Friday, December 31, 2010

Happy New Year!

Erwin, Tennessee
Day 123
340 miles to go

As promised, here are our pictures! Another slow upload, but it was worth the wait.
The snow has drastically slowed our progress, but even at ten miles a day we will still get to Georgia. Wearing snowshoes is a lot of work. We have read in several places that 1 lb on the feet is equal to 5 or 6 lbs in the pack, so when our snowshoes weigh 4 lbs it really adds up. We have been having fun slowing down a bit though, spending a bit more time camping out and enjoying places rather than just dashing through.
Today we dropped down from 5,000ft to 1700ft and it was like walking into summer. Sunny and 60 degrees, what a change! The coldest we have seen was -3 degrees on Dec 28th, just before heading up Roan Mtn. Which is supposedly the coldest place on the Southern AT year round. It was a bit of a tough climb, but the balds were awesome- great views.
We are getting closer to the Smokies every day! Hoping some of this snow melts off before we get there, but we are prepared either way. Enjoy the pics, and hope you are having a party to welcome in the new year : )


The Keffer oak, 2nd largest on the AT

winter wonderland

 filtering water...have to thaw filter inside my coat first



Grayson Highlands, beautiful area. and windy enough to be clear of snow!

feral ponies


Tyrell breaking trail

getting deeper!


Our hiking companion Sissy Hankshaw and her dog Mabel. She is from Tampa, FL, and had never seen snowshoes before

Monday, December 20, 2010

Damascus, VA

Only 463.5 miles to go!
We got into town today and picked up our snowshoes. Sure could have used them up on Mt. Rogers.
Well, the computer here is running incredibly slooooow, and our camera battery is dying, so unfortunately no pics tonight- but I'm still trying!
Hiking in the snow has been tough, only making 10 miles a day and barely getting in before sunset. A little closer to Georgia every day...

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

Winter on the AT

Woods Hole Hostel, Pearisburg, VA
Mile 1563.1,
Day 100!

Just a quick update before I fall into bed tonight. We are staying in a little paradise in the woods.
Our adventure has turned epic. For the last 5 days we have been breaking trail through the snow. Temps have been in the single digits. Water bottles freeze solid as we hike. Shoes are nearly impossible to get on in the morning. Up on the ridges(between 3,000 and 4,000ft) it is miserable. Very windy. The trees are plastered with snow, the drifts are waist deep in places, and worst of all- we are following a trail marked with WHITE blazes! Multiple times we lost the trail and had to search back and forth til we found it again.
But, we are still making it. Today we made a trip to the outfitter and geared up with new boots, socks, hat, gators, thermometer, water bottle insulator, etc. Our feet are much happier now! We have also been hiking with two other Southbounders, which is fun.
The computer here does not upload pics, otherwise I would show you how hiking in the snow looks.
Until next time...

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving Folks!

 Well, it has been a long time since our last update. I was getting frustrated with the lack of internet access, but we are out in the woods after all...

We have passed several exciting landmarks recently.
Mile 1,049 - the length of an Iditarod. By the end of the trip we will have walked the distance to Nome twice.
Our record mile day into Boiling Springs, PA. 30 miles!  It was a rough day, but crossed the Cumberland Valley and was mostly flat. We had to try it...
Halfway was a big one, and cause for celebration. We camped near halfway, mile 1090, near the end of PA on Nov 9th. Already seems like so long ago!
Harpers Ferry had been a big destination for me since starting in Maine, so that was a fun place to walk through. We signed in at the ATC office on Nov 13th, and had our pictures taken for the yearly log book. We were numbers 112 and 113 for Southbound thruhikers in 2010. We went out for breakfast... and kept walking.
Maryland and West Virginia(4 miles) were short states, only two days for both of them. And then into Virginia -state number 11! It is a long one though, nearly 600 miles.
Shenandoah National Park was also an exciting section. 105 miles of beautiful, wide, well graded trails. We loved it! We also saw our first black bears.
And now we are spending Thanksgiving in luxury. Tyrell's grandparents picked us up on a gravel forest service road yesterday. We had just passed the 1,400 mile mark and were very ready for a break. We have appropriated 3 days for the holiday and are very excited for some time off the trail, especially after our hectic schedule the last 3 weeks. I will be missing my extended family get-together, but am happy to be here meeting more of Tyrell's relatives.

Our assorted shoes after 900 miles, just before Tyrell bought a new pair

 Stopped for a snack break on the trail. Eating chocolate macadamia clusters, thank you Papa!
A 1,000 mile smile!

 Walking through one of the trail towns around Halloween time we noticed these pumpkins... I was sad I didn't get to carve one myself.
 That's a lot of hay. Has been fun to walk through the farmland. I like seeing the livestock- horses, cattle, sheep.
We are starting to catch up to the other SOBO's(Southbounders). It has been fun to meet in person all these other hikers that we have been following in the log books for so long. Our friend Golden Ray thought this was an important half-way picture.

 A Washington monument. All the historical sites and remnants, and battlefields have been interesting to see. It's nice to learn some history and have something different to think about as we walk along.
 Harpers Ferry! I was super excited this day. Had been looking forward to this place for a long time. We also picked up a mail-drop from Mom. Thank you for another excellent box! She has been sending us extra goodies and homemade treats along with our requested food and clothing; the fruit roll-ups were fantastic. We also enjoyed the caribou meat, something we haven't had a lot of on the trail.

 Our friend Andrew, from VA met us in Shenandoah National Park and hiked with us for about 6 miles, and then treated us to dinner! Was awesome to visit with somebody else on the trail.

In Shenandoah National Park

 The apple trees! We have been munching on these for a couple weeks now. As much fresh fruit as I can hold, perfect. What a great kind of trail magic. We have met many kind people along the way and have received great "trail magic". One couple lives right beside the trail and hand out ice cream bars to hikers. We were number 600 something in their logbook, my first thought was, "That is a lot of ice cream bars..."

 A page out of Tyrell's guide book. Shows the elevation for the day and mile marks along the way. This was a tough day. We climbed the Priest(on the right). Dropped into the valley there, 970 ft, and then all the way back up to 4,000 something, ooof. And Mt. Marathon is only 3,022!
Cold Mountain. They mow the top to keep it open. Grass felt wonderful on my bare feet!
 The adventure continues...

Thursday, November 4, 2010

Mile 970.3

A section of the N.J. boardwalk

On October 30th we crossed into Pennsylvania at Delaware Water Gap. This was a place we had been hearing about since way back in Maine, so it was an exciting landmark to reach. One of the churches in town provides an excellent hiker hostel where we were able to get showers, but was too early in the day to stay the night. There was also a bakery in town where we bought a whole pie for Halloween.



New York and New Jersey were both short states. N.J. was definitely the most inhabited area we have walked through so far. We were constantly within hearing range of highways and railways, and all the views were full of farms, towns, or other structures. We were happy to get out of N.J.! Because the trail was such a high use area there were many, many rules and regulations. Every trail-head was posted with numerous signs, and trees all along the trail were covered with restrictions and warnings.
Delaware Water Gap
We have been enjoying PA so far. From all the North-bounders we had gathered that this was the rocky state- just miles and miles of rough going. So far we have been surprised by how great the trail is. Sure, there are some rocky sections, but they are spaced out by wide, flat hiking highways.
These two pictures were taken near Lehigh Gap, PA, which was a bit of a scramble. There had been a zinc smelting plant back in the 70's, and the area is now on the EPA Superfund clean-up list. It was a strange, interesting section to walk through. At the end we had to wash our hands and shoes in the wash station?!
The last few nights have been cold. Frost, and ice in the water bottles. Harder to get going in the morning when so chilly, but the days still warm up to 50's and 60's in the sun. The trail has turned West across PA, so we are not making as much progress South to warmer temps. And having left the balmy temps near the coast, the wind has a definite chill.


me and my honey bears! (could not for the life of me load this pic right side up)


We continue to eat well and have enjoyed hiking through these states with towns every day or two. A  meal in town goes a long way and with such short resupplies our packs are light! Usually about 30 lbs or less, depending on how much water we are carrying. Water has been a bit tricky recently. Up in Maine and clear through N.Y. water sources were abundant. This last week the trail has been up on long ridge lines and water is scarce. Springs are amazing. Also, many people offer outdoor water spigots from their home or business and is much appreciated.
N.J High point monument. Insecurities?
  
rocky trail in PA
Currently, we are relaxing in the home of some awesome "trail angels". It all started with the leatherman and cellphone I picked up on the trail way back in Vermont. They have invited us in, provided delicious meals, hot showers, laundry, and a wonderfully cozy bed! It feels great just to be indoors for a day.      
  

Monday, October 25, 2010

Finally!

Greenwood Lake, NY  -  Mile 816.4

We gave in and took a zero day, and at long last I found a computer I can upload pictures from. We are staying in an awesome inn by the lake and enjoying not walking for a whole day!
So, here is a slideshow of our past few weeks...

A warning before climbing Moosilauke

 Up on Mt. Moosilauke we ran into rime ice, brrrrr! This was one of the coldest sections on our trip and for a few days we were worrying about winter.



But then, we came down off the mountain into our first field on the whole trip. And it was still summer...

Great trail! Vermont was fantastic and we had many good cruising days.
Tyrell keeping his feet dry. I like to go barefoot and wade right through.

 We have been seeing lots of cool lil critters. Not sure what they all are... quite a few frogs, snakes, turtles, salamanders, newts, and fuzzy catapillars. Also, many flocks of geese flying over. We hear them day and night.


 It has been a welcome change to be walking through farmland. What a great break for our legs. We also enjoy the change in scenery.

 This was somewhere in Vermont, one of the neatest shelters we have seen along the way. Has a great stone fireplace and everything, too bad we had to keep moving.

 Mountains... they have not been very impressive since leaving the whites, but still enough elevation gain and loss to wear us out.


                           
 Here we are on Mt. Greylock. Another one of those places where all of a sudden we pop out of the woods into civilization- tourist central.

 The tower on Greylock, first good views in several days. This was a high point in our trip. Was exciting after so many days of wandering around in the woods and hills to be able to look back and see how far we had come.

 In MA, CT, and NY we have been walking through several small towns, or "villages". Has been great for resupplying, and all the delis along the way provide delicious meals. This building was the library in Salisbury, CT. Unfortunately they were closed on Mondays!
 More of Salisbury... everybody is getting ready for Halloween. Pumpkins everywhere.


 One of the stranger landmarks along the way- giants thumb?


 Walking along the Housatonic River. This was the greatest stretch of trail so far, for about 4 miles. And then we were rock climbing again.


 Tyrell climbing up beside a massive rock face. Couldn't get a good picture of the whole thing.
 Our little Mountain Hardwear tent, we love it.

 We have walked miles on the these boardwalks now. A nice change of pace. We definitely appreciate all the volunteer work that has gone into the trail.

 There are a lot of stone walls along the trail. We are not sure what they are all from, farmers maybe? But there are some awesome structures.

 We are in New York! Bear Mountain Bridge across the Hudson River, very pretty area.
Still some fall colors here. Farther North most of the leaves have already fallen.

 Watched a couple sailboats cruise under the bridge. Sure sounds like a nice way to travel right now...
Just across the bridge we walked through the trailside zoo. Was a neat little sidetrip. A small zoo but fun to see the critters.
 And then on the other side of the zoo, we popped out into a throng of people headed to a NY Octoberfest! The trail took us right through the middle of the whole thing, was pretty exciting. We slowed down long enough to eat a bag of kettle corn and a hot dog. Still ended up hiking in the dark that night.
 At Fingerboard shelter we camped at exactly mile 800. Eight hundred miles in fifty-four days! Well over a third of the way done, and getting close to half. Halfway will be toward the end of PA and is still a few weeks away.
 Thought this was a funny sign. The AT is definitely not the easy way, and when in doubt the AT always goes up.
 Coming through the lemon squeezer! We got squeezed all right. For some reason it just makes me grumpy when you have to take your pack off...
New York has been interesting to hike through. It has a little bit of everything.
One of our few pictures with both of us in it. Peregrine falcons nest on the bridge.
Our day of rest was much needed. We were getting worn out on our 20 mile a day schedule. Tomorrow morning though we will be headed back out into the woods.
Hope you all enjoy our pics. I will try to keep updating more frequently, but hard to do.

Thank you to all who contributed to our last maildrop! The sheer quantity was painful, but it was all so delicious: ) Sitting in NY munching on Grandmas fresh cookies... what a world we live in.