The hiking today was much harder than anticipated, with lots of steep pitches interspersed with ridge walking. We climbed a fire tower for some magnificent views of the North Carolina mountains, had lunch up on a ridge, then had a dramatic descent to stop at the NOC for soda, ice cream, and a quick hand and face wash in the bathroom. Both Chiclet and I were feeling sort of nauseates, probably because of the 3000 foot elevation drop. We both started feeling a bit better as we climbed back out of the gap into the mountains again, to set up camp by Wright Gap. Got everything all set up and buckled down before the night's rainfall.
April 14: I was up pretty early today, up before everyone else, trying to be ready so I would not be the one holding everyone up in the morning. I had a rather weird moment where I felt like I had so much to do and just not enough time. Why would I think this? I have my morning routine pretty down pat and I was up before everyone else. I wondered if this was just a passing moment or if this was part of my personality: always feeling rushed and overwhelmed, always feeling like I had too much to do? Then I remembered that today was Sunday. I fantasized about spending Sunday morning sitting on the sofa, a cup of tea in my hand, watching television and reading the newspaper. Then I sat down on a log and watched the sunrise. I had a nice breakfast and a cup of tea, all without holding anyone up.
The hiking today was much harder than anticipated, with lots of steep pitches interspersed with ridge walking. We climbed a fire tower for some magnificent views of the North Carolina mountains, had lunch up on a ridge, then had a dramatic descent to stop at the NOC for soda, ice cream, and a quick hand and face wash in the bathroom. Both Chiclet and I were feeling sort of nauseates, probably because of the 3000 foot elevation drop. We both started feeling a bit better as we climbed back out of the gap into the mountains again, to set up camp by Wright Gap. Got everything all set up and buckled down before the night's rainfall.
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As those close to me know, I am. Bit of a fashionista. Trendy, hip, and totally put together are adjectives often associated with me. You will all be happy to know that this has not changed since I've been on the trail.
As spring settles in, many of you may have engagements to attend: graduations, weddings, baby showers, etc. You may be at a loss as to proper footwear selection. Rest assured, I have the answer for you. The perfect combination of style and practicality. And, as always, comfort is key. This spring, why not try the ever classic look of: Crocs with socks!
You will be happy you did! April 11th: Originally, we 3 hiker chicks had planned on a 14 miler to Big Spring Shelter. But K-Bizzy pulled out his NOAH radio at breakfast and it turns out that the previous forecast of light rain had turned into severe thunderstorms and tornado warnings. A good excuse to get off the mountain.
Our friend, Upstate, had reached the end of his section hike and his dad was picking him up at Mooney Gap, 13 miles away. Big Spoon and I took the lead today and were zipping along in total hiker mode while K-Bizzy, Upstate, and Chiclet followed along, joking and singing. We all made it into Mooney Gap at 2:00. The miles are feeling easier and the terrain was nicer, rolling switchbacks on dirt, not rock. Sweet K was there, buckled down in her tent, as Upstate had offered her a ride into town, as well. We were also treated to a little trail magic. Around 3, Papa Upstate arrived with even more trail magic (a case of Corona and Doritos). Upstate hadn't seen his dad in 18 months, since before his deployment to Iraq. It was really touching to be there during their reunion. (I almost cried!)
We divided up into 2 groups, since we had way too many people to fit in the car. Upstate, Big Spoon, and I took first trip, along with Bubba, who we had met at Mooney Gap. We drove down a long, steep, rutted, rocky forest road that was clearly not built for the sedan we were all squeezed into. And as we all rode along, stinking up Papa Upstate's car, it became abundantly clear that Bubba, while nice and pretty harmless, was batshit crazy. He told us wild tales of his career in Hollywood ( he apparently wrote ET, Avatar, and all Pirates movies), in teaching history ( he is apparently a professor at Syracuse), and on crime prevention (he apparently had a pocket full of pheromones that could curb violent behavior and drug addiction). After that crazy car ride, we got to a hotel and got a girl's room for the 3 amigos and Sweet K. We showered, did laundry, and after the second group got in (Chiclet, K-Biz, and Sweet K) we all went put for some awesome Thai food. We came back stuffed to the gills, but somehow all ended up hungry again and made a late night run to the grocery store for ice cream and sweet potato fries Not bad for a tornado escape!
April 12: Okay. I have a confession to make. On April 12, a mere 10 days into the hike, I did my first yellow blaze. A yellow blaze is when you skip part of the trail and drive a little further on to get back on. Absolute purists will argue that for this reason I can no longer call myself a thru-hiker. I think the absolute purists can take a hike. After the storm the night before, Papa Upstate wasn't thrilled about taking his car back up that road. Especially when we found out that certain sections were washed out. We called the ranger station and the Caweeta Research center to try to get a ride to no avail. A shuttle wanted $25 per person to go up the road. So in the end, we decided to take another near-o day and hang at the hotel nursing our knees and feet. Upstate and Papa went down to Georgia together to hand put some trail magic and we all went out to dinner before getting dropped off at Winding Stair Gap to rejoin the trail (9 miles further on than we left it). It's crazy. I have known Upstate for only 9 days, from when he made room for me that cold day at Gooch Mountain Shelter. Slightly more than a week. But it feels like I have known him forever. We are going to miss our friend, Upstate. April 13: Since we got to bed late the night before (after a night hike from Winding Stair Gap to a random camp site) we got starte a little late, as well. Sweet K, who is working through the AT section by section, falls under what I referred to as a "purist". She decided to stash her pack in her tent, take a small day pack, and hike south to Mooney Gap to make sure she passed each and every white blaze in NC. Our little group was getting smaller by the day! Hoping that Sweet K would eventually catch up with us (she is a really fast hiker with long gazelle like legs) we bit her goodbye and started northward.
Hiking with K-Bizzy is what I would imagine hiking with Seth Rogan to be like. He kept us in stitches the entire day, sometimes to the point where we were bent double over our trekking poles, unable to take another step. We made up alternative lyrics to "Thrift Shop" and "Call Me Maybe" and he was apologizing to the trees for catching them with his poles "Sorry Mr. Roti-Denz! I pierced your leaf!" From there on our, we have referred to the rhododendrons as "Mr. Roti-Denz"! We ran into some trail angels giving out fresh fruit and something called "burbon balls". Tasty, but loaded with bourbon. Which may explain why we were laughing so much! We ate our leftover Thai food for lunch (always a treat in the woods) and ran into more trail magic of pizza and beer at mile 14. Gee, I'm really roughing it, aren't I?
We passed Wayah Bald stone tower where we once again ran into Shweassel and Shrek. We did a smooth 15 miles to Cold Sprong Shelter which, not surprisingly, was full. We tented in a nice breezy spot up a hill and turned in early. It's nice to keep meeting the same people over and over again. Trail ism #1: The only thing scarier than a bear is a poo covered bear. Don't throw food in the privy!
One of the things I had been thinking before I started on this trip was "What if something really major happened when I was on the trail? I would have no way of finding out!" Like- how long did it take hikers to get the news about 9/11?
I got into the town of Fontana Dam today after a big push and a steep up and down 13 mile hike. We got a shuttle into Fontana Village and the shuttle driver said: " What a shame about the Boston Marathon." I was thinking-- " what do you mean what a shame? The Boston Marathon is awesome!" Then she told me about the bombing. We have had the TV on in the lodge, trying to get the news. It takes about one day to get news on the trail. April 8: After our night in the hotel, Chiclet, Big Spoon and I took advantage of the free breakfast in the lobby and the set off to find more foot care supplies. We took a shuttle back to Unicoi Gap where we ran into Teen Wolf and Oil Tycoon catching a shuttle into Helen for a "Nero" day (low miles). Despite the the fact that we got a late start we were able to bang out 13 miles to Deep Gap Shelter where we reunited with Upstate and Sweet K. We also met Emily who started the trail with Tern Wolf and then moved on, faster than him . This was her second thru- hike in 4 years! We got in a little late ( 7:20) so we ended up cooking and eating on the dark and then hanging our food on the bear cables by headlamp. Since the water source was a little ways away, I made the decision not to refill my water bottle before bed and to just use my platypus. Big mistake! I ended up rolling over onto the bite valve in my sleep and spilled an entire liter of water inside my tent! Too tired to deal with it on the middle of the night, I held up our little group up the next morning while I dried put my tent, sleeping bag, and pad. New rule: no more platypus inside the tent! April 9: After our late start because of my water mishap, we hiked the majority of the day with Upstate who had stayed behind with us pokey trail chicks. I kept expecting the terrain to even out a bit, but let me tell you, Georgia is no joke! Up then down then up then down. All day. My body was really starting to feel fatigued today as we pushed out 10 mes to a camp site. Our campsite was really quite spectacular. We were slightly off the trail up a little hill where there was a beautiful breeze to cool us off after the up and down hiking in 85 degree heat. (Wasn't it just snowing a couple days ago?) All modesty and decorum long since abandoned, the girls set up camp in our sorts bras and indies while Upstate whipped out these little Richard Simmons shorty shorts Nothing says fashion like 80's style nylon running shorts! We also had our first full fledged bear hang, courtesy of Chiclet who has more backcountry experience than either Upstate or I. Just before the sun went down, K-Bizzy rolled in and we were treated to a spectacular show: April 10: today we crossed Georgia off the list and saw our first state line We took turns standing with one foot in each state until another group of hikers came along and we had to start walking like responsible people again. Fortunately, a mere 0.1 miles later there was another opportunity for monkey business The famous twisted tree. Complete with a white blaze.
I had read that the trail evens out once you cross into North Carolina, but after the state line, we literally walked straight uphill for 5 miles. It was pretty hard. We spent the day yelling "Welcome to North Carolina!" We ended up at Standing Indian Shelter for the night, a pleasant shelter with a nice running brook for a water source. Gave us the opportunity to take off our boots and splash around in the cold water to wash up and cool down our feet. The shelters have so far been quite crowded and this one was no exception. We once again ended up tenting at the shelter which is okay. The people in the shelter are changing a bit, though. While Gooch Mountain had lots of folks who I'm quite sure would drop out at Neel's Gap, now we are hanging out with people with more backpacking experience. People who I'm more certain will make it to Harper's Ferry or to Maine. Another thing: it has become abundantly clear that we are the loud group. Not necessarily me (though I did my fair share of cursing North Carolina at the top of my lungs today). But Chiclet and K-Bizzy had a rollicking good rendition of " Party hikers in the shelter tonight" going. Sleep? Who needs sleep? Here's the thing about the hikers on the trail: we are all in incognito. It's like a 2200 mile long spy convention where nobody knows anyone else's name. Or kind of like visiting my brother in college where he introduced us to his friends: Erv, Snack Bar, Toph, and Zipperhead.
I'm talking about trailnames. They are pretty much like nicknames, but used on the trail, hence trailnames. Some people have trail names based on where they live, like Florida Jimmy and Upstate. Some people come in with trailnames from their everyday life, like Chiclet. (Her dad's pet name for her) Some people get their names from things they say or go on the trail, like Big Spoon. Or from their overall disposition, like Sweet K. Some people even just make things up because they think it sounds funny: K-Busy. Then there's me. Who gets a trail name because of my shopping habits. Like shopping at the LLBean clearance rack for this rain jacket And wearing an old fleece hat like this:
After the epic freezing cold day on April 3rd, people started calling me "Pink Jacket". But then Chiclet changed it to Pink Lady. And when we all sat disown by the creek on April 4th and shared a pink lady apple that Big Spoon pulled out of her pack, it was sealed.
So everyone, I am now Pink Lady! A few weeks ago, my friend, Laurie asked me if I'd be bringing an ax, fishing pole, rifle, gallon of tequila, and battery operated blender in my pack with me. (Totally serious, not kidding even a smidge) At that point I promised gear post. Which I promptly forgot and here I am on day 9 of the hike with no gear post in sight. Well, I am about to remedy that now!
This is what my gear looked like on day one of the trail. I can assure you that it has changed since then. But more on that later.
The big blue bag is my sleeping bag. It's a Kelty Clear Creek 20 degree bag. I also brought a silk bag liner and 3 body warmers just in case it got too cold in elevation. The orange cylinder is my Thermarest sleep pad. The red bag, my first aid kit with band aids ( I have been using those a lot) ibuprofen ( ditto) sudafed, pepto and tums, Benadryl spray, cipro, anti chafe lotion, and an epi-pen. The blue bag is camp gear like extra batteries, rope, a patch kit for the Thermarest, extra lighter, and duct tape. The orange dry bag has food. The black cylinder is my stove (pocket rocket) and MSR solo backpacker pot, bowl, & spoon, lighter, and fuel canister. The green bag is clothes. I have base layer: EMS tech wick shirt, middlle layer REI tech wear shirt, and top layer Eddie Bauer insulated shell. Bottom base: EMS tights, Campmore waterproof pants. I have an LL Bean rain jacket, EMS shorts, and a long and short sleeve dryfit shirt from races. My camp clothes are hot chillies long indies and smart wool socks. For hiking, sock liners and EMS hiking socks. Footwear: for the trail Vasque Sundowners, for camp, crocs. I have a ziplock for hygiene stuff (toothpaste and toothbrush, baby wipes, q-tips, contacts and solution, foot-care stuff, etc) In the strap packets, I have a Swiss Army knife, thermometer, head lamp, iodine tabs for water treatment. Lastly, I had the iPhone, iPad mini, 2 trail books, a journal and pen, and iPod. So I just re-read what I wrote last night and saw to my horror that I didn't give a shout out to two other hikers we yo-yo'd with on our 15 mile day. Back and forth all day long we three hiker chicks passed and got passed by Jukebox and Gypsy (a different Gypsy than before). They were two friends who recently graduated college and were hiking to Damascus, VA. It was always a nice surprise to see them taking a water break as we came around the bend or to hear them singing as they caught up from behind. We all sat down for lunch by a creek together, took off our boots and soaked our tired feet ( downstream from where everyone refilled their bottles, of course!) We shared an apple and tossed around a burg football before lacing up and hitting the trail once again. Which brings us to
April 6: We got a bit of a late start out of Neel's Gap, as there were many distractions. First off, it was Teen Wolf's 30th birthday so we were all looking to wish him a happy b-day. I needed to hit the store to get some waterproof glove covers and some socks. The post office didn't open until later and since it was already late, I asked to bounce any packages to my next mail stop in Fontana Village. We got loaded up with water that didn't need filtering and finally hit the trail around 10. Buoyed by our great day yesterday, we got a bit overleaf enthusiastic and might I say cocky? We set out sights on a 17 mile day to Blue Mountain Shelter and started referring to ourselves as "badasses". The trail had a thing or two to say about that. What we had been assured was going to be easier terrain, was in fact, just as hard if not harder than the day before. And thus was the day that aches and sins started to set in. My feet started swelling and blistering, Chiclet's knees started aching, and poor Big Spoon needed multiple bathroom breaks along the way. Around 5 pm, we rolled into Low Gap shelter, 10.8 miles away exhausted and feeling rather defeated. Of course, there were good parts of the day, as well. Pretty scenery, linking up with Teen Wof again later in the day, and meeting another hiker chick duo, Sunny and Dory. Sunny and Dory had started a few days before us, but had been sidetracked by a bear encounter. They were camping at a non-shelter site without bear cables and had a hard time getting their food hung. As darkness set in and fatigue took over, they made the decision to put their gear ( and food) in one tent and sleep further away on the other tent. Late that night, a bear dragged the gear tent down a hill and they had to get off trail, go into town, and replace all their destroyed gear! Snaps to t for getting back out there. Many people ( probably me) would have thrown on the towel after that. Sunny and Dory camped with us at Low Gap, as did Carl the German ( lots of Germans on the AT) who I had slept next to at Gooch Mountaon Shelter that cold snowy day. April 7: this morning, still battered and sore, we decided we would not set a goal for mileage and would just listed to our bodies. Especially since our bodies were sending us messages loud and clear! We packed up and headed out around 9. It was bright and sunny, high 70's. today was much easier on the feet, as much of the walking ws on a dirt forest trail rather than on rock faces. Still some retry challenging ups and downs, but lots of graded switchbacks thrown in which was nice. Since it was Sunday, we passed a lot of people coming back from weekend and overnight trips. There were so many beautiful little camping spots along the way with gorgeous views! It was nice to see so many people taking advantage of nature in their backyard. We made pretty good time and arrived at Blue mountain Shelter around 1 for lunch. I would like to take this time to apologize to the day hikers who were eating there when we arrived. I know my feet are rank, but I HAD to take my boots off. Since we all now eat and massage our smelly feet simultaneously without batting an eye, it's easy to forget that it just may spoil somebody else's appetite. We were joined for lunch by Sunny and Dory and Teen Wolf who were going to spend the night in the shelter. Chiclet, Big Spoon and I decided to go the next three miles to Unicoi Gap where we coul hopefully get a ride into town and a hotel room to do some TLC for our ailing body parts. At Unicoi Gap, we met some more trail angels, Chris and Julie, who offered to drive us to town. They had been married out in the wilderness near a waterfall and were avid outdoors people. They told us about all the white water kayaking and hiking and climbing they had done in the area and drove us right to Super 8. Relying on the kindness of strangers is a really uplifting experience. So last night, we took full advantage of the shower, laundry facilities, and wi-fi. And the TV was showering Mark Wahlberg with no shirt. So it was a great night overall. |
HeatherHi, I'm Heather, AKA "Pink Lady". Welcome to my blog. I'm so excited to share my adventures as I embark on a thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. Archives
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