Crossed into Virginia today and staying at the Place in Damascus. Church Hostel which is a nice change. No smells of weed or excessive drinking by young adults who are looking for a good time. Just want the peace and quiet for a change in a hostel. I'm very excited to have Ga, NC, TN under my belt. Virginia will be an entirely diffferent animal. I hope to keeep a steady pace daily. Let's hope the weather cooperates. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. Life is a gift, waste it wisely. Hiking is a good start. Faceplant out.
Hiked from Hampton, TN to Low Gap in last two days. Due to aggressive bear activity they have closed two of the shelters leading to Damascus. This resulted in me seeking a hostel. I'm staying at the Rabbit Inn. The milkshakes are outstanding. I'll be hiking out in the morning for Damascus My body is tired. Hope all is well up in your neck off the woods. Faceplant
Just got into Boots Off Hostel in Hampton, TN after an exciting three days of hiking. Stayed at The Refuge Hostel previously with "Close Enough" and April. They were perfect proprietors and very hiker friendly. Hiking over the Roan Highlands was exhilarating with breathing taking views. Jane Bald was awe inspiring and the humps made me work hard climbing. The descent was tough with lots of rocks which caused pain to my toes and ankles. Hope I don't develop foot problems. Already tending to a sore sprained foot. I hiked 23 miles yesterday (a personal best on the AT). Today I pulled back to give my feet a break hiking from Dennis Cove to Hampton. Now some R&R to recover before tomorrow. Life is a gift. Waste it wisely Faceplant out
When they say "No Rain, No Pain, No Maine", they mean it. The last three days has been rain and cold. Coming into a shelter drenched and cold makes the hike difficult. I know they say, "embrace the suck", but multiple days of wet and cold really makes you not believe it. Regardless, made it through the Roan Mountains and another peak over 6300'. Unfortunately no views due to the weather. I did like the forests and the endless moss. Reminds me so much of Scotland. Met some new hikers. Malcolm and Clay. Malcolm finished his 70 mile section hike and Clay is headed to Demascus. Double Vision has also been reconnected. He was depressed with the weather as well, but cheered up once we got into The Refuge Hostel to warm up and clean off. We head out tomorrow for another 16-17 mile hike. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. Life is a gift, waste it wisely. Faceplant out.
I spent the day hiking with an old friend from my Toys R Us days. We hiked 8.5 miles from Indian Grave. I'm staying a second night at Uncle Johnny's hostel and will give myself extra rest to give foot some extra rest. Storms are rolling in so taking a zero may be what the doctor ordered. Anxious to get back on the trail.
The last few days were quite challenging. I officially finished hiking the Smokies, leaving Davenport Gap Shelter. Problem was I left my solar charger and I had to hike back a mile and a half to retrieve it. I told my travel partner, Postcard to move on ahead, but he waited. When I saw him he was writing postcards to his family and friends. How appropriate. I hiked 15 miles, 13 miles, and 13 miles in the last three days with lots of climbs. The views from snowbird Peak, and Max Patch were particularly rewarding once we hiked up to the elevations. The descents really did a number on my feet and the left foot is tender now. No worries, I'll tend to it. I'm officially at 274.6 miles completed. Hope everyone is doing well in their neck of the woods. Life is a gift, waste it wisely.
Left the Lodge of legends hostel today back to Clingmans Dome to pick up where we left off. Slack packed to New Found Gap and then picked up our packs to hike to ice water shelter. Got in around 4pm and hiked 10.5 miles. The shelter was full so I pitched my tent. Met a few new hikers and Amelia the trail ridge runner. She is amazing. She covers 30 miles a day in the Smokies and was full of wonderful hiking stories. Tomorrow we plan on hiking 12.5 miles past Crosby to Tri Corner Shelter. Apparently bear activity in the area. Hope we have a good day. Cheers! Faceplant
We climbed Clingmans Dome today. Over 6,600 feet of utter bliss. Unfortunately the weather did not cooperate and we could not see the views. Oh well, we were still smiling that we accomplished the climb. Due to the weather we got a trail angel (Ken) to drive us into Gatlinburg so we could clean up and recover before our next leg to Hot Springs. After a great lunch at Park Grill we got a shuttle to Lodge of Legends Hostel. What a great place to stop as a hiker. Rene (hostess) was spectacular and attended to all our needs. Great resupply, laundry, hot shower and comfortable accommodations. I am blessed. Life is a gift, waste it wisely... Faceplant
Last three days were tough. Left Fontana Hilton Shelter on Mother's Day and entered the Smoky Mtns. Climbed over 5,000 feet and descended 2300'. NWT climb of 2700'. Ouch! Shelter at Mollies Ridge after 12 miles. Next day woke up to rain and deer walking throughout camp. Got on the trail by 9:30 and hiked to Derrick Knob. Another 12 mile hike full of climbing and descents with rocks. Took a lesser day today hiking 7.5 miles to Double Spring Shelter. Rain expected tomorrow. Clingmans Dome awaits us. Total 197 miles at this point since leaving Springer Mtn. The Trail humbles me everyday. Life is a gift. Live it wisely. Faceplant.
Left Fontana Dam today. The scenery around the dam was beautiful. Enjoyed meeting Roadrunner again. She gave me a glass of milk and some Raisin Bran. She is one of the best trail angels ever. I left and entered the smokies. Submitted my permit and off I went. The climbs were the most challenging so far. Over 5,000 feet of climbing and 2,000 feet of descents. Started at 1754' and ended at 4600'. I'm very proud of the accomplishment, but my body is feeling it. 12 miles today bringing me to 177.7 miles total from Springer. Looking at rain tonight and tomorrow. Smoky mountain mystery. Life is a gift. Waste it wisely. Faceplant out.
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