Damascus, VA. State #4

We are in Damascus, VA...again. We left the trail Friday before last at hwy 19E and hitched north to Damascus to attend Trail Days, the biggest hiker festival of the summer. The AT runs right through Damascus, a very small town. It is one of only a handful of towns that the trail runs directly through. It is very "hiker friendly", and Trail Days is their big event. There are vendors, music, industry reps, affiliated organizations and loads of hikers. They have a parade where the entire town arms themselves to the teeth with squirt guns and water balloons and lets loose on the marchers. "Miss Trail Days" was a young girl in a nice dress, riding on the back of a brand new covertible down Main St. She was trying to wave, but was busy ducking balloons and dodging streams of water, her makeup running down her face. The picture I posted of the beginning of the parade shows nothing of the chaos that ensued. And speaking of chaos, "Tent City" after dark is a party in the woods (just out of town behind the baseball fields) like I've not seen. People come from up and down the east coast. Some are people who have thru-hiked in the past, others are section hikers who enjoy getting out, some come for the party and talk about hiking, and then there is the minority "us", the people spending this whole season walking together on this path. Needless to say, we had a blast! We found a ride back to where we left the trail, and after a night in a lovely hostel with the most amazing breakfast ever, we got back on. It has been a lovely section of trail, with not as much steep up and down. The forecast is for more ridge-top cruising! It feels like summer now, the bugs are out and biting. We saw a bear last night just before dark and two (well, I saw two) the day before! They all ran. We like that. We came past a shelter the other day where the ground was littered with flakes of flint, not like the other rock around; evidence of stone tool making. On the path down to a spring from the shelter I found an arrowhead in the middle of the trail! No doubt this particular level spot along a ridge, with water nearby, has made an excellent campsite for eons. It was the heart of the Cherokee nation not long ago. We have been meeting lots of cool folks too! We stayed a night at Kincora, a hostel run for 16 years by a guy named Bob Peoples. He charges a suggested donation of $5 per person. He reluctantly upped it to that this year from $4, due to rising gas prices. Bob is a "trail angel" and his reputation precedes him. He organizes volunteers and oversees the largest trail building projects on the AT. Word is that he and Chuck Norris are friends, but Chuck doesn't like to spar with him. In March he hosted the 19,000th hiker to stay at his place. We will walk today, some more. Don't know just where we will be or what we will see. That is what it's all about!

Wildlife!

Hey ya'll! It has officially been a month on the trail.  We are starting to feel like woodland creatures.  We smell like them, we drink from the same water sources and we all poop in the woods. On several occasions when we have stopped in towns, we have filled our water bottles with what tasted like good water from a municipal source.  Pack that water about a mile up the trail and it tastes more like a municipal swimming pool.  It is promptly replaced with filtered spring water!
It is the simple things that we appreciate out here; a hot meal, the next shelter with a privy, junk food.  Included in a recent maildrop from Butch's folks were some Dum-dums lollipops her Dad thought we would enjoy. Sometimes when we are pounding out some miles, it is the thought that soon we can have another Dum-dum...and what if it's Mystery Flavor!!  ...that keeps us going. The idea of Mexican food fueled our foot steps to Erwin, TN.   ...that and the fact that we had walked 16.5 miles in the rain to earn it.  I feel insatiable. We cannot eat too much. When in town, we try.  As we are blogging here in the lobby of the Super8, the talk amongst our fellow "storm-dodgers" is of all-you-can-eat pizza buffets and which one is closer walking distance.  Thank goodness that folks down south truly appreciate a good AYCE restaurant!
We haven't seen a bear yet, though they are around.  The ass-end of a wild hog disappeared into the brush before the camera came out.  Here are some photos of the other creatures we have run into (without stepping on) on the trail.

Small world, long trail!

We rolled into the town of Hot Springs, NC, intent on soaking our bones in some hot water. We headed straight to the springs. It wasn't what we expected. Turns out you rent a hot tub at an hourly rate. Prices vary according to how many people per tub. When we asked about showering we were told that there are no showers. The thought of getting into a tub of mineral water without rinsing off a weeks worth of wandering in the woods simply wasn't appealing. We went and got a coffee and picked up a couple packages that Butch's Mom had sent to the local outfitter to hold for us. One package was full of food, some stuff we had pre-packaged, and lots of other stuff her Mom figured we would like such as Snicker's, chocolate-fudge things and Oatmeal Cream Pies! The other package contained some new Vibram Five-fingers shoes for Butch! She has been toughening up her feet, strengthening her ankles, hiking practically barefoot! Her feet have swelled and grown and the old pair needed to be cut open to let the toes out. The new ones are a size bigger! We were debating whether or not to stay in town for the night when we got a phone call from Butch's good friend Misty Dawn, who happened to be visiting her hometown in Tennessee. She had driven about 4 hours to come hang out with us, and was ten minutes away! That settled it, we were staying. Another trail friend of ours named "2/3" was up for sharing a room so the four of us rented out a nice place above the Spring Creek Tavern. Misty took us for a drive, because cruising in a car is a luxury we no longer take for granted. We drove way up in the hills and walked up to Max Patch, which is probably the coolest place the Appalachian Trail has taken us thus far. It is a stunning 'bald', meaning no trees to block the view. Historically these balds had been favorite spots of the Native Americans, and later those with grazing animals. We had enjoyed lunch up there the day before, lounging on the green grass, and now we were soaking up a surreal sunset with 360 degree views of hills, with hills in the back, and the hills behind those. We made it back to town, but too late to purchase dinner, anywhere nearby. The bartender downstairs persuaded us to have some beers or she was going to close down for the night. She offered us some guacamole and chips and salsa which we promptly demolished. The bartender was really friendly and talkative and I got the feeling I had met her before. Butch and I had been in Asheville, NC (32 miles away) about a year and a half ago, for one night. We had gone into a bar downtown for one beer. It was crowded and we were seated on the corner of the bar in the back of the place. Butch struck up a conversation with an older couple next to her, and I got to talking with this local girl who had just gotten off work and came in for a beer. She told me about how her family had been here for many generations, even her last name was that of a nearby town. She was really friendly and talkative and when Butch and I left we bid farewell to her and the older couple, glad we had all met. I thought that our bartender now was this girl and I told Butch and Misty. They thought I was nuts. So casually I asked the bartender if she was from around here, and if her family was from here. Indeed she said she was 8th generation. I then told her the story of having talked to a girl at a bar in Asheville with the last name of a nearby town...  It was her! Tiny, tiny, totally small world, and the more places you go, the smaller it gets. Gives me the feeling we're in the right spot!

Lil' Smokies

We made it over Clingman's Dome yesterday, in the heart of Great Smoky Mountains Nat'l Park.  It is the highest point on the Appalachian Trail, just a little taller than Mt. Washington up in New Hampshire. I guess that means it's all downhill from here!  The view from the top of the spiral, concrete viewing platform was impressive.  We were able to see peaks in the distance that we had traversed a week ago!  The forest changed as we climbed from fully leafed out deciduous forest of tall trees to a more stunted growth, just budding out, to a totally coniferous forest, lush with moss.  We made it to Newfound Gap, where the only road cuts through the smokies, and were almost immediately offered a ride down to Gatlinburg.  We needed to come into town to resupply our food and we wanted to experience the true American feel of this good ole southern tourist trap. We took advantage of the free samples at the Ole Smoky Moonshine Distillery.  We tried every flavor and can highly recommend the blackberry and apple pie!  We hadn't eaten much on the trail yesterday in anticipation of a big meal in town.  The moonshine on an empty stomach really hit the spot, but thankfully was followed up with a big Mexican meal and then ice cream.  We have both lost weight. I feel like I could just eat without stopping, but carrying lots of food isn't fun, so we take advantage of the gluttonous possibilities in town.  As I write this I am staring at an empty plate where previously stood a triple stack of pancakes, a clean skillet that had held a real pile, and Butch is putting the finishing moves on a side order of grits.

We are going to take the trolley down the road and check out the ceramics facilities at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, buy some trail food at the Whole Earth Grocery, and head back to the woods.  Next stop is Hot Springs, NC, where we will be looking to soak!

The rest of this post was written a couple days ago up in the hills, but the battery on the phone died before it got published...

We had long day of hiking to get deep into Great Smoky Nat'l Park, but are ahead of the crowd and sprawled out nicely with the top bunk area of a solid stone shelter all to ourselves!  We left this morning from Fontana Dam, the tallest slab of concrete this side of the Rockies designed to retain that most precious resource - fresh water.  It felt darn good on the old feet when we got down to Fontana Reservoir.  Butch and I both had sore feet coming down to it and decided to take our time and go barefoot the last two miles down to the water.  There happened to be a marina right there and we each got a can of Dr. Pepper and sat on the dock, soaking our feet in the amazingly clear, cold water.

We stayed at the "Fontana Hilton" last night! That is the name given to the shelter near the dam as it has bathrooms with running water and even free showers!!  Pretty nice digs as far as trail standards go. Though shelters can be nice to stay in when they aren't too crowded, and you have to stay at the shelters in the Nat'l Park, I more prefer sleeping in a setting like we had the night before last.  Just down a side trail to water from Cody Gap was the perfect little tent spot, a level pad of pine needles positioned inside a ring of pine trees in an otherwise mostly deciduous forest.  Two small streams trickled by not fifteen feet from each side of the tent before meeting up just below.  The sky was clear, rainfly off, a waxing moon shining brightly through the mesh ceiling of the tent.  The stillness of the night gave a feeling of depth as we lay 80 feet below the canopy, submerged in the forest.

1 state down

Hey ya'll!  Well we've made it out of Georgia and into North Carolina!  There is a lot less poison ivy here, the rocks have changed a bit and it got cold.  Really, really cold!  We managed to dodge some rain this past week, spent a little time hanging out in shelters while some others trudged on in the rain.  It sorta makes you feel guilty when you wait for the sun to come out, hike on and catch up with those who are now trying to dry out their stuff and you have managed to stay dry. 
It is like a moving community out here on the trail.  There are probably 20 or more folks that we have been leap-frogging with.  It is nice to hike down the trail and run into people you know!  Everyone is out here to have a good time and though we come from different places, are different ages, and have different backgrounds, we all get along and have stories to tell.  

There have been a few casualties along the trail.  Many millipedes die in order for us humans to make this journey, and in the past two days we have seen 2 dead moles along the trail.  The moles were rather large with big front claws for digging through the underbrush.  It looked as though they may have made a desperate scramble and met their end underfoot. 


The trail has been a joy to hike!  Sometimes it meanders through open forest with little undergrowth, and other times it goes on and on through almost tunnels in the Rhododendrons.  There are shelters every 7 miles or so I would guess on average.  In between we pass nice spots to camp almost every mile.  When there is a nice view, overlook, quiet spring, or comfortable log, there is usually evidence that others have stopped to soak it up, and maybe soak up a granola bar or two.  The area we have been passing through has had a lot of elevation change.  As we get into Virginia it will flatten out a little and stay that way until we work our way back up into Vermont and New Hampshire.  That is a ways up the trail however.  In not too long we will be passing through the Smoky Mountain National park! 

So yesterday we woke up to some snow on the tent!  It was just getting colder and colder the day before.  We spent the evening sitting around a nice fire with some friends in a somewhat sheltered gap.  It didn't seem to warm up at all yesterday as we hiked, and found out that the forecast called for another night below freezing.  One kid that we have been seeing on the trail said his little thermometer registered 15 degrees the night before last.  Butch and I put on all our thin wool layers and wore our jackets inside our sleeping bags and managed to stay fairly comfortable.  Need some supplies, however, gave us a nice excuse to come into town and get a hotel for the night.  We managed to hop on a shuttle at Rock Gap yesterday at around 1:30, after hiking 9 miles or so.  The shuttle is driven by a local guy named Ron who owns a couple motels in Franklin, NC.  He has done some hiking and likes hikers, so he drives the shuttle, picks hikers up for free even if they don't stay at his place, offers discount rates for hikers and takes you back up to the trail in the morning.  He feels it really helps the local economy to bring people in, and I'll bet he is right.  He was a professional wrestler down in Mexico and traveled around for the better part of 30 years before coming back to where he was from and running hotels catering to hikers.

We have to get going, need a few more things from the store before we catch the shuttle back to the woods. See ya up the trail!

Beginning steps

Well we took a "zero" day today due to rain. Only left the tent a couple times all day to pee and get some food from down out of the bear bag. We have been moving well and the trail has been nice! We are happy that we have shaved our heads. A quick rinse in a spring feels like a shower, almost.  We are also glad that we are using trekking poles. They don't make much difference on the flat ground, but are a huge help on the uphills and greatly assist with breaking on the way down!  It is Wednesday evening, we started hiking in the late afternoon this past Friday and we are at about mile 54. Not bad for having a couple short days and not moving at all today. 
We have adopted trail names, as all thru-hikers do.  Officially we are Butch Culpepper and the Stonedance kid, aka "Butch" and "Stonedance".
We weighed in at a place called Neel's Gap, a nice outfitter store and lodge. My pack weighed just over 29 lbs and Butch's was just over 26. That was with full water and way more food than need be carried on the AT!  We have seen lots of other folks with much larger packs looking enviously at our small bags. Right away the talk among many hikers at the shelters has been about what to get rid of.  On the other end of the spectrum is our new friend we've dubbed "Fannypack".  He has everything rolled up and tied around his waist, weighs about 15lbs. That being said, he needs to stop more often for food and water and is sleeping in the rain in a minimalist bivy sack right now.
Our efforts at preparing food with the dehydrator, and vacuum sealing have been paying off. Deer jerky, dried fruit, homemade trail bars and our rice and lentil dinners have all tasted absolutely delicious out in the woods.  Especially tasty were some 'caramelita' bars that my mom made and we sealed up! 
We have been seeing lots of lovely flowers beginning to bloom. The tall trees are leafing out. There is poison ivy almost everywhere!  We haven't seen any big animals though there has been evidence of coyotes and bears on the trail.  Butterflies, millipedes, newts, woodpeckers and owls have been abundant. Lots of other birds offer a nice soundtrack as well.
We had heard that the town of Helen, GA, was worth checking out, so yesterday upon arriving at Unicoi Gap we hitched the 9 miles in to town to check it out.  It is a Bavarian themed tourist trap, but quaint and awfully surreal to come upon after being in the woods.  We had a bier and some Krautkapfen at The Old Heidelberg restaurant. Krautkapfen is sauerkraut rolled up with dough and pan fried, topped with big slabs of bacon and bacon gravy; delicious! We picked up a couple things at the grocery store and then hitched back out of town up to Unicoi Gap.  We headed up the trail which had become wet with rain that had come and gone, and set up camp at the first site we came across.  We managed to get the tent set up just before a storm rolled in, and have been here since. Hopefully it will be nice enough to dry our tent out tomorrow before we head off, but we will move somewhere regardless.
...pretty sure I just heard something rather large stumble through the woods just a ways over.  Oh well, "Fannypack" is sleeping just up the hill with his empty liverwurst wrapper next to his head. I'm not worried. Until next time, happy trails!

Uff-da

Well, I've completed the first leg of three flights today and currently find myself in Milwaukee.  Since I have last blogged, life has been a whirlwind of trying to get everything in order to leave for six months in the woods. Sally and I began moving things out of our house and into the storage unit (thank goodness it's only a hundred yards from our front door) and right in the middle of that I left to attend the NCECA conference in Seattle. NCECA is the National Conference on Education for the Ceramic Arts.  It was a blast! Those clay artists sure know how to party. Saw some great art, great friends, and all while walking in the chilly drizzle that typifies Seattle in the spring.
Upon arriving back in Bozeman I had a list of things to accomplish. The Otter pelt in the freezer got tanned, I fired some Sake cups and bottles for Seven Sushi in Bozeman and delivered them, we ran the food dehydrator until the last minute and frantically used the vacuum sealer to package meals, I cleaned up my space in the pottery studio, My boss Don and I dropped off some stone mosaic art pieces to a retail space where hopefully they sell, we also worked on a potential foray into the Reality Television industry, and I dropped Sally off at the airport to fly south with enough time to get back home and throw the last of our belongings in the car so I could vacuum the floors before the carpet steamer guy came. Walk-through complete, I hopped in the car bound for Minnesota with a quick stop-off to pick up Sally's down sleeping bag which had just arrived, special order, that morning.
It was nice to spend Easter with family. I had the realization on the way back from Seattle that it would be a good idea to ramp up my caloric intake prior to walking for days on end. I have seriously employed this tactic in the past week, and found myself in a food coma in my aunt's living room after the Easter meal. 
I'm sitting here with a backpack. That is all. That and some trekking poles which I brought along just to mess with TSA. This will hold my food, shelter, and clothing for the next six months.
I want to thank the guys at Prolite Gear for directing us to the most trick equipment, Northern Lights for pressuring Western Mountaineering to rush sleeping bags, Hyperlite Mountain Gear for making Sally a custom pack, our friends who have been supportive of this crazy idea, especially those whose support came in the form of buying pottery from me in the past few days, and last but not least our families. They know that Sally and I are both crazy, but their love endures nonetheless.