Damascus Virginia Bound.

Damascus Virginia, pop ~1000 persons.

So tomorrow afternoon I am loading the backpack into the truck and heading towards Damascus Virginia for a few days of hiking the Appalachian Trail.  Damascus VA is well known to the hikers of the Appalachian Trail as a very trail friendly town that welcomes the tired, dirty, smelly hikers into their beautiful small town and with a hearty hello to boot.  In fact, Damascus caters to the hiker!  There are several outfitters, hostels, places to resupply, and of course, high calorie, high carb food at the restaurants!

Damascus VA hosts Trail Days the weekend after Mothers Day every year and is a mecca of sorts for the hikers on the Appalachian Trail.  All along the trail, people get off the trail, find a ride into Damascus and celebrate with parades, music,food, and of course, BEER!  During Trail Days, gear vendors come into town plying their wares and repair any equipment that needs to be repaired for the trail weary travelers.  As said and done, this weekend brings over 10,000 hikers into town for the fun and festivities.  Although Trail Days is now a fading memory from the spring of this year, this is still a fun bohemian hiker town.  You will see late starting hikers coming infrom the south making their trek north seeking to take a day or two off the trail to rest, shower, and relax.  It is always a good time in Damascus.

So I will arrive tomorrow night, arrange a shuttle for Saturday to the trail head I chose, grab a bunk at the hostel for 20 bucks, grab a pasta dinner, beer and hit the rack early to catch my shuttle at  7 AM.  I will then hike the mountains back to Damascus over the next several days......hopefully it won't take me longer...haha.  Damascus is close to the Virginia/Tennessee border so I will be dropped off in Tennessee and hike the mountain ridges back to my car (Side note:  I decided to hike south back to Damascus instead of North at the last minute).The route I have selected travels approximately 40 miles of the Appalachian Trail and I am planning on being in the woods for no more than 3 days....well actually maybe 4 if I play around and actually take in the vistas!  The weather looks fairly good, highs in the low 80s and lows around 60.  Of course, late summer thunderstorms and rain are always possible. We shall see.

A-Frame style fair weather tarp pitch. Other pitches are great
for high winds, rain and snow.

Since this is an equipment shake down hike, I am taking the new backpack (still making adjustments to it), and the tarp.  Tarp camping is a new challenge for me and there is a definite skill to learning which type of pitch to use based on the weather conditions and terrain.  The advantage is, with the right material, it can bring your shelter weight down to less than one pound.  To see what kind of advantage this gives, consider the typical 2 man tent weighs,over 5 lbs, and the average light weight tent is 2.5 to 3 pounds.  So, the tarp is coming with me and I will be experimenting with the pitch. 

My pack weight for this hike with food and water should be around 26 lbs.  This weekend should be fun.

So, as the weather is decent and there has been plenty of rain lately, water should be plentiful in the streams and springs, and the local wildlife on the trail should be out including wild ponies. Yes I said wild ponies.  Yes, before you ask, photos will be posted at a later date. It is time to go and finish packing the food bag and get ready to head out tomorrow afternoon.  Remember, just hike your hike.

AT Hiker r is just enjoying the ride.....

2014 IS THE YEAR!

Welcome To My Appalachian Trail Blog

Appalachian Trail Vista

There comes a time in a persons life when they yearn to take time to find the simple life, to leave many of life's modern conveniences and to head out to the wilder parts of our country.  Many of us yearn to simplify our lives for a while, to test ourselves both physically and mentally, to be able to contemplate and think about life. I have decided to simplify my life, to slow down for awhile, to enjoy the outdoors in a way many people have thought of doing, but few are able to attempt. It is time I push myself and grow.

So what will I do to push myself and grow?  I have decided to again hike the Appalachian Trail.  The lofty goal is to hike the entire length starting in late winter 2014. Why have I decided to do a long distance hike now?  Why not?  I am in good health, I still love hiking and I feel the draw of the trail.

The Appalachian National Scenic Trail, generally known as the Appalachian Trail or the AT extends between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine.  The trail is approximately 2,184 miles long and passes through the following the states of Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The Majority of the trail is in wilderness, although some portions traverse towns, roads and cross rivers. A large portion of the trail consists of walking up and down mountains and walking ridges which make for strenuous hiking.
Approximately 2500 hikers try to thru hike the trail every year although only 15-25% of those that start this journey actually finish the whole trail in a single season.

Many of the unprepared hikers who set out  on a thru hike make it less than a week.  I suppose they romanticize hiking the trail and do not realize how difficult a task hiking the trail can be. These majority hikers that attempt to hike the trail and fail to complete it seem to have 2 common issues they did not prepare for properly.

First, they try to carry to much equipment and supplies. Their packs are loaded heavy.  The common denominator seems to be pack weights when loaded without food and water over 35 pounds.  Add 2-3 liters of water and 10 lbs of food and you have a pack weight over 50 pounds.  My goal is to have a fully loaded pack weight  with food and water of under 30 pounds and includes everything I need to survive while hiking.  When I am able to hike in warmer weather I will not have to carry as much gear and the pack weight should be under 25 lbs.  This will entail keeping gear to the minimum necessary and eschewing many "luxury" items most people think as must have to keep my pack light. This is even more critical to keep pack weight light for a section hiker so you can move at a respectable rate of speed.  Section hikers generally do not spend enough time on the trail at one time to really get into hiker shape.

Secondly, many of these persons are not in decent physical shape to begin a hike of this magnitude.  This does not mean that they cannot complete the hike, but they do not have the mental stamina to push through the pain, blisters, cold, rain, soreness etc. until their bodies and muscles adapt and strengthen over the first 3 weeks.  They do not take it slow and hike to their abilities while waiting for their bodies to adapt to the trail.

Most persons attempting to thru hike the Appalachian Trail will begin in the early spring in Georgia in order to finish before October when the weather will prevent a hiker from summiting Mount Katahdin in Maine due to poor weather and snow. The typical hiker will face freezing temperatures, snow, ice, sleet and freezing rain as he starts high in the Georgia Mountains in early spring, brave the high temperatures, rain and humidity of the summers in the Mid-Atlantic states and will end in the cool fall weather of the North East.  The hiker will do this while averaging 15-25 miles a day hiking with 30-35 pounds of gear on his back.  Why does someone do this?  Everyone who attempts a long distance trail either for weeks or months at a time has their reasons.  I cannot speak for others, but I will talk about my reasons in this blog from time to time.

I welcome you to my little blog.  Enjoy the history, watching me fret and discuss equipment and its benefits vs weight.  History of the trail, maps and links to other websites of people who have hiked the trail as well as follow my training hikes on and around the Appalachian Trail.  Again, enjoy and if you have any questions, please ask them in the comment sections and I will be sure to answer.