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Pearisburg to Daleville

Hi everybody it's that time again to fill you in and try and remember what I've done since I last wrote. I do try and take notes at the end of each day but to be honest there are always things to do and unless you can get to camp early then it's dark before you know it and 

time to turn in.

As you can imagine the Tuesday I last updated you turned into a zero! I had a walk to Walmart with Pancake and did my re-supply, it was a fair old walk considering it was supposed to be a non walking day, four miles there and back! Walking through, Pearisburg seemed to be a slightly more affluent town than others so far on the trail and I suffered my first bit of abuse as someone driving past in a car told me to 'get a f***ing job'! Obviously not all towns in the AT are as hiker friendly as others! Apart from that not much else happened on Tuesday, i took it easy most of the day before an evening meal of a Pizza, Pringles and Yeung Ling, Americas oldest beer and the best lager I've drunk across here so far. I studied my guide and planned the next few days even booking a room in Dalesville which was the next town stop for Tue 31 May. Looking at the terrain over the next week that might have been a little ambitious, lots of hills to contend with again!

An early start had been planned for Wednesday but leaving town is never that easy, I went to Dairy Queen for breakfast and then realised that my phone hadn't backed up to the cloud for over a week so thought I'd quickly do that. However it kept saying failed to back up so after much trying Pancake suggested the age old way of fixing stuff; turn it off then on again and sure enough it then backed up first time, who'd have thought it! So the early start turned into leaving town at 10.30 and by the time I'd walked the mile to the trail head it was 11am. Oh well, best laid plans and all that! 

Going out of town as nearly always there was a mountain to climb, it was a long slow one of sixteen hundred feet over five and a half miles but certainly by no means one of the worst. Although an early start had been missed the actual plan for the day was to only go about eight miles so camp was reached and set up early allowing me to relax in my hammock for a while. The night was predicted to be clear so I decided against my tarp so that I could see the stars shining above me. I do love that about hammocking, lying down and having that enormous universe as the ceiling, it's mesmerising. It's just a shame I'd only been able to do it a couple of times so far on this trip, on that subject it hadn't actually rained at all that day, the forecast was for a bright, warm spell which would be long overdue.

Pancake and I arrived at camp and a lady who only came out of her tent twice briefly the whole time she was there was already set up. Fun Guy turned up a bit later then two lady section hikers who were southbound and said they'd seen a bear about half a mile from camp, followed by Sneaky Pete, No Worries, Face Plant, Bubble Goose and Costa Rica (who later decided to night hike, which some people do but not sure I'd want to do it with all the rocks and roots in this particular state). As I said, early in camp meant all the jobs were done early and so after some crazy conversations around the campfire it was time to turn in. Just as everyone was preparing to go to bed two brazen deer walked around the camp startling everyone and that was just the start of a long night ahead! Not long after, the mystery woman screamed, sending a shiver down my spine. No Worries later confirmed it was her as he was camped next to her. Then I heard something very large walking in the undergrowth, no way was it a deer. The thud, thud it made was a bear, for sure. I scrambled for my headlamp and shone it around as I felt very exposed all of a sudden. I didn't see the perpetrator but after seeing those bears last week and the ladies saying they'd seen the bear earlier i was very jumpy! After finally somehow dozing off the final insult came at 4.30am when it started to rain. There I was rushing around in the dark once again trying to put up my tarp before everything got wet whilst cursing the Virginian weather. I could see No Worries doing exactly the same thing so I wasn't the only one to put mis placed trust in the forecast. The rest of the night, not that was much left, passed without incident thankfully but by the time I got up I was shattered, sleeping in the woods was turning out to be quite restless! As we were eating breakfast a section hiker who i met the previous day came by and said he'd just seen a bear as he came out the last shelter, whether it was the same bear that the lady's had seen last night is questionable but it fits in with everything that had happened and not long into the mornings hike I came across a big pile of turquoise coloured bear poop! All the signs pointed to my suspicions being confirmed.

Thursday's hike started along a rocky ridge line which seemed to be defining for Virginia, not much to see but rocks and trees. A long downhill followed through lush almost rain forest like shrubbery and the obligatory rain came down again, soaking me as I reached Pine Swamp Branch shelter, aptly named with all the mud that was along the trail. Irie was at the shelter and decided to stop for the day but after a brief bite to eat myself and Pancake pushed on to Captains. Captains is famous on the trail as to get there you have to cross a river via a zip line which was a first for me but good fun nonetheless. Captain opens up his property for hikers and has a fridge on his back porch stocked with every kind of soda imaginable. Stoney, who I hadn't seen in a while was there and after a chat with him and a welcome refreshment we tackled the final steep climb of the day to Bailey Gap shelter. Because of all the stops it was quite late getting there but there was only Sonja and Bernd and Old Timer there and after a quick fruitless search for somewhere to hammock I decided to sleep in the shelter itself with the others whilst Pancake found himself a pitch for his tent. Just as I was dozing off Sneaky Pete and No Worries arrived and also hunkered down in the shelter. It had been a long day for only 14.9 miles but I was still on schedule for Daleville.

Friday started with another rocky ridge line for about six miles which tested my patience followed by a steep downhill, a shower of rain, a short lunch at a shelter and a long two and a half mile uphill. Halfway up the heavens opened once again and this time it was torrential, I was absolutely soaked to the skin and all the rocks became slippery making the trail treacherous, unfortunately my guide was in my shorts pocket and was in a right state, luckily I had put my phone in a ziplock bag otherwise that also would have born the brunt of the inclement weather. I was beginning to understand the term 'Virginia Blues'. Apparently a lot of people quit the trail in Virginia and therefore that's where the phrase comes from. There are many reasons; running out of money, the honeymoon period is over, accumulation of injuries so the term is probably a little unfair on the state itself but all the rocks and rain must also be contributory factors for people returning to everyday life. In recent days we'd heard of a few people we knew who had left the trail behind. Pancake and I reached Laurel Creek shelter, halfway down the other side of the mountain at about 5.30pm but as the rain had stopped and the sun had come out for the first time I decided to crack on so late in the day. I figured three more miles would take me to the bottom of the next hill ready for a climb to start the next day. Pancake followed and for once I stretched out a good lead going down the hill and through some pastures and meadows before waiting at the road which leads to Newport where I waited with aching feet. After another mile we reached the stream where we'd planned on staying and found a decent camping spot and joined up once again with Sneaky Pete and Costa Rica and a German girl called Moon Fire. It was even later than the night before but a campfire was lit, food was quickly eaten and the rain started again before I got in my hammock (tarp safely up!) for a slightly better nights sleep. I forgot to mention a half mile area that had been badly burnt by a wild fire a week previously which was quite a sad sight to see, overall that day 17.9 miles had been covered but boy did my feet know it. 

The aforementioned climb that started the next day was preceded by going past Keffer Oak an absolute monster of a tree, over eighteen feet around this behemoth is over three hundred years old and is the largest Oak tree on the south of the AT, an impressive sight indeed. The climb itself was a very painful steep one and I really struggled, falling behind everyone else by some distance, I just couldn't seem to get going and was having one of those days where you don't feel right physically or mentally, to be honest, half the battle is a mental one and I was now fighting not just the terrain but my own mind. After what seemed like an eternity I finally reached the top, after all the rain it was now extremely humid and water sources also seemed to be scarce in this part of Virginia so I sat down for a while, let the sweat stop pumping out of me and tried to summon up the energy to crack on. I just got into my stride on a rare even part of the trail when I nearly walked straight into a black snake sunning itself right in the middle of the trail. The five foot fat reptile and I both recoiled at the same time and I blasphemed in shock before taking a couple of pictures and watched it slide into the undergrowth before making my own way forward. The next shelter was only four miles into the day but I didn't reach it until gone midday and any hope of the twenty mile day which I had planned was out of the window. It was the last water source for six miles but was nearly half a mile off the trail and as I didn't fancy doing the extra mile there and back I stupidly decided to risk going on with only a third of a litre of water left, I'd also run out of Aqua Mira drops which meant I had no water treatment left until the Ourfitters in Daleville. I sometimes didn't treat the water anyway if it came direct from a rock or if it was quite high as the risks were minimal, some people never treated any water but sometimes the sources were pretty sketchy so I didn't like to risk it but now I had no choice. The trail looked pretty flat but it turned out to be another rocky ridge line with no cover from trees and for a change the sun was out and hot and my decision to not get any water was turning out to be a bad one. By the time I reached what was marked as an unreliable spring which thankfully was a good clear source I was feeling dehydrated and berating myself for my folly. I sat there for a while quenching my thirst, filling up with two litres before going the final mile downhill to Nidday shelter. I'd only done nine miles and it was about 4pm and I considered calling it a day. Sonja and Bernd were there and they said Pancake and Moon Fire had left about ten minutes previously with the plan of camping about two miles further on so I decided to try and find them. Once I got to the area where they should be I walked a while meeting Red Bear and Sixty Sense at different spots before giving up and going back to where Sixty Semse had camped and he told me they had decided to try to get to Trout Creek which was a further seven miles away. There was no way I could have made that so I set up my hammock and even though it was a pleasant evening I'd finally learned my lesson and half put up my tarp so it would be easy to flip over if needed in the night. I cooked over the fire, hung my bear bag and was ready for bed at 8pm. It was a lovely little spot by the stream which was again the last water source until Trout Creek and even though there were only me and Sixty Sense id overcome my fears from the other night and got a half decent nights sleep. Once it was dark, for the first time, I saw fireflies flashing in the night, again a nice sight. And the good news was it stayed dry which was an added bonus.

I was up bright and early Sunday morning although not as early as Sixty Sense who was on the trail by 6.30! I was out of my hammock by seven and although there were a few drops of rain I managed to start a fire and made myself a cup of coffee before taking everything down, filling up two litres of water and getting on trail myself by 8.30. I felt much better than the previous day and was soon at the top of Brush Mountain which took me up sixteen hundred feet. At the top was a monument to Audie Murphy who was the most decorated American soldier of WWll and had died in a plane crash nearby, quite fitting I was there the day before Memorial Day. I stopped there for a while before starting my descent the other side. Halfway down a guy coming up said if I was lucky I would catch some trail magic at the bottom, at that point I was about to stop and take a stone out of my boot but I flew down that mountain instead and nearly broke my neck at the thought of free refreshments! I made it just in time as they had been there for four days apparently and were packing up. It was a couple called Old Goat and Granny who's daughter had hiked the trail two years ago and were inspired to do it by her. I had a baloney sandwich, some pancakes, a Coke, some bottled water and a lovely can of Miller Lite which Red Bear had kindly saved for me as he said it wasn't everyday you got to have a beer with an Englishman! I must have been there for an hour and then it was time to tackle the second mountain of the day. Fuelled by the treats I started well and made good time for the first mile but then the terrain started to get very rocky again and I realised that Dragons Tooth was going to be no ordinary mountain. For the next three miles I struggled, climbed, pushed and cursed my way towards the top clambering over huge boulders and then I dropped my water leaving me short for the second day running. At the top there were a lot of day hikers who weren't carrying forty pound backpacks and even some of them were struggling. The monolith itself was pretty impressive and after a couple of pics I started my descent. If I'd thought the uphill was bad then I hadn't seen anything yet! Going down was ridiculous, how people don't break bones going down there is beyond me, there were points where I had to take off my backpack, throw it down the drops and clamber down like a mountaineer holding onto the rocks whilst trying to find a foothold. This had been by far my toughest day on the trail and later discussing it with other people most thought the same. Once I got to Lost Spectacles Gap I thought I was through the worst of it but the last 1.7 miles down from there weren't much better in places and the day just never seemed as though it was going to end. I really wasn't enjoying it. Finally at the bottom I reached Newport Road and got off the trail to a Gas station about half a mile away that sold hot food and plenty of other treats. I had cheeseburger and fries and sat outside eating it feeling shell shocked at what I had just experienced. I had planned on going back on trail and doing another couple of miles but as I sat there the mini bus from Four Pines Hostel showed up and at that point it started to rain again so I asked if there was room for one more and took a ride there instead. I'd covered 14.9 miles and two mountains over the day but it felt like double that and I was as exhausted as I'd been since the beginning, all those people who'd said Virginia got easier were full of crap! Four Pines was a hostel spread over a farm and there were at least fifty hikers stopping there including the crowd of party people who weren't really hiking at all but hitching rides (yellow blazing) most of the way. I found a place in the barn at the top of the field to sleep and lay my sleeping bag out before having a couple of beers to end the day. That wasn't a wise decision as I had not drunk enough water and awoke the next day dehydrated and with a headache. As I said there were a lot of people there including Scout who I hadn't seen since Damascus, Sonja and Bernd, Sixty Sense, Old Timer, Stoney, Wheels and Pinecone. 

After the previous day's exertions and the news that the shelter where I had planned to stop that night was closed due to bear activity coupled with the fact that it was Memorial Day and McAfee knob would be teeming with day hikers I decided to catch a ride with Eddie who worked at Four Pines into Daleville a day earlier than planned and then go back to McAfee later on in the week when it was less busy. It means I'll fall behind a few people but also give others a chance to catch up! 

So yesterday I got into Daleville, checked in at the Howard Johnson motel and chilled out for the day, they opened the pool which was nice so I dangled my feet in, was a bit cold though! I caught up with a few people again including Sneaky Pete and No Worries, Olives Human, Doug and Cup of Tea. I still felt a bit rough from the dehydration so didn't do a lot else apart from update Facebook and start writing this. I even put the TV in the room on and watched a bit of football. I saw Moon Fire whilst I was doing laundry and she said Pancake was waiting for me at McAfee Knob. I had no idea he would do that and with no way of letting him know, I felt bad but as the saying goes 'hike your own hike' so I figured he would work it out in the end and sure enough he turned up today. 

This morning I had breakfast with Russ (Costa Rica) and he surprised me by saying his two travelling partners Ossie and Bigging had both quit on the same day last week and then I saw on Facebook that Beasterman, who was the first guy I met on the trail had also quit after 61 days leaving a note in a shelter saying he had gone home to Michigan. People are dropping off the trail like flies at the minute and I can see why. It's tough going and I have to admit I've been having a few wobbles lately, the constant rain, the rocks, the mountains, the pressure on your body and the mental side of things all catch up with you after a while, not to mention the monetary side of things. Last night I had the room to myself which was nice but as Pancake has turned up I said he could stop here to cut costs. I've just been out to finally purchase some new shoes from the outfitters and asked about a shuttle to McAfee Knob, I just need to decide whether to go back up there tomorrow or the next day and whether to slack pack the whole twenty two miles in one day or not. Whilst out I ran into Maniac who I hadn't seen since Damascus aswell so he, I, Pancake, Russ and Cup of Tea are going out for a meal tonight. Try and lift some flagging spirits! 

The trail doesn't actually go through a town again until Harper's Ferry which is over three hundred miles away however there are small towns five to ten miles off trail between now and then so I need to formulate some sort of plan over the next twenty four hours. Okay so once again I'm all up to date with my news, time for a shower before heading on out to eat. The last couple of days whilst I haven't been hiking have been dry and in the eighties so I'm hoping that continues but this is Virginia, the place where you get the blues so I'm not counting my chickens! Speak soon.

007.

Licensed to Hike!!

A week later

It's been a while I know so this may take some time, I'm about a week behind so here goes...Saturday night I slept well, unlike the first night at the travel inn and when I awoke it felt nice to be able to turn on the heat in a cold morning. One thing this trip has done is help me get back to basics in life and appreciate the things we all take for granted; heat at the flick of a switch, a proper toilet (the privys are like holes in the ground and that's if youre lucky, if there is no privy you're pooping in the woods!), clean water and clean clothes, hot showers, information at the tip of your finger and comfy places to sleep! Immediately my mind turned to going back into the woods and the cold night forecast. It would have been easy to stay another night but as I had already arranged a lift I knew I was going out there. I stayed in bed as long as I could before showering and packing everything up ready for the ride.

I got dropped off at Dickeys Gap with the German couple Sandra and Bernt and set off in cold weather. It wasn't the most interesting of days hikes but it went surprisingly well, I covered 14 miles in 6 hours and arrived at the Partnership shelter around 4.30, six miles out of Marion again. Partnership shelter sleeps sixteen and there were only four people there so there was plenty of room. The shelter was two tier and I went upstairs as I knew it would be warmer. It certainly was an unusual shelter as it also had running water, a cold shower and a privy with toilet paper, luxury on all fronts in hiker world! It was also around the corner from Mt Rogers visitor centre where there was a phone and dumpster! That's something else I should have put on the list of everyday life: not having to carry your rubbish with you. The people there were Cold Taters, Grizzly Bear from Maine, Footage and Earthling who had hiked the trail last year and was on her way back from Trail days. Later on Sandra and Bernt, Chuckles, Taylor, Big Bird and Iceberg showed up but there was still plenty of room. Then a strange thing happened, Earthling had a car and offered to drive anyone to town if they wanted to eat or re-supply and I said no thanks! To have that opportunity for a free lift is so rare to turn it down is unbelievable but I'd already eaten and my pack was already loaded so I and Chuckles turned it down and stayed by the fire we had made. It was a cold night as forecast but upstairs in the shelter in my sleeping bag, sleeping liner and under quilt I was quite warm and as it was dark up there I didn't wake up until nine fifteen!

A guy comes to that shelter every morning to bring donuts so that was breakfast sorted and after a quick look around Mt Rogers visitor centre I was ready to go. It had been a cold start and I didn't really get on the trail until 10.30 but it was a gradual climb for the first couple of hours which soon warmed me up, the day itself also got slightly warmer and it wasn't a bad hike through different terrain again. Starting through the woods before coming out into open fields and farmland for a while. Then after stopping at the shelter for a quick lunch I learned of some trail magic at Lindamood School a couple of miles further along the trail. Once I got there it was yet again a welcome bonus. The school itself had shut down in 1939 and was a single room building which still had the old school desks and lesson list not to mention a list of punishments for wrongdoing, today's nanny state would be horrified by the penaltys! The magic itself was provided by the local Baptist church again and was amazing; sodas and water in cool boxes, fresh fruit, biscuits, crisps and cookies but also hand knitted woolly hats, and a big box containing amongst other things Ibruprofen, bite cream, heat pads, toothbrushes and toothpaste, combs and hand sanitiser. They seem to have everything covered apart from beer but as we are still in the south that was not surprising as a lot of places are no alcohol zones, they are still very strict about that in these parts. After taking what I wanted I headed off again through the fields and back into the woods. I noticed in a lot of the trees were these large cocoon type things which I later found out were full of caterpillar young, there were hundreds of them in this area and already some were coming out to start their feeding. After crossing rail lines (which was a first) I headed into Atkins with every intention of passing through, the trail goes directly past a motel, a couple of gas stations and a restaurant and as I got into town (it's not really a town, it's exactly as I described it and no more!) I caught up with Chuckles and Iceberg who were discussing sharing a room, once I got the idea in my head that was it, and when I said I was up for it a deal was soon struck to share a double room between the three of us. It's strange how out here on the trail you can meet someone one day and share a room the next, it's all about saving money and being out of the forecast rain. Just another example of the different way of life. Rock City and Cup of Tea were also stopping as were Thin Mint and her dad who was joining her for a week and Jeff who was in Marion aswell turned up later. We went to the restaurant and on the way back bought a few beers from the gas station and sat around chatting about hiker life!

After the change of plan I'd only covered 11.6 miles that day but I didn't regret it, it's always nice to shower, eat something that isn't trail food and sleep in a bed in a room. It was raining the next morning but I set out about the same time as the day before and again made steady progress covering 14.7 miles, during the day London Jack who I hadn't seen since Hot Springs passed me by, he hikes fast and an old guy called Lumber Mac pulled up by one of the roads and gave me a can of soda, another old hiker who dishes out trail magic. It was another grey cloudy day and at high elevation it was very misty. I hiked part of the day with Norway, who I hadn't seen in ages and Ranger and also passed the quarter way point of 547 miles, nicely marked by a sign. By the time I reached Knot Maul Branch shelter it had cleared up a bit and as there were some strangers in the shelter I opted to hammock in the camp grounds and luckily the night stayed dry.

Once again Wednesday was wet and misty and turned into a short day. Because of all the rain the trail was turning muddy and slippery and boy did it rain that day! There was a four and a half mile climb up to Chestnut Knob shelter and it rained all the way. Because it was so high up, the clouds made it difficult to see more than twenty yards in front of you and I almost missed the shelter! It was another shelter with a difference, a stone building with a door and when I reached it I knew I wasn't going any further that day! There were already a few people in there cooking their lunches at the table in the middle and not many of them moved on because of the weather. It was still early afternoon when I arrived and as some people had already claimed bunks I threw my stuff on the last available one and that was that. Throughout the afternoon and evening many more people sought refuge and although the poorly designed inside only slept eight we crammed in fifteen, people slept under the bunks, on the table, under the table and one guy Curly hung his hammock between the bunks. Oh and also there were two dogs in there aswell. Later on in the evening there must have been another fifteen camped outside, the bubble of people from trail days was already starting to catch up. Just for an hour the cloud lifted and there was a beautiful sunset before the gloom descended again. Familiar faces there were Rock City, Cup of Tea, Chuckles, Thin Mint, Pteradactyl, Sneaky Pete, Ranger, Norway and Pancake aswell as others including Rocky, Pinecone, Tortuga and Constantine. All in all quite a crowd.

The next morning the gloom lifted and for the first time in what seemed weeks the day was rain free. I covered 15.1 miles with a few hills but not much to see eventually reaching Laurel Creek camp ground at about 4pm. It was one of those lovely little campsites with a picnic table and lots of good camping spots, I got my hammock set up perfectly, had something to eat, washed my feet in the nearby river and felt quite content with a good day. Rock City and Cup of Tea arrived a bit before me and they started to build a fire which later on was a roaring success. Once again Pancake, Thin Mint and her dad and Chuckles were camping and Chuckles girlfriend was visiting and as she had driven up she brought beer, cheese, bread and strawberries. A very pleasant evening to round off a good trail day. 

And so to Friday which was a big day for me for two reasons, more of which later. I started out before 9am after a quick breakfast and soon started sweating going up a short steep climb. Pancake, Rock City and Cup of Tea were all heading into the small town of Bland to re-supply but as I had enough food I carried on past and was once again on my own. The terrain was slightly different as it followed the main road for a while before eventually heading back into the woods for a six mile stretch without any map markings which means you don't really know how far you've covered. I've worked out that on average I do about two miles an hour so I can sort of guess where I am but it's obviously not an exact science. Water was scarce along this stretch, well not so much scarce as none existent but it wasn't hot so I didn't have to carry too much and there was a road with an unreliable water source at the end of the six miles where I had originally planned to camp that night. Anyway, just as I thought I should be reaching the road I was ambling along minding my own business when I heard a loud commotion in the undergrowth just where I had passed. I looked around and my heart raced as I saw two bear cubs followed by their mother running in the opposite direction! I must have walked straight past them. For all of my wanting to see a bear, a mother and cubs is probably not the best thing to come across. My first reaction was not to run but to reach for my camera, however my second reaction was to move quickly. Adrenaline was pumping through me and as I got a little distance I turned and took a quick snap of the mother staring back at me making sure I wasn't following them. I wouldn't say I was scared but I nearly crapped myself and after hurrying down the trail I came to the road and realised what had just happened! It was a truly memorable experience to see these animals in the wild, the mother was a very large bear and would have been very protective of her cubs so to see something like that was a special moment. My original plan to camp near there was out of the window, no way was I camping on my own so close to where they were! Because of this I decided to push on to the next shelter and when I reached it I had covered 18.8 miles, a new personal best! With the adrenaline still pumping my feet and ankles didn't feel too bad and I excitedly told my story to the other hikers already there. It had been due to rain that evening so I bagged the last place in the shelter and felt very satisfied with the day behind me.

It did rain that night and into the next morning and I left Jenny Knob shelter at about 8am but I hadn't slept that well on the hard wooden floor and coupled with the long day before I wasn't really feeling it. My main plan was to go to Trents Grocery which was a half mile off the trail where you could do a small re-supply and get hot food, typical American fare Hot Dogs, Burgers and the such like. With the rain making the trail even wetter and slicker and a long downhill into Trents I was getting more and more angry and frustrated at my slow progress. Half the battle of the trail is as much mental as physical and I wasn't mentally into it that morning and after finally reaching the grocery half a mile off the trail I sat down feeling like I didn't want to go any further for the day. Rock City and Cup of Tea had caught me up and they were feeling exactly the same and when they said they were ringing a shuttle to take them into Pearisburg I jumped at the chance to join them. The days hiking was over before midday with only 6.2 miles covered. Whilst waiting for the shuttle a whole gang of bikers pulled in on a charity run and so there we were bikers and hikers outside a grocery store in the heart of Virginia, an interesting mix! Once we reached town I checked into the motel and chilled out for a while taking my time to sort through my bag. It was only a one night stop as we arranged with the shuttle guy to be picked up again at 9am and taken back to the trail head where we had left. I was going to re-supply but then realised I was coming back to town on Monday and only needed one nights food which I still had. To my surprise Hot Rod and Slow Poke were staying at the same motel so the five of us went out to the Mexican restaurant over the road which was very pleasant, even more so when the twins insisted on picking up the bill! HR and SP are a great pair and kept saying how great it was that their favourite people were all back together. I keep bumping into them and they had travelled with Rock City and Cup of Tea for about a month earlier on in the journey. They later suggested that the three of us skipped forward to rejoin them and travel together in our own little bubble. They had slack packed 20 miles further on from Pearisburg so were over forty miles ahead in total. To be honest I thought about it but after missing those miles earlier it wasn't really something I wanted to do even though it would have been a laugh travelling with them.  The girls remained non committal so I assumed they weren't going to either. I retired fairly early that night and set my alarm for 7am ready to hit the trail again in the morning.

Saturday was supposed to be a nice day and we got to the trailhead at about 9.45 and soon hit Dismal Falls which was a little bit off the trail but worth the extra walking to see another little beauty spot. With the sun shining and a short day the day before I felt pretty good. The  trail was pretty flat until the first shelter of the day and went through a pine forest with lots of little bridges over streams and although it was still very muddy in places I got a good speed going and had covered eight miles in about three hours before stopping for lunch where I met up again with Pancake. Also having lunch were the German couple who I hadn't seen in a few days. The afternoon was a bit more strenuous with a long uphill to tackle but I still managed a good pace until Big Horse Gap where all of a sudden the terrain changed to very rocky and the clouds rolled in again dumping hail, rain, thunder and lightning on me! I was getting sick of the weather, it just seemed to rain every day! Apparently Virginia is known for this but even the locals said this month had been exceptional for the amount they had had. When I got to the road which led to Woods Hole Hostel I saw Rock City waiting and when I asked what she was doing she surprised me by saying she had decided to skip thirty miles to join Hot Rod and Slow Poke and was waiting for a shuttle! Cup of Tea didn't want to so they had split which was a shock as they had been hiking together for a long time. I understood why, as I've said before you have to hike your own hike and do what you feel is right. What's right for one person might not be right for another but I was still surprised, I wished her luck and set off the final 2.3 miles to the shelter. The thunder showers continued and I was relieved when I got to the shelter and found plenty of space but it soon filled up with Pancake, Constantine, Tortuga, Ranger and a few others, so much so that people had to start camping. A couple of other English guys turned up White Noise and John Boy so all of a sudden their was an English bubble. As I'd got there quite late the evening passed quickly and it was soon hiker midnight and time to turn in.

I rolled out of Docs Knob shelter before nine knowing I only had 9.3 miles back into Pearisburg. When I was in town on Saturday I'd booked a room in the Plaza motel for Monday and Pancake was happy to share the room to reduce costs so I didn't need to rush but the morning went well, a couple of nice views which had been lacking so far in Virginia and a steady climb before a very steep downhill which wasn't easy in the mud and I ended up on my arse near the end cursing the conditions again! Myself, Pancake, Cup of Tea and Sneaky Pete hitched a ride into town and Pete asked if he could sleep on the floor to reduce costs even more which was good. We checked in, gave the lady all the laundry and chilled out for the rest of the day. Once again there were a lot of hikers in town so we sat around for a while before going to Hardee's for a burger and then I returned to the room to update Facebook, Twitter and start writing this! It's now Tuesday morning and the decision about what to do today is still to be made. Pancake is waiting for a letter from the UK to be delivered to the Post Office and Pete is waiting for a package. I've still got to re-supply and as my knees are aching it looks like I might stay tonight and head on out in the morning, we shall see! The next re-supply is not for another 95 miles so about six days of food is needed so I'm going to get moving, go shopping and make a decision on what to do. Once again you are all right up to date, hope you're enjoying the journey!

007

Licensed to Hike!!

Made Marion

Hey again, hope everyone is well back home. So the other day I was quite despondent about the prospects of continuing my adventure, well the good news is that later that day a Lady called Desree (trail name Prei) appeared at Woodchuck hostel who it turned out is a massage therapist who helps out hikers at trail days. When she heard of my injury problems she said she'd take a look, so there I was at lunchtime sat on a picnic bench putting my faith in her expertise. She told me that pain in the front of the leg can often stem from problems directly opposite so she started her examination and immediately found some areas around the back of the ankles and calfs that were extremely tight. For about three quarters of an hour she worked her magic manipulating the muscles and tendons and believe me it hurt like hell at times but after she'd done I could immediately feel a marked improvement, there was much more movement and I could literally feel the blood flowing better through my limbs. Within an hour I felt like I had a new pair of legs, the woman was a genius! Don't get me wrong it wasn't perfect but it was the best they'd felt in three weeks. She works on a donation basis and although she said she'd do mine for free I felt obliged to give her a token $20 gesture. She said to give it twenty four hours before hiking again so I was to be in Damascus for another day. I rested up for a while before watching Woodchuck himself and one of his employees playing a game called Cornhole. It's a similiar game to Pétanque whereas you have two wooden platforms twenty yards apart with a hole near the slanted top. Each player has four beanbags and you have to try and get it in the hole. Very simple but not as easy as it looks as I found out! Woodchuck challenged 'the Brit' (which I quickly corrected him to Englishman, as I often have to do!) and after explaining the scoring system (1pt for landing a beanbag on the platform and 3pts for getting it in the actual hole) he proceeded to beat me 21-6 and 21-2 although I did beat Scout 21-0!

The next day my legs still felt good so I was confident enough to re-supply and sort my bag out ready to start hiking again. A few more people started arriving that day for trail days which starts at the weekend and I caught up with Fresh Breath who I seem to keep crossing paths with, Sneaky Pete and a few others. I went for a final burger at Bo Bo McFaddens and packed my bag ready to get going in the morning.

So Tuesday morning after a final few chats with people I set out in the sunshine along the Creeper Trail. It's not exactly the AT but it follows a similiar path and is slightly less strenuous but far more scenic and rejoins with the AT a bit further along. It's an old rail route which is now primarily a cycle track and as it has only a slight incline all the way I thought it would be wiser to take it just to see how the legs held up. It runs alongside a river all the way and after a few hours I stopped at one of the many bridges and soaked my feet in the cold water which was a welcome break. When the two trails joined up again they ran on the same route for a mile before parting and I rejoined the AT properly. I picked off my first tic that afternoon which had attached itself to my arm and I did notice that things were turning greener and wildlife and bugs were becoming more prevelant. At the last bridge before leaving the Creeper Trail I saw my first snakes since I'd been here, two black rat snakes curled up together on the side of the wooden structure basking in the sun. I was ecstatic! I always keep my eyes peeled as I'm walking but this was the first real reptiles I had come across. I caught up with Gypsy Queen, Stealth and Tailspin and it was only a short hike to Lost Mountain Shelter where the days walking ended. I'd covered 15.8 trail miles and both legs felt ok although any longer and I think I'd have been struggling. As I set up my stove behind the shelter I heard this big thud behind me and spun around to see another black snake had fallen out of the tree and landed about two feet behind me. At about five feet long with blue eyes it scared the crap out of me! It slithered under the shelter and an elderly gentleman said not to worry as it would kill any mice that might be around the shelter and they weren't venomous to humans. Easy for him to say, it hadn't nearly become a necklace on him! Apparently they are good for keeping Rattlers away as they go into their nests and eat the young but still after watching it climb another tree I kept a close eye on what was above me for the rest of the evening. It rained heavily that night and that became the pattern for the next few days, mainly dry in the day but wet at night and because of this I decided sleeping in the shelters was the preferred option.

Again I set out on my own the next day, slowly but surely as the overnight rain had made the rocks and roots quite slippery. The terrain had slightly changed, the mountains weren't so big and although it was still up and down quite a bit it certainly didn't seem as tough as the first few weeks. I hit Whitetop mountain at around lunchtime and became engulfed in cloud as the weather quickly changed, it was one of those days where the raincoat was on and off all day, too hot one minute then raining again the next. It was also noticeable how few people were heading North but that day I saw more Southbounders in the single day than I had in the whole eight weeks put together, everyone was heading into Damascus. When I'd started out on Tuesday I was undecided what to do about trails days. On the one hand it would be great to catch up with everyone who id not seen in a while and a couple of days partying would have been nice but on the other Damascus is a very small town of 600 residents with an estimated 20000 people turning up, bedlam! Plus coming out of  Damascus would be a nightmare and as my legs were feeling ok it felt right to carry on hiking, that's what I came out here for! So on the Wednesday I pretty much decided that I was just going to go to Marion and not hitch a ride back. I was doing a lot of thinking that day and in the early evening I can't have been concentrating as for the first time I properly lost the trail. I knew I was only about a mile away from Thomas Knob Shelter and I came out onto a bald and I couldn't see where the trail went, I stood for a minute searching with my eyes and saw a signpost down in the middle. When I got to it it only pointed out horse trails so I looked around again then set off in different directions but still no white blaze. I wouldn't say I was panicking but with hardly any other hikers around and daylight fading I was a little concerned that I would have to set up my hammock and work it out in the morning. Then I gathered my senses and did what I would tell other people to do, re trace your steps and go back to the last white blaze that you saw. Sure enough I went back, found the blaze and realised I'd missed a turn and re found the trail! Not before I'd walked about two miles extra and wasted an hour though. It was a relief to get to the shelter that night, a big shelter that could sleep sixteen but there were only four of us in there. Another interesting day on the trail was over and I was happy with my decision to crack on. 

I got going about nine o clock on Thursday and knew I had the Grayson Highlands national park to look forward to, the previous nights storm had passed and it was looking like a glorious day. Not long into it I came out of the woods and the trail started going over treeless mountain tops and lots of rocky outcrops, one in particular was called Fatmans Squeeze and you had to climb through a short rock tunnel which was different than anything before. After that the Grayson Highlands came and it was a stunning area with wild ponies roaming the grassy tops, there were a few people up there (mainly Southbounders!) and everyone was having their picture took with the miniature horses. It was worth hanging around for a while just to enjoy it all, some people are very fast hikers and think nothing of doing twenty mile days but I prefer to go slower and take it all in, you obviously see more doing it that way. Overall I came across three different pockets of horses, all nonplussed by the people around, and a herd of Long Horned Cattle grazing right next to the trail in the middle of a field. You only walk through about four miles of the national park itself but I stopped for lunch at the next shelter and was just relaxing when a deer came right up close feeding on the bushes and like the cattle it was not at all bothered by human presence, it took one look at me and carried on about its business. That's the thing about hiking on your own, you get more of a chance of such encounters, that's why I like the times when there's not many other people about. It was a grand days hiking in all, lots of animals and different trails, through forest, over highlands and meadows, rocky, flat in places, hilly in places and all in the space of 12.3 miles. As I approached Old Orchard shelter I could see there were people there and when I got there, there was quite a crowd. It turned out there was a Quaker Mormon school outing of about ten people, adults and kids and they didn't seem that pleased to see me after I'd asked about room in the shelter itself. The adults didn't seem that keen to make room although they said all the right things but the rule is that Thru hikers have the right over section hikers to stay in the shelters and as it started to rain heavily I thought I'm not setting my hammock up if I don't have to. Eventually they said they'd set up some tarps and the kids were very happy to do that, more so than the adults! As it turned out surprisingly quite a few others turned up including another fellow Englishman called Pancake from Manchester and his Aussie friend and a group of four lads all of whom were hitching back to Damascus the next morning. So that was it, the school party moved out anyway, not that I felt bad because like I say the adults were pretty arsey anyway! Later that night one of the adults came back up and woke everyone up asking if we had phone service as one of the kids had cut their foot. I hadn't had service for days, the same as everyone else and so they took the strange decision to night hike out of there the two miles to the road with the whole party in tow. It all seemed a bit weird to the rest of us! 

Friday morning the rain eventually abated about nine am but it still wasn't that nice and was very slippery underfoot so I carefully made my way along the trail especially as it was the thirteenth! Surprisingly I started racking up the miles, at the top of Iron mountain my phone finally got signal and I had a few messages asking me to go back to trail days and that got me thinking! Once the thought of town and all its amenities enters your head its hard to shake off and with a major road coming up I had a decision to make. I was always going to stop in Marion which I would reach the next day anyway so the thought grew stronger and by the time I reached Dickey Gap and VA16 I'd decided I was going to hitch a ride. However, I was going to leave it to fate, it's a narrow mountain road so I stuck my thumb out to both directions and thought whoever stops first I will go in that direction. One way to Damascus and the other to Marion. After nearly an hour (nobody wanted to pick up a dodgy looking Englishman!) a guy dropped off two other hikers and he said he'd take me to Marion, so that was that and here I am in town. That was yesterday so this is my second night here, it's been nice, I've had a hotel room to myself and I've realised not all hikers are at trail days, there's a German couple in the next room and I had a couple of beers with a guy called Jeff last night who i previously met at the Laughing Heart. Also Stealth and Tailspin were here and today Bigging and Costa Rica showed up and tonight Rock City and Cupoftea. Seems I wasn't the only one who didn't fancy a big crowd! Marion is quite a nice town, big enough to have all the names but not too big that they aren't within walking distance; Walmart, Ingles, McDonald's and Pizza Hut are all close to the Travel Inn where im staying and I've been in them all over the last twenty four hours. It's turned cold again tonight and says the same tomorrow and rain everyday this next week but I'm heading out in the morning. I've got a lift arranged to take me back to Dickey Gap so as not to miss anymore miles so that means tomorrow night I could be back in Marion! But I won't be, there's a shelter just outside town so that's tomorrow's destination. I've done my re supply and have enough food for the next six days so I won't be back in town. The next town is either Bastion or Bland but I'm only going there to stock up, the plan is to not stop in town until Pearisburg which is approximately 115 miles from where I'm going back to tomorrow so that could mean two weeks without shower, clothes wash or decent food. Time to toughen up again!!

Whilst in town I've not wasted time, I've eaten well, re stocked all my food, bought a pair of shorts and t-shirt from walmarts for five dollars apiece so I could wash all of my clothes for a change, I've attached new guide ropes to my tarp and also bought a new headlamp, again from walmarts (it is so cheap there it's brilliant) as mine had broken. I've bought a new box of ziplock bags and re-bagged everything as they tend to get a bit grim and once again rearranged everything in my pack. I've also showered twice and will do again in the morning. Not to mention I've been writing this in between everything else so that you are right up to date before I head off into the woods again, I've no idea when I will next get phone signal, could be tomorrow, might not be for a week, either way I'll just keep racking up the miles and keep getting closer to my destination (I've passed the 500 mile mark now). I've now been on trail for over seven weeks and it's flown by, touch wood my injury problems are at the moment behind me and I can keep on keeping on. 

I'm yawning my head off here so it's time to bid you goodnight, like I say you're right up to date and tomorrow it's time to get back to some serious hiking! Will update you all when I can.

007

Licensed to Hike

Moving again

Hi all, it's time to fill you in on where I'm at. So the next few days were similar to the last, people came and people went, whilst I felt like a resident at the Laughing Heart Hostel. On the Friday night, my fifth night there, I slept terribly, my shin hurt like hell all night and I was pretty worried it was getting worse but when I dared to look at it my ankle was visibly less swollen. The shin did still hurt but it seemed more manageable, whether it was the ibuprofen or the healing process I don't know but I felt good enough to take a walk through town so went to the outfitters, the supermarket and had a breakfast of pancakes and bacon at the diner!

As I felt better I made a firm decision of what to do. I was going to have to miss fifteen miles plus the six back to Galinfro Gap so what with lost time and wanting to make the Trails Day festival in Damascus on 13 May I decided my best option was to miss out a bigger section which I could come back and complete on another occasion. There are no rules about how you do the trail, some purists would have it that you had to start at one end and finish at the other in one trip and everyone has their own opinion but the facts are that many people do the trail in sections, some start in the middle and then go back to the start when they have finished and some do it in no particular order. The only real rule and the absolute right way to do it is to 'hike your own hike'! So I looked at the guide and chose Hampton Tennessee as my destination. It meant missing out a total of 159.7 miles but also it was less than fifty miles from Damascus and therefore if my leg still wasn't right I had plenty of time to do some short days and still make trail days. There it was, I was happy and at ease with my decision and I could still be a two thousand miler this year. Solo, the hostel owners husband, was doing a shuttle pick up in Erwin on Tuesday and had already mentioned that I could get a lift with him as he was taking a fellow hiker Stoney with him aswell. Once I told him of my plans he rubbed his chin and said he'd got friends in Hampton and that if we left on Monday he could stop the night there and do his pickup on Tuesday still. More brilliant luck and he said as I'd paid enough in staying there he wouldn't charge me for the shuttle. I felt much better knowing a plan was in place and that one way or another I would be back on the move soon. Although the Laughing Heart is a lovely place with very helpful owners I was getting a little stir crazy, I needed to get moving again. I met a whole host of new people whilst I was there aswell as the two English guys mentioned later; a lovely woman called Joules who in her sixties was doing the trail for the second time and was everyone's trail mum, Slam, Wheels and Heavy D to mention a few and also caught up with old friend Rock Steady.

Sunday was my last full day at the Laughing Heart and I was up at 5.30am drinking coffee on the porch. There were a couple of fellow Englishmen arrived, London Jack and a guy who's name I don't recall who had lived in Georgia for the last twenty five years; he was a Burnley fan and Jack a gooner. We watched the United v Leicester game on his phone and it was good to watch a bit of football. I'd lost touch over the weeks with what was going on but as the hostel had good wifi I had been able to catch up with results and tables from all the divisions. Was also good to talk football with a couple of people and when I say football I mean football not soccer as they refer to it out here! Later on I had a walk down to the diner for pancakes and bacon again and met a few more people who just wanted to talk because they loved my accent! They don't get many English people around these parts so a lot  of people want to chat. It's nice in a way, that little taste of being a celebrity again!! The main thing about the walk though was to test the leg and the good news was that I was starting to walk normally again without too much discomfort, I started to believe I was on the mend. That night I went to the tavern for dinner, Sandals, Snail, Optimist, Purple Mist and Paddington invited me to join them and I had a lovely burger and a couple of beers before heading back and realised my leg wasn't as good as I'd thought, maybe it was wishful thinking or maybe the ibuprofen had taken away the pain but the reality was at that point carrying a fifty pound pack on my back wasn't going to help. Next morning I went through my pack and left some of my cold weather clothes at the hostel and reduced my weight to 40lb with food and water, still on the heavy side compared to some but more manageable and hopefully easier on the body. After taking a final few pictures and saying my goodbyes it was time to go. Laughing Heart hostel had been a lovely place to stay but I'd never envisaged that I would be staying in one place for a week, as I've said before I came out here to hike not to be sitting around on holiday as such. Saying that, injuries occur and you have to deal with it, the amount of people coming through with similiar injuries to me was incredible. Two other guys were also taking time off there when I left with exactly the same problem. The other problem is that when you are stood still you are spending money, In the woods there's nowhere to do that but in town it's a different story!

At midday Solo, myself, Scout and Stony set off on our road trip to Hampton, although its 153.1 miles hiking it only took about an hour by road. We stopped off at Uncle Johnnys in Erwin where I caught up with Pebbles and Purple Bear and on the way out of town we saw Wild Horse sat outside the supermarket. It was an interesting journey through the mountains, a real insight into the American way of life; homes made of corrugated tin, scrap cars in yards, run down barns; imagine every horror film you've seen and you get the picture. Once we got to Hampton Solo stopped at McDonald's and that was honestly the first time I'd been there since I arrived in America. Hampton was much smaller than I had imagined and Solo drove us up into the mountains to Kincora Hostel which is owned by a guy called Bob Peoples, another trail veteran now retired who allows hikers to stay for a donation of five dollars. Bob wasn't there at the time so Solo shot straight off, he'd had a change of plan and needed to get back to Hot Springs to do a shuttle run. 

Once I sat down, I got my book out and realised that I was still 8.6 miles short of my planned restart. The Laughing Heart was by far the cleanest, nicest hostel id been to whereas Kincora wasn't! Don't get me wrong Bob is a very kind man to allow hikers to stay for such a small fee but the hostel was very basic, pretty run down, not very clean and had a unique odour about it! There were 17 (seventeen) feral cats roaming the place and they certainly added to the smell. It was a very very different experience to which I'd been used to and I realised I'd become institutionalised in some respects! As I'd showered in the morning I decided I would probably stay cleaner than if I showered there! To be honest if it hadn't started raining not long after we got there I'd have started hiking but with a big storm forecast the one thing I could say was at least I could stay dry for another night, as I said I think I'd become slightly institutionalised or some might say soft! Scout and Stony decided to move on but I still hadn't decided whether to stick to my original plan and skip through town and restart at Watauga Lake. Later on when the rain came down even more I went to my bunk happy that all my gear was staying dry- at least for the night.

Tuesday morning I didn't waste any time leaving the hostel and rejoined the trail just down the road. The weather still wasn't great but at least it wasn't raining (much) and a couple of miles in I came across Laurel Falls which on a brighter day would have been even more beautiful but was still a nice sight. I caught up with Scout and Stony although the later headed back into town at the road. So Scout and I set off around Lake Watagua which was much larger than I expected. There were signs up everywhere stating of the closure of the shelter and a a four mile stretch of the trail where there was no loitering, camping or picnicking due to bear activity in the area. Now there are bears all across these states but at times they become accustomed to humans and their food so the authorities are extra cautious at these spots and this was one of those. After the no stopping zone was Wilbur Dam, another fine piece of architecture that you had to walk across giving some more great views and not long after that more trail magic. A couple with a white pick up dishing out Minute Maid soft drinks, crisps, oranges and cookies; once again very welcomed and just providing that extra energy to walk the three more miles to the next spring where I had set my mind to camp near. Once again the guide seemed to be telling porkies as those three miles seemed to be far longer than the previous three and my first day back on trail ended with hammock up, food cooked, water sorted and food bag hung and 12.6 miles under the belt which was more than I'd anticipated and wanted to do! 

I finally got moving next morning at nine am and my plan was for an easier day, my ankle was a bit stiff and I knew I'd done too much the day before but sometimes there can be long gaps without a water source and you really do need water for cooking aswell as drinking so it really is wise to stop quite close to it. I was still traveling with Scout and I told him I wasn't going any further than the next but one shelter and he was happy with that plan. He shot off and when I caught him up at Iron Mountain Shelter I found Nina there whom I'd met right at the very start of my journey and not seen since Franklin. She is now known as Gypsy Queen and it was nice to catch up and discuss how the trail had been treating us! Another cold night was forecast with possible snow so as I'd got to the shelter at about 3pm there was plenty of time to get a good fire going, get well fed and we even put a plastic sheet across the front of the shelter to try and keep some warmth in. If I haven't said before most shelters are just 3 sided wooden buildings which can leave you exposed to the elements. Later on a couple of guys came up who were camping a few minutes away and I recognised one as a guy i met on my very first morning at Amicalola. He had just finished a short hike to Springer and back that day and offered me plenty of advice sat at the picnic tables all those miles ago and here he was section hiking with a friend! It really is amazing how you meet people again and again down the trail and he was interested to know how I'd been getting on and even gave me his number in case I needed any help in the future. Once again it proved how trail people are quite unique in their camaraderie and willingness to help each other out. I was surprised no one else came along that night so the three of us had the shelter to ourselves, well sort of, we had to share with a number of mice!! Sure enough it pelted down most of the night and was bitterly cold, not what I'd expected at this time of year!

The next morning was also very cold, my hands were freezing untying the bear bag and although it was quite late by the time we got moving Scout and I left Gypsy Queen there and started hiking out hoping to warm up. Three miles in we came to a main road which led straight into Damascus and Scout decided to hitch a ride in as he was out of fuel and food and although the idea of a hot shower, warm bed and clean clothes was tempting I really didn't want to miss any more miles. As I already said I thought I was going soft so chose to hike on on my own through the cold weather and figured I could still get to town in a couple of days.

The next part of the trail was a first, a wander through a field of cows! As some people commented on Facebook it looked like Lincolnshire itself but having taken the opportunity to call home I found out that England was much warmer right now which was rather annoying! Here I was freezing cold and back home everyone was in t-shirts and shorts. Great! Once I reached the next shelter I stopped to make something to eat, it wasn't raining and I'd got some dry wood in my pack so I figured if I made my Ramen and Mash then it would make life easier later. Unusually I'd hardly seen another soul all day, I must have been between bubbles and although being on my own didn't bother me Double Springs Shelter started to feel a bit on the lonely side! The next shelter was eight miles away and that seemed a long way off but at 4pm I decided to set out and see how far I got. Before I got over the crest of the hill it started to rain and I took that as a sign to stop and go back, the forecast wasn't good and as I'd been fifty fifty I felt some other force was telling me to stay. So that was that, I'd made up my mind, I unpacked my sleeping gear, put all my clothes on and bedded down for the night. I think it was the coldest I'd been on trail and just as I thought I'd be spending the night on my own a guy called Twisted appeared through the rain. I'd first met him at the cat hostel so a familiar face was welcome, later on  a group of three appeared and then a father and daughter also came through the cold and rain but overall that day was the least number of people I'd seen in any one day. The mist rolled in and with no phone signal I was wrapped up in my sleeping bag by 6.30pm and had only covered 7.6 miles. 

Friday morning the mist hadn't cleared and it was still very cold and gloomy but I had to get moving. Tinman kindly made me a coffee to set me on my way and I gradually warmed up through setting a good pace. After three and a half miles I reached Low Gap and was greeted by Trail Magic. A firefighter from Louisiana called Mark had Hamburgers, Hotdogs, Gumbo, cold drinks, muffins, honey buns, crisps and other snacks. He was 54 years of age and had driven ten and a half hours just to be there giving away all this free food to hikers. He also knew a lot about Football so we had a good chat. I asked him what made him do this and he told me that he'd always wanted to hike the trail and that when he retired in three years he was going to fulfil his ambition but until then he was going to come back each year and do the same. It was his way of forward payback and if the karma he got from doing this allowed him to Thru hike then that was good enough for him. It was his second day and he'd slept out in the cold all night just to be there for early morning hikers. People like Mark never cease to amaze me and it really does restore your faith in humanity. What a top bloke!

I reluctantly left his gazebo and food and started out again, I'd been told the next section was one of the easiest on the trail and although it would mean doing an eighteen mile day I wanted to reach Damascus and avoid another cold night in the woods. That day (yesterday) I got rained on, snowed on, hailed on, buffeted by wind and was cold most of the day but I reached town by six pm just as the heavens opened once more. I found a bunk at the Hikers Inn and showered, put my clothes in the laundry and went for a meal and a beer with Slowpoke and Hot Rod, who I hadn't seen in nearly a month, Nature, Smiling Don and Twisted. I also saw Just Rich who again I hadn't seen in ages, met Hawaii who also liked English Football and chatted with a few locals who once again were intrigued by meeting an Englishman in deep Virginia. Oh yes, I forgot to mention that I'd passed through the border and was now in State number four! I retired back to the bunk and was in bed by 9.30pm.

However, there was one big problem, although my right ankle had started to feel better, the eighteen mile day and over compensation on my left leg had given me exactly the same feeling in that ankle and I hoped upon hope that it was just temporary from a long day. 

So onto today, as soon as I woke up I could feel the stiffness in both legs but the left one was worse, unfortunately I knew that feeling too well and sure enough as soon as I started walking on it I knew I'd got exactly the same problem in both now. I was gutted. I knew I couldn't afford another week off and after posting my worries and fears on Facebook I had to set out to find somewhere else to stay as the Hikers Inn was full tonight. I managed to find another bunk at Woodchuck Hostel and had to cart my gear over here very slowly as I really didn't want to make things worse. A couple of hours ago I went to the outfitters to see if they could give me any advice on what to do but as I suspected they said either take a few days off again or better still go to the clinic to get checked out properly. The guy wasn't even sure it is shin splints, it may be that I've strained all the tendons instead which if so also requires rest. I'm reluctant to go to the clinic as even though I have insurance I will still have to make the initial payout and I suspect they will also advise me to stay off it for a while as most people say that's the best course of action. I've bought some compression socks and heat pads and am lying on the bunk writing this hoping for some miracle cure. There is no swelling like there was in Hot Springs but the way it feels would make hiking up mountains either very painful or worse still impossible. I really hope I don't have to stop right now as although I will still be very proud of what I've achieved so far it is still early into the adventure and I still feel I have many more miles left in me yet. I just hope my ankles and legs feel the same way. 

Okay, you're right up to date now, the news isn't great but we shall see what tomorrow brings. All hope isn't lost but things need to improve dramatically and quickly otherwise I could be coming home much earlier than I want. Let's hope the next update is me moving along the trail again. Fingers crossed. 

Hope you're all still enjoying the read.

007

Licensed to Hike. (Hopefully)

A little footnote, if you read my earlier blogs you will recall me mentioning a guy called Baltimore Jack who I met in Hiawassee and Franklin. Sadly he passed away last week. 

RIP Jack.

Coming to a standstill.

Hello!.. Although Gatlinburg was a typical American tourist attraction I was slightly disappointed that I didn't spend more time there. We arrived on the Tuesday lunchtime and left Wednesday morning so although we had a night there it wasn't really a day off because we'd walked over 5 miles Tuesday and even though we didn't start until midday on Wednesday we still did 10.2 miles. It was very tempting to stop another night and if I'm honest I regretted not doing so halfway through Wednesday, it turned out to be very hot again with, yes you've guessed it, more long climbs which had me sweating and swearing! One thing I noticed more that day was that at touristy places like Newfound Gap (there were bus loads of people there) loads of people approach you and ask 'y'all thru hikers?' 'You going all the way to Maine?' 'How long you been on the trail?' and a good one for me 'Where you from?' some even want to take photos of you! It really is like you are a celebrity! Very strange but weirdly uplifting although some of the time you just want to keep your stride going and not stop. I arrived at Pecks Corner Shelter late that night and was surprised at how many people were already there. It seemed Gatlinburg had been a popular stopping point for many people and it had created a bit of a bubble, there must have been about 30 others there and naturally the shelter was full so I had to set my hammock up. What with regretting not staying another night, arriving late, having to set up camp and hurting feet again I wasn't in the best of moods. Most people were talking about going about 12 miles the next day and because I'm not as fast as a lot of the younger ones (did I really say that? I'm getting old!) I knew it would be the same again the next night. With the weather forecast for rain the next night I decided there and then that I was only going 4.9 miles to Tri-Corner Knob Shelter the next day. I wanted to secure a place in the shelter, at least I would be dry if the rain did come. Pebbles kindly collected me some wood for my stove as she had gotten there early so was all done and I managed to just get everything done before dark and hiker midnight (9pm). 

The next morning I had a lie in as I knew I wasn't going far, I didn't get out of my hammock until 9.30am. My sleeping patterns don't seem to have sorted themselves out, I'd lain awake until well gone midnight even though I was shattered and yet I could have slept longer in the morning, I really don't know what that's all about. It's very frustrating. 

So on Thursday the 4.9 miles were done by 3pm although once again the majority of it was uphill. The wind had picked up and the temperature was dropping so I was more than happy with a short day, the next shelter was a way away and I certainly didn't fancy another late night. The sun was still out, my feet were ok and it felt good to have time to sort everything out early for a change. There were already four people in the shelter and gradually throughout the afternoon and evening it filled up but there were only a couple of people outside camping so we'd lost the crowd thankfully. When I say we I mean our group had split again, Brother Blood never  came into Gatlinburg at all so he was ahead and Pebbles, Vino, Norway and Scout were now at least one shelter in front. As for Frisbee, Stubbs, Hollywood, Hatchet and Strider they were at least a full day in front by now. So that left me and Cheddar, Refill (not sure if I've mentioned him before) and some new faces Up and Kenwood and Thumper and Texas Hillbilly. The predicted rain came down heavy that night and into the next morning but I'd decided that at some point I was going to get wet so geared up and set off from Tri-Corner Knob shelter earlyish, whether it was down to the rain or not I don't know but by just after midday I'd covered 7.7 miles and reached the next shelter where I took a break. I was already wet and it was very early and I didn't want to waste a good morning so set out again. I was getting cold and knew that hiking would warm me up, it had stopped raining for a while so I was confident of getting to Davenport Gap shelter. As I made the descent I realised that I was coming down into the clouds which was a bit surreal and sure enough it was pouring down again in no time, most of the afternoon was downhill as this was the end of the smoky mountains. I carried on through the rain and after a while I thought I must be near the bottom and I came across a sign, thinking it was to the shelter imagine my disappointment when it said 2.9 miles more! I was gutted so sat down on a log had a drink and ate a snickers bar. When I finally did reach the shelter I had decided that I would stay there for the night, I couldn't face another 3.5 miles to Standing Bear Hostel but it was cold, I was soaked and there was no dry wood for fire. A few people turned up including Sneaky Pete and Stripes and when I overheard them say her mum was coming to pick them up and take them to Hot Springs I couldn't resist asking if there was room to drop me at the hostel! Sure enough Stripes said it wouldn't be a problem and I was happy to be headed somewhere warm and dry. It was nearly two hours later and getting dark when her mum turned up and although it was actually dark when she dropped me off I was eternally grateful for the lift. I'd still covered 15.7 miles that day which wasn't too bad in the rain but I was to pay for it later.

Standing Bear was a hostel with a difference, very rustic, a bit like a sprawling farm with many different shape and sized buildings. It was also very busy so the only available sleeping space was in a large outbuilding where you just picked a space on the floor! Very basic! Also when I retrieved my sleeping bag from the bottom of my bag it was soaked from all the rain. I made a mental note to get a bin liner for future rain, once again I'd learnt a valuable lesson, you're never too old to learn new tricks. I still slept ok thanks to my under quilt and a couple of well earned cans of beer! The next morning I dried my stuff out, restocked and then slack packed the 3.5 miles I'd missed the previous evening. Slack packing is when you do part of the trail without your pack, a perfectly legal thing to do! As Standing Bear wasn't the most salubrious of places I decided to move on that afternoon and at least start the 5 mile climb to Snowbird Mountain with the idea of stopping at a campsite halfway up. That was the good thing about leaving the smokies, you were back to being able to camp where you wanted without restrictions. I set off with Wokman at about 2pm and unexpectedly reached the top without  too much effort where there was an Air traffic control tower in the middle of a bald which offered more great views. As I was still feeling good I thought I'd head to Groundhog Creek Shelter a further 2.5 miles away. The only problem was that that downhill started to cause pain in the join of my foot and ankle. At the time I didn't think too much of it, once I got to the shelter I figured I'd be okay in the morning and went to sleep in my hammock happy with the 6.9 miles. 

Saturday morning I awoke and gingerly stepped out of my hammock hoping to feel no pain but it still felt uncomfortable. Still I hoped I'd be able to walk it off and as the first part of the day was uphill I managed ok up to a beautiful place called Max Patch Bald. Yet again stunning views from the top for 360 degrees and an added bonus of trail magic twice! Once leading up, a guy who I met in Hiawasee called Cliffhanger was dishing out beers which on a hot day was very welcome and then on top of Max Patch a young couple were giving out sandwiches, fruit and yet more beer! Bonus! I stayed on the top for an hour or so and started down the other side hoping to get as far as possible but as soon as I started going downhill the pain returned with a vengeance. At this point I was hiking with Stonebridge and he slowed down to keep pace with me and throughout the day we managed 11.6 miles and stopped by a stream and camped for the night with a guy called John. As it was a clear night I didn't put up my tarp and lay in my hammock looking at the stars. Although my leg was hurting still it was a nice night, this was what it was all about. 

The next day I realised that my ankle was turning into a bit of a problem, a few people had said it sounded like tendonitis and that rest was the best treatment and this sounded about right but I knew I was only 14.6 miles from Hot Springs and a good place to rest so I pushed on on my own hoping to get as close as possible. There were two problems though, one it was all downhill which was the most painful and two Hot Springs was inundated with people because of an out of control fire just north of the town which had closed a 15 mile stretch of the trail and had had to be evacuated so I was unsure whether there were any rooms available in town. By 4.30 I'd only managed 8 miles to Galinfro Gap and I was in absolute agony. I stopped at the gap which had a small road and not long after a couple of other hikers caught up and called me a shuttle into town. I just couldn't do anymore at that stage. A lovely woman called Ruth came and fetched me, took me to town and promised me she would find me somewhere to stay. Luckily because there was no chance of the trail re opening any time soon people had started shuttling 15 miles north to Allen Gap where the trail was open so when Ruth took me to the Laughing Heart hostel there was room for me. 

And here I am three days later still at the Laughing Heart, feeling frustrated watching people come and go. To be honest it's a very nice place and there are a lot worse places to be stuck but it is still a bit of a downer. 

When I got here Cheddar, Pebbles, Wild Horse and Stonebridge were all here but they have all left today. Scout turned up yesterday as did Sunshine and Purple Bear and then today my old friend Rock Steady turned up and it was great to see him. Giggles and Sneaky Pete have both passed through and i also caught up briefly with Strider, Frisbee, Stubbs and Wokman. A whole new bubble of people have passed through since I've been here aswell. And also yesterday a couple called Brett and Lonnie appeared again, I'd met them a couple of weeks ago at a shelter, then again the morning at Standing Bear and then again here. The unusual thing about that was that they are section hikers and not going in any particular order so to bump into them so often was unusual. Lovely couple who it was a pleasure to spend time with.

On my first day here I hobbled into town to the laundrette and down to the river. Also got a bit of shopping in but since then I've had to sit here with ice on my lower leg whilst elevating it! Miss Janet is another trail legend and she had a look at it the other night and immediately said it was a shin splint. I felt like a naughty schoolboy being told off when she accused me of pushing too hard and not stretching properly! The thing is you are putting your body under so much stress with walking mile after mile everyday that injuries are likely to occur, the amount of knee and foot problems people have is incredible. I'm just hoping this clears up soon and I can get moving again. 

The fire was still going when I arrived in town, the smoke was billowing out the mountains, I thought I'd passed the smokies but apparently not! At this point there are many rumours about how it started but it's not for me to speculate. One thing I do know is the other night you could see what looked like the whole mountain ablaze as the firefighters did a controlled burn to try and halt it. It was quite a sight from the hostel and not something I expected to see. There was a rain storm last night and it seems to have put out most of the blazes, the mountain is clear of smoke so who knows, maybe the AT will open again soon. 

As for me I've had countless advice about what to do to help the recovery and it does seem slightly less swollen today. I certainly don't think I'll be going anywhere until at least Saturday which is a bit crappy, I'm currently going stir crazy confined to this hostel, I came out here to hike not sit around doing nothing all day. Although it has given me the time to talk to you. So here I am sat on the porch with my foot in the air with an ice pack on it just waiting it out. It is nice and warm here though!

007 

Licensed to Hike! (Hopefully!)

How it all came about

Well this is a suprise! Two quick blogs. I can't sleep so I thought I'd tell the tale of how this idea began.

It was June last year when I first read about the Appalachian Trail. There was a holiday review in the paper about a two week section hike of this huge trail in America and at first I was intrigued then interested and finally hooked! Now anyone who knows me knows that two week holidays aren't my thing. I haven't been on a proper holiday in a long long time and so therefore I wasn't really interested in the two week aspect of it, once I knew what it was all about I wanted to do the whole thing!

Over the next few months I started researching the trail; reading articles, watching YouTube videos and generally gaining as much information as I could. I didn't tell anyone properly until October, it was exciting to think about but really still a dream, it was hard to even imagine the enormity of it all. Once id started telling people, I carried on researching and waited for the flaw in my plan to become evident but strangely it didn't appear and come  December I started the on line application for a US visa. An Esta allows 3 month travel but because the trail was 2189 miles long and would take between 5 and 7 months I obviously needed longer so a B2 visa was needed. The form took ages to fill in and there were many parts I had no answers to but my sister helped me and I completed as much as I could and set an interview date for January 19. 

Over the Christmas period I put it on the backseat a bit, I was a bit concerned about whether I'd qualify for a visa so I thought I would wait until after the interview before going any further although I did get a few trail related presents; a new watch, a Swiss Army knife (which has been invaluable) and a first aid kit (which thankfully so far hasn't been needed) and a new camera.

By the time Jan 19 came round I had read up so much about the interview process that I had convinced myself they were never going to give me the visa I needed, that's the pessimist in me! I travelled to London by train arriving at Kings Cross two and a half hours before my interview so decided to walk to the Embassy (I mean walking was what it was all about, wasn't it?!). When I finally arrived there, still nearly an hour early, the queue outside must have been 250 people so I registered and thankfully they didn't turn me away and joined the queue. One hour later I was being ushered through security and made my way to reception where I was given a number and then had to wait in a huge room and watch this big screen for your number and which window you had to go to! That initial call was a few basic questions and then you had to sit and wait to be called again. Finally, nearly three hours after I'd started to queue my second call came, again you were called to a window and the guy asked me why I wanted to travel to America so I told him and he said 'a couple of my buddies are doing that this year, you might see them'; at that point I realised I'd been worrying about nothing! A couple of questions later and he informed me my application was successful and enjoy my visit to the States! I was gobsmacked, I couldn't believe I'd been worrying so much, job done, visa secured. Now there really was nothing stopping me!!

In between work over the next couple of months I researched and bought lots of equipment including a bio lite stove which runs on twigs only and does work very well as a phone charger aswell but unfortunately is a bit heavy! I'm sticking with it though, in getting used to the weight in my bag. I also purchased a hammock and tarp from DD Hammocks, I'd made the bold decision to not go with a tent (varying degrees of success and failure as you've already read) and I'm still not sure it was the right decision but the new under quilt I have bought could save the day. Hopefully.

Other bits and bobs were attained but I couldn't decide whether to get a new backpack or stick with the trusty old thing which I'd had for years and had served me well in South Africa. So on February 10 i caught the train to Nottingham to check out a few camping stores and see what they had to offer. To be honest that part of the day was a complete failure as they didn't have what I was after so I came back empty handed. However, I'd been looking at flights online for a while but because I wanted to fly into Atlanta and fly out from up north I hadn't found anything suitable and my neighbours daughter told me to try Trailfinders who also had a store in Nottingham. I went in with the sole intention of just enquiring but after half an hour I came out of the place with a flight booked for March 22! I'd done it, the final big part of the plan was complete, £705 spent on an open return and I was on my way to America for the first time in my life!! 

I then registered with the AT Conservancy to start the approach trail on March 24 and they sent me my Thru Hiker hangtag. After yet more online research I decided to get a new backpack and ordered an Osprey Atmos 65 which I have been very pleased with. Even now a month into the adventure I'm still learning things about my purchase. Some might say it's too big but I'm happy with it and that's the main thing. I then confirmed with my employer my plans, handed my notice in and the rest you know if you've been reading my blog. 

So there it is, the story of how I came to be walking through the Appalachian mountains. I hope that's answered any questions you might have had about why I'm here doing what I'm doing. Some might say it's a mid life crisis, I would prefer to call it one last hurrah before I'm too old to enjoy such a trip but having met many people who are much older than me doing the same thing who knows??

What I would say is that so far it's been hard work, probably one of the hardest physical things I've done in my life, however also one of the most enjoyable and rewarding and I'm so pleased I read about the Appalachian Trail when I did. And if any one of you reading this fancy a life change, be it a new job, a long holiday or something completely different don't be scared, be brave, go for it, you only live once, believe me you won't regret it. I don't. 

007

Licensed to Hike!