Shenandoah, Day 9

I'm home now, in bed--imagine that. Today's 3.8 was short, but a lot more strenous than I had anticipated. No animals to report.

I forgot to mention yesterday, while I was at Wayside, I pink-blazed. I figured it was just another one of those expierences you had to do--like eat at the Panorama, or putting moleskin on your blisters.

Since I've been home I did go to REI to pick up more of that magical stuff. I also got Andy's buckle and new (hopefully better) insoles. I also too a peek at the maps from 522 to Harpers Ferry. The southern half looks pretty tough, the northern half a little better.

When I got up btw, I had a nice warm breakfast and then decided to depart. It was just time.

It certainly would be something to do the whole 2155 miles, but I don't know if my body could take. The blisters would go away, but the knees are a bit shaky. They pop a lot more than I think they should. I did properly take care of my wounds when I got home. (After a nice long shower.)

Man, I don't know what else there is to say. I certainly have more thoughts & stories that I don't have time to records. Like the joke I found in one of the log books, for instance:
Baby bear: Mama, I have to go to the bathroom.
Mama bear: Number 1 or number 2?
Baby bear: Number 2.
Mama bear: Wait 'till we get to the Appalachian Trail.
Or the stories about how Pete used to grow pot until his friend got busted. Or even one of the dreams I had (let's just say, Cher was in it). But, you know, I can't write everything down.

This trip does rank way up there with my other two greatest personal achievements--getting certified for scuba, and having a piece I wrote and performed copyrighted and put in the music library. I guess the trip makes #4, because there was also the standing ovation I got when Mike & performed my very first piece. Anyway, this was great. Definitely a life experience.

James

"ZenBoy & MooseJuice"

Shenandoah, Day 8

My last night. It's pretty sad. For all the bitching I may have done, I really enjoyed myself. Some of the sights were just amazing, & they were that much better because I hiked to them. I think I learned a lot too--just read day 2 and then 3-8.

I'm at Tom Floyd Wayside tonight. A beautiful hut. What an amazing deck. Once again all to myself. (Apparently there are people who have done the whole trail and never spent a night alone in a shelter. Guess you gotta go during the season.) I'm only about 1 1/2 hours from my car. I had planned on getting up early, having breakfast & heading home, but maybe I'll stick around for a few hours & relax. Guess we'll see tomorrow.

I put in about 17 today after the 19 yesterday. I though the 19 would kill me today, but it actually made today seem a lot easier. Yes, my knees hurt a hell of a lot, and so did the blisters on my feet (btw, one more, on the Achilles tendon of my left leg), but after a few hours, you kind of forget about it.

I met the P.A.T.C. guy from this section--Paul. He was cool. It turns out these guys do this full time. They have about an 80 mile section, go out for 10 ten & then have 4 off. Then they start all over. Seems like a pretty cool job. I wonder how much they make?

Two deer (took a picture of one), some turkey, & two snakes. I don't know what kind, but they were dark greenish with 2 yellow lines running the length of their back. Once again, no bear. The Shenandoah's are supposed to be the most densely bear populated area on the east coast (if not the whole U.S.) & I saw none. Either I'm too loud or they're too quiet.

Hiking tips: Yeah, I'm a boxer man, but it looks like I'll be using some baby powder the next few days too. Less food, more dry socks.

I lost my poncho the other day. Fortunately the weather held out. I may have lost my knife today, but I'll have to check the entire bag tomorrow to be sure. (That would suck, it wasn't cheap)

Besides resting and cleaning my gear tomorrow, I think I'll head down to JP's & have a few beers.

Oh yeah, I managed to make it through last night safely. Cars kept coming by pretty late, but no one stopped to bug me. There were certainly a lot of deadwood falling from the trees. It got so bad about 5 am that it kept me awake for an hour--ducking everytime it sounded like a big one. Besides that, it was pretty rocky & I didn't sleep very well. Lesson learned--sleep in the shelters as much as possible (unless they have toe-biting mice.)

Shenandoah, Day 7

I'll admit, I'm a little nervous right now, for a couple of reasons. First, I'm camped at a picnic area, which I don't think I'm really supposed to be. So everytime I hear a car, I shut of my light (tonight that would be me candle). Also, I'm in this thicket of knee high something. It's very concealing, exactly the type of place I would hide if I were a snake.

Other than that, a decent day. I made 19 mile today, and boy am I feeling it. It seems that I miscalculated. If I want to stay where I really wanted the last night (tomorrow), instead of doing 15's today & tomorrow, I had to do 35 1/2. So that still leaves me with 16 1/2 tomorrow. If my legs really give me shit (because of today), I can always do 10-12 tomorrow and 10 the next day.

It turns our, I actually had a fourth blister on my left foot. I don't think I have any new ones today, but my feet re pretty sore, so they might develop tomorrow.

Pretty low on the animal count today--only 3 deer. No bear.

Snapped a couple of shots today.

I had my 2nd lunch of the day at Panorama (Thorton Gap). It was alright. Everybody in the log books were raving about the food at the restaurants--I'm not sure why. I guess because it's not Ramen Noodles.

Saw a few over-nighters. Chatted with a few at one of the day shelters. A lot more day people probably because it's the weekend.

More hiking notes: Need more moleskin. But buckle to fix Andy's broken hip buckle. Buy poncho to replace one I lost yesterday. Fingernail clippers.

Another reason to be nervous: falling tree branches. What I guess would be a small one just hit my tent.

The bugs haven't really been a problem at all this trip. Probably because of the less than steller weather. I think I got a few bites today. I think that's because I'm starting to small really good abot now. Two tough days and no shower. There might be one about a mile away, but I'm not sure if I'll use it. It partly depends on what time I get up and get moving (btw, it takes me about an hour to break camp by myself.). Also, at the beginning of the day, why bother? I'm just going to sweat for the next 10 hrs.

Looks like two sizeable climbs tomorrow. About 1000 ft (right off the bat) and a 750 fter. The end of the day should be pretty easy, but tough on the knees--3-4 miles downhill.

One final bitch for the day. I have a lump on my left ankle, which I hope is just a bruise from the boots.

Had a decent day, took it too fast. There were some good views. It's pretty neat to be at a cliff or mountain peak, see all the mountains ahead of you and know that you'll be on top of them soon.

Shenandoah, Day 6

Basically Pete was a wacko burnout, but I didn't want to say until I was miles away. When he was telling me about a conversation he had had, he would actually act it out and have the whole conversation with a fake person. The other thing that worried me quite a bit was how noisy he was when he was sleeping. It made me a bit uncomfortable.

Other than that, the shelter was pretty cool. I'm planning on staying in one, one more night, probably the last night. I actually used one to escape an afternoon thundershower. I was pretty much already drenched, but I got to dry out a bit before I trekked on to Skyland, when I am now (16+ miles).

If all goes as planned, two longish days and then Monday will be really short (3.1 miles).

I'm surprised I made it so far, with my injuries and all. Two more blisters, one on each pinky toe plus the one from yesterday (on my third toe, not my fourth, btw). My knees, of course, hurt like a bitch too. It seems the pain never goes away, just goes from one body part to the next.

Had lunch at Big Meadows and the dessert at Skyland. I've never felt like so much of an outsider. Here I am--hot sweaty, & pretty ragged--coming into a slightly upscale restaurant. You think they'd be used to it, but it sure didn't look like it.

Just saw lightening and have been hearing thunder for awhile. Guess it's going to rain soon, but this time I'll be dry--hah.

Ever since I read it in one of the shelter logs the other day, I keep thinking about ice cream. I had some at Lewis (a big I.C. sandwich) and tonight--a hot fudge Sunday at Skyland.

Saw seven or eight more deer today. Two were fawns I think, they had white spots on them. May gave gotten a picture of one. Took a few other pictures, nothing to exciting.

Another though on future hikes: Gaiters. They'd keep your socks & boots drier, and they'd protect you from stinging nettle. Which yes (oop--there goes the rain) I've had a few run-ins with the past two days.
[pic]

I'm camped in a virtually perfect spot. It's pretty level, not in an illegal place. Had trouble finding a food hanging place though. (And no, I'll still haven't seen a bear yet. 2 1/2 days left.) Had a very pleasant dinner, after my dessert at the lodge. Even had a good rock to sit on. Btw, one neat thing about the shelters is that they have a food hanging pole, so you don't have to find a good tree.
[pic]

Man it's coming down hard. Hope it dries out by morning.

Shenandoah, Day 5

Don't end up sleeping in shelter--after 1/2 of listening to the mice, decided to tent it. I'm at Bearfence Mtn Hut, so I'll try again tonight.

Yep, B-Fence, quite a bit short of Big Meadows. Oh well, I need to sit down and readjust my mileage for the extra day anyway.

Another frog and 3 deer.

I stopped to snap some photos today. At the same time, I whipped out my maps while at Hightop and found out exactly what I was looking at. That was a new perk, to stare at the mountains and actually know the names of them and how they lie.

I also stopped at Lewis Campground, had some food, a shower, + nearly got my socks dry in the dryer (those wool socks take forever!)

Btw Joe, found out a good (what's the opposite of acronym--the definition itself?) for BAH-"Bitches and Ho's."

Got my first blister today. Right foot, fourth toe. No doubt from wet socks.

Man, this morning I was in some pain. My knees hurt so bad. I thought it would jeopardize my trip, but after I few miles, I forgot about them.

For the future: I might try to go from Front Royal to Harpers Ferry before I ditch VA. Looks like only about 50 miles. Also, I think I'm going to buy one of those big AT maps and blow up the Shany part and put it on my wall. I think I'll need to come back two more times too. Once just to snap some shots of things I didn't this time. (I'm marking the good sport, and should be able to get to them with only a mile or go hike from car.) Also, it might be nice to come here with Ray, Joe, And + and rent Pocosin Cabin (or other). They're rented by PATC, not Shany. Supposed to be a good view, not far from road, and we could leave all our stuff there and day hike--SANS pack.

Spending the night here with Pete (Pat?). Older gentleman. Basically been on the road since '89 when his friend got busted for marijuana. (You can tell, too.) Nice enough, gave me a beer and is bringing some wine

Yeah, that annoying shoe think again today.

It's almost 8, so it'll be getting dark soon. Guess I'll check out the maps and make some dinner.

"I'm a little right headed, but I can suck."

"I was born yesterday, but not on that bus."

Shenandoah, Day 4

AM
Not my best sleep. First I was having this dream. I had a sister, and she needed some money from my brother. We went into his room and found it, but I convinced her not to take it. On the way out of his room though, somehow we messed up his phone. So during the night, some alarm went off and woke him up (I guess it was some kind of alarm clock/phone). At this point I woke up because I thought I was hearing a different alarm. Well it was some animal, I have no idea what. It sort of sounded like it was exhaling really hard through its nose, but with a more defined pitch. Maybe a whooooh, whooooh. So that eventually went away and I heard some hooves, so I know there were deer around too.

Now here's the freaky one. I could swear something crawled on me. I felt two of them, I think they were raccoons or something. One of them crawled over me, the other settled down in my lap. I didn't move for 10 minutes. When I finally did, there was nothing on me, so I guess I was dreaming.

It's quite early (a little after six), but I couldn't go back to sleep. So I guess I'll eat, pack & go.

PM
5:30 and I've already stopped. In fact, I stopped an hour ago. I could have gone further, but I was really tired. I only went about 13 today, but climbed about3000 ft (all put together). Besides that, I stopped for a good reason. I have two firsts tonight. I met up with some people: Matt & John, so I'll camp with them tonight. (Yea company!) When John reaches Rockfish (where I started), he will have done the whole AT. The other first, is that we are sleeping in a hut. I camped next to one, but never actually in one--sans tent.

Another thing I did do today was read a lot of shelter logs. I read the one at Pinefield Hut at lunch, and then the one here at Hightop Hut.

Saw a garter snake, a frog, & 5 deer today. No bears yet. I'll probably see some mice tonight, while I'm sleeping (according to the recent logs).

Had an apple and some more blackberries today too.

It's nice to hike with dry clothes. They were soaked by the end of the day, but they started off dry. Except for the socks. The socks and boots never really dried, so yes, I have a case of the soggy feet again today. And yes, my boots did that annoying scrunch up thing. I had to stop and fix them every time I got to the bottom of a hill.

Other things for future hikes: Those "duck bags" you can get for canoers. They stay dry & are easier to deal with than trash bags. (Probably cost $$ though). At least one for dry clothes and one for food, maybe another for wet clothes. Sport sandals--not camp shoes. They're lighter and can get wet.

My fuel consumption has been low, so I dumped my small canister for weight purposes. Still have the can, just not the fuel.

In the log many people are talking about 20+ days! I am inspired and going to try and make it to Big Meadows tomorrow (~17 miles). A hot dinner and a room for the night. That would put me back on track too. Speaking of though, seem I forgot a day. I actually have 9 [pic] days, and a 10th if I really need it--not 8. I think I'll still go for Big M. Tomorrow, just to prove I can. Then I can take it a bit slower. Between the missed meals on Monday (rain) and dinner tomorrow at Big M., I should be fine for food.

Oh yeah, even in those nifty squeeze tubes, PB & Jelly don't work. They both squeeze out the end, so it's a bit messy.

Lots of bugs here, but they seem to be well behaved.

Lots of singing to myself today. I have had this one Prince song stuck in my head since the beginning of the trail. (Money Don't Matter Tonight?--It's off of the "Diamonds a& Pearls" album.) Other than that, I find a song comes to your head based on the tempo you're walking. It actually helps to going up, because you don't want the song to slow down.

My feet are cold, but I don't have any socks. I guess I'll crawl in my sleeping bag for awhile and read. Then it's dinner time, food hanging time (although I still haven't seen any bears), and bed time.

Btw, I learned a new term today from the journals. "Pink Blazing" means hiking naked.

--At Dinner with 5 more deer.

Shenandoah, Day 3

Once again, past the tick test. In fact, there were very few bugs out today. Maybe it had something to do with the less than ideal weather. What do bugs do when it's rainy, stay inside and play cards?

Much better day today, MUCH. Just when I was about to give up the wildlife count, tally up 4 turkeys and 4 deer (2 doe and 2 deer, the last one had really big antellors too!) Also, the biggest plus today was the bounty. I had 3 blackberries, and an apple. At first I thought the blackberries were raspberries, because they were red, but then I saw the rest which were actually ripe. I would have missed them too, if it weren't for the thorny branch that got tuck in my hair and almost ripped it out. I think the apples were Granny Smith, but I'm not sure they small and green, so they could have been any other type that just wasn't ripe yet. It was tart like a granny though.
[pic2]

My feet look like I just stepped out of an hour long bath, or just went scuba diving. The boots are waterproof, but when you socks are wet, and your feet are sweating, and it's raining that much, your feet are bound to get wet. Speaking of my boots, they picked up an annoying trend today. The insole likes to bunch up when you are walking, particularly downhill. Instead of being nice and ergonomic, like this [pic3], they are squished like this [pic4]. Not very comfortable.

Other pluses today., I made it to Loft Mtn about 4 PM, so I dried clothes in the dryer and took a shower. The shower was nice, but what was the best was warm, dry clothes.

I ran into my first backpacker today. Sunday I talked with a guy and his kid (jut move to Charlottesville from Chicago, originally from Dallas though. No accent.) Monday nobody. Today I saw a few hikers, but didn't talk to anybody until I was drying my clothes. They had all driven up with families, so they weren't doing to much. They were all impressed when they heard I just got off the trail. I didn't lie to them, I told them I was just doing the Shenandoah stretch of it. But just the same, there's a world of difference between setting out and coming back 8 days later and 100 miles further along, than just parking your car, walking around a bit, then getting back in your car.

I'm only about 3 1/2 miles south of where I wanted to be today, (I'm just north of Ivy Creek. I wanted to be at Pinefield Hut). That means I caught up quite a bit (and dried my clothes!). With better weather (which I hear there should be(, I may be able to catch up tomorrow. Looks like I made about 16 miles today. I tried to go further, but I just got tired (probably because I only had one meal yesterday--rain sucks). I stopped about 5:30, it 10 of 8 now and there's still plenty of light. I guess weather and body permitting, 7:30 looks like a good stopping time.

I think I am going to treat myself if I happened to be near one of the cabins. I think the closest one I'll be near is at Big Pine. If I'm there, and it's time to stop hiking for the day, I think a real bed would be deserved.

Oh yeah, I was completely out of water by the time I finally got to a spring today. I even had to take rainwater from my tent just to make it that far.

No real soreness today, other than from leaning over to write this.

I'm probably violating park rules again--I'm only about 15 ft from the path, but I guess that's better than yesterday when I was that close to the road.

I don't feel like getting out of then tent now, but I'll have to remember to take my allergy stuff tomorrow night.

I forgot to mention my dreams. Last night--this one's weird--I dreamt I was eating potato chips. I don't know, maybe it was a sign. So today while I was drying my clothes, I bought potato chips.

Suggestions for future backpacking trips. Fifty pounds is too much. I could ditch the shovel for sure (I haven't even had to use it yet, thanks to a privy along the way). I already ditched the frying pan, but I could probably get away with only one pot too. I'm mixed about extra shoes. They really are nice when your boots are wet, but they add a lot of weight, and my new boots are comfortable enough, even in camp. Not two cameras. Only one if at all. I think I've determined that not only do you have to have really good weather, but most of the good views are on side trips, which I don't have time for on this trip. (It goes without saying, but the camera has to be disposable, i.e. light). No cotton. Jeans and sweatshirts take way too long to dry. So do shirts. Find biker clothing or hiking clothing. I don't think it exists, but there should be some kind of hiking shirt. Padded heavily on the shoulders and hips and then everywhere else--and of course not made out of cotton. Keep the books to a minimum. Lighter sleeping bag. Lighter tent. And lighter pack.

I am losing light now, so I'll plan my trip tomorrow, maybe read and go to bed. 'night.

Shenandoah, Day 2

AM
It's about 1/4 of 8, so that would be about 12 hours of sleep, if I had slept the whole way through. A couple of visiters woke me up several time though.

It's raining pretty hard now. So my choices are to stay here, run over to the shelter (20 ft away), or just pack up & go. Clearly if I stay, I won't make the entire length of the trail. I think I'll wait an hour, then decide.

Shoulders are the only thing that are still sore.

LATER
It's still raining. Unless it clears up today, I'll stay here another night. Rain or shine I'm leaving tomorrow. Now I'll have to figure our where to pick up my car.

PM
Add a squirrel to the wildlife count.

It's 5:30 and I've already stopped. In fact, I stopped about 4. When I finally got out of the tent this morning just before noon, it was barely raining, if it all. I decided it was good enough. It was actually, but then it did start raining, and it got harder. I got cold and very wet so I stopped. Actually, I tried to hitch hike to the nearest cabin. Failed. I guess it was just as well though, because the cabin is about 30 miles away, not 12 like I though.

So I set up my tent, crawled out of my wet clothes and into my sleeping bag. I have stopped shivering, which is good. My left shoulder is killing me.

I am about 20 ft from Skyline Drive, which is most definitely a violation, but if a ranger stops by to fine me, he better well take me somewhere where I can rent a room.

My food and pack are about 2 ft in front of me, but unless it stops raining, I am not going out there. I actually hope it continues to rain, so that nobody will get hungry enough to eat it.

The one plus today, I found and ate 2 blueberries. They were very good.

I'm about 7 miles short of my goal today, and another 7 from where I can dry all my clothes. The nearest hotel is 25 miles after that. It looks like I basically have to make it to Loft Mtn, where I can either dry my stuff, or call the 'rents. We'll have to see what the weather and my shoulder are like tomorrow.

Cars, wind & rain all sounds the same. It's very hard to tell which is actually happening or coming.

I've got about 2 more hours of daylight, and then about 12 of night.

I guess I'll read some more now, and try to relax my shoulder.

Shenandoah, Day 1

Wildlife Count: 1 rabbit, lots of butterflies and moths. The rabbit doesn't really count though, because it was in a neighbors lawn before we even got out of the court.

Start of the dad: Mom & dad can't find the beginning of the trail. While I find it, dad gets a flat. Needless to say, we are running late. Fortunately I had overcalculated the driving time and we still managed to start at noon.

Got to the campsite around 5, which put me at the 2 hr + 1 for 1000 ft rate. This is slower than I am used to, but there was a lot of incline + 50 lbs on my back. Hopefully I'll pick up the pace tomorrow. That is really my only concern--if I will be able to keep a pace that will get me to the top on Monday.

It's very quiet & peaceful. I already ate (1/2 lb pasta is too much) and cleaned, so I'll probably just read the rest of the night. No wildlife to speak of, but there were some interesting plants.
[pic1]

No blisters. What hurts most? My shoulders. Would kill for an Ozan massage. Other things that hurt: that little spot beneath the front of my right knee (patella?), especially on declines. Was worried about possible blisters on left foot.

When you are doing physical activity by yourself, you think of the weirdest things, Much of time I was thinking either--ow my shoulders are killing me, or--alright it's just around the bend, no it's around this one, no it must be around this bend. Also I had a conversation with myself (no speaking, it was all in my head) about how I missed Miami. Except of course it would never be like it was because only Dawn is left there. Hansen, Mike, Kelly, Joe, Roger and pretty much everyone else is gone.

There's a shelter here. It's pretty nice too. My first thought was to ditch the tent tonight, but I don't really have anything to keep the bugs away from my face. It's still pretty light out, I guess I should have hiked a bit more. Well, I'll know better tomorrow.

Oh yea, other things I conversed with myself about were how different I will be after the trip (mentally), how different work will be when I get back, and what a bitch Allyson is.

Shenandoah National Park

[Written 5/19/08] In 1996 I was doing a lot of backpacking. Living so close to the Appalachian Trail, and having done small stretches of it in Virginia and North Carolina, I was pretty much enthralled by it. I wondered if I could do the 3-5 month trek of 2175 miles. I also wondered if I could handle the solitude. So I decided to push myself and do a 100 mile stretch of the AT--the entirety of Shenandoah National Park.