we all had lunch and refilled our water. All of a sudden we see 3 guys with big guns sneaking down the trail. Two were park rangers and one was a sheriff. They were looking for a few hikers or campers who were camping out a little too long in the area. We assumed they were talking about Turtle because we heard from another hiker thy he had been there for a few days and because they were packing an automatic rifle, a taser gun, and a shotgun. Like I said, Turtle's reputation has preceded him. We don't know if they found him or not, we just kept hiking. More climbs and more scenery mixed with some podcasts (Relevant Podcast and a sermon I downloaded) on my iPhone kept the day going smooth and my mind off the heat. We got to a river with a small bridge crossing it and took our shoes off for a bit and soaked out feet. It felt so good to do that. It's the little things sometimes. We finally made it to the shelter and decided to press on a little further and tent camp along a creek. F100 and Steady were camping there too. They are a cool married couple in their late 40's. My ankle felt great today but I am starting to feel a little bit of a shin splint in my left leg. Hopefully it will go away soon. I need some healthy feet and legs to get these Virginia miles behind me. Oh yeah, when we hit mile 546.5 today, we officially completed 25% of the trail!!!<br />
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Day 54 (5/4) - Streamside campsite to Jenkins Shelter (18.5 mi)<br />
I woke up this morning early ready to tackle some miles before the heat. What I didn't realize was today was going to be one of those head-down hikes. There was a really long climb that was 2100 feet high over 4.5 miles. Once on top it was a beautiful field with some great views of the mountains. The shelter on top was fully enclosed and there was this really weird kid in there. He kept talking about broad swords and really weird stuff. It was entertaining but I couldn't eat fast enough to get out of there. After a steep descent it was supposed to be pretty flat for the next 4.5 miles. It was not. It was rocky with lots of ups and downs. It was along a ridge line but there really were not any views. It just seemed to last forever. I finally got to the end of that section which led to a 4 mile downhill which also lasted forever. Today had the potential to be dangerous because there were only 2 reliable water sources along the trail. I drank 5 liters throughout the course of the day. If it hadn't been overcast during the hottest part of the day I would have needed more water. Remember kids, don't smoke yourself stupid or you will want to have conversations about broad swords!<br />
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Day 55 (5/5) - Jenkins Shelter to Jenny Knob Shelter (23.8 mi)<br />
Well it decided to rain this morning so I had to pack away a wet tent. Other than that the day was incredible. The plan was to try for 30 miles since the elevation profile looked like that would be possible, but after yesterday we were a little unsure. I was booking it this morning. I had cell signal most of the day so I streamed some sermons from church. It was good to hear my preacher's voice. I took a quick break to call Wendy and Dirty Girl came rushing by. When I asked what got into him, he simply said Dairy Queen. There was a road crossing up ahead that the small town of Bland could be accessed 2.5 miles away. I hated the thought of Dirty Girl eating Dairy Queen alone so I started walking with him. This was definitely not in my plans and I was trying to figure out if I could still make it to the shelter like I was planning. After about a mile of walking, an SUV finally pulled over and gave us a ride. DQ did not disappoint and we were quick to get a ride back to the trail. After a steep climb we got to the shelter Dirty Girl was staying at. I knew I would be pushing it with time and water to get to the next shelter but I was going for it. I asked Dirty Girl for a liter of water since he had water access from his shelter and it would save me a little over a mile extra travel. I filled up and took off. The caloric intake from the cheeseburger, fries, coke, and blizzard was enough to make me fly on the trail. I made it 10 miles in just under 4 hours. I wasn't sure if any of my crew would be at the shelter because the terrain ended up being so nice I figured they would try for the 30 miles or at least go to the 600 mile mark. Nokey and Trophy Wife pressed on another mile but Snagglefoot was here. The timing was perfect because when I looked at my water level I had 1 sip left. Made the trek down to the spring for a fill up and set up my wet tent. There's supposed to be a huge full moon tonight but I think I am a little too tired to stay up to see it. <br />
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Day 56 (5/6) - Jenny Knob Shelter to Wapiti Shelter (14.2 mi)<br />
I think I may have worn myself out last night because today I was completely unmotivated to get going. If I had been in a town I would have probably taken a zero (so its good I wasn't in a town). We hit mile 600 first thing which was incredible then went up a mountain and along a ridge line for several miles until we got to a cool suspension bridge. I crossed over that and that brought me to a road that had a little country store a half a mile down it. Snagglefoot needed some lunch stuff so we went down there. I bought a Pepsi and ate my own lunch. We hitched a ride back (because that half mile doesn't count) and continued north about 1.3 miles to Dismal Falls. Dismal Falls is a wide falls only about 10 feet high. By the time I got there (my shin splint was killing me) everyone was in the water having a great time. I threw off my shirt and joined in. The water felt great. It was definitely a great spot to hang out for a while, especially on a hot day like today. But then the temptation hit to stay and camp at the falls- so much so that Snagglefoot and Wall-e hitched a ride back to that store and bought a ton of beer. I am all for short lazy days, but I have Woods Hole Hostel in my mind for where I want to take my short day. I made the tough decision to press on 6 miles to the next shelter. It was tough because I was leaving my group and also because my shin didn't have 6 miles left in it. Luckily the terrain was nice and flat and they will be getting to Woods Hole tomorrow (they will just have to hike 12 miles instead of 6). <br />
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Day 57 (5/7) - Wapiti Shelter to Woods Hole Hostel (6.2 mi)<br />
Quick 6 mile hike to make it to Woods Hole. What an incredible place! It's an old 1880's chestnut cabin that they added on to. They have their own garden where they grow veggies and herbs an have chickens and pigs that they use for eating! First thing I heard when I got here was that last night they made homemade pizzas and all the ingredients came from the farm. To me that is awesome. I want to be able to do something like that where sustainable living and reducing my carbon footprint is a healthy part of my lifestyle. It was also awesome to be greeted by a familiar face- Steps! I haven't seen her since Standing Bear Hostel outside of the Smokies. I hiked with her and her little group for a few days until I sprained my ankle. I hadn't seen her name in the shelter logs at all so I figured she may have become another victim of injury. There are some tough ones out here that won't let injuries stop us!<br />
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Gt3SSM7RPfI/T6huzb_RuWI/AAAAAAAAAMg/ggK7gPlEF5w/s640/blogger-image-1985272964.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Gt3SSM7RPfI/T6huzb_RuWI/AAAAAAAAAMg/ggK7gPlEF5w/s320/blogger-image-1985272964.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-63455100228001057202012-05-15T16:41:00.001-04:002012-05-27T19:08:40.822-04:00The 700 ClubWoo Hoo! I am now a member of the 700 Club...not Pat Robertson's club, but the one that requires a lot of walking. It has been a weird week that I feel has been out of routine with weird stops and stuff but you will see that in a minute. First, let's tackle some questions that you all had for me.<br />
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How well marked is the trail?<br />
The trail is very well marked by white blazes painted on trees and rocks. If there are intersecting trails, they are usually marked by a sign or a blue blaze. If the trail has been moved or rerouted, there are piles of logs and sticks blocking the old trail.<br />
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How are your feet and shins doing?<br />
They are good. Yesterday though I walked through the rain and my feet were swimming, causing a few small blisters on my toes. They will heal though.<br />
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What song do you listen to the most?<br />
There is no particular song, but I have been listening to the Passion Here For You album and some Foo Fighters quite a bit. <br />
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What, besides my wife, do I miss the most?<br />
I miss my Cincinnati Reds baseball!<br />
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Where do I want to be taken to lunch when I get back?<br />
El Camino Real! Chicken quesadillas fajitas!<br />
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Have I seen Bigfoot?<br />
I have seen signs of him like footprints and droppings...those could be mine though.<br />
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What are your plans after the trail?<br />
I am blessed to have a job at Starbucks again when I finish up. Long term, I have been thinking about teaching, freelance graphic designer, or some sort of off the wall ministry. There are still many more miles for me to figure out life, but until then I am enjoying the ride. <br />
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What is slack packing?<br />
Slack packing is hiking to a certain point without your backpack and requires a car. You arrange for someone to either drop you or your backpack off and you hike to a designated spot (either to your pack or back to a town). This allows for you to get big miles in without having to wear your backpack and can be done in a short amount of time. Example- I slack packed back into Damascus and hiked 19 miles in 6 hours and was able to stay another night in town and got a ride back the next day to continue hiking north. <br />
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Here is what has happened since the last time...<br />
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Day 58 (5/8) - Zero day<br />
There is something about a day off that is not only good for your body, it's good for your soul. The day started off pouring rain so we quickly decided to take the day off. This place- Woods Hole- is simply magical. I had signed up for breakfast and went up to the cabin early for coffee. They were still early in the prep stages for breakfast so I volunteered to help where I could. Ironically I got put on coffee duty. Then I helped with the eggs. Later, the gang went into town and I stayed behind to just lay in the hammock and relax and enjoy the day. Then I decided to help with some farm chores. It was good to do some work that needed my upper body (it isn't getting the workout my legs are). Because of that work, I got my dinner for free. The night ended with a jam circle in the living room of the cabin with 2 guitars, a bongo, and a mandolin. It was a blast, especially when Neville (hostess of the hostel) jumped in and danced a little hillbilly jig! The moral of the story is a zero day (planned or unplanned) is good for the soul! This also applies to all you non-hikers out there!<br />
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Day 59 (5/9) - Woods Hole Hostel to Pearisburg, VA (10.4 mi)<br />
As hard as it was to leave Woods Hole, we packed up and headed out. We didn't plan to take the zero yesterday, but were glad we did. I wouldn't have been opposed to staying again, but it gets really expensive. We hit the trail and I quickly found a good pace. There were nice gentle uphills but there was a huge 2000 foot descent that I was not looking forward to. My shin splint was still bothering me so as long as I was going up or flat, I felt fine. The huge downhill actually didn't hurt all that bad and once I made it all the way down, I was just outside of town. Oh did I mention that during the entire hike it poured down rain? Yeah, it did. And did I also mention that the temperature was floating around the 50 degree mark? It was. Once I got down to the town I turned my phone on because I knew one of the gang would text me to let me know where they were. They were across the street, freezing cold, and also soaked. They decided to get a room for the night because the rain just wasn't letting up. After 2 failed attempts at 2 motels, we got the last room at the only other motel. Surprisingly, most were full of hikers who were also cold and wet and looking to get off trail. Today was a wash (get it?) but tomorrow is supposed to be clear skies so hopefully we will make up some miles then. <br />
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Day 60 (5/10) - Pearisburg, VA to Pine Swamp Branch Shelter (19.3 mi)<br />
Not a whole lot to say about today other than it was long. We crossed in and out of town for around 3 miles and finally made a big climb up to get on the ridge line. After that it was pretty much a straight shot the entire way. There wasn't a lot to look at and everything seemed repetitive. The only highlight of the day was that the privy at the shelter I stopped at for lunch was just a toilet on a platform. It had a great view and for some crazy reason got 4 bars of 3G service from AT&T. The sad thing was that there was an AT&T tower on the trail and I barely got 1 bar standing next to it. Oh well, I am here to hike, not check my Facebook and e-mails (but it helps on days like today). Finally got to the shelter around 9 tonight (told you it was a long day). It was full and there weren't any good places to set up my tent so I set up on the dirt floor of the shelter. It did have an inside fireplace and someone had a fire going so on the plus side I am sleeping in front of the fire. Sipsy and Dirty Girl are the only 2 I recognize here in the dark (everyone else is asleep) and the rest of my crew went 1 more mile. I was too hungry to keep going, plus it's too dark and I'm too tired so I will catch up in the morning. <br />
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Day 61 (5/11) - Pine Swamp Branch Shelter to Laurel Creek Shelter (18.5 mi)<br />
I went to bed last night on a sour note. I was exhausted and grumpy. So today I needed to get in a positive mindset or else it would be a miserable day. I made myself say 2 things I was thankful for today before I would start walking. I am thankful for getting to see my wife in a week and a half and that it was warming up and not going to rain (it got down in the upper 30's last night/this morning). I felt in a better mood pretty quickly and took off. The day started off pretty level and then took a big turn up. I made it up pretty quickly but found myself ready for lunch and it wasn't even noon yet (my hiker appetite is starting to kick in). I stopped and ate and continued down the trail. The terrain was pretty rocky but at least it was level. After a few miles of that, the trail dropped 2000 feet and then immediately climbed 2000 feet. I guess a huge bridge to cross the mountains was out of the question. When I was about 80% up the mountain, I saw a container with trail magic. I was trying not to get my hopes up because a lot of times those containers are usually empty or full of trash. I opened it up and sure enough it was full of pop, apples, and oatmeal cream pies. I grabbed a Dr. Perky (Dr. Pepper's jittery cousin) and the snacks and consumed as if I only had 10 seconds to finish them. Then I flew! I made those last 3 miles in superhuman time. I felt like Popeye after he had his spinach. Made it to the shelter and ate my instant mashed potatoes and hit the hay! Oh yeah, 2 month trail anniversary today!<br />
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Day 62 (5/12) - Laurel Creek Shelter to Niday Shelter (12.4 mi)<br />
I have to admit that today I disappointed myself. The goal was 22 miles and I fell 10 short. I blame peer pressure. I already had a strike against me because I overslept and didn't get on the trail until 9:30. That shouldn't have stopped me though. I felt great today! The climb first thing was a beast, but after that I was in the groove. There were incredible views from the rocky ridge line. When I made it to Niday, I only had 10 miles to go and it was only 3:45. Yes, I would have gotten in after dark for the third night in a row but that would have been fine. Instead, I fell into the peer pressure trap of everyone deciding to call it a day and make it to a hostel and restaurant tomorrow. I should have pushed on. This wasn't part of my plan. But as I looked over everything, it would work out perfectly to meet Wendy and my Dad in Waynesboro. I reconfigured my plans and from this point on I have to stick to it (even if there is a monsoon everyday until then). I cannot give in to short day peer pressure anymore. I felt great all day- all cylinders were firing. No more 12 mile baby days until New Hampshire (where 12 miles will be a huge day).<br />
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Day 63 (5/13) - Niday Shelter to Four Pines Hostel (16.8 mi)<br />
So the energy I had yesterday continued today. We all got up at 6 and I was on the trail by 6:50. Including the giant climb first thing this morning, I hiked the first 9 miles in 3 hours. I was rocking it. I went on and ate my lunch at 10:30 since we were planning on going to a buffet tonight. The next 6 miles were up and down and rocky. But then the highlight of the day came- Dragon's Tooth. Dragon's Tooth is a huge rock monolith shooting out of the mountain. It's a popular day hiker attraction. I have a fear of heights and falling so climbing up a huge rock is not my thing, but I can proudly say I faced my fears and climbed up that beast. I got some help and encouragement from the gang and got to see an incredible view from the top! The trail down was just as fun. It was steep drop offs. It reminded me of climbing up Albert Mountain except we were climbing down. Today was fun. It was nice to have some challenges. I got to the hostel and because it is Mothers Day they were not doing shuttles to the restaurant, so I walked down to the gas station to resupply and grab dinner. It started raining and everyone is already talking about taking tomorrow off and waiting for nice weather for McAfee Knob. I am not (see yesterday). I have a schedule and I am keeping to it. If it is nasty when I get to McAfee Knob, maybe I can get Wendy to drive me back down when she comes and I can get some pictures then. <br />
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Day 64 (5/14) - Four Pines Hostel to Lambert's Meadow Shelter (16.3 mi)<br />
Even though it rained and I didn't have any views, especially of the picturesque McAfee Knob, it was a great hike! And how could it not be- I hit the 700 mile mark! Dirty Girl is the only one who braved the evil rain with me because both of us are on a schedule and we are sticking to it. It wasn't bad until we walked through a field with high wet grass. It was like a car wash for our legs. That got my socks and shoes soaked. I had to just deal with it. The rain did allow for me to see two huge box turtles, a few toads, and a ton of little orange salamanders. We got to the first of four shelters we would encounter today and broke for lunch. The timing was perfect because it started pouring rain. We hung out there for about an hour and a half until it calmed down and then began hiking again. Once we got to the knob, we still took some pictures, but there wasn't much to see other than us in front of a white cloud. Oh well, it just shows how tough we are! Stopped at one more shelter for a little break and made the haul for the final 6 miles. All in all, the terrain was kind to us. I was glad to get to the final shelter so I could get my shoes and socks off. My feet were very pruney and I am hoping they didn't get too blistered. I will find out once they dry. Out of all the shelters we have seen, this is the rattiest (literally) that we could stay at. There is a huge rats nest in the corner. Hopefully they will leave us alone or else Dirty Girl will never sleep in a shelter again (it's his first time). Ok, now I need to get my mind off critters. Tonight I will dream of a hot shower, laundry, and Little Caesar's pizza and tomorrow make those dreams come true!<br />
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Day 65 (5/15) - Lambert's Meadow Shelter to Daleville, VA (9.4 mi)<br />
Well I survived the night in the rat shelter. It rained pretty much all night. We got on the trail at 7:15 and had great pace. The terrain was a little rocky at parts. The first 5 miles flew (mostly because I was excited to get into town). The next 4 miles seemed like it took forever, mostly because we could see the town, but the trail kept going up and away from it. We were also hearing this whistling kind of hum the entire way and couldn't figure it out until we got down within a mile of the town. It was cicedas and thousands of them. I hate those things. We rushed through that section and made it to town. I ate an entire Little Caesar's pizza and then did my grocery resupply. Then a quick run to the outfitter to grab some fuel and was nicely reunited with Fatherman, DK, Big E, and Diesel. I hadn't seen them since at least Standing Bear. We also learned that for what we were going to pay at the truck stop for showers and laundry we could get a room at the HoJo for just a little more. We were only going to hike 5 more miles today so we decided to tag those on over the next week. <br />
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-syv2U6XN33o/T7LEcnf_bMI/AAAAAAAAANI/NwJHfy042PQ/s640/blogger-image-1340823645.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-syv2U6XN33o/T7LEcnf_bMI/AAAAAAAAANI/NwJHfy042PQ/s320/blogger-image-1340823645.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-14229199518769744392012-05-09T16:39:00.001-04:002012-05-09T16:39:09.544-04:00Ask the FlashFirst off, I want to sincerely thank each of you for keeping up with and following this crazy adventure! I am blessed beyond measure to be doing what I am doing. I am encouraged by all the comments I have been getting on the blog and on Facebook. I try to give a pretty well rounded look at the hike but I am sure there are some things that you still may be wondering about. I want to take an opportunity to let you ask me anything about the hike, the trail, me, Active Water, or anything in general. Just ask your questions in the comments space and I will answer them in my next post!Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-30468726700271198392012-04-27T10:15:00.001-04:002012-05-22T20:27:56.770-04:00Virginia is for LoversA few major victories this week! First, I made it to Virginia! This is the fourth state of 14. Next, I had my biggest mileage day of almost 23 miles. I am now less than 40 miles from hitting the big 500th mile. <br />
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Virginia makes up around a quarter of the entire trail and many have coined the phrase "the Virginia blues" because of the repetitiveness of the state and the length. I can't imagine it being any different than any other state. There are some awesome things I am looking forward to seeing here like the wild ponies in Grayson Highlands, McAfee Knob, and Shenandoah National Park. I am also looking forward to hiking more big mile days to put myself on target to finish by the end of August. If I can keep my ankle cooperating I have a good chance of making that happen. <br />
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Here is what got us here to Virginia. <br />
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Day 45 (4/24) - Black Bear Resort to Vandeventer Shelter (17.7 mi)<br />
We usually don't do big miles coming out of a zero day but we were ready to hike. The day started with Laurel Falls and then we hugged a rock cliff to get around a river. We had one mountain to climb, which was Pond Flats. It was a huge climb, but easy thanks to all of the switchbacks. Once I got on top the wind was strong and it started snowing again. I had extra motivation for getting down quickly because I was told there was trail magic at the bottom. sure enough at the bottom of the mountain was Watauga Lake and a park and a guy grilling steak and chicken. Now that's trail magic! Next the trail took us around the lake, over a dam, and up another mountain so that we could start walking the ridge line. I was very happy to make it to the shelter because it was a weird weather day with on and off snow, rain, and wind. Unfortunately the shelter happened to face west towards the wind and we had to deal with that most of the night. <br />
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Day 46 (4/25) - Vandeventer Shelter to Abingdon Gap Shelter (22.7 mi)<br />
I was on a mission today- big miles to make an easier day into Damascus the next day. The morning started with rain which delayed our start a little. But once it cleared up I was off. The trail today was relatively flat- by that I mean there were no major climbs and if you were to look at an elevation profile, it was shaky, but it stayed in line. I did the first 7 miles pretty quickly and took a lunch break. After lunch I passed an old grave of a man who was said lived alone and died alone. That kind of brought me down a little. Who knows what was going on that led this guy to live in such a way. I didn't dwell long and made it down to the edge of the woods for some more trail magic! This time it was Sipsy! Sipsy is actually hiking the trail this year, but took a few days off for his wife to visit and he decided to do some magic. I have never drank Sun Drop before, but I drank 2 cans and I have never had so much sugary energy in my life. Let's just say I hiked the next 2 miles in like 45 minutes. That next section was pretty amazing too because we hiked through a cattle farm. The trail was actually on a farm and cows were staring at us as we walked through them. It was pretty cool. Stopped at the next shelter for a quick dinner and took off to do the final 9 mile stretch of this marathon. About 4 miles in I started wondering if I packed my stove and pot. I took off my pack and sure enough I forgot. I was left with the dilemma of going back an getting it or hoping someone grabbed it for me. If I did go back, that would tag an additional 8 miles on to the hike. I decided to see if someone would grab it since we were all going to Damascus anyways. Wolf passed me and he didn't grab it. Then Snagglefoot passed and he didn't grab it. I was starting to worry. I did not want to spend $100 to replace that stuff. Wild Turkey and Feathers were my last hope. Wolf wasn't going as far as us so he said he would get it from them an call if he did. I finally got to the next shelter (in the dark ad rain) around 9:45. It was a long day but I felt great. I left a note in the shelter log about my stove with my phone number in case anyone did grab it they could give me a call and I would wait in Damascus. Luckily it didn't get to that. <br />
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Day 47 (4/26) - Abingdon Gap Shelter to Damascus (9.9 mi)<br />
I was awakened by Loophole asking if I was there. He had my stove and pot that Wild Turkey and Feathers passed on. What a relief! That was stress I didn't have to carry anymore. We could tell it was getting ready to storm so I packed up, ate a quick breakfast, and hit the trail. This last 10 was supposed to be quick and easy and it would have been if not for the storm. I think this was some of the strongest wind I have encountered. It actually pushed me around a little. It was also the first time my shoes and socks got soaked. My feet were swimming and I just did not want to think of the blisters this was going to cause. I got to the Tennessee Virginia line and took a picture but I doubt it turned out because my lens was wet and foggy. About a quarter mile past the border it started to clear up. The last stretch was easy but felt like it was taking forever because it was all switchbacks down the mountain but you could see the town the entire time. But then I made it and it felt great! Damascus is known as the friendliest trail town and I was ready to see if that was true. It is! Got my bunk at The Place- a hostel ran by the Methodist Church, grabbed some lunch with Nokey and Snagglefoot, and explored the town. It was karaoke night at Quincy's and when you get a bunch of drunk hikers in a room together the entertainment begins. I don't think I have ever laughed so hard in my life. But as the night got longer, the scene just got sadder so I turned in. Laundry and resupply tomorrow. <br />
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<a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QXP0kzpVPCo/T5qp81IWnOI/AAAAAAAAAME/07ochVExDxI/s640/blogger-image-224874319.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QXP0kzpVPCo/T5qp81IWnOI/AAAAAAAAAME/07ochVExDxI/s320/blogger-image-224874319.jpg" width="239" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-42725685467122036012012-04-23T16:43:00.001-04:002012-05-22T20:28:12.717-04:00Oh the Weather Outside is FrightfulThe weather we were told to be ready for in the Smokies has hit us today. Cold, snowy, windy, cold...it was kinda miserable, still hikable, but not really campable. <br />
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So let's talk accommodations. Where does a hiker stay at night? Well you have a few options. First is the tent. There are plenty of tent sights along the trail. For the most part I have tented. I did every night until the Smokies. Since the Smokies, I have only tented twice. It is nice because you have complete privacy and you are in your own little kingdom. The other option are the shelters. Shelters are awesome because if it rains you are dry. It's also awesome because if it's cold and there are enough people in there, your body heat can keep you warm. The only problem though is that you are also sharing shelters with mice and rats an they are easily accessible to other critters. The last option is a hostel. Hostels are cheap bunk houses that are sometimes off the trail in towns. They are great places for hanging out with other hikers and shooting the crap. I had the pleasure of experiencing all three this week which definitely keeps nights interesting!<br />
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As always, here is the rundown of where I had been and what I have done. <br />
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Day 37 (4/16) - Zero Day<br />
Spent an unexpected off day relaxing, refueling, and watching The Hunger Games.<br />
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Day 38 (4/17) - Erwin, TN to Curley Maple Gap Shelter (4.7 mi)<br />
A little short day. I was hoping to do 18 miles today but we didn't get on the trail until noon plus it is supposed to rain. So tomorrow we are shooting for some big miles hoping to get to Damascus by next Tuesday. Just hung out in the shelter with Nokey, Snagglefoot, Shenanigans, Secrets, and Precious. Played some Sudoku on my phone and chilled. The rain has continued through most of the night, but luckily this was a big shelter with a lot of covered space. When I got in my sleeping bag, which was a little earlier than usual (I am cold because I have shed quite a bit of fat) I read some from AWOL on the AT and then some Sherlock Holmes on my phone.<br />
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Day 39 (4/18) - Curley Maple Gap Shelter to Cherry Gap Shelter (12.8 mi)<br />
It rained an hailed all night long. Mornings like this morning definitely make it hard to get going. It was a full rain gear kind of day, which I haven't had since about half way through the Smokies. The trail wasn't too bad today, but I was in a funk. My ankle was bothering me some plus I just felt real stiff. With the combination of the weather and my body not wanting to cooperate, it made for a slow moving day. I met Master Splinter who I had seen mentioned in the trail journals. He was a nice guy but every word out of his mouth was an f bomb. I finally got tired of listening to him so I slowed down some to let him get ahead. The sun finally started to come out and I took my rain pants off but left my jacket on just in case. Once I got up to the top of Unaka Mountain, there was a nice mix of fog and sun which gave it a cool ambiance. Unaka is topped with a dense spruce forest. I kinda felt like I was in the Canadian wilderness. I hadn't really been in an environment like that yet on the trail. The hike down was an easy one but my feet and ankle were about done. Made it to the shelter and unfortunately it was full so I had to do the extra work of setting up my tent. I hope the rain is over for the night because there is nothing worse than packing up wet gear. <br />
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Day 40 (4/19) Cherry Gap Shelter to Roan High Knob Shelter (16.4 mi)<br />
Today was much much better than yesterday. Sometimes it just takes the healing power of a cheeseburger and a pint of Ben and Jerry's. About 7 miles in (which we did in like 2.5 hours) there is an old jeep road that goes for .6 mile to the Greasy Creek Friendly which is a hostel. It's a nice little farm with a house and bunkhouse. We mainly went for lunch, plus I really needed to poop (I have gone this long without free-pooping in the woods- why start now)? With a little over 1000 calories in that pint of ice cream, it gave enough juice to start the climb up Roan Mountain. Roan is around 6300 feet high and will be the last 6000+ ft mountain we will see until we get to the Whites in New Hampshire. It was a long climb and the last 900 feet was enough to make you want to cry. Once on top I had to start fighting with the combination of a low hanging cloud and the sun being almost set. Luckily from the top it was just a half mile to the shelter. The shelter has some section hikers in it who have decided to set their tents up inside leaving a small space in the attic for us to sleep. It is pretty rude and redundant to set tents up inside. Obviously they have no hiker etiquette. <br />
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Day 41 (4/20) Roan High Knob Shelter to Highway 19 (16.5 mi)<br />
Well the Roan Mountain Shelter was a rat trap- so many mice running around in there. Got out of there pretty fast. So in my search through the clouds I have finally found an angel- a trail angel that is. We were greeted just off the mountain with bologna sandwiches. It was amazing. Then it was off to more walking through thick fog. Got to the Overmountain Shelter for lunch which was an old red barn. It was really cool and had a great view of our next challenge- Little Hump Mountain and Big Hump Mountain. I guess no one ever told those trail makers about switchbacks because the trail went straight up both mountains. It was a hard climb but had incredible views from the top. Both mountains are bald on top so you could see for miles and miles. I love the balds just because they remind me of being a kid and running around in these huge fields. After spending some time up there I made the long descent down to the highway. We decided to hobo camp just below the road. But the biggest amount of awesomeness happened after we set up camp. We saw a sign for a steakhouse half a mile down the road that would pick us up and drop us back off. So needless to say we tore up some big steaks in early celebration of 400 miles (which we will hit tomorrow)!<br />
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Day 42 (4/21) Highway 19 to Mountaineer Falls Shelter (8.8 mi)<br />
Didn't do the miles we wanted, but...we hit 400!!! 400 miles of the AT is completed. Now just have to get the other 1786 hiked. We got on the trail this morning the same time that everyone who stayed at the hostel did, which made for a nice reunion with Wolf, Spirit, an Talks-a-lot. Hadn't seen them in a while. The trail was full of mild ups and downs but they were enough to really bother your feet an my ankle. Early on, the trail climbed up to a grassy ridge with views of the eastern and western mountains. This wasn't quite a bald but it was close. As I looked around, I had this feeling of just pure joy. Any typical Saturday morning at that time I would have been busy at work, but now it's true freedom. Everyone should take a Saturday morning and just spend it relaxing in their yard or in a park. About a tenth of a mile from the shelter was Mountaineer Falls which was a gorgeous and tall falls. Hung out there a few minutes and then headed to the shelter, which was probably the nicest one I have stayed at. It even has a third story loft with a bear totem. We decided to call it a day here instead of pushing on another 9 miles because it was getting ready to storm. The storm lasted 10 minutes. Oh well. It has made for some fun hiker banter and goofiness. When you put about 15 hikers in one shelter, it can get loud. I did hike the side trail from the shelter to the top of the waterfall and put my feet under the ice cold water. It felt so good. Just hope no one was down at the bottom getting their water or it might taste like dirt and blisters. <br />
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Day 43 (4/22) Mountaineer Falls Shelter to Kincora Hostel (15.6 mi)<br />
Today I found a good pace. I hiked almost 16 miles in 7.5 hours and that included stops for lunch and bathroom (all stops were very quick because it was really cold) which makes a little more than 2 mph. It rained most of the morning and add the cold temp you just had to keep moving to keep warm. Got down to the hostel and it was full so I got a spot on the floor. As long as it is inside and has 4 walls and a roof to block the rain/snow and wind I am good. It is supposed to snow here tonight which is crazy. A lot of hikers sent their winter gear home as early as Gatlinburg because it has been so warm. I am glad I did not. They say you should hold on to all your warm stuff until at least Mt. Rogers in Virginia. Good day turned into a good night hanging out with some old friends like Otto and his crew and meeting some new friends. We had a family style meal thanks to Vice Grip and Sap and their homemade General Tso chicken and then went to town to resupply and got Little Ceasars for our second dinner. Oh yeah, finally saw a deer today. I have been hiking a little over a month and all I have seen is 1 turkey. Maybe one day I might see a bear...and I still have my fingers crossed to see a moose in Maine!<br />
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Day 44 (4/23) Zero Day<br />
Today was an unexpected zero. We woke up to sleet and snow coming down. In the higher elevations like Roan Mtn. where we were a few nights ago they got around 4 inches. Even the mountain we were supposed to climb today was covered. The issue wasn't so much hiking in the snow as much as it was the temps outside tonight. It's supposed to get down in the teens tonight and I am the only one in my group equipped to handle that (even though my bag is rated for 20 degrees). We had thought about slack packing. Slack packing is where you arrange for a ride maybe 20 or so miles away and you hike without your backpack back to a hostel. It allows you to get some big miles in a quick amount of time without lugging your backpack around. Unfortunately, the hostel owner didn't want to do any shuttling this morning. So we sat bored out of our mind at Kincora freezing and decided to go down to Black Bear Resort. It was much nicer, warmer, and had wi-fi. Plus we got to reconnect with some old hiking friends. <br />
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<a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-_4iGUaNl__g/T5W-zecLtGI/AAAAAAAAALo/PPRIa0aFhXk/s640/blogger-image-349567506.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="238px" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-_4iGUaNl__g/T5W-zecLtGI/AAAAAAAAALo/PPRIa0aFhXk/s320/blogger-image-349567506.jpg" width="320px" /></a></div>Brian Carpenterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13051649157508713670noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2915169716704267273.post-63198384252698027142012-04-15T15:09:00.001-04:002012-05-22T20:28:42.098-04:00Public Service AnnouncementA lot of hikers have their vices- some smoke, some drink, some drink a lot. But there is one issue that everyone struggles with on the trail and that is the issue of Food Porn. Food Porn can strike at any time- in conversation with another hiker or after a crappy dinner of ramen noodles. It is when you start talking about real food and I mean REAL food. You don't just say I am craving a cheeseburger, you say "I could go for a half pound juicy flame broiled angus burger with bacon, ketchup, lettuce, more bacon, and slices of American and Colby cheese". We were able to feed the lust for breakfast one morning, but those moments are few and far between. Thank goodness for towns and all their food selections and thank goodness I am going to feed that craving here in a few minutes :)<br />
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Day 31 (4/10) - Hot Springs to a pond (5.2 mi)<br />
I woke up to the smell of bacon, and then I threw up a bunch. What a way to start my day. I think it was because of all the greasy food I ate yesterday. Because of my queasy stomach I was slow to get ready. After I did pack up I headed down to a little coffee shop at the end of town with wifi to eat a bagel and do some last minute facebooking. Nokey, Snagglefoot, Bear Foot, and Gypsie Soul met up with me and then we continued down the trail along the French Broad River and up to Lovers Leap. We only did 5.2 miles because Bear Foot was still feeling sick (they all got into Hot Springs Friday and were going to leave Sunday but she started throwing up and was pretty much out of it all weekend). Cooked dinner and felt pretty good afterwards but Bear Foot still wasn't eating so we called Chuck Norris and he came and picked her and Gypsie Soul up to take them back to the hostel. He offered the rest of us a room for free too but we need to be on the trail (I hope we don't regret that decision because it's supposed to drop down to 30 tonight). We hope they will catch back up over the next week. <br />
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Day 32 (4/11) - a pond to Little Laurel Shelter (14.4 mi)<br />
Today is my 1 month anniversary on the trail. Party time! Actually it was kick my butt and freeze my butt off time. It got pretty cold last night but I slept so good but this morning I was just dragging. Actually all of us were. The forecast today was a high of 55 with high winds. We packed up camp and planned on eating breakfast at the first shelter which was 5 miles up. Big mistake. That was the longest 5 miles with some moderate climbs. We did get to see a cool tower that had a cell tower next to it. When I turned my phone on it went crazy with text messages and emails. When I got up to that shelter I could tell Nokey and Snagglefoot were still dragging like I was. We stuck with our mileage plan and after a combined breakfast and lunch, we headed on to what would mostly be down hill. My ankle was holding up pretty good but my knees were feeling the downhills. After a few road crossings the trail started a long uphill. I put on some Beatles and started the climb. Got to camp and everyone was bundled up and the first thing everyone said was grab your layers. I wish I would have listened because the first thing I did was find the privy so I could poop. It was a really cold poop. Threw on my layers and cooked dinner and after warming up in front of a nice fire got in my sleeping bag ready to tackle a night that was dropping into the 20's.<br />
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Day 33 (4/12) - Little Laurel Shelter to Jerry's Cabin Shelter (6.8 mi)<br />
Another low mileage day but that's ok. We were slow to get going this morning because it was so cold. We actually didn't get on the trail until about 11. I decided to hike without my ankle brace and actually felt very good. The trail took a very steep and rocky turn to where we actually had to do a little rock climbing to get up to Big Firescald Knob but the view was so worth it. It looked like we were standing on the edge of the Appalachians because to the right it was all mountains and to the left it was valleys and towns off in the distance. It was a great place for lunch. Getting down was a mess. It was very large rocky drop offs to where I actually had to turn around and climb down. It was very rough and not well marked. I was so ready to just get back on dirt trail. After I did, I was kicking butt with great pace and great energy. I got to the next shelter and Nokey and Snagglefoot were ready to stay there. There was a fireplace in the shelter and that was enough to seal the deal after the cold night we had last night. Made some new German friends tonight as well- Frederica and Sebastian. They are a nice young couple from Colon thru hiking the trail. They has their first experience with beef jerky tonight and it was fun to watch. Oh yeah- totally hit the 300 mile mark today. 300 miles on these feet and I am feeling pretty good. Here's to 1885 more!<br />
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Day 34 (4/13) - Jerry's Cabin Shelter to Hogback Ridge Shelter (14.7 mi)<br />
So I think I nearly froze to death last night even though we had a fire and everything and I'm pretty sure the German couple were doing it right next to me in the middle of the night. Oh well, not the first time that's happened (long story and it happened in England). So anyways, got off to a great start and did some big miles quickly. Felt great even up some big steep mountains. Had a great view from Big Butt mountain and had the song "Big Bottom" from Spinal Tap stuck in everyone's head. Also hiked through some great grassy fields and past a waterfall. On top of the next mountain I got cell signal and talked to Wendy for an hour as I hiked down and started the climb up Hogback. It wasn't nearly as steep as the other mountain but I think since I was getting close to that 15 mile mark I was just wearing down. Got to the shelter and cooked me up a double batch of Ramen and was a little adventurous- I added hot sauce. It was awesome!<br />
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Day 35 (4/14) - Hogback Ridge Shelter to No Business Knob Shelter (20.7 mi)<br />
We got up extra early this morning to get a quick 2.5 miles out of the way so we could hitchhike and get a big ol breakfast and feast we did. 2 pancakes, 2 eggs, bacon, and a big bowl of grits was the ticket I needed for a big mile day. After breakfast we did a quick resupply and hitched a ride back to the trail. Once there we got some trail magic. So with only 2.5 miles accomplished we had extra full stomachs. Then we hit the trail again, this time with a vengeance. We got to walk through a real nice meadow and then started climbing Big Bald Mountain. Big Bald took forever to climb- like 6 miles just to get up to the top. It was basically a mini version of Max Patch. Then we started the just as long descent. By this point I was losing steam. We had talked about going for a 20 miler but I was having my doubts. I met everyone down at Spivey Gap where there was a cooler left with some trail magic and we had to decide whether to push on and hike in the dark or stay. Knowing how exhausted I was and how bad my feet were hurting, I made the obvious choice- lets keep going. We stayed close to each other that last 5 miles so we could help each other through all the obstacles on the trail like rocks and roots. By 9:45, we reached the shelter and caught up with a lot of people who were a day ahead of us. I am physically and emotionally drained and my feet are killing me. I think I have a new blister on my heal but will have to wait till morning to see. Time for bed and I doubt I will have any trouble sleeping tonight. <br />
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Day 36 (4/15) - No Business Knob Shelter to Erwin, TN (5.8 mi)<br />
Slept like a baby last night. Knees and feet are still sore. I did get a major compliment first thing this morning. A guy named Otto who has hiked the trail like 14 times told me that I was the one guy on the trail that he truly respects on the trail this year since I have pushed through with my feet blisters and sprained ankle and did 20 miles yesterday. The hike was pretty easy and I even found myself doing some trail running down some of the longer stretches. Got down off the mountain to Uncle Johnny's Hostel to where we are waiting on Snagglefoot's friend to pick us up and take us to Johnson City. I am in major need of a shower! <br />
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