Trail Update: Marion to Pearisburg.
This post is dedicated to myself because I do what I want.
Day 68: June 5th: Hiking with a Headache.
We had hoped to get out of Marion bright and early, but of course, we opted for the 11am shuttle instead (as opposed to the 9am). Before we left, Carmelo and her boyfriend offered me a sitting-pad, which has since become one of my favorite pieces of gear. For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to play around on my phone while in the back of the town shuttle (which only cost 50 cents!) - this resulted in a bad headache, and feeling nauseous for hours (hiking/backpacking when you're sick is basically the worst feeling in the world).
We arrived at the Visitors Center near Partnership Shelter, bought some post-cards, and continued along.
A really impressive AT info board.
I cannot wait to become a '2000-miler'!
"AT by the numbers"
About 2 hours into the hike, we stopped for a snack. I met two sisters thru-hiking - one had an amazing french braid, so I asked the other sister to do my hair as well!
Shout out to Nettle for being an awesome french-braider!
The day was pretty rainy - but there were still great views.
Mile 536!
(I hate taking pictures with my rain-cover on!!!)
Lady Unicorn and I reading the log-book at Chatfield Shelter!
Peeps like to stack rocks.
These guys now appear everywhere.
Eventually, we came upon the Settlers Museum and old schoolhouse - which came with trail-magic! We spent some time relaxing on the front porch of the Museum (which had a chair swing!).
If it had been raining, we totally would've slept in the school-house.
(The museum was closed by the time we arrived)
Rain-man looking regal as helllll
First-aid stuff, shoelaces, mini bibles.
What more could a hiker ask for?
Teachers Salary = $30 a month!
Afterwards, we hiked on to "The Barn" restaurant, which charged me $2.50 to pick up my package (I was pissed...)!
I still didn't feel well, so PMac offered to let us stay at her friends apartment in Blacksburg for the night. He didn't pick us up until 9:30pm, and the ride was about an hour and a half (yikes), but sleeping in a real bed is exactly what I needed.
I still didn't feel well, so PMac offered to let us stay at her friends apartment in Blacksburg for the night. He didn't pick us up until 9:30pm, and the ride was about an hour and a half (yikes), but sleeping in a real bed is exactly what I needed.
This right here? This is pure bliss.
Shelter: PMac's Friends Apartment in Blacksburg, VA
Miles today: 11.5
Miles from Springer: 542.7
Miles to Katahdin: 1642.6
Day 69: June 6th: A Quarter Way In!
Surprisingly, we actually got on the trail around 9am, despite having a decent drive and getting pulled over on the way. But we couldn't get going until doing some yoga/stretches in the parking lot (ugh, I hate when I embody "hiker trash") (also, I have probably only stretched about 5 times - big mistake).
Just your classic Tree pose.
Little bridges/walkways always get my spirits up!
Rain-man paying his respects.
I am thankful for 2nd-day braids and all the diverse personalities I've encountered on this trip.
Sometimes, I enjoy these. But not when I need to climb over 15 within a few miles.
Most of the time (as my readers probably know by now), I enjoy hiking alone, so I went ahead of the group - which resulted in me unexpectidly stumbling upon the quarter-way sign! Naturally, I took some selfies, and then sat on a rock and waited to celebrate with all my friends. Milestones such as this are a huge morale-booster.
Ahhh! This is crazy!
The ever-lovely Lady Unicorn.
(It's really at mile 552, I think)
The current family!
We had heard rumors about a new hostel coming up, and eventually stumbled upon the advertisement in the woods. We decided to ditch our packs by the road crossing (mostly so we weren't tempted to stay the night), and walked the .8 to check it out.
"We're not in the book, but I promise we're not sketchy"
Can confirm - not sketchy.
Everything was so clean!
I would have put my face on the carpet it was so clean.
The hostel was new and clean and inside an actual house - the thought of staying the night was definitely tempting for my trail-family. But I wanted to make some progress (since we didn't go very far the day prior), so I refused (even though the proprietor was super pushy about staying). Rain-man ate a frozen pizza (pretty standard hiker food), we got some sodas, met some south-bounders, and made our way back to the trail.
It may not seem like it, but that was the biggest dandelion wish-thing I have ever seen!
I love these blazes!
I need these views in my life!
I adore walking through open fields.
We made it to the shelter just in time to avoid using our head-lamps (though we were pushing it). Sam-I-Am and Iris were there, as were two young thru-hikers. The privy here was really scary - there was no door, so you had to sit there and stare into the dark woods - your imagination messes with you at night!
We sat at the picnic tables using our headlamps to make dinner (ramen - I love ramen, it's always the first dinner to be eaten) before crashing in the shelter (I was too lazy to set up my tent).
Taken the next morning - Iris relaxing st Knot Maul Shelter!
Shelter: Knot Maul Branch Shelter
Miles today: 13.9
Miles from Springer: 556.6
Miles to Katahdin: 1628.7
June 7th came with a huge, huge uphill which took us a few hours to conquer. I hiked with Lady Unicorn for a portion of it, but we soon got separated and met up again at the water source on the bald (for some reason, a ton of bees wanted to walk around on our packs - probably because they were full of sweat - yum). Here, we found out that Scott Jurek, the man who is attempting to beat the record for the fastest trail-run of the AT, would most likely be in the area in the next day or so.
I want to build a footbridge now!
More wonky blazes!
I miss these faces already :/
Soon after, we came upon Chestnut Knob Shelter, which was fully enclosed with a door. I wish we had scheduled to sleep in this shelter, because it was really awesome. We settled for naps instead.
Though, the shelter made weird noises.
It sounded as if it was raining, but it was not.
Odd.
A sketch on the guidebook pages.
I climbed those mountains!
Iris: dog-model.
You can't beat a view like that!
After our naps, we met a day-hiker who wanted to catch Scott Jurek and run a portion of the trail with him. He hung around for a bit, but Scott never showed up, so we all decided it was time to move on. Though our guidebook said the trail to the next shelter would be flat - it doesn't tell you what the terrain is like. In this case, it was extremely rocky, resulting in Rain-man spraining an ankle and busting up his knee. I went ahead, but got really really paranoid once night-time hit (once you let one scary thought in, they all come flooding...), so I sat on a rock until Lady Unicorn and Rain-Man showed up. We sung songs to try and pass the time and take our minds off the pitch-black forest around us.
Come on VA, what happened to the super amazing shelters?
Eh, the privy was not awesome. It was actually really gross.
Shelter: Jenkins Shelter
Miles today: 19.1
Miles from Springer: 575.7
Miles to Katahdin: 1609.6
I woke up and left camp before the group - the first five miles were pretty flat, which resulted in a nice morning stroll.
Daily selfies!
(The makeup is worn probably 50% of the time now)
Around mile 580, I came upon Laurel Creek - which was rumored to have an awesome swimming hole. I wouldn't say you could "swim" in it, but taking a bath was in the cards for the day! Yay for being clean sometimes! I wanted to go skinny dipping, but Scott Jurek's assistance-van was parked on the road and a slew of fans were waiting for his arrival. Too many onlookers = bathing in my underwear. I convinced Hawk, Rain-Man and Lady Unicorn to get in the water (which was home to a TON of cray-fish (craw-daddies?)) - where we ate lunch and lounged in the sun while we happily awaited the arrival of Scott. We watched as some local runners hiked SOBO so that they could join Scott for a small section-run.
This is what my showers look like sometimes!
Sweet guy - I wish him the best!
Even though a thru-hike is defined as walking the entire trail in one season, I personally wouldn't consider this a thru-hike.
(I'm pretty sure he's calling this a trail-run.)
Scott ate lunch, took a quick dip in the river, and made his way back to the trail - as did we. Again, I went off on my own again for a bit, but found Rain-Man waiting for me at a road crossing whete I picked a tick off of Iris as we waited for Lady Unicorn to arrive. I've been extremely lucky to have not found any ticks on myself, but they are definitely out there (and a few hiker friends have begun to contract Lyme Disease).
How could I ever live somewhere flat ever again?
These guys appeared one day and were literally everywhere.
Many dead caterpillars on the trail.
As much as I adore the wilderness, sometimes its nice to cross over high-ways and observe civilization! The forest scenery can get a bit mundane at times...
There are real people out there. Not just hikers!
Loving the unconventional blazes :)
Hiking with me means putting up with my candids.
We heard that there was supposed to be a gigantic storm that night, so we booked it to the next shelter (Helveys Mill Shelter). Unfortunately, it was 0.3E off the trail (I'm not sure non-hikers realize how many miles we hike each day that are not "accounted for" - I regularly take mile-long detours to check out viewpoints, hostels, shelters, etc. It really adds up.). The privy at this shelter was completely visible from the blue-blaze trail - a major disappointment to me, as I kinda had to go... (I was not shameless enough to use it...)
Standard.
What the hell is this?
(Makes you appreciate the volunteers that build the nice ones.)
The water source at this shelter was 0.3miles down a steep hill - getting water took about 45 minutes. I set up my tent, helped Hawk make a fire, and decided that I should probably go shit in a fucking hole before the storm arrived (Can you sense my aversion to this? I try to avoid going in the woods as much as I can). While doing so, the sky turned black and the crazy winds picked up - I had to hurry the hell up and run back to the shelter to avoid getting caught in the down-pour. We all huddled in the shelter before gathering up the courage to head back to our tents one by one.
For some reason, I was a bit afraid of falling branches that night, so I decided to sleep in the shelter even though I had already set up my tent. The storm was, overall, a disappointment. I wanted high winds and thunder throughout the night - sadly, it was just your run-of-the-mill heavy rain.
Shelter: Helveys Mill Shelter
Miles today: 14.0
Miles from Springer: 589.7
Miles to Katahdin: 1595.6
Lady Unicorn and I got our shit together and head out before Rain-Man. We assumed he would be right behind us/catch up (he tends to hike faster), but we didn't see him for hours. Honestly, nothing really happened all morning - eventually I made it to Jenny Knob Shelter for lunch (where I found section-hiker Anthony and co.).
The privy at this shelter was fully enclosed (there have been many more like this since), and there was a mailbox inside to hold toilet paper (I'm guessing).
"Life is like a hiker box..."
No truer words have ever been written.
A random spine...
Lady Unicorn and I spent a decent amount of time here - making hot lunch, laying in the shelter, waiting for PMac and Rain-Man to arrive, etc. Afterwards, we decided to hike together and made a pact to take at least one photo of each other/ourselves everyday. (Lady Unicorn took a total of about 7 pictures up until this point - Mile 600! What!)
Someone described Lady Unicorn as being "70% Wednesday Adams". I absolutely adore her humor.
I LOVE crossing awesome suspension bridges (this was was over Kimberling Creek). We debated waiting for Rain-Man, but we knew we wanted to swim by Dismal Falls before dark, so we pressed on without him.
I would've swam here, but an awesome waterfall was calling to us!
PMac caught up!
While hiking, we encountered a dead animal decomposing on the trail - we couldn't identify exactly what it was - but it was covered in a hundred yellow and black beetles. Gross.
Yuck. Hopefully no one absent-mindedly stepped on it...
PMac wanted to continue another 5 miles in order to catch up to some old friends, but we convinced her to at least come check out the falls before making her decision (it took her ages to finally escape this family).
"Awesome swimming hole"
Helpful hikers 'vandalize' signs to let us know what's up.
A perfect mix of swimming and lounging space.
The falls were amazing. I could have taken a zero day there. Perfect rocks to sunbathe. Unfortunately, we arrived around 6 - so we still had a ton of sunlight left, but it wasn't too hot out. I managed to submerge myself enough to bathe, but I kept getting bit by a fish (which freaked me out since I couldn't see that deep), and it was really really cold. We set up our tents and returned to the rocks by the top of the falls to cook dinner and make a fire.
Ramen and tuna: classic trail dinner.
PMac insisted on giving me mild crazy eyes.
After a few hours, we were getting a bit worried - Rain-Man still hadn't arrived yet! We then remembered that there was a grocery store 0.5W of the suspension bridge and figured that he stopped there in order to get some more frozen pizza (we were correct and he eventually showed up).
Dismal Falls... At Night ;)
(To be read in Spongebob's "at night" voice).
(To be read in Spongebob's "at night" voice).
Shelter: Camping at Dismal Falls
Miles today: 18.1
Miles from Springer: 607.8
Miles to Katahdin: 1577.5Day 73: June 10th: Hosteling at Woods Hole!
With the intentions of staying at Woods Hole Hostel (I had heard a bunch of good things about this place), we only had about 13 miles to do that day (yay for short-ish days)!
Some signs show mild wear and tear...
Finding random skulls in the woods is always a pleasure.
Perfect lighting for a mid-morning hike.
Its times like these that make it all magical.
An unexpected pond!
One of my favorite aspects of the trail is that you really never know what you'll find on any given day.
That morning was filled with a TON of foot-bridges as we crossed over countless little streams and springs. About half-way through the day, we stopped for lunch at Wapiti Shelter - which was the site of the 1981 double-murder. Information out on the AT is not always reliable (rumors spread quickly), so I'm not exactly sure what the motive was.
Someone suggested that the decomposing animal from the previous day was actually a Wapiti - a (completely made-up) ancient mythical predator.
A section hiker stretching in the shelter.
I reallllly need to make a habit of stretching.
My knee brace really compliments my overall look.
We finally arrived at Woods Hole Hostel - to find out that they didn't have WIFI or 4G access. I know, I know, its shallow and petty - but I really wanted to catch up on my blogging (this is the one time in my life I've actually stuck to a blog - I want to keep it up). The environment was very welcoming, and I ran into a lot of old acquaintances. I signed up for both breakfast and dinner - the stay was pretty expensive - but the meals were delicious. We had home-made bread with apple butter, salad with strawberries and snap-peas, pasta with various sauces and peach ice-cream for dessert!
A holistic hideaway in the woods!
A hammock I didn't lay in. I need to learn how to relax.
(Even on the AT, I'm wound too tight)
That night, we sat around the bon-fire getting to know new friends. It was here that I met Octopus and Buns - two guys that I would come to spend a lot of time with in the upcoming weeks. I drank ginger ale, and helped maintain the fire with the limited amount of sticks available. My knees were really hurting that night - so I iced them with a bag of peas from the freezer while I played "Sequence" with Lady Unicorn and Section-Hiker Anthony (now trail-named "Lifeguard").
Back in the day, before this trip, I would have been really uncomfortable using a composting toilet.
But this isn't so bad! I've been considering having one in my future home. (Very very distant future home - I've got a ton of travelling to do before I own a home!)
Organic gardening!
I really enjoyed the vibe of this Hostel - the proprietor made us all join hands before dinner and say what we are thankful for (which I'm usually not into, but I appreciated it), and they had goats and pigs and an extensive garden. A lot of friends took a zero here - if they had WIFI, I would've been all for it!
Shelter: Bunkhouse at Woods Hole Hostel
Miles today: 13.1
Miles from Springer: 620.9
Miles to Katahdin: 1564.4
Day 74: June 11th: "Lets Just Get Today's Hike Over With".
Of course I wanted to leave early. Of course that didn't happen. Between breakfast (sweet rice with peaches, eggs and sausage, strawberries, bread, orange juice), and having Nettle braid everyone's hair, we didn't leave until about 10 - which wasn't terrible.
The beautiful Lady Unicorn!
Breakfast around the fire-pit.
I vow to eat more meals outside from now on.
Dishwashing Step 1: Let dogs lick the plates clean.
I decided that goats kind of scare me.
Those guys get creepy!
The swinging chair braiding station.
Buns got in on it too!
(Octopus in the background)
A master's work.
I wish I could braid this well.
We stopped at the first shelter, about 3 miles in - to read the log-books and give my knees a bit of a break. It was HOT. Disgustingly sweaty and hot. The type of hot that gives you a headache and makes you cranky.
Candids before we got irritable.
Coming to towns means electricity!
(Sometimes these power-lines are humming and it's a bit unsettling)
Despite wanting to get the hike over with as quickly as possible, Lady Unicorn and I took a short detour to "Angels Rest" so that we could over-look the town. We saw an industrial factory complex to the left and Walmart all the way to the right. Classy. But the view was cool - I like being able to see man-made structures as well.
A change of scenery is always welcome!
Seriously, I need to learn how to braid my own hair.
I'm pretty sure Pearisburg is my least favorite town on the trail so far. Granted, we didn't go too deep into it and I was cranky and felt sick a majority of the time there (so I'm probably pretty biased). The weather was humid and sticky - which is never fun. Lady Unicorn and I had to rush to the post office in order to pick up our mail-drops. We were dripping in sweat by the time we got there. But afterwards, we all met up at Dairy Queen to stuff our faces with ice cream!
Buns, PMac, Rain-Man, Lady Unicorn and I decided to stay at the Plaza Motel because the rooms were rumored to be cleaner than the other motel (though, it didn't have a pool). Unfortunately, the manager was gone for the afternoon, so we sat out on the porch for about an hour before she arrived and could check us in. Things were okay though - because for only $60, we got a really cool set-up that had a second attached room (a total of 3 queen-sized beds). We unloaded all of our stuff and went across the street to resupply at the grocery store. I bought a ton of strawberries which I happily shared with the group of hikers hanging out on the front porch that night. Lazy evening.
Uhhh. Thanks for the hospitality?
Shelter: The Plaza Motel in Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 10.4
Miles from Springer: 631.3
Miles to Katahdin: 1554.0
Day 75: June 12th: An Unwanted Zero.
So, we went to bed with the intention of getting out of of town early (...as always.), but we all woke up with major aches and pains. So we decided to leisurely collect our belongings and leave after 11am checkout. ...But it was really hot and humid, so we then pushed our plans back until 4pm, so we wouldn't have to hike during the hottest time of the day. Our new friend, Octopus, had a room right down the hall, so we transferred our gear/ourselves over there for the day.
Everyone gathered around real food.
(Carrots and hummus).
We basically sat around all day. Napping and continuously changing the plan.
Wooo! Spending all day at the Plaza Motel in Pearisburg.
"Guys, ...you might be featured in my blog."
I DID NOT want to take a zero here. (What? Maybelline? Not wanting to take a zero?) Seriously, I made it perfectly, perfectly clear to everyone around me. I spent the majority of the day with Buns walking around the residential park of town, thinking we were all leaving at four.
When I returned, the group kept acting like they had a damn secret! Turns out, they were plotting how to convince me to stay the night. At first, I declared that I was going to leave, regardless of if I needed to go alone. But then I packed my pack and it was RIDICULOUSLY huge - which is when I decided it was time to send some stuff home. Buns and Lady Unicorn helped me go through every item I was carrying and determine what wasn't absolutely necessary.
When I returned, the group kept acting like they had a damn secret! Turns out, they were plotting how to convince me to stay the night. At first, I declared that I was going to leave, regardless of if I needed to go alone. But then I packed my pack and it was RIDICULOUSLY huge - which is when I decided it was time to send some stuff home. Buns and Lady Unicorn helped me go through every item I was carrying and determine what wasn't absolutely necessary.
I shed quite a few pounds. A majority of my clothing was not being worn after I started wearing the dress. I wasn't writing enough to justify carrying the journal, and it was too hot for a sleeping liner.
I think I was a bit reluctant to go off on my own as I had been walking with a group for long enough to get mildly uncomfortable with the idea of being alone. But PMac promised that she'd night hike with me and camp on the edge of town, but I was beginning to accept the fact that hiking wasn't in the cards for the day.
So, I went back to the grocery store to buy some ice - and drool over the fruit selection.
Tell me this doesn't look like heaven.
So damn convenient.
Too bad fresh fruit is heavy and cumbersome and a complete luxury on the trail.
In the end, after fighting it all day, I finally (though unhappily) gave in to the zero. There are worse things in the world.
Shelter: The Plaza Motel in Pearisburg, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Miles from Springer: 631.3
Miles to Katahdin: 1554.0
