Four Season Backpacking on the AT

As I mentioned in my previous post, the weather over the past couple of weeks has been a roller coaster. The week before I started the trail the mountains were slammed with snow, since I have started there have been 70 degree hiking days with 40 degree nights but I have also woken up to an inch of snow on the ground and hiked all day with temperatures not going above freezing and wind chills close to zero. The next three days are calling for freezing rain and snow. It’s also hard to get exact weather predictions because all forecasts are for local towns but most campsites and shelters are between 4000-5000 feet and get wind gusts like you would not believe. Oh and I forgot to mention, the Smokies have over three feet of snow in some parts and my schedule has me there for a week starting next weekend.

When you are on the trail for a thru hike, moving forward is your full time job. Typically when planning a thru hike people set aside savings for zero days in fun towns along the way but plan to spend most nights camping along the trail. For future thru-hikers I would suggest also having a “rainy day” fund set aside, especially if starting your hike early in the season. While you may think you can tough it out, you may also find yourself sick or even hypothermic in these type of conditions, even if you are as prepared as you can be. I would also suggest setting aside money for gear changes early on and make sure you have a great pair of wind proof gloves and a wool hat for packing up and hiking on the cold mornings.

Over the past week MANY people have quit the trail all together (a combination of wether and also how strenuous the terrain is). Two people in the group that I was hiking with have gotten very sick, one with pneumonia who will need to go home for now and the other with a nasty cold that will have him checked in to the motel for a few more days. Also, on the first really cold night we were up half the night in our shelter because one of the people in our group was wet and could not stop shivering or get warm and there was a fear that he might get hypothermia so Sir Packs A Lot (a local guide who was with us) was constantly checking on him, giving him more clothing and feeding him warm liquids.

I personally have had a hard time sleeping because of the cold so I have had to make some gear adjustments and adjust the clothing that I sleep in. I had spent close to 5 hours pre-trail deciding if I wanted to buy a bag liner and what kind to get. I ended up buying a silk liner because it is the most lite weight, it helps with the bag temperature and you can wash it which helps to keep your bag cleaner. My bag is only rated 25 (I bought this based on the naive assumption that the nights would not be colder than this.. Ha!), I wish I would have gone for the slightly heavier 15 degree bag. Three days ago I ended up buying the sea to summit thermolite liner that adds up to 25 degrees, it is almost an extra pound of weight but I have been so much warmer with it. I have also doubled up on my thick wool socks, wear my wool hat and only wear light weight long underwear in my sleeping bag. This combination has finally brought me a comfortable night sleep in the cold temperatures. (I found that wearing a sweatshirt or too much clothing in the bag was causing me to sweat which in turn made me colder). Next up will be figuring out how to get warm and not get my sleeping bag wet after walking in freezing rain all day and then setting up my tent in the freezing rain 🙂

Poor weather conditions have lead to a lot of changes in our hiking plan since the last time I wrote. On Sunday (St.Patricks day) Casey (Aqua Man) , Erin (Brown Sugar) and I started out with the intention of hiking only 7 miles. We ended up pushing on and hiking 13, setting us up to hike out 4 miles Monday morning for our Nero day in Hiawassee. We got to camp just as the sun was setting feeling very proud of ourselves. The rain was not “forecasted” to start until 11am Monday so I felt optimistic that we would be nice and dry on our 9am shuttle into town. (Another naive assumption). The rain started to come down around 6:00 am. We packed up in the rainy dark and set out for the shuttle around 7:30. It was actually a really beautiful hike as it stared to lighten up and the woods were filled with a thick rainy fog. Knowing my pace on this terrain has been about 2 miles an hour, I started to worry about missing the shuttle and getting stuck in the rain. About half way down the hill I started to run (literally run-with a 35lb pack on my back and on feet and knees that have had me hobbling). I made it to the road by 8:45 and when Casey finally caught up to me he dubbed me Quick Switch (now my trail name 🙂 ).

After our Nero day the plan was to spend the next seven days hiking to NOC with no re-supply or hotel stays. That night at the fire all anyone was talking about was the upcoming weather.. Rain rain and more rain. The next day we planned on hiking 12 miles instead of 8 in order to get us closer to Franklin, NC (in case we needed to get off trail). As I pulled into the agreed upon campsite no one was there. Knowing that I was last in our pack for the day I pressed on three more miles to the next shelter and arrived after 15 miles as the sun was going down. Pure exhaustion and slight annoyance is a good description for how I felt. I found out that the group plan was to head into Franklin the following night, after just two nights out. After waking up to snow (I think I am the only one who was warm during the night) everyone was more set on this plan. We did 12 more miles (much of this without water because all of our water and purification drops were frozen) bringing our two day total to 27.

I originally planned to get back on trail this morning but the overload on miles has my feet in a frenzy. I decided to take a zero today with everyone else and headed over to the local outfitter. I picked up a new pair of boots and also green super feet insoles. (Everyone swears by these for arch support and shock absorption). My feet are taking me to Maine so I hope that this further investment will help make the miles less painful. For the last few days every step has been excruciating and my blisters have not gotten any better.

We will be heading back out tomorrow morning. We still have 30 miles to the NOC, I currently plan on making this a three day trek but if the rain is absolutely freezing and I cannot get dry I may try for two more 15 mile days (despite by better judgement).

I know this entry may seem to have a negative tone but that is not at all my intention. Despite the less than ideal weather and painful feet, I am still having a ton of fun and I embrace the nasty conditions as opportunities to learn more about myself, push my limits and broaden my experience. The trail is stunning and the people continue to amaze me. We have had countless acts of trail magic in the last week including a spaghetti lunch at one of the gaps and a free all you can eat pancake breakfast put on by a local church in Franklin. We got to spend two nights with Andrew (River Rat) a previous thru hiker and his buddy Justin (Nom Nom). They were section hiking for the weekend and small world- Casey went to college with Andrew. They were hilarious and Andrew shared many stories from his time on the trail. I recently crossed into North Carolina and yesterday crossed the 100 mile threshold. Although my feet are sore I can feel my body strengthening with each day and my fitness improving.

I have a few more notes from the trail that Ill share while I’m thinking about them:
-A canvas water bag (I have a 4L MSR) seems to be less likely to freeze than the plastic water bags like the platypus.
-If the temperatures are below freezing make sure there is no water in the drinking hose connected to your water bag! (Also keep water in your pack to decrease likelihood of freezing and keep purification drops warm if they are your only method of water treatment)
-Tuna fish packets can freeze but after 8 miles hiking up hill, frozen tuna on a wrap is just as good as a gourmet meal.
-Ear plugs are a must for hostels, shared motel rooms, and busy camp sites; you never know when you will come across a heavy snorer!
-Hike your own hike, I have already learned the hard way that pushing myself too hard just to keep up with my friends was not a good choice for my health.