It ain't easy

It definitely hit me a few days ago.  I was pushing to do fifty miles in two days (after 150 miles in about 9 days with constant rain) and for the first time felt frustrated and annoyed as I was struggling to get to Daleville.  The day before I started in the rain and had to cross about two miles of rocky, steep, slippery ridge line early in the morning about 40 miles before Daleville.  The rain, soggy feet, the fact that I fell a few times, and the unsafe route through the ridge line started my frustration.  I started thinking to myself, "Is it not enough that us hikers are doing 2200 miles?  Why the need to make us rock scramble a very unsafe ridge line? Honestly, you could slide right off one of these rocks.  For what? A little view?"  Honestly, I think it would be best if they made alternate routes around some of these ridges as I'm certain many hikers have gotten unnecessarily hurt walking them.

After the morning fun I made it down the ridge line, across the valley, and up to the Audie Murphy monument.  For those unaware, he was the most decorated American soldier in WWII.  As a kid I was a fan of Audie Murphy and had seen a few of his movies.  Yet, I wasn't sure why he had a monument in Virginia when he was a Texan.  However, as I climbed the mountain I remembered he had died in a plane crash.  Consequently, I figured this monument had something to do with that.  It was a nice little monument, complete with a flag pole, view, and benches to sit on.  As I took a lunch break and quietly thanked Murphy for his service, various weekenders started showing up.  I chatted with most of them and one was kind enough to give me a peanut butter and honey sandwich. After drying out some of my gear I hit the trail again.

I walked across another valley and finally showed up near the dragons tooth.  After an exhausting up hill, lots of rocks, and some scrambling I came to a view on a cliff side.  It was big enough for me to stretch out and eat some dinner.  This day was quickly coming to an end and I was certainly feeling it but I still hadn't made it to the dragon tooth side trail (half a mile off the AT).  After packing up my gear I started heading up the trail.  As I thought, I wasn't but a quarter mile from the dragons tooth trail.  I decided to bypass it and just head down the mountain.  Well, that was easier said than done.  The path down was harder and riskier than the early morning cliffs.  For the next half a mile I had to walk along one foot wide rock walls, slide down some of them, and others were such a drop that metal rungs were bolted to the wall to help with the process.  Again my frustration picked up as I thought this path was unnecessarily dangerous too.  After making it down this mountain and through another valley darkness slowly came.  Earlier in the day I thought about walking all night, but, I decided to turn in around 11pm in what seemed to be someone's backyard.  In hindsight, I should of just kept going because I didn't get any sleep.

The next morning I got up as soon as the sun came up.  Quickly, I realized I hadn't gone as far as I had thought the previous day because of all the rock scrambles (slows you down a lot).  Since I was set on making it to Daleville that day it meant I had almost 28 more miles to do.  As I started walking my frustrations returned.  I started running into silk worm strands every 20 yards.  I spent the next 2 hours wiping what feels like spider webs off my arms and face.  Somehow, I managed to go 12 miles before 10am and make it to McAffee Knob.  What a view!  It's a cliff that over looks a valley about 15 miles outside of Roanoke.  I'd say there were about 40 people (mostly day hikers) sitting on the knob enjoying the view.  While the view was great, all I could think about was Daleville.  I enjoyed the view for another half hour then hit the trail again.  

The next six miles were easy hiking but the last few to the top of Tinker Cliffs is when I started to hit my first wall.  I was having to stop and catch my breath a every hundred yards, I was hungry, thirsty, and lethargic.  I finally made it to the cliffs and laid down.  This time all I was thinking about was a gallon of water and the meal replacement bar in my pocket. Of course to get the water I craved I needed to get to the next shelter.  Luckily, that shelter was downhill from where I was sprawled out.  After catching my breath I hauled ass to that next shelter.  When I got there I chugged what felt like two gallons of water and forced down that Met-Rx bar (its like 3x the size of a powerbar) I was thinking about. Like the day before, I thought I had gone further than I had... so naturally I thought the rest of the way to Daleville was going to be easy.  The first stretch was, but then the trail started uphill again. My frustration started again as I saw other trails leading around the hills when mine went up.  Then the trail started going up higher to power line views.  I started cursing out loud... "I don't need to see power lines!  I just want to get to Daleville!"  I finally got to the last power line and collapsed.  My hands were shaking (low blood sugar?), my body running on fumes, and my feet aching like crazy.  I sat for 15-20 minutes trying to rehydrate and compose myself mentally.  I didn't come 26 miles in one day to stop at 5pm two miles short of my destination.  I put my shoes back on and started slowly walking down the hill.  At some point I stepped oddly on a rock but didn't think much of it.  Eventually, I got down to the last mile but that's when my foot started to hurt and I started feeling a little nauseous.  That last mile was brutal because I had to constantly stop, put my hands on my knees, and catch my breath.  I thank the gods that the trail dumped out right next to the Howard Johnson Inn.

I went to the front desk and started the check in process.  However, I had to stop and sit down at one point because i was going to throw up / pass out.  Eventually, I finished the check in and hobbled to my room (my foot was hurting bad now).  I ordered a pizza, jumped in the bath, downed some fluids, and then just laid in bed.  I knew my body had gone the limit when my hands started to cramp while eating.  What a day I thought to myself.  Heck... what a week!

Mmmmm Pizza...

Six year southbound hiker

On my way up the mountains after leaving Pearisburg Virginia I met an amazing southbound hiker.  We got to talking and I found out that the last time he saw his friends and family was six years ago at a lake in Maine.  I asked the obvious question, "Why so long?"  He told me that he won't return home until he's done and they aren't accustomed to traveling long distances.

He seemed sad and looked a little green when talking about his friends and family so I tried steering the conversation in another direction.  I noticed he was traveling light and therefore wondered if he was working on and off as he hiked.  He told me that he doesn't, but he's been taking his time and living off the land.  I was impressed... I haven't bumped into anyone like that yet.  Supposedly he eats whatever nature provides and drinks his water straight from the streams unfiltered.  A true outdoors man in my book.

One thing I did notice is that he had a very unique shelter.  He told me he made it himself and that it was completely weather proof.  He said he was very protective of it because he made it himself, and it was about the only piece of gear he had.  A few times he's had to snap at people to keep them away from it.

The topic eventually switched to bears.  I told him that I'd only seen a small cub and never really had an issue.  He told me a huge bear came into his camp at night.  He supposedly tried to hide in his shelter but the bear flipped it over with him inside it.  However, the bear left him alone after that and both him and his shelter were unharmed.  That's definitely the craziest bear encounter I've heard yet out here.

We talked about food for a while but his appetite I found kind of disgusting.  I asked if he ever went into town for some good o'l American food?  He said, "No. Never."  He mentioned that he finds crossing the street way to dangerous and that people treat him differently than everyone else.  I didn't want to dig into that one.

Before I hiked on I asked what his trail name was.  He said, "Michelangelo!"  Interesting name, so I asked him how he got that one.  He said, "We'll my favorite movie growing up was Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Michelangelo was his favorite... plus I am pretty smart for having such a small head."  I laughed at that and then wished him a good safe hike.

Below is a picture of what Michelangelo looked like... pretty rugged dude if you ask me.

Rest, Sweat, & Pong

After staying in Marion for three days to rest my leg I moved a few miles down the road to Atkins and checked into the Comfort Inn for another two days.  Why? It was nicer, cheaper, and closer to the trail.  Wednesday I finally took to the trail with my leg feeling about 90%.  After walking down the shoulder for 3 miles (to get to the trail) I ran into No Name and Homeward Bound.  The three of us decided to get some burgers at a restaurant close to the trail that looks like a barn.  After a gallon of water, a burger, fries, and a salad I felt like a million dollars.

After the good lunch I hit the trail.  After a mile I detoured a bit to check out Davis Cemetery.  According to the sign it dates back to the early 1700s.  Being the history nerd I am I had to check it out.  Unfortunately, the oldest graves were very worn down but, I did get a picture of some others.  After the cemetery I bumped into Nothing Man and Night Train twelve miles down the trail at a pavilion.  Apparently, they had received trail magic a few hours earlier.  As luck would have it though, I woke up the next morning to a repeat.  Some very nice Methodists from various states and Pastor Alan cooked us some hot dogs and burgers.  Come to find out, the hiker Hardtack is part of their group.  After the good eat'in and company I finally hit the road at 12:30.

After a swim in a creek, a really long uphill, and 500 attacks by horse flies I made it to a beautiful bald and Chestnut Knob shelter.  The view from the bald was amazing.  Furthermore, the skies were clear and begging for some star gazing.  Therefore, I set my tent and waited for darkness (9pm).  Unfortunately, when I stuck my head out to check the view clouds had rolled in.  Another hiker (Ghost) that was cowboy camping had said that the clouds had dispersed an hour later.  However, I had passed out by 9:05 from exhaustion so I missed that show.

The next day I pumped out a brutal 15 miles.  Why brutal?  Because there were no good water sources for 9 miles and it was hot.  I eventually made it to the creek near Jenkins shelter, drank a gallon of water, ate, and laid down for an hour.  I tried to get a nap in but the horse flies wouldn't allow that.  So what does a hiker do when he can't sleep or eat?  He hikes... muhahaha.

After another grueling uphill and five miles I made it to Laurel Creek.  I fully intended to camp there but, a hiker right behind me (dog-e-daddy) had called a gentlemen in town and he happened to show up 10 minutes into my break.  His name was True Brit (yes he's British) and he had property close by which he was setting up as a wilderness survival school.  The guy was former SAS and really cool.  After talking about HALO jumping, pizza, and how Tinkerbell and Hump were camping there ... I was sold. The awesomeness didn't stop there... when we arrived at his place I found out that Roadkill, Bear Cloud, and Invictus were also there.  I fully didn't expect to catch them for a few more days.

So what do a bunch of hikers do when they are chill'en with an ex British special forces guy?  Eat pizza, drink beer, have bonfires, and play beer pong.  Now ill tell you... I can't play basketball worth a damn but, I got some mad beer pong shooting skills.  I took down all of the cups except the last two ... Hump bounced the ball in one for the two point clutch win.  Unfortunately, the beer pong tournament died after two games so I didn't get to stand on the podium and receive my medal.

The next morning True Brit cooked us some bacon, eggs, and pancakes then drove us back to where he picked us up. After about 8 miles I ended up at hwy 51 (it's part of the trail) with Biscuit, Righty-Tighty, and Dog-e-daddy and guess what???  Some college kids driving by stopped and gave us two cold Bud Lights each.  Trail magic!

After the beers I hiked up the trail another 7 miles and decided to make camp on a ridge top because my leg was annoying me again.  Somehow in the process I ticked off three bees therefore, I'm huddled in my tent hoping they don't call for reinforcements.  To end on a positive note, tomorrow I will hit 600 miles.

Whoooop