Time with friends

Day 57 (6/2/14)

Starting: Daleville, VA: 724.0

Ending: Wilson Creek Shelter: 735.2

Total Miles: 11.2

Our first day on the trail hiking with friends! We met up with James and Barbara in the morning to map out our next four days together, our plan was to average around 14 miles per day.

It was great having James and Barbara with us on the AT. James introduced me to hiking on the AT in 2012 at Benchmark's annual fundraising backpack trip, this was also the last time we've hiked together so I was excited to be back on the trail with him and Barbara. 

It was nice to have friends out there with us because our days are typically very quiet. When you spend every minute with someone and share every experience with someone it doesn't leave much to talk about. It was also nice to have someone to help us stop and "smell the roses." We typically keep our heads down and tick off the miles without stopping to take in the scenery much. 

The first part of the hike went along several roads then eventually followed along the Blue Ridge Parkway crossing the Parkway a few times.

On the Blue Ridge Parkway with James and Barbara.

The shelter we stayed at that night turned out being the busiest we've seen since Damascus, with at least ten other hikers staying there. Turns out we were in a mini bubble of people.

The first day was a great day of hiking and getting caught up.

Day 58

Starting: Wilson Creek Shelter: 735.2 

Ending:  VA 614, Jennings Creek: 752.2

Total Miles: 17

We got on the trail today around 8. We had our biggest mileage day with James and Barbara. Luckily the profile was pretty flat so we were able to make good timing. We crossed over the Blue Ridge Parkway many times today and got a chance to see some great overviews.

We ended the day at Jennings Creek. The water was right by our campsite and it felt great to put our feet in the cold water after a long day of hiking.  We set up camp and made dinner. James and Barbara shared some of their chicken and cornbread with us. It was one of our best meals on the trail yet!

Jennings Creek

Day 59

Starting: VA 614, Jennings Creek: 752.2

Ending: Thunder Hill Shelter: 766.2

Total Miles: 14

Happy 26th wedding anniversary to James and Barbara!! A couple that hikes together stays together. 

We had a few big climbs today with some great views from overlooks that Jessica and I would have walked right past had we not been with James and Barbara. Today peaked at 4,225 feet at an old Air Force radar base on a meadow that offered some amazing long distance views.

Us at an overlook.

Barbara and James at a big boulder at an overlook.

We also passed under The Guillotine, a large boulder stuck over the trail between two huge boulders. I couldn't help but think of the movie 127 Hours when we walked under it, thankfully it stayed in place.

Me and Jessica at The Guillotine

We had a good day of hiking and sharing stories but the skies were overcast and rain seemed imminent. We just made it to the shelter when the rain started. It only lasted for about an hour. After the rain subsided we found a great tent site tucked away in the woods, away from the bubble we had been hiking with all along. After finishing dinner the skies opened up and it turned into a pretty fierce thunderstorm. Thankfully we had our tents already set up so we slipped into the shelter of our tents for the night.

Day 59

Starting: Thunder Hill Shelter: 766.2

Ending: VA 130, James River: 780.8

Total Miles: 14.6

Most of our big climbs were out of the way for the rest of our hike with James and Barbara. We made good timing during the day and stopped for a quick lunch at a campsite. At the campsite there was a hiker still sleeping in their tent, but their dog wanted to hang out with us during lunch. He was really sweet and well behaved. He just wanted us to make sure we knew he was available to eat any leftovers if we needed him to.

Jessica and her lunch friend

The rest of the hike was relatively easy and ended at the James River Foot Bridge. It's the longest foot bridge on the AT. 

After crossing the bridge we headed to the nearby road to wait for our shuttle to pick us up. We had a plan to get James' car after the hike and possibly stay in the city of Glasgow's pavilion or hike a couple miles past James River and stay at the first shelter. These plans completely changed in our shuttle back to Daleville. I sat in front with the shuttle driver and was making small talk when he offered all four of us to stay at his house, dinner, a hot shower and laundry. In my head I immediately said yes but wasn't sure how James and Barbara would feel about staying in a strangers house on their hiking trip.

The shuttle driver thru hiked with his family, which included an 8 and 11 yr old in 2002. He now maintains a large section of the trail and occasionally houses thru hikers. 

James and Barabara said it was up to us and I said yes. This was by far the best trail magic we've recieved thus far. It once again reflects the immense generosity and kindness of people that we continue to experience. 

We had a great conversation over dinner getting to know each other. Their daughter and son-in-law stopped by for dinner too. She was 11 when she thru hiked with her family and it was fun hearing her perspective of the trail. The entire family is still very involved with the trail, hiking and maintaining it. It was very special to be invited into their home and share a meal with them and we were all immensely grateful for it.

We had a great time sharing our adventure with James and Barbara and appreciate them coming to join us.

We plan to do some big miles over the next few days. And will hit the Shenandoah National Park on Tuesday.

Happy Trails!

Z and Gia

We got knocked down (but we got up again)

I hope you liked the mid 90s Chumbawamba reference in the title and it doesnt leave the song stuck in your head for hours like it did me!  We have had some of the highest and lowest moments on the trail these last 5 days.  We try to keep it mostly positive on the blog, but some days the hiking is just hard!  Here is a recap of our last few days on the trail: 

Day 52 (5/28)

Starting: Lane St., Pearisburg, VA, 631.3

Ending: Pine Swamp Shelter, 650.6

Total Miles: 19.3

After pulling Mike away from the Holiday Motor Lodge we went to Dairy Queen for breakfast before we hit the trail.  It apparently had the best breakfast in town so we knew we couldnt miss it!  After breakfast we took the rental car back to Enterprise and were dropped back off at the trail head.  We had a small section of trail to do before the road crossed Pearisburg again (about .75 miles).  During that section, I fell twice.  The first fall I slipped on a rock and fell right on my tailbone. It was very similar to a fall I had taken a few weeks ago on our way into the NOC and it made me cry.  I was mainly crying due to frustration and the fact that I didnt want to be dealing with extreme back pain again.  It took a few minutes for me to compose myself and get back up.  In less than five minutes, I fell again.  This time, I slipped on loose dirt going down a hill and the weight of my pack caused me to fall over on my side.  I was angry and ready to be done with this section of the trail!  About 100 yards after my second fall, we crossed back into Pearisburg and right beside the rental car company.  In retrospect, I would have been happy to skip that section of trail all together and start from the rental car parking lot!

Luckily, the rest of the day was much more uneventful.  The trail out of Pearisburg kept winding us through the outskirts of town and we got to take in the very industrial side of the town.  This included a Chemical Plant and a landfill!  We decided we wouldnt be getting water from any of the streams on this section of the trail!  

Scenic views from the trail

We got to camp right before dark and had dinner with a section hiker from New Hampshire called Slow Going.  He was a trail veteran and it was nice to hear his stories about the trail.  We had to set up the tent in the dark and it was the first time I got to use my headlamp! 

I was happy to put this day behind me and start over again tomorrow.

 

Day 53

Starting: Pine Swamp Shelter, 650.6

Ending: Laurel Creek Shelter: 669.1

Total Miles: 18.5

Today was another day that we were extremely happy to see the shelter at the end of the day.  We got an early start on the trail and had a pretty uneventful morning.  We had two big climbs to do before lunch and saw our first turtle! 

 I was hoping the turtle would be the most eventful thing that happened to us on the trail, but that wasnt the case.

The weather had been overcast all day and we knew there were storms in the forecast.  We took a break around 4pm at a campground to get water and stretch.  The sky was getting dark and I was afraid it was getting ready to start storming.  We still had six miles to get to our shelter for the night.  We had to be in Daleville by Sunday so we knew we had to keep going.  About 4 miles away from the shelter the storm came!  The thunder was very loud and the lightning strikes were a lot closer than I would have liked.  We were on a section of the trail where there really wasnt a spot to stop.  We were on a ridge of a mountain so we knew we just had to keep going to the shelter.  We were practically running to the shelter.  The trail quickly became a stream with water about 3 inches deep.  It was a very scary experience and again, I was ready to be done with the day!  The storm stopped and the sky cleard when we were about 1 mile away from the shelter.  We were able to calm down and do the last mile in at a normal speed.

We fixed dinner and went to bed happy to dry and safe! 
 

Day 54

Starting:Laurel Creek Shelter: 669.1

Ending: Trout Creek Campsite: 690.4

Total Miles: 21.3

 

We knew we had some big miles to put in today so we tried to get out of camp quickly.  Our clothes and shoes were still soaked from the storm the day before so we started out the morning a little soggy.  The first half of the day was some of the most difficult terrain we have had to deal with on the trai.  We were excited to see the profile of this section was mostly flat.  However, that flat trail was covered with rocks and roots that were still wet from the rain the previous day.  It made for some slow progress and more falls on the part of Mike and myself. 

We covered 12 miles in about 7 hours and didnt make it to the shelter for lunch until 2:30.  We were extremely frustrated and started trying to figure out if it was at all possible to end the day at that shelter and still make it to Daleville by Sunday.  We decided we should just push on and try to finish off the crappy day on a high note.

Luckily, most of the rocks went away for the second half of the day and most of our hiking was on relatively nice trail.  We made up for our slow going and covered 9 miles in about 3 hours.  I think we were both happy to finally be making progress.  We ended up stopping short of our intended shelter by about 1 mile.  We came across a campsite right by a river that was too nice to pass up.  We set up camp and went to bed early.  This was another day that we were both happy was over!

Day 55

Starting:Trout Creek Campsite: 690.4

Ending: Pig Farm Campsite: 708.5

Total Miles: 18.1

Today was a nice change from our previous days.  We crossed two of the most visited spots on the AT; Dragon's Tooth and McAfee Knob.  They are very popular because of the amazing views they offer of the Catawba Valley.  It was still a little overcast and foggy when we started off the hike.  I was hoping by the time we reached Dragon's Tooth the sun would be out so we could see the views.  Luckily, when we were about a mile out the sun came out and we were able to see the valley clearly. 

On the way down the trail after Dragon's Tooth the climbing became very steep and technical.  This was the first time we had to use rungs in the side of the rocks to get down.  We had to drop our hiking poles and use our hands and feet to traverse the trail.  We kept saying that this would be a good preview of some of the trail in the northern states. 

Rungs on the rock

Down the trail

After Dragon's Tooth we planned to have lunch at a gas station/convenience store located about .3 miles off the trail.  We were planning on just getting a soda and maybe a few snacks to eat with our lunch.  When we got there we found out they had a grill and ice cream!  Our plans of eating our tortillas and tuna fish quickly went out the door.  Mike's lunch consisted of the following: cheeseburger, slice of pizza, half bag of sour cream and onion chips, twinkie, mini peanut butter pie, 3/4 pint of ice cream, zone perfect bar, V8 (to be healthy), and a starbucks iced coffee.  I think we spent almost an hour outside the gas station eating.  Mike said in the future whenever he goes to pump gas he will always feel the need to go in and eat a cheeseburger as well.

Once we were completely stuffed on food we got back on the trail to finish the 10 miles we still had to do to get us to the campsite.  We were excited because we knew we would be getting to see McAfee Knob soon. 

The climb to the top of the knob was a lot easier than Dragon's Tooth.  We were getting toward the end of the day so the traffic on the trail had died down.  We were able to get to the top relatively quickly and enjoyed the view from the knob with a few other people.  Luckily, someone offered to take a picture of us.  We usually have to resort to selfies when we want a picture with both of us in it.  The views were amazing and the weather was perfect. 

Today definitely helped lift our spirits and remind  us why we decided to go on this crazy adventure in the first place!

Day 56

Starting: Pig Farm Campsite: 708.5

Ending: Daleville, VA: 724.0

Total Miles: 15.5

When we have the promise of a hotel and real food at the end of the day we always move fast getting out of camp in the morning.  Today was no exception, we were able to get out of camp before 8am.  Although, another group of people we were camping with left the campsite at 4:45am to hike back up to McAfee knob to watch the sunrise.  We weren't that motivated to get up. 

About 2 hours into the hike we crossed Tinker Cliffs.  This was another spot along the trail that had some great views.  We took a few minutes to enjoy the view and take some picutres.  Then we were back on the trail with tunnel vision to town!  We heard there was a great bbq restaurant and that kept us motivated to finish quickly.  

We got into town around 2:30 and headed straight to the restaurant.  The restaurant didn't dissapoint and we were stuffed and happy in no time.  We headed back to the hotel and met up with James and Barbara Evans, our hiking partners for the next four days.  We are very excited to have some friends on the trail.  James and Barbara have both spent a lot of time on the AT so I am excited to spend time with them during this time. 

We are planning on ending our trip near the James River on Thursday.

Happy Trails,

Z and G

Animal traffic

Day 43 (5/19/14)

Starting Point: Elk Garden: 491.2

Ending Point: Big Wilson Creek: 500.8

Total Miles: 9.6

After a few days in Abingdon/Damascus we were ready to hit the trail again. Instead of paying for a shuttle to the trailhead about 25 miles away, we decided to embrace the free spirit of the trail and hitch back from Damascus. It didn't take too long before we were picked up by a local outfitter's shuttle taking section hikers out. I felt like a freeloader with a van full of  people who paid for this shuttle but they said it was okay and they seemed to enjoy hearing about our experiences on the trail thus far. Plus, he could only take us a quarter of the way to our final destination as they were going to a different trail head, so we weren't getting a full shuttle. We got dropped off about 10 miles outside of town, which meant we were 10 miles away from the city, in the middle of nowhere. Although we were closer, I was questioning if this was a good decision to get dropped off in the middle of nowhere on a street that didn't seem to get much traffic. Thankfully, we only sat there for about 10-15 mins until a local man on his way home from work picked us up. He couldn't take us all the way to the trailhead, only about 5 miles closer. It would take us about 2 hours to go five miles so we took it. So we get dropped even further from town in a more remote location, now I was really questioning our original decision to not take a ride all the way. It only took about five minutes until a really nice couple from Nashville picked us up. They were out doing a small section in the same park where we were hiking. It was nice sharing stories about home with them. 

Unfortunately, they weren't hiking from the same trailhead as we were, which we only discovered after getting there. We  were 7 miles north on the trail where we should have been. We couldn't ask them to take us to the other trailhead so we thanked them, walked away, looked at each other and asked, "what do we do now???" As we were standing in the parking lot trying to figure out how to get where we needed to be, another older couple came walking out of the trail and asked us if we knew where a certain trail was. We told them we probably weren't the best people to ask as we just got a ride to the wrong trailhead. It turns out he thru-hiked last year and he and his wife were driving up the trail stopping at all of the scenic spots he said he didn't get to truly enjoy while he was hiking and to show his wife the highlights of the trail. So he understood our predicament and offered to drive us to the right trailhead. 

Once we were finally on the trail we were greeted and sometimes blocked by the wild ponies in Mt. Rogers and Grayson Highland Park.

Ponies blocking the trail and Jessica clearly not happy about it.

"Hey! That's my wife, pony!!"

Day 44

Starting Point: Big Wilson Creek: 500.8

Ending Point: Trimpi Shelter: 520.5

Total Miles: 19.7

Today was a good, uneventful day of hiking although it was very rocky. Rocks = very sore feet. We did get to see more ponies. They were definitely the highlight of the day.

Day 45

Starting Point: Trimpi Shelter: 520.5

Ending Point: Atkins, VA: 542.7

Total Miles: 22.2 miles

Our original plan was to head into Atkins for a resupply and get right back on the trail. That plan changed when Jessica suggested to stay in a hotel tonight. Given they were calling for thunderstorms  that night and we were pretty ripe from the warm weather, I quickly agreed. 

On our way into town we definitely picked up the pace and covered our last 7 miles in 2.5 hours. We were also walking in farm fields and over streams which is a nice change of scenery from the usual "green tunnel." 

Once we got into town we headed directly to the Barn, a country restaurant located on the trail. I ordered the hiker burger, it was over 1 pound and delicious. We were pretty happy about our decision to push into town at that point.

The hotel was 4 miles away from the trailhead so we were hitching again, only this time we were going to end at the right spot. Jessica went into a gas station close to the trail to get ice cream. She also asked the lady behind the counter if the town was hiker friendly and if we'd have any problems getting a ride. The lady behind the counter asked one of the locals who was in the gas station where he was going, he said, "fishing at the lake." She told him to give Jessica a ride to the hotel. The man thought Jessica was alone and quickly agreed, he also offered to take Jessica fishing. Jessica then said, "I'm not sure if my husband outside wants to go fishing." He was very disappointed I was there but still drove us to the hotel.

Overall, it was a pretty successful day.

Day 46

Starting Point: Atkins, VA: 542.7

Ending Point: Crawfish Valley Campsite: 549.0

Total Miles: 6.3

After the back to back days of around 20 miles we were both feeling pretty worn out so we decided to make it a short day. We found a campsite we couldn't pass up and decided to set up camp around 3:30. We both took naps before dinner and felt much better by the end of the day. 

Day 47

Starting Point: Crawfish Valley Campsite: 549.0

Ending Point: Walker Gap: 567.0

Total Miles: 18 

It was a beautiful day, we couldn't have asked for better weather. We were also treated to two separate trail magics. One was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, which I was extremely excited about and greatful for. The other was Oreo cookies. The best thing about the cookie was they were just before a five mile climb so the extra sugar boost was helpful in getting us up the hill.

We were also greeted and blocked again by animals on the trail. This time it was a large cow that I swear would have charged us if we had not decided to walk around her.

This was her trail, not ours and we were okay with that. It was a very large cow.

Day 48

Starting: Walker Gap: 567.0

Ending: Kimberling Creek: 588.2

Total Miles: 21.2

The night before we stayed on top of a hill that was extremely windy. I accidentally placed the wind shield too tightly around the stove while cooking which resulted in burning the stove and the seal on the fuel tank. Thankfully, we read in the guidebook you could get pizza delivered to the trailhead. Of the almost 600 miles we've covered, there were only two places we knew of where you could get pizza delivered to the trail.This couldn't have come come at a better time. It turned out to be really good pizza too.

This is livin'! Pizza on a semi trailer on the side of the road.

Day 49

Starting: Kimberling Creek: 588.2

Ending: Trent's Grocery (VA 606): 606

Total Miles: 17.8

Today we saw our second snake, thankfully it was not poisonous, it was a black rat snack. Even though they're not poisonous, they are very large, they can grow to 8 feet in length. I would guess this particular one was at least 6 feet long.

Jessica saw it first, as she was walking in front. She noticed it after walking by it and quickly told me to stop. It was less than a foot from the trail with its head facing towards the trail (you can see the head in the bottom left hand corner of the picture.) I casually walked by it and said, "that's a black rat snake, which isn't poisonous and typically wants nothing to do with humans." That's not true at all.

I stopped, backed up about five feet and was terrified to walk by it. I had no idea what kind of snake it was and if it was poisonous. So I did what any rugged, thru-hiking man of nature would do and pulled out my phone and Googled, "is a large black snake in Southwestern VA poisonous?" (Thankfully, we've had service on most of the trail in VA as it's typically along a ridge line.) The results said no it's not poisonous. So I put my phone away and casually strolled by it, admiring it's size as I slowly walked past it. That's actually not what happened at all.

Given its proximity to the trail, its size and the fact I couldn't have walked around it off the trail, I stood in place for several minutes trying to work up the courage to walk past it, even though I knew it wasn't poisonous. I decided the only safe way to avoid getting bitten by this snake was to run past it as fast as I can. So I backed up a several feet to get a running start, then I started running as fast as I could and added a jump right when I got next to it. The snake didn't budge. I haven't seen Jessica laugh that hard since we've started. I could only imagine how ridiculous I looked, but I lived to tell the story. :)

It probably laughed too when I leaped by it.

Day 49

Starting: Trent's Grocery: 606

Ending: Lane St., Pearisburg, VA 631.3

Total Miles: 25.2

Our longest day yet! As usual, our plans changed on the fly. We originally planned on getting into town the next day but given we had no fuel and our dinner would have been peanut butter sandwiches, the same thing we ate for lunch, the prospect of hot meal got us through the extra mileage. 

We ended up each getting a bed in the hiker bunks at the Holiday Motor Lodge. The hiker bunks is an old restaurant at the hotel they've converted into a hostel of sorts.  It was a bit nicer and cleaner than most hostels we've been to so far, so we were very happy about our decision to come into town early.

Birdseye view of Pearisburg.

I was expecting to see the Griswald's staying here.

 The hiker bunks. It was real fancy like.

Day 50

Pearisburg/Blacksburg, VA

Total mileage: Zero

We rented a car and headed to an outfitter in Blacksburg to get a replacement stove and resupply. We shipped back our cold weather gear. It was a total of 16 pounds between the two of us, which is huge. We also drove through the very pretty campus of Virginia Tech.

It was a good day off and we were happy to be able to rest. We are planning to make it to Daleville by Sunday to meet up with our first visitors on the trail! Our good friend James and Barbara Evans will be hiking with us Monday-Thursday of next week. We are very excited for the company.

Happy Trails,

Z & G

Virginia, Trail Days and Double Zeros

We are blogging today from Abingdon Virginia after having to take an unexpected (but welcomed) second zero. We had a pretty detailed plan on how we could gain enough mileage to get ahead of the crowd headed into Damascus, VA for trail days, enjoy some of the festival, and get back on the trail ahead of the masses. We failed to take into account Enterprise rental car (our transportation over the last two days) is closed on Sunday. Our ride back to the trail will have to wait until Monday morning. So we are still in Abingdon resting up and exploring this very beautiful city. Here is a recap of our last week:

Day 35 (5/11/13)
Starting Point: Mountain Harbor Hostel: 392.3
Ending Point: Kincora Hostel: 417.0
Total: 24.7
We started off the morning with a great breakfast from Mt. Harbor Hostel. They are known for having one of the best breakfasts on the trail and they certainly didn’t disappoint. During breakfast we ran into Gandolf and were able to coordinate a sharing the costs of a 24 mile slack pack for the day. The owner of the hostel drove our packs up to Kincora Hostel. Our plan was to pick them up there and spend the night. We were pretty excited about ending the long day in another bed!
We didn’t get on the trail until almost 10:30; a pretty late start considering the miles we were planning on putting in that day. Luckily, the weather was awesome and we knew the terrain was relatively flat. We hiked most of the morning with Gandolf, a thru hiker from New York that we have run into multiple times during our hike. It was nice to get to know him a bit better. Early during the day we passed a group of hikers that had been swimming in a river that was running close to the trail. They tried to convince us to go swimming but we knew we had to push on if we were going to make it to the hostel before midnight!
One of the biggest highlights of the day was crossing the 400 mile mark. This one definitely came quicker than I expected! It seems like hitting the 100 mile mark took forever. Hopefully we will be hitting these milestones on a weekly basis from now on.
We made it to the hostel by 8pm. Our packs were waiting for us on our bunks for the night. We were greeted with leftover dinner that was dropped off by some trail angels earlier that day and spent the rest of the night meeting new hikers and catching up with others that we hadn’t seen for a while.
Kincora hostel is run by Bob Peoples, a legend on the trail. He has a huge heart for hikers and the trail. He only asks for a $5 donation for people staying at the hostel. I had heard about him multiple times but it was great to meet him and experience his generosity in person.
Day 36
Starting Point: Kincora Hostel: 417
Ending Point: Vanderventen Shelter: 434.5
Total: 17.5
Possible title for today: “A dip in the lake and a rattlesnake”
We got an extremely early start on the trail today. We knew we would be pretty tired/sore from our long hike the day before, so we wanted to give ourselves plenty of time to complete our mileage. We were on the trail by 7:30 which is a new record for us! Early in the hike we crossed Laurel Falls, a beautiful waterfall that I really wanted to take a dip in! We actually ended up missing a turn in the trail and ended up right by the shore. It took us a while to figure out where we had taken a wrong turn but it also allowed us to take a quick break by the water. 

Laurel Falls

During our morning stretch/water break we found out we were only 3 miles away from a lake with beach access. We decided immediately to alter our lunch plans to include an afternoon swim! We definitely picked up the pace and made it to the lake around 1pm. We hung out with a new group of hikers who had gotten up at 4am and were planning on spending the day at the lake! They were kind enough to share a few beers with us while we were enjoying the water. The lake was amazing and it felt great to relax in the cool water. Unfortunately, we had to push on in order to make the shelter by night. It was definitely hard to leave!

Lake Watuga

A few hours after we left the lake we saw a guy in the middle of the trail about 100 yards ahead of us holding a 15 foot long stick! We couldn’t figure out what he was doing, I knew he wasn’t using it as his hiking poles. When we got closer he told us there was a rattlesnake right off the trail stuck underneath a rock. That made me stop in my tracks and make sure I kept a safe distance away. Apparently, another hiker had thrown rocks at the snake and instead of killing it, he just got it stuck and extremely pissed off (which is exactly how I would NOT want to encounter a rattlesnake)! The snake kept raising his head at us and opening his mouth. It was a pretty scary experience and at that point, I was very happy he wasn’t able to get closer. We decided to write a note and leave it on the trail to warn other hikers of the snake. I certainly wasn’t going to get any closer than I had to. As we were walking by the snake started rattling it’s tail. That made me pick up that pace and make sure I was a safe distance away!

Rattlesnake!! Look close, it's there! 
Thankfully, the last few miles to the shelter were uneventful. We made camp by 7 and had dinner enjoying the amazing view from the overlook behind the shelter. 

View from behind the shelter

Day 37

Starting Point: Vanderventen Shelter: 434.5
Ending Point: TN 91 445.9
Total: 11.4
We slept in a bit this morning because we knew we only had 11 miles to do before getting picked up by a shuttle at 3. Our plan was to get a shuttle into Damascus and then slackpack the remaining 22 miles into the town the next day.
The weather was amazing and its always easier to enjoy the hiking when you know your day will end with a bed! We ran into a few people while we were getting water who told us of a rumor of trail magic at the road where we were getting picked up. The promise of trail magic will make you walk faster with a smile on your face! Fortunately the rumor was true and the trail magic didn’t disappoint. We actually had 2 trail magic instances within .25 miles of each other. The first was a cooler on the trail filled with sodas and baked goods. It was left by a local church who keep the cooler full daily. While we were enjoying a few (maybe 3 or 4) treats from the cooler, we ran into Grant. He is a thru hiker we met at Mount Harbor hostel who rowed in college at Rutgers. It is always great when you run into people on the trail with common interests.
Shortly after we got back on the trail we got to the road where we were getting picked up and hit trail magic #2! This one was being put on by a former thru hiker who was in town for trail days. He had a grill going with chicken, hamburgers and a cooler full of beer. We enjoyed the food and company while waiting for the shuttle to pick us up to go into Damascus.
Once we got into Damascus we ran into Half Moon, Doc and Tex! Half Moon had a rental car for the weekend. He drove us to the grocery store to resupply and even offered to take us back to the road the next morning so we didn’t have to pay for another shuttle. We happily took him up on his offer! We checked into our B&B for the night and got to bed early!

Half Moon, Tex, Doc, me, Mike

Day 38
Starting Point: TN 91 445.9
Ending: Damascus, VA 466.9
Total: 21
We met Half Moon at 9am to drive us back to the road. We were able to get back on the trail by 9:30 and ran into another trail magic by 9:35! This one was run by a group of former thru hikers who had literally set up their tents on the trail so you couldn’t pass by. We stopped for a bit and talked to some hikers we knew. Fortunately, we were able to get out of there relatively quickly when they realized we had just gotten dropped off 5 minutes earlier.
We were making pretty good timing and had a goal to be done by 6 that afternoon. About two hours into the hike we ran into another trail magic (we were definitely getting spoiled by this point. All the trail magic is a result of people coming back into town for trail days in Damascus). This time we stopped. We couldn’t pass up 2 trail magics in one day! We sat at a picnic table by the side of the road and enjoyed chips, cokes and lots of cookies!
The rest of the hike was pretty uneventful. The highlight of the day came near the end of our hike when we crossed the TN/VA border. We have made it to our 4^th state! We said “goodbye” and “see you soon” to TN and happily crossed into VA! After crossing the border, we only had 3 miles to go to Damascus. It felt good to be in Damascus for real now!

We met up with Half Moon and took him out to dinner to thank him for his generosity. We ended up meeting up with Wolf who had done over 30 miles to make it into Damascus that day! It was great catching up with both of them and hearing about their trail experiences over the past few days.
Day 39
Starting: Damascus, VA 466.9
Ending: Bear Tree Gap Trail Campsite: 479.2
Total: 12.3
We didn’t get back on the trail today until after 12pm. We had to go to the outfitter in the morning to replace my boots. After only 500 miles they have come apart at the sole. I decided to go with a pair of trail runners for the next stretch of the trail. With the weather starting to get warmer, it will definitely be nice to have a lighter pair of shoes.
The weather today was calling for 100% percent chance of showers and storms. It rained off and on all morning but had cleared up by the time we hit the trail. We thought we were going to get lucky and hike the rest of the day in good weather. That luck didn’t last long. About an hour into the hike, it started pouring rain. This is probably the most soaked I have been on the trail to date. Everything was soaking wet and all I could do was put my head down and keep hiking. We had plans to make a campsite 14 miles down the trail. The weather caused us to stop about 3 miles early.
We set up camp quickly and stayed in the tent the rest of the night! We were soaked all the way through and happy to be out of the rain for the night!
Day 40
Starting Point: Bear Tree Gap Trail Campsite: 479.2
Ending: Elk Garden: 491.2
Total: 12
Today we got our earliest start on the trail by far. We were actually up and hiking by 6:50am! We had a shuttle planned to pick us up by noon 12 miles down the trail and we knew we had to hustle to make it by noon. Thankfully the rain had stopped but all our clothes and shoes were still completely soaked. I actually hiked in a pair of zip lock bags on my feet because I couldn’t bear the thought of having wet feet two days in a row! 

Zip lock bags=dry feet!

We hiked pretty fast, even climbing a big mountain at a fast pace. We made it to the shuttle with 10 minutes left to spare! I was happy we made it on time, and happy our hiking was done for a while. We had a zero planned for the next day and I was glad to have the day to rest.
The shuttle took us back into Damascus and then Enterprise picked us up! We had hotel reservations outside of town in Abingdon, VA. We checked in to our hotel and then went to dinner and a movie! We went to eat Mexican and saw Million Dollar Arm at the local cinema. It was great to have our own car and have a normal date night. 

Day 41 and 42
Starting Point: Abingdon, Va
Ending Point: Abingdon, Va
We got up Saturday morning and headed back into Damascus to attend trail days. We had plans to visit some of the vendor tents and go to a few of the talks that were being offered. We first went to hear Warren Doyle ( a 16 time thru hiker!!) talk about some of his stories from the trail. He was very engaging and I really enjoyed hearing his perspective. If he ever decides to write a book I will definitely pick up a copy. 

Warren Doyle

We then walked through the vendor tents to see all the latest gear. Fortunately, we were able to get out of there without buying anything new. I was glad not to add any weight to my pack or spend any more money. 

Vendor Expo

Trail Days Crowd

We ended our time at trail days by listening to another talk by Warren Doyle. This time he was speaking about the history of trail days and how the thru hiker sub culture has changed over the past 40 years. He didn’t really go into a lot about how the people have changed and focused mainly on how the physical trail has changed. The trail has added about 130 miles (mostly in Virginia) over the past 40 years. This is mainly due to private land acquisition by the government.
Overall, I really enjoyed my trail days experience. It was definitely a lot tamer than most will have (and that was by design). A lot of hikers use it as an excuse to be drunk and high for 3 days straight and I am very happy to be able to avoid that. We were able to see the vendor tents and hear a few great talks. Which was exactly what we wanted to do.
We are now back in Abingdon and will get back on the trail tomorrow morning. We are enjoying this surprise extra zero by doing a lot of resting and reading. I am really excited to get back on the trail and start making forward progress again. We will be hitting the 500 mile mark tomorrow!!!!!
Happy Trails,
Z & Gia
   

One Month In

Day 27

Starting: Hot Springs, NC, 273.9

Ending: Rich Mtn Fire Tower 282.1

Total Miles: 8.2 

After pulling ourselves away from Hot Springs after a hearty breakfast, big lunch and ice cream around 2:40, we walked along the French Broad River for a little while. On the other side of the River from the trail was a musical festival going on. For about a week before getting into HS we heard there was a bluegrass fest for $10 going this weekend, which we very excited about. It turns out the fest wasn't only bluegrass and was $75 per ticket. It was a pretty large event with a few thousand people.

The weather was beautiful but we felt pretty sluggish hiking. This occurs every time we leave town...we eat way too much.

Day 28

Starting: Rich Mtn Fire Shelter 282.1

Ending: Jerry Cabin Shelter 300.3

Total Miles: 18.2 miles

300 miles behind and our longest hike yet. Another gorgeous day, although it's starting to get a little warm. It's forecasted to be 87 this week, the good news with the warm weather is we can sleep without the rain fly on tent and see the stars. We're very excited for that.

The hiking was pretty challenging today with a couple of big climbs then walking along a very rocky ridge line for almost a mile. The views were pretty spectacular from there, with a clear view of Greenville, TN.

Day 29

Starting: Jerry Cabin Shelter 300.3

Ending: Hogback Ridge Shelter 315

Total Miles: 14.7

It's starting to get warm, unseasonably warm. The temps today were in the mid 80's and it was noticeable how much more difficult the hiking was. Thankfully, about halfway through our day there was a very nice little waterfall that we dipped our feet in and cooled off for about 30 minutes. I felt like a new man after that!!

Note the beard coming nicely.

The water was ice cold, it was great!!

Shortly after the waterfall we spotted our first deer on the trail, 3 doe. It was amazing how close they let us get to them. We were within 15 ft of them and they never got spooked.

Overall, it was a good day but we were exhausted at the end of the day from the heat!

Day 30

Starting: Hogback Ridge Shelter 315

Ending: Spivey Gap 330.8

Total Miles: 15.8

We started our day like we normally do, with hot coffee and oatmeal. When we were packing up to leave, Jessica noticed that we were completely out of fuel. Our plan was to walk into Erwin the next day to resupply but since all we had was a Pasta Side left for dinner we decided to get a shuttle into town. Jessica's theory is that I left the fuel on after cooking and my theory was she let it run out so we could go into town early. Either way, we ended up sleeping in a bed, showering and eating way too much, as usual the first day in town, so we were both happy the other one let the fuel run out. :)

We also planned to slackpack the remaining 11 miles into Erwin the next day. This will be our first slackpack so we're looking forward to not having 30+ lbs on our back.

Day 31

Starting: Spivey Gap: 330.8

Ending: Erwin, TN: 342

Total Miles: 11.2

Our one month anniversary on the trail! What better way to celebrate than with a slackpack! We got shuttled out to the trail  at 9:30 and began our hike, Jessica sans pack and me with just water, snacks and a first aid kit. It was great we flew down the trail, literally. We were done around 1:00 and we took a couple breaks. Normally, we average between 2-2.5 mph, today it was over 3. I sort of wish we could do the whole trail like this but there are a few people out here that think slack packing is cheating. Thankfully, I think they're in the minority. As the popular saying goes, "hike your own hike."

Nolichucky River that flows through Erwin.

After the hike, the shuttle stopped at Pal's and we picked up burgers and a milkshake. First time eating at Pal's, it was great! 

We then did our laundry, resupplied or oversupplied and planned our next several days. Trail Days in Damascus starts next week and we're right on pace to land in Damascus on Friday or Saturday. This is exactly when you don't want to arrive at Trail Days, unless you're a 20 yr old who wants to get drunk partake in illegal substances (except in Colorado) and dance around in drum circles until the sun rises. Our plan is to get a couple days ahead of the mass exodus of hikers on Sunday by slack packing a couple 20+ days. We plan to rent a car and drive back into Damascus on Saturday to experience a little bit of the festivities.

Day 32

Starting: Erwin, TN: 342

Ending: Cherry Gap Shelter: 359

Total: 17

Before climbing over Unaka Mountain, which is a 3400 ft climb from Erwin, we were greeted by the best trail magic we've had yet, apples, chips, Wendy's and a keg! An added bonus was the Wendy's and the keg were delivered by Zach Davis who wrote Appalachain Trials and runs the blog of the same name. Jessica and I both read the book as part of our preparation so it was really neat to meet him in person. 

The "trail gate" at Indian Grave Gap

The trail magic made it a good day despite the climb in mid 80's temps. 

Day 33

Cherry Gap Shelter: 359

Roan High Knob Shelter: 376

Total: 17

Another 17 mile day! Not too much to note today. The weather finally cooled off and we were able to enjoy the hiking a bit more. The early part of the day was pretty flat so we were able to put in a lot of miles before lunch. We ran into a group at the shelter who had slack packed 20+ miles the day before. They were still talking about how great it was. Thankfully, we will be slack packing soon ourselves. 

Our day ended with 2000+ foot climb to our shelter. It's an abandoned ranger cabin and is the highest shelter on the AT. Unfortunately, they were full by the time we got there. But the surrounding campsite was covered in pine straw. It made for a very soft tent floor! It was my (Jessica) favorite camp site so far.

Climb to the top

Day 34

Starting: roan high knob: 376

Ending: mountain harbor hostel: 392.3

Total: 16.3

Today was a crazy day and we are happy to be indoors at the end of it! We packed up camp and got on the trail by 8am!

The weather was cool and overcast and we heard there was a chance of storms later in the day. About a mile into our hike we ran into Doc and Tex with Doc's parents. They were visiting and helping Doc and Tex slack pack. We cought up briefly but they were moving fast so we couldn't keep up for long! 

We quickly started our climbing for the day which included crossing 5 balds! The views were amazing. 

We had lunch at a shelter that was an old barn. Apparently it sleeps over 20!

After lunch we continued climbing. We were making good time with our mileage but we knew we still had tough terrain ahead. Right before we were about to cross the biggest bald of the day, it started thunder storming. Being on top of the highest elevation around with no protection and metal hiking poles is not ideal. We decided to wait it out under a tree line until we were pretty confident the storms had passed. We were still climbing in crazy wind and rain but luckily, the storms had passed.

Shortly after finishing the balds we crossed out of NC for the last time! We have officially finished 2 states.

We spent the night at a hostel. It was a pretty interesting set up. We were in a semi-private room (a corner with a curtain) in the loft of a barn. We were actually pretty happy to be out of the rain and in a bed for the night. Even if it was above horses and goats.

Hikers on top horses on the bottom

Mike getting love from the hostel dogs.

Notice the goat on the rocks

Close up of goat.

We are planning on slack packing 24 today. It will be our longest mileage by far. Luckily our packs will be light and the terrain should be flat.

Also, we would like to wish our moms a very happy Mother's Day! We love you both very much and can't wait to see you!

Happy Trails,

Z & Gia