Hiking the Appalachian Trail

Sure, John’s having an easy time of it! We’d wondered about the camp chair ourselves. When we caught a shuttle a little while later into town, one of the gals said, “that chair’s been here for weeks, and we’ve seen it all over the hillside!”

As luck and timing and pace would have it, we’re caught in the bubble: the maximum flow of northbound hikers on the AT. We’ve been in it since the Smokies. Waves of hikers pass us, but we’re coping with anywhere from 24-52 people showing up at shelter areas built to accomodate 8-12 people. Worse, it’s …

After a gorgeous night at the iconic Overmountain Shelter, a historic barn with one heck of a view, we climb the last of the North Carolina balds. These grassy-topped peaks since Roan Mountain offered excellent panoramas, but the pair of Little Hump and Big Hump, our last North Carolina mountains, are simply amazing. They defy …

It took two hops to leave the southern Appalachians behind and continue north. Our friends Sally and Johnny got us to Damascus to pick up our maildrop after picking us up just past Big Hump Mountain. They’d parked in front of Mt. Rogers Outfitters, where Gutsy was hanging out. We moved our packs to the …

“At least one out of every four days,” said Ginny, “It’s going to rain.” Somehow it’s felt like more than that. Waking up to the latest downpour – which our sheltermates had no interest in sharing with us – I did the math. In our 46 days on the trail (as of when I wrote …

John’s feet hurt. Bad. It started right out of Allen Gap, but he’d had hints of it in Hot Springs, buying Superfeet insoles in hopes that they would help. En route to Jerry’s Cabin he tried reversing his socks – wearing liners on the outside. By the Shelton Graves he’d turned his socks heel up …

Today, I started to hate hiking. I knew that wasn’t a good thing, but I couldn’t help myself. It had not been a good night. Chased by thunderstorms across a stone-studded landscape, I finally collapsed after a dozen miles onto a log. “I can’t go any farther,” I told John. The pain in my foot …

Having lived in the Pittsburgh metro for more than a decade, Duncannon came as no surprise to me. It was a novelty for John, however, to walk the streets of a gritty little riverfront town built on industry. Everyone was friendly, of course. We stopped at the gas station to tank up on Gatorade, and …

As the packing continues for our March 15th departure date, the storage unit is nearly full, and the apartment is almost empty. With only two plates, two glasses, one cup (I’m not a coffee drinker), a bowl, a couple of pans and a coffee maker, the kitchen has only the bare necessities. Counters, shelves, and …

As a former triathlete, John had the background to understand athletic training. I’m new to the game, having done little since high school. Seeing our hike as a study in athletic training is a new perspective for me, but it fits. Working our muscles for 8-10 hours a day means a lot of wearing down. …

Wishing you a very happy Fourth of July and hoping you’re enjoying it outdoors! This is at the Overmountain Shelter in North Carolina, along a route Colonial patriots marched 170 miles to roust the British at King’s Mountain. For them, it wasn’t just a walk in the woods: it was freedom.

I jumped back from the edge of the campfire ring, startled. In the dim light and in my mind’s eye, the crackled, gnarled wood of a well-season timber had the same etching pattern as the scutes of a small alligator, and instinct took over. Never mind we were 3900′ atop a mountain in Georgia! When …