Appalachian Trail Katahdin

I left Rangeley and did the Saddlebacks that evening. The weather was nice and I had great views walking along the ridge. The next day it rained the entire day. I fell hard twice, once I landed in the pushup position and I would've been hurt bad if I didn't catch myself. Because of the rain I got a bunk that night at the Maine Roadhouse hostel. For $35 I got a bunk, shuttle to and from the trail, laundry, dinner and breakfast. The hostel was one of the best I've seen and the two women, who'd just opened it, were super nice. After drying my gear and getting a bed for the night I left for the Bigelow mountains. They were wooded on top but had great views of lakes below.

On Pierce Pond there is a hunting camp near the trail. It's rustic from the1930's. They offer a pancake breakfast with sausage and eggs for $11 to hikers. The camp was cool. There was a pool table and a bunch of musical instruments for people to play. I had breakfast there then kept going the Kennebec River. At the river there is a guy in a canoe that ferries people across. I was there at 9am to catch a lift. 

After a couple more days hiking I got to Monson. Monson is the last town before the Hundred Mile Wilderness. I stayed at a hostel in town and resupplied before going into the wilderness. At this point I was around 115 miles from Katahdin. While at the hostel I ran into a guy named Sailor Jack who'd I'd seen on and off the last couple months. We ended up hiking through the wilderness together then summitting Katahdin on the same day.

The 100 Mile Wilderness used to be 100 miles with no services or major roads. Now people get food drops in the middle or slack pack some of it. Food drops are arranged through hostels. You pack a box with what you want then call them from a mountain top and they drop the food off at a road. It was a beautiful 100 miles with a couple mountains but also a lot of walking around lakes. It was much easier hiking compared to southern Maine. Along with the Presidentials in New Hampshire, the 100 Mile Wilderness is somewhere I'd like to visit again.  

Coming out of the 100 miles I didn't know what to expect. We walked out of the woods onto a dirt road that felt like the middle of nowhere. There was nothing I could see but a bridge to the right. We walked that way and crossed the Abol bridge to find the camp general store. We were pumped. There was food, beer, and ice cream. That day we hiked 29 miles by 6pm to get to the store before they closed at 7. 

The next day we summitted Katahdin. We left from Abol Pines and stopped in at Baxter Park to register before going up. The number on my registration card was 186, meaning I was the 186 NOBO thru hiker to finish this year. That has nothing to do with speed, since someone could have started a month before or after me, but it gives an idea of how many have done it so far. 

My family picked me up from Maine and I had a blast with them RV camping. 

The trip lasted from March 27 - July 27. 

During my final days of hiking there were so many thoughts going through my head that I wanted to talk about. Now, after being off the trail for a few days, they all seem so insignificant. The Appalachian Trail is a different world than the real life most people are used to. It's like a ferry tail where people have special names and travel through a trail meeting and re-meeting each other. People hike in completely different ways. For me I wanted to hike it in a way that was challenging and tested me mentally. Others have fun screwing around, taking lots of time to hang out in towns, and take a lot more time to finish. What I'm saying is the AT offers what a person wants and everyone is looking for something different. I thought it was tough. Hiking through the rain got to me. Mentally it pushed my limits at times, especially the wet feet. But I remember some of my happiest moments on the trail were in my tent exhausted after what felt like a never ending day. 

Towards the end of my trip I met quite a few interesting people. I met the Sutton Family who are a mom and dad doing the trail with their 5 year old son Harvey. They had to ask for special permission for Katahdin because normally 6 year old is the limit. I also met a guy named Shoes walking the trail barefoot. He was a flip flopper who I met coming south in Maine. I also met a guy who always wore jeans named Denim Dan. I can't imagine hiking the trail in jeans. 

Now it is time to go back to the real world, which I'm excited to do. I'd recommend anyone to do the trail or at least sections of it. I plan on returning to parts for sure. Not only was the AT cool but so many of the small towns were great. I got to see a lot of rural towns that I never would have. People were so generous along the way. It was a great trip.

   

AT - 1972 - Rangeley, ME

Massachusetts went by quick. Another friend and his girlfriend came and hiked with me for a couple days to do Greylock, which is the highest mountain in the state. When they left I was walking through town in the rain to get a bite to eat.

At mile 1700 I got to Vermont. I’ve done the first 100 miles of the AT in Vermont when I did the Long Trail, but I did it again. I hiked with some LT hikers for those miles and took my time. It was nice to do smaller miles and swim in all the ponds. There were a couple hot days but the hiking was fairly easy. Right before entering New Hampshire there was a 30’ bridge jump. It was awesome. I was nervous standing on the edge but another hiker was there so we both jumped before hesitating too long. Then my brother-in-law picked me up. I zeroed 4 days in Vermont with family and friends over 4th of July weekend.

After the long weekend I started hiking into New Hampshire. The White Mountains in New Hampshire were by far the toughest part of the trail so far. I had difficult days before NH, mainly because of big miles or numerous days in the rain, but the hiking was the hardest in NH. That being said it was my favorite part so far. The Presidential range was amazing. Throughout the Presidentials there were huts that people paid $80-120+ a night to stay in. The nice thing was thru hikers got the leftover food. When I hiked over Mt. Washington I got the best weather I could ask for. It wasn’t too windy or rainy. Then a few of us stealth camped near Pinkham visitor center and got an all you can eat breakfast for $13. Next was Wildcat Mtn, which was pretty tough as well.

I’ve been in Maine for a few days now and it’s great. I went through Mahoosuc Notch a couple days ago. It’s said to be the hardest mile of the trail and I’d agree. On both sides there are steep cliffs upwards. It’s a rock scramble through the notch over and under huge boulders. I had to take off my pack at least twice to get through small squeezes. That one mile of the trail exhausted me and took me a solid hour. 

Today I came into town to shower, do laundry and resupply. I hadn’t showered since Gorham or done laundry since Lincoln. I was well over do. I plan on finishing within a couple days of the 27th of July, which means I need to make pretty good time. It’s been great hanging out in town for a couple hours and having some beers. I’ve got 3.5 day worth of food and plan on doing about 69 miles before my next resupply. 

Lately there have been more SOBOs on the trail than NOBOs. It’s strange seeing such fresh people. They keep saying that us NOBOs don’t look happy and we have a glazed over look, also that we’re condescending. They have a point, but also we’ve been on the trail for months. I put on the same wet clothes and wet shoes every day. It’s nearly impossible to be cheery when most of the time all I want is a good shower and clean clothes. But still I’m glad to be here and happy I’ve had the chance to do such a cool trip.

I saw a moose on the trail yesterday. It was super cool. I spooked her and she ran off. Surprised me in the morning when I was still waking up but pretty neat.

AT - 1502 - Salisbury, CT

The drive in movie theater in Warwick was great. They let me pitch my tent and gave me a radio to listen to one of the three double features they offered, all for free. The next day it rained all day. I slipped on a rock and fell. It was my 3rd or 4th time falling, but it really put me in a bad mood. Walking on slick rocks isn't fun and it can be pretty dangerous. Around 4 pm that day I decided to hitch into Greenwood Lake for a beer. I hung out for a few hours and by the end my tab was $10 because so many people had bought me drinks. A couple in their 60s offered me a couch to sleep on that night because it was supposed to rain all night. They bought me pizza, beer, let me shower, then dropped me off on the trail in the morning after cooking me breakfast. It's amazing how nice people can be to hikers, they were some of the nicest I've met.

My friend Buck flew out to NYC to hike with me, so I went into the city to meet him. I took a commuter train in from Pawling NY. It was surprisingly easy and the train cost me less than $20. He had never been to the city so we spent a couple days checking out Brooklyn and Manhattan. We rented bikes and went to the Battery, Central Park, Grand Central, and Times Square. Then we took the train back out to Pawling and he hopped on the trail for a week. He got to experience hitch hiking and the hiker lifestyle. There was also a fair amount of rain, which gave him a good taste of how difficult it can be. 

After zeroing (a day with no miles on the AT) yesterday Buck and I parted ways. He's heading to Albany to fly out tomorrow. I hit mile 1500 today and I'll head into Massachusetts either today or tomorrow. Another friend is meeting me in 55 miles on June 21, so I'm taking it slow until then. Over the last few weeks my pace has slowed considerably. It's difficult to arrange meetings with friends if I move too quick. I enjoy doing long days and bigger miles, but it's also nice to slow down and soak it all in. Being able to share the experience with a friend was certainly worth the slow down. Another added bonus is that I am starting to see people I had passed that are catching up. This has been a learning experience, figuring out what pace works, and I've found that there is much more to this trail than getting it done as fast as possible.

There have been a ton of ticks lately. I've gotten at least 3 on myself. A few days ago I sprayed my clothes with Permethrin, which is supposed to help keep them off. When I hitched back to the trail this morning the woman who gave me a ride was telling me all about the numerous illnesses she got from ticks. It freaks me out a bit, but what else can I do besides spraying my gear? I find it's best not to focus too much on all the things that could go wrong. I don't like snakes either and luckily I've only seen one rattle snake so far. No bears yet, with the exception of the two I saw near Fort Montgomery in a zoo that the AT goes through.

The weather is mid 70s and sunny today. I couldn't ask for any better. After spending so much time in the rain I really appreciate the nice days. On days like this there is nowhere I'd rather be than hiking in the woods. This town, Salisbury, is so close to the trail that I figured I'd stop in for lunch then head back out. Plus I have some time to kill in order to meet up with my other friend. I'm on my third pair of shoes and they are broken in, so my feet feel good. Blisters and wet feet can definitely make the experience less enjoyable.  Surprisingly I haven't lost any weight, most people do. I feel great and the easy days lately have given me plenty of recovery time. Now I need to find a way to keep my pace slow to meet my friend so maybe I'll try to find a lake that I can take another zero or two at. 

AT - 1365 - Warwick, NJ

It rained for three days in a row last week. On the first night of rain, the inside of my tent was soaked by the time it was setup because it was raining so hard. The next night I split a motel in Wind Gap and dried out all my gear. Then I continued through Delaware Water Gap then up to  AOC.

 

I'm not going to finish this, I only have a few minutes left. Right now I'm sitting in a library in Warwick, NJ. Lately there have been a lot of towns on the trail. I've stopped at a place for lunch and had a beer the last three days. Tonight I plan on sleeping at a drive in movie theater that lets thru hikers camp for free. There's a grocery store down the street from there. 

 

I smell pretty bad. I did laundry today but I could use a shower. I have a free hotel stay coming up in 40 miles, which is much needed. I plan on hanging out there most of Saturday into Sunday.

Around 1200 miles I got burnt out on hiking. I'd been moving fast and everything felt rushed. I took several shorter days lately and have chilled out. I've talked to other hikers who experienced the same thing. It got boring and I stopped having as much fun. 

Now it's fun to go into towns for random meals or services. I have no shame to plug my phone into a Walmart and hang out sorting my groceries. I try not to be too crude. Thru hikers are pretty bum like to be honest.

A shuttle is picking me up in a couple minutes to bring me to the drive in. The lady who brought me down charged me $14. We'll see what's cheaper.

AT - 1113 - Mount Holly Springs, PA

I hitched a ride into Mount Holly Springs this afternoon. I'm at a library with a keyboard for the first time this hike. It's nice.

Today I passed the halfway mark for mileage. I have a couple stories to tell but I want to mention some trail slang first. I didn't make any of these up and people use them all the time.

white blaze - White blazes are painted on trees to show the AT.

blue blaze - They show the way to things like alternate routes, overlooks, water or shelters.

yellow blaze - The road, for instance if someone skips miles hitchhiking. 

pink blaze - Following women on the trail.

aqua blaze - Using a boat to skip miles.

slackpack - Using a small pack for the day. Usually a hostel will shuttle people so they carry less weight.

tramily - Trail family, group of people you hang out with. 

wa wa - Water. I can't stand this one, luckily it's not used too often

hiker trash - A smelly hiker who has been in the woods a while. Usually looking for a ride to town and an outlet to plug their phone in. 

trail magic - Free stuff like food or drinks people hand out on road crossings.

trail angels - People who help out hikers.

Some of the guys I hiked with leaving Daleville were Push, 2 Steaks, Flavor Packet, and Skywalker. Flavor Packet got his name because he thought the oxygen absorber packet in Mountain House meals was a flavor packet. People get strange names out here. 

I lost most of those guys after a little while. I stayed with Skywalker a longer. One day I was ahead of Skywalker and trying to hitch a ride to a small store in Virginia. I tried for 45 minutes with no luck. He showed up, sat down, said 'what you looking for a ride?', stuck out his thumb and a car going the other direction flipped around and pulled up within seconds. I was annoyed but pumped to get going.

I had my longest day hiking to Seely-Woodworth Shelter. I hiked 34 miles and had to use my headlight for the end. I could hear coyotes yelping and didn't want to look around with my headlamp to see their eyes. I was tired getting to the shelter, but luckily I had it to myself.

After leaving Stanimal's Hostel in Waynesboro I was with a small group and my friend OD. OD (Overdose) started the same day as me and we'd hung out a bit but hadn't hiked together for more than a few days up to this point. OD's goal is to finish the AT in 90 days. The group we hiked with for a day were really fast. One of the guys hiked 20 miles by noon with a full pack, which I wouldn't have believed but I saw it. 

Overdose and I traveled together through the Shenandoahs. The hiking was mellow and there were waysides throughout the mountains. It was easy to pick up food for resupplies and there were lots of hikers around. 

After the Shenandoahs OD and I rented a car to drive down to Tail Days in Damascus. On the way we stayed at his family's property to shower and do laundry. Trail Days was a good time. There were vendors, a tent city, music, free food and a ton of hikers. We stayed for one of three nights because OD needed to get back and the car had to be back by noon on Saturday. Our tents were set up in a big open field, part of tent city. Then there was another part that was back in the trees. Different tramilies had camps all over. Many of them offered free booze and food. People even name their tramilies like; Riff Raff, Ridge Runs, or 20 milers. People are really into this stuff. There was a drum circle going on all night.

OD and I left Trail Days at 7am on Saturday and made it back to Enterprise just 10 minutes late. Luckily the assistant manager was still there. After that we walked through some busy intersections to Walmart and then a trail angel gave us a ride back to Keys Gap. Then we walked the 6 miles on the AT to Harper's Ferry.

We stayed at the Town Inn in Harper's Ferry. It's a 200 year old building. I thought the town was great and full of history. 

A couple days ago OD and I split. He's going to push hard to get done as soon as possible. I decided to slow down a bit and take it easier. It was great traveling with him and maybe I'll see him down the trail.

The trail has been far less busy lately. I had a shelter to myself last night. Some locals told me I'm a about two weeks ahead of the bubble. It's nice that I don't have to scavenge for a campsite anymore.

Now the library is closing and I need to figure out how to get back to the trail. It's around 3 miles, hopefully I can get a ride. 

AT - 730 - Daleville, VA

The weather has been warmer lately. A few days ago the temperature was in the 80s for two days. The trees haven’t fully formed the canopy, referred to as the “green tunnel”, so the warm weather was exhausting. It’s been nice lately.

A lot has happened since Irwin but I’ll try to summarize some highlights. I’d been waiting for a computer with a keyboard to use, but every hotel’s guest computer has been broken and I haven’t been able to get to a library. So this is all done via texting.

Near the road 19E I had a strange time. There was a tent next to a busy road. I thought that’s weird, it’s so loud. I kept walking. Later someone told me the guy staying there was firing off rounds in the night and someone called the cops. So I went through the area as quick as possible. After that I stayed at a donation based hostel called Kincora. I showed up an no one was there. Later a couple more hikers showed up and the owner. I think the hostel started in 1997. It is one of the older hostels. A bit run down but an awesome place to stay. The owner, Bob Peoples, is kind of a legend.

Fifty miles after Kincora I stayed in Damascus. The trail goes right through town. I stayed at a cool hostel called Broken Fiddle. In a couple weeks Damascus will host Trail Days, which is a huge hiker party. The entire town will fill up with tents in every park. Damascus also had a nice diner that was filled with hikers in the morning. The town is about 1/4 way from the start of the trail as I entered Virginia.

I went through Grayson Highlands during a snowstorm. I had already sent my rain pants home so I did it in shorts. It was cold the entire day and I went through quick. There were wild ponies all over the mountains. It was really cool. Unfortunately my hands were so cold I didn’t take many pictures. I passed the 500 mile marker that day.

After Grayson Highlands I spent a night at Partnership Shelter. We ordered pizza delivery because it was close enough to town. I heard that was the only shelter you could get delivery on the trail, which made it a good stop.

I had to get to Wytheville from the trail to get to a Walmart a few days ago. It was off the trail about 15 miles. I walked passed the road I needed so I hitched back. Some guys picked me up in a truck and offered me a beer. They couldn’t drive me all the way because they’d been drinking but they dropped me in a better location. I got a shuttle and made it to town and back. I also got to meet up with a couple trail friends in Wytheville and had enough points for a free Holiday Inn stay.

Yesterday was one of the nicest hikes I’ve had yet. I did around 26 miles through amazing cliffs overlooking rolling hills and pastures. I split a room last night at the Howard Johnson last night with another hiker.

I took the name Steady, so that’s what people call me out here. I’ve been doing around 20 miles a day more or less lately. There are more and more people doing similar mileage so I’ve seen a lot of familiar faces. 

At this point I’m used to hiking everyday. It’s become my normal day to day life. Every three to five days I stay in town or at hostels for a shower and laundry. I sleep either in my tent or a shelter depending on how crowded places are. People are more spread out lately and the ones still thru hiking are more serious than they were a few hundred miles ago. I’m nearly 1/3 done now. I’ve found a good comfortable pace, which is quick but as they say out here “hike your own hike.” My shoes are falling apart. They are still my first pair but I ordered new ones and had they shipped to a hostel 80 miles away. 

Today I’m taking it easy. I told my buddy I’d wait here and eat lunch with him. After that I’ll probably try to get some miles in. It’s supposed to rain for a few days coming up. Hopefully it’s not too bad and I don’t think it’ll be cold.

 

AT - 344 - Erwin, TN

Leaving Franklin I had nice weather hiking for a couple days into the NOC (Nantahala Outdoor Center). It was a tough downhill and climb out of a valley with a river. The NOC is a rafting facility with a gear shop and general store. I needed a permit to enter the Smokies, which the NOC printed for me.

Before entering the Smokies I resupplied at the Fontana marina on the Fontana dam. Then I stayed a night camping at the Fontana Springs Shelter nicknamed the Hilton because they have a shower, bathroom, and it’s big and nice.

I crossed Fontana dam and went into the Smokies on April 7. In the Smokies you need to stay at shelters the entire time so that limited my choices for where to sleep. Because it was crowded at shelters and I’d finished my book I pushed through the Smokies in a few days, leaving just before dawn on the 10th. Also a bear attacked a tent, so I couldn’t stay in that shelter, meaning it was a long day having to skip the shelter. I don’t think the guy got hurt but I heard it took several backpackers to scare the bear away. On my second day in the Smokies I took the wrong trail for an hour and a half before realizing and turning around. It was near the end of the day and I wasn’t paying close attention.

Coming out of the Smokies I didn’t have enough food to make it to Hot Springs, the next resupply town about 33 miles away. But I got lucky with some trail magic at 2 places. One group cooked me a chicken quesadilla and a bunch of food to go. Then 3 miles later another group gave me a couple chili cheese hotdogs, fruit and salad. After eating two lunches it was raining but I kept going in order to make it to Hot Springs at a reasonable time the next day.The trail goes right through the town. I resupplied at Dollar General and had a burger, wings and a salad at the tavern and kept going. 

Yesterday, 2 nights north of Hot Springs, I met up with a guy I’d hiked with the day I entered The Smokies. I’d lost him when I took the wrong turn. I met another one of his buddies at the camp site last night and today we got Mexican in Erwin Tennessee.

Most people have trail names at this point. I still do not. One guy suggested Steady, but I haven’t gone by that. I think I’ll see in a bit. I met a couple ladies in their 70s that went by Golden Girls. They’d done 14 miles the day I met them on a mountain top. It’s impressive some of the people on the trail. All sorts, young, old, large or small. Just a bunch of people who like to hike.

The weather has been much warmer. At night it gets chilly but not too bad. It’s been raining quite a bit but that’s normal for the area. 

Today a woman gave me a ride for free into town. She picked up my friends and brought us to the Mexican place. I’ve been avoiding crowded shelters but there are plenty of nice people. Feels like I’m beginning to get my trail legs and adapting to life on the AT.