Walking Alone

I've been struggling to find the motivation to blog recently, preferring to spend my time reading and soaking my feet in streams, chatting with other thru hikers, or walking. I haven't written in over a week so lots of this is kinda fuzzy now. 

Thursday, June 4

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 17.6

Total miles on AT: 1146.9

I woke up to find that South Pole had already showered and was leaving to have breakfast. I was immediately wide awake and got up and dressed quickly so that I wouldn't be holding her back if she wanted to leave early but I also didn't want to eat alone. Once I had gotten halfway through my mediocre breakfast of stale toast and blueberry yogurt, I realized that it had been a mistake. I was tired. I finished off my mediocre bowl of frosted flakes and returned to my bed, hoping for another hour of sweet sleep. As South Pole packed, I realized it was 7. If it took me an hour to pack and another hour to sleep, I wouldn't leave until 9. I decided not to sleep anymore.

South Pole needed to charge her phone, so in spite of our efforts to leave at different times so that we could hike separately, we ended up leaving at the same time. I let South Pole hike faster than me and had soon lost her ahead, leaving me free to daydream (not that I don't with South Pole-- it's just punctuated with conversation). I stopped at the Appalachian Trail Conservation Crew headquarters, where there was a water spigot and a trail journal. I like to look through the journal to see if I recognize anyone who signed in ahead of me. About 5 miles in, I caught up to her at a really nice bench built of rocks at a view. I was hungry too, so I stopped and snacked and we chatted and she realized she hadn't even seen the ATC building. She left the bench before I did and it was another goose chase.

I caught up again at the shelter; I stopped to look through the journal (I'm an addict) and examine the "Taj Mahal" privy, which actually was not that great. It was just as smelly as most and very dirty, it was just big. South Pole got ahead again and I daydreamt about who knows what. Mostly nothing. What do you think about for hours? Actually it's just been 5 days since this happened so I don't really remember well...

Soon enough I came upon a view. We knew we were close to Duncannon but were planning to pass through because it wasn't enough miles to make a full day for us and we'd heard that the only lodging option was not good. The view was two miles shy of Duncannon. There was a little group of tye-dye, long-haired teenagers standing on a rock, and they reminded me of those twins in the movie How to Train a Dragon-- I realized we really were in the North now.

The descent into town was steep and rocky. I was flying because I always do on my way into town, and quickly lost South Pole behind me. What seemed like only moments later, I arrived in town. It was still a little ways to the Doyle Hotel, where I had a resupply package and we were going to eat dinner. On my way, it started to rain. I didn't want to get wet right before going inside so I went through the ordeal of donning my huge rain jacket, just in time because it started to rain even harder. I got a little lost and had to pull out my map but I got to the Doyle eventually, and went inside. There was a man sitting at a table inside, and he introduced himself as "Tricks". He asked me if I had thru-hiked before and then guessed that I had hiked the PCT because my pack was so small. 

I plugged in my phone to charge and was treated to a Tricks monologue. At the time I wasn't prepared and thought he was just awfully friendly. He had stories galore. Soon, South Pole arrived, drenched, with Beatle, a German thru hiker. They were treated to a similar welcome. We all ordered food and ate and sat around for a bit, chatting and looking out the window at the rain. I was reluctant to go out, thinking of my fleece blanket and knowing I would be cold. Beatle left. South Pole and I kept talking to Tricks, who said I could borrow his sleeping bag. He isn't a thru hiker but is very involved with the thru hiking community and likes to feed and ferry around hikers in exchange for stories. We ended up talking (or, listening, I should say) and it was soon 6:30, which didn't leave much time for walking anymore. In spite of all the bad reviews, we decided to stay at the Doyle.

Our room was awful. It was dirty, the pillows were like cardboard, and you could feel every spring in the mattresses. The only comfort was that it was out of the rain. We walked to the gas station for Ben and Jerry's ice cream, and I discovered how much I like Chunky Monkey. We went upstairs to watch an awesome movie about the CDT with Tricks, and I kept turning to South Pole and saying, "don't you want to do that? How cool would that be!?" We didn't end up going to sleep until around 11.

Friday, June 5

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 21

Total miles on AT: 1167.9

We woke up and packed our things and left our room at 7 to find Tricks, who had offered to slack pack us the first 7 miles. He gave us bananas and little backpacks and we told him our estimated arrival time. We walked out through Duncannon, which turned out to be an awfully cute little town with charming houses along the AT. We had to walk along the road on a huge bridge to cross the Susquehanna river, and halfway across we noticed a huge bird sitting on a lamppost, calling out to us. We slowed and took pictures and he got angry and started to divebomb us, narrowly missing us. We later learned that it was a Peregrine Falcon, the fastest member of the animal kingdom (according to Wikipedia), and can reach speeds of 200 mph. I didn't get very good pictures of it. 

A few miles into the hike, I realized we were behind schedule. Far behind schedule. We were in a rocky section, which slowed us down, and I had pulled ahead of South Pole, who moves more slowly across rocks than I do. I waited for her to catch me, looking at the map, and realized it was 8 miles, not 7 miles. I told her that I didn't think we'd make it in time, and she agreed. We called Tricks and told him we'd be an hour later than we thought, and then booked it to make it by that deadline. 

I got to the road first, and met Tricks at the bridge crossing the road. He'd just gotten there, and he began his monologue the moment I came into view. South Pole soon came to relieve me from being his sole target. He gave us gatorade and snacks. Another couple arrived and also partook in the snacking. He had been thinking about slack packing us for another 10 miles, but after an hour had decided against it because it would suck up his entire day. South Pole and I finally left him to continue talking at the couple. We'd only walked a mile when the heat totally sapped my energy and I talked South Pole into a nap break. We sat on rocks for about half an hour and the couple passed us, and then we continued to a shelter and passed the couple. They were flip-flopping and started in Harper's Ferry, so they didn't really have their trail legs yet. They stopped before we did that day and we never saw them again. 

We stopped for dinner at a river and soaked our feet while we cooked. I read the book my dad had sent me in my resupply box. It was "Follow the River", and part of it takes place in Virginia. It's historical fiction about an English woman kidnapped by the Indians from her settlement and taken 3000 miles, and then she escapes and makes her way home. It's captivating, and mainly why I haven't been blogging recently. 

While we cooked, a thru hiker we hadn't yet met arrived, and we chatted for a bit before South Pole and I left. I was feeling kind of tired and wanted to read some more and South Pole and I had been talking about walking alone for awhile, so after 3 miles I decided to stop and South Pole continued. I found a really nice flat spot away from the trail with just enough room for one tent. It was strange to be alone. I didn't want to worry about bears so I hung my first bear bag alone before retiring to my tent to read, falling asleep early.

I slept pretty well, aside from one point around 11, when I woke up to strange sniffling in front of my tent. I thought for sure it was a bear, and I was thankful that I'd hung a bear bag. I lay there petrified as the animal sniffed its way around my tent and then eventually away from my tent. After 20 minutes of fear, I realized that I recognized that sound from another night of tenting, when after several hours of noise I'd looked out to see a deer. That was when I decided it was a deer and I was fine, so I fell back asleep.

Saturday, June 6

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 26

Total miles on AT: 1193.9

I woke up around 6 but wasn't ready to get up, so I lay there until 7. I'd decided to do only what I felt like doing, since I was alone. I got up eventually because I realized I might have to walk in the heat of the day. I ended up starting to walk around 8, after my leisurely breakfast and pack up. 

I saw next to no one the entire day. The trail was quiet, and I was alone with my thoughts. I enjoyed it, and the morning went by quickly. I saw the spot where South Pole had tented, about 2 miles past me. She had drawn a star with a smiley face in the dirt on the trail there and I knew it was for me, which made me smile. As I walked, I spent a lot of time thinking about my tiny house. I've been thinking about my tiny house for years. I've been dreaming that one day I'll build a house that suits all my needs and only those needs without being excessive. I was thinking about how I might build a house entirely of my own doing (for the most part); plumbing, electric, cabinets, etc. I'd ideally like to be off grid also, and (maybe this is stretching it), but living in a little sustainable community of tiny houses with a communal garden and chickens... Anyway, distant dream but it occupied my thoughts.

In the afternoon, I started to get a severe pain behind my left knee every so often, and I decided to stop for a break. I hadn't taken a break all day but it seemed like time, so I sat by a stream for half an hour, collecting water, eating, and reading. I felt much better after that, and continued. I soon took another half hour reading break, absorbed in my book. By this point I had decided to catch up to South Pole. We had a plan to meet up the next day in town, but I didn't want a really long day into town, so I thought I would go an extra 3 miles to catch up to her. She had texted me saying she reached the shelter at 6:15, which meant I was only an hour behind her. I started booking it, excited that I was actually catching up to her.

I got to the shelter at 7:15 and it was packed. It was right next to a road and I could tell there were lots of weekend hikers because they were wearing cotton sweatshirts and jeans. There were also some thru hikers I didn't recognize. I looked around and examined the tent sites before I realized South Pole wasn't there. I checked the shelter log and saw that she had left 10 minutes earlier, with the intent of walking further to find her tent site. I looked around and decided this was not my scene so I left also. I thought South Pole would probably walk a few miles, but I didn't have it in me, so after half a mile I stopped at a campsite. I set up and settled in, my entire body aching. I couldn't sit down or lie down without being uncomfortable. I finally cooked my dinner but couldn't manage to keep eating it, so I put the lid on it and lay down to sleep.

I didn't sleep well, paranoid because it was the weekend and I was so close to the road. I woke up at every noise and was thankful for morning.

Sunday, June 7

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 23.6

Total miles on AT: 1217.8

I woke up tired, and ate my cold dinner. I started walking later than the day before, feeling dejected by my failure to catch South Pole the day before. I was walking slowly.

Soon into the hike, I met a day hiker going the opposite direction. She was very friendly and gave me an apple. I stopped after two hours for my first half hour break at a nice view, where I ate my apple and read my book. I remember getting very bored with walking that day, and entertaining myself by singing all the songs I could remember and stopping for three more half hour breaks to read and snack. 

At one point I came up behind a little boy who was a bit chubby and reminded me of the little boy in Up. He had a small pack and was chatting enthusiastically with a man walking in front of him, who had everything but the kitchen sink on his back. "Excuse me," I called out, and they jumped to the side. Just after I passed, I heard the man say to the boy, "If she was a murderer we'd be dead."

I finally made it to town, totally exhausted, around 8. I went straight to the bar (I felt too dirty to enter the restaurant) where I ate dinner and charged my devices before heading over to the tenting pavilion, where I thankfully found South Pole's tent and set up next to her, chatting happily before passing out, dead to the world for the night. She apparently did not sleep well because the traffic was so loud. 

Monday, June 8

Weather: Mostly sunny, afternoon thunderstorm

Miles travelled: 14.8

Total miles on AT: 1232.3

We got up with the intention of hiking 21 miles, and packed up all our things by 8. We walked over to the barber shop because they had our packages (the post office took them across the street to the barber shop a couple days sooner, South Pole called to request that, so that we wouldn't have to wait for the P.O. to open). We arrived to be greeted on the stoop by Frank, the owner, who told us to introduce ourselves by trail name and where we were from before helping ourselves to outlets, coffee, and cookies. It was a cozy shop with a constant stream of customers, all older men, who Frank entertained with his stories and chatter with the hikers as he took his time cutting their hair. It was a really nice place. 

I had my sleeping bag shipped there, and I packed it up to have a heavy backpack again. South Pole's mom had sent her a huge box with all kinds of food, including a big jar of Nutella. South Pole doesn't like to waste so she had to carry it all. We didn't leave until 10, and walking was nice that day. We stopped a couple of times at views and met Ox, another thru hiker. As we chatted, South Pole said that she'd realized while hiking alone that she appreciated hiking with me because I forced her to take breaks. Alone, she didn't take breaks and her feet suffered. We'd both realized how much faster time seems to go when you're hiking with someone.

We also leapfrogged Bladge and Micro Gooch, two younger guys who are a part of the Remedy/Wild Thing/Five/Ferris/Loon crowd, who always seem to be stopping to eat and having "safety meetings"...

We got to the shelter around 5, we'd been running from a thunderstorm that was forecasted to begin at 5 so we had perfect timing. It was a nice enclosed shelter with six bunks, so we claimed the last bunks. We were hoping to wait for the storm to pass before hiking on. There was a caretaker's house next to the shelter with a spigot and electrical outlets, and a solar shower so we took turns taking a cold shower. I'd just finished showering when the storm hit. The rain was torrential and I was so happy to be inside. 

In the shelter we met Wayfarer, an older man who was hiking about 10 miles a day and working on his long hike of the Eastern Divide Trail, which is just an extended version of the AT that starts somewhere in Florida and goes up into Canada. He started walking in October. Micro Gooch and Bladje arrived before the rain began, and then Loon about half an hour after the rain. She arrived exhilarated and drenched. She's also taking a year off of school halfway through. Five and Ferris arrived later. I chatted for a bit and then retreated from the commotion, reading for half an hour before going to sleep.

Tuesday, June 9

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 21.2

Total miles on AT: 1253.5

I woke up at 5 to stirring in the shelter. Wayfarer had just left and people kept shifting and I lay there for a bit before I decided it was fruitless, so I packed up and so did South Pole. We left, happy to be dry. Hiking was slow. We took lots of breaks. At the first shelter, 7 miles in, it started to rain heavily so we decided to stay and cook lunch. Of course, as soon as we'd taken out our pots, the sun came out and the rain stopped, but we decided to cook anyway. 

We went over Knife Edge, which was a fun boulder climb, and Bake Oven Knob, another rocky bit. Bake Oven Knob was covered in graffiti and there were lots of day hikers, including one who was blasting rap from a speaker. It was an interesting experience. 

It was starting to get late in the day and we were discussing strategy. We needed to get to town the next day because I was almost out of food, so we had to go as far as possible today. We were going to walk until 9 and then find a spot, and I wasn't planning to cook, which was a dilemma because I didn't have enough snacks to eat so I'd have to cook at some point the next day. We were thinking strategy and I was tired and we had to somehow get water somewhere when we found a box. I thought, oh another empty box, and then I kept walking and saw a big collection of full water jugs and another box. I immediately got excited about the water, and opened the lid of the box to find it full of doughnuts and other tasty hiker treats! It was impeccable timing. I read the journal in the box to see that it had been restocked 20 minutes earlier-- we had only just missed meeting the restocker himself, a former thru hiker called Starman. We had a break there, ate doughnuts and apples and filled up on water. I took a couple snacks to get me through the next day and we went on, spirits high. Around 8:30 I started to see that it might be difficult to find a tent site because of the amount of rocks, so at 8:45 when we found a flat spot we decided to stay and not risk continuing. 

Wednesday, June 10

Weather: Sunny and hot

Miles travelled: 24.4

Total miles on AT: 1277.9

We woke up at 4 and started walking by 5:20. It was exhausting to wake up unnaturally early. We soon came to the shelter, where we found Ox and Obsolete and met two new guys, GQ and Walking Man, a father-son duo. South Pole and I took a break a few miles later and six people passed, including some more thru hikers we didn't know; Firestarter, Peter Pan, and Solo. Ox and Obsolete passed. As we walked a bit, we came across a hiker sprawled right on the trail, food lying everywhere and his gear tumbling out of his pack. I was confused, and South Pole got sucked into conversation with him (we tried to pass and he insisted we stay for a chat). His name was Hawkeye and I couldn't even tell that he was talking at first, until South Pole started responding and I realized he was using English words but slurring badly. I was hoping South Pole wouldn't continue her conversation too long. 

Eventually we got past, and this was where our fun boulder climb began. I collapsed my poles and put them into my pack because I needed both hands to climb up the huge rocks, my pack weight throwing me off and sliding around. It was a fun climb. After we'd gotten to the top, we met Wookie and ended up walking with him the rest of the day. He just retired from the Army. 

The trail was hard. There was nothing but rocks that were pointy and would poke your feet and shoes from every direction. 4 miles from town, we were worn out. Neither South Pole or I wanted to take another step in any direction, especially not in the direction of the rocks, but we had to because I needed food. 1 mile from town, GQ and Walking Man caught up to us and we all hiked the last mile together. The restaurant was .8 from the trail so we walked over there. GQ, Walking Man, and Wookie went to eat dinner and South Pole and I washed our clothes. I bought ridiculously expensive gas station food to last me two days. A couple, Starshine and Moonshine King (they were just making things up, they weren't hikers) were at the laundromat and gave us granola bars and beer, and then South Pole and I joined the guys at dinner.

They left before we did, and when we were all done and clean and full we went to the gas station and asked a man filling up to give us a ride back to the trail because it was dark. He said, "sure, hop in!" He gave us cookies and told us he lived right down the street. We walked about .1 of a mile when we saw a fire and found Wookie, GQ, and Walking Man set up. We found flat spots and chatted with them around the fire well into the night.