As time allows I am going to continue to record my experiences from the trail, both for my own recollection down the road and also to share the stories with those of you who have expressed that you enjoyed reading my blog.
As a little update- I am currently residing in Steamboat Springs , CO. I am working at the Steamboat Smokehouse and will be starting my position as a Ski Instructor in early December! I miss the trail dearly; I miss the people, the camaraderie, the exercise and the peace, but- I am SO happy to be back in Colorado and starting on this new adventure.
After the amazing Shenandoah river trip I spent a few days with family in Front Royal. Donna and Junior were amazing hosts, feeding me delicious meals, including southern fried chicken; they sure knew how to take care of a thru-hiker! We took a cruise on the skyline drive and visited the gravesites of my great grandparents, I even had the opportunity to see the house that my grandmother grew up in, in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley. The visit was refreshing and wonderful but it also left me starting back out on the trail solo, as the friends I had canoed with had pushed on during my family visit. It was absolutely pouring on my final day with Donna and Junior. I was ready to start hiking again but also did not want to start out on the next leg of my journey with soaked gear. Instead, I explained slack packing to them and they drove me 20 miles north on the trail so that I could slack pack back to Front Royal. It felt amazing to be in the woods again and with no pack to weigh me down, I found myself doing some trail running in the rain. I moved so fast that day and before I knew it was back at their house with a warm shower and huge dinner. On my hike I passed some of my trail friends whom I had not seen in a while; Apollo, Hammer, Lil Wing and Burning Man so I knew that I would see them the next day and that I had not completely lost my “bubble”, also many of my friends were still a few days behind me- sickness, waiting for packages and the three days of pouring rain having slowed them down through the Shenandoah section of trail.
After my day of slack packing, the rain finally stopped and I set out with the sun shining ready to take on the “roller coaster”. This section of trail is named for the continuous assents and descents that stretched on for 13.5 miles. After a week of sitting in a canoe and a day of hiking without a pack, my legs felt out of shape. After 15 miles I came across Bears Den Hostel and decided to stay there and call it a night. Bears Den is a very well known hostel on the trail. It is a huge beautiful stone building and they offer a pizza, pint of Ben and Jerry’s, shower, laundry, a bunk and pancake breakfast for around $30.00. I decided to camp and forgo the pizza and ice cream, but was still able to shower, do laundry and make pancakes for breakfast. This was an easy and fun first night back on trail. Upon arriving at Bear’s Den I noticed that there was a BBQ taking place. A couple of locals had brought up food and beer for trail magic and the friends that I had passed on the trail the day before were all gathered around, hanging out and catching up. Handstand was also there and I had not seen her in forever! We had a really nice evening and I had a peaceful night camping near the garden, surrounded by fireflies.
The next day left me crossing into West Virginia and within reach of Harpers Ferry- the “psychological half-way point” on the trail. Rather than get into town late and pay for yet another hostel I decided to camp a few miles before town and hike in early the next day. I caught up with Hammer and Lil Wing late in the day and after consulting our handy AT guidebooks we found that there was an Italian restaurant only a quarter mile off trail. Even though we were well supplied, it is always difficult to turn down non-trail food when the opportunity arises, so we got dinner then walked the remaining few miles to camp. It was a small dingy site and was already inhabited by two older gentlemen who were stoking a fire. We set up and joined them around the fire listening to their stories. One of my favorite parts of the trail was these nighttime conversations with other hikers who were headed in the opposite direction or moving slower, and that you would never see again. It is always amazing- the stories you will hear and the things you will learn when you just take the time to listen.
It rained again throughout the night and when I woke it was still raining and gloomy. I had traded tents with another thru-hiker (my one person for his two person) so by utilizing the two vestibules on the rainfly I was able to take the tent down while keeping it and my pack mostly dry. This turned out to be one of the best features of the two person Big Agnes Copper Spur and why I would recommend it over the one person. I left camp before Lil Wing and Hammer and headed towards Harpers Ferry- the excitement of passing through another state and registering at the ATC office pushing me through the rain.
Harpers Ferry is a beautiful historic town. The trail runs along and through town, passing many historical sights, including Jefferson Rock. The ATC (Appalachian Trail Conservancy) office, located in town, is a magical place for a thru-hiker. There are beautiful pictures of the trail located throughout the office and a 3D topographical map of the trail. Part of the custom of visiting the ATC office is getting your Polaroid taken on the porch and added to the register of hikers who have already hiked through. It was exciting to look back through the previous weeks at the hikers who had registered before me. I recognized many faces ahead but also got an idea of who was still behind me on the trail. My number was 401- meaning I was the 401st person to pass through the office in 2013 registering as a thru-hiker
I had a lot of errands to run while in town but it was so early in the day that I knew I could get everything done and still hike out 6 miles to the first shelter in order to avoid staying in a hostel. I went out to lunch with Hammer, Lil Wing and Burning Man, picked up a birthday gift for my mom, stopped at the post office for my re-supply box and headed to the library to update my blog and dry my tent out in the sunny lawn. While in the library I got news of Tornado warnings in the area and the huge storm that was rolling in. Within an hour the sky’s were black and I could see the storm advancing. I was over a mile into town, away from the trail, and was torn between hiking out in the potentially dangerous conditions versus coughing up $30.00 for the Tea Horse Hostel, a quarter mile down the road. I was buying some extra snacks at the 7-11, watching the rain pour down in sheets and weighing my options, when a local asked me if I needed a ride anywhere. He was familiar with the hostel and said that it was very nice, I decided to call it a day and put safety before stubbornness and took the free lift to dry accommodations.
The hostel turned out to be the nicest one that I stayed in on the entire trail. It had the setup of a lovely apartment, with the bedrooms being bunkrooms. I ended up with an entire room to myself and once again got to take a shower!! (Three showers in 4 days is really a treat on the trail.) There was no one that I knew at the hostel, all of the other thru-hikers were guys who had started around a month later than me and were clearly approaching the trail with a different mentality- but it was really nice to meet them and I ended up crossing paths with them many times over the next couple of weeks. Breakfast at the tea horse was amazing, all you can eat waffles with fresh strawberries and bananas and cups on cups of coffee- the perfect way to start a day of backpacking!
I left town alone, crossing into Maryland- slowly but surely crossing states off as I headed northbound on the trail. After crossing the bridge out of town there are a few miles of walking along the river on a rail trail. I came across an older gentleman who was actually from Hot Springs, NC (one of the trail towns that we had walked through). He was also thru-hiking and we had a really pleasant conversation as we walked together, once we got to the first climb I pushed ahead and never saw him again… this is also the nature of the trail; some people that you meet you may see day after day, others you may not see for a month but then you will walk up to them on a mountain top enjoying an afternoon snack and have an enthusiastic reunion, and some people will come into your life if only for an hour or a day, but still make an impression on you that will stick with you for a lifetime.
The trail was crowded leaving Harpers Ferry. Whenever you leave a town, especially after a stormy day, a large bubble of hikers tends to form that you then hike with until you reach the next town or stop on the trail. I met a lot of new hikers in this section and had so much fun hiking “solo” for the first time. Every day the decision of how far to hike and where to stay was completely my own and I was able to finally camp solo for the first time- which is crazy because I had already completed almost half of the trail and never had a campsite to myself.
Maryland is a very short state to hike and can be completed in just two days, some crazy hikers even attempt a “four state challenge” which starts in Virginia and ends in PA – a total of 42.5 miles in just 24 hours. The terrain is fairly easy and all of the trees were blooming with beautiful flowers. The trail in Maryland also passes through a number of public parks and even has a campsite with a shower house- which of course I took advantage of. I decided to stay at the Annapolis Rocks campsite, which was where I had my first solo evening. This location has a number of group and solo campsites spread out throughout the woods, a fresh spring and a caretaker. The name “Annapolis Rocks” comes from the huge rock cliffs just a minute walk from the campsites, which supply amazing views of the surrounding valley and the opportunity to catch a lovely sunset. I cooked dinner on the rocks, watching the sunset, and was filled with a sense of independence and confidence that I had not yet experienced on the trip.
Maryland was the beginning of my 3-4 mph days- where the terrain was consistently flat enough to allow me to move quickly and efficiently through the woods. This terrain allowed me to hike 20-25 miles, often before 5:00- leaving plenty of time for socializing and relaxing at night. I was able to maintain that pace through PA and much of NJ, NY, CT & MA, once my body and mind got used to walking “big miles” each day it became habitual and anything less than 20 miles felt lazy. It was with this mentality that I began to really cover miles and push onward, northbound.
The AT Experience 