Month: May 2018 (Page 2 of 3)

Having now hiked some 590 miles, over one quarter of the trail’s length, I thought it is a good time to take stock of my health and well-being out here on the trail.  I harken back to the day I headed out on the trail from Amicalola Falls State Park in Georgia. As is recommended by the Appalachian Trail Conservancy, I attended the hiker orientation session. The ranger proceeded to explain all the woes that I was likely to encounter during my hike. These included a compromised immune system, norovirus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease, drastic weight loss, relationship problems with people back home, ticks embedded in my flesh, insect bites, poison ivy, hypothermia, heat stroke, sunburn, homesickness, chronic blisters, knee problems, plantar fasciitis, strained Achilles tendon, rattlesnake bites, copperhead bites, tree branch falling on my tent, and of course, the dreaded bear attack. And so on. By the end of the talk, I was thinking, “Good God!l What have I gotten myself into? I don’t even have moleskin for my blisters. I have no tick removal tweezers! Why did I even leave my house?”

As it turns out, very few of these things have so far befallen me.  Other than some minor blisters, I have had no issues.  My knees feel good. My feet get a little sore after a long day of walking on rocks, but usually feel better by the next morning.  I have had two falls so far, both of the mild variety.  One fall was a slip in the mud, the other on a slick rock.  One concern I had was how well I would sleep on my 2.5 inch thick inflatable pad. The first few days, I tossed and turned, but now am sleeping comfortably with no backache.

Morale-wise, I’m doing well, although I do miss my family and friends, (and of course, my loyal dog, Riley.)  I don’t get bored, and manage to keep myself occupied with my birding and photography.  I’ve never once thought about quitting.

I am enjoying the scenery so far in southwest Virginia.  The meadows and cow pastures are a welcome addition, and provide additional habitat to see different birds.  It is getting increasingly difficult to see birds in the forest now that the trees are getting their leaves.

Dairy Farm along the trail

Pond on Chestnut Ridge

While admiring this view from Chestnut Knob, another hiker commented, “That looks like The Shire down there.”  This was without me mentioning that my trail name was Bilbo.  (For those not in the know, The Shire is Bilbo’s home in The Hobbit.)

View from Chestnut Knob Shelter

The flowering shrubs are currently stealing the show along the trail, although I think the best is yet to come.  There are many more shrubs that have yet to bloom.  If they all bloomed together, there would not be enough bees to go around!

Catawba Rhododendron

Flame Azalea

Yellow Azalea

For the past several days, Virginia has been stuck in a rainy weather pattern, with the forecast predicting it continue for a few more days.  The past two nights I have tent-camped in the rain.  Tonight, I am staying in a shelter.  I rolled into the shelter today at 1:30 PM after only hiking 11 miles.  This goes against the grain since I like to make maximum use of my trail time.  With the next shelter too far, and considering that it was raining, my feet were waterlogged, the trail was a swamp, and my gear was wet, I reluctantly stopped.

Here is what the trail looks like after three days of rain.  The soil on the trail, being most humus, drains extremely well.  After a few dry hours, it looks much better. After a day, you’d hardly know it rained.

Water on the trail

Got my feet wet crossing this one

I ended up bagging my plan to go to Trail Days.  This was partly due to the logistics of getting back and forth to Damascus, but mostly due to the weather forecast which is predicting rain through the weekend.  I was picturing myself tent-camping two nights in “hiker village”, then returning to the trail like a wet rat.  I have some life experience with mass camping in muddy fields at car races and such, and the memory is not favorable.  Perhaps I will attend next year as a hiker alumnus and stay in a B&B like a civilized person.  So back to “Plan A” – put my head down and hike north.  There is a trail town called Pearisburg, VA about two and a half days away which will be my next shower and resupply.

I mananged to capture a photo of this nuthatch the other day.  The bird appeared to be feeding its young, as it kept darting its head into the hole in the tree.

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Nothing to report on the Lepidoptera front.  I am hoping that with warmer (and sunnier!) weather, I will see more butterflies and moths .

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I have now entered the state of Virginia and left Tennessee for good. The AT now travels 554 miles through Virginia which is more than one quarter of the entire length of the trail.

Some of the other thru hikers have forewarned me about the “Virginia blues”.  Supposedly, many people quit the trail during this section.  I did some Googling to see what this was about and found these common grievances.

• The honeymoon period is over. The newness of the trail has worn off.
• The scenery is repetitive and monotonous.
• Hiking “cliques” have split up due to people hiking slower, faster, or having gotten off the trail.
• Virginia is not flat, contrary to some preconceived notion.

Don’t expect any of these complaints from me. I am on a six-month vacation, after all.

A few miles after crossing into Virginia, I entered the town of Damascus which is unquestionably the most iconic trail town on the AT.  The trail takes you right down East Laurel Avenue, the main drag. I stayed the night at “The Place”, a hostel affiliated with the Methodist Church.  It was a $7 donation for a bunk and shower. What a bargain!

Damascus, VA

Following the AT through town

“The Place” Hostel

The rules of the hostel are no smoking, no alcohol, and no profanity, which suited me just fine.  During my stay, the caretaker actually turned away a couple of “hiker bums”, which I was happy to see.  I was returning from dinner when I found the caretaker arguing with them. The one hiker was cursing loudly with slurred speech, so I figured he was violating at least two of the three house rules.  The caretaker finally said, “Get off the property or I am calling the police!”, and off they went into the night.

Next weekend, Damascus is hosting their 32nd annual Appalachian Trail Days Festival.  This is the biggest event of the year on the trail.  There are eight pages of activities in their brochure including a lineup of nine bands. At the festival, all kinds of debauchery takes place, but also many wholesome activities like gear vendor exhibits, a bird watching walk, and lectures by noteable outdoorsman. The feature event is the hiker parade where current and former AT hikers line up by year and march through the town.

Even though I will be 70 miles north of Damascus by then, I am hoping to attend. I have heard that there are shuttles at all the trail crossings for many miles north and south of the town. Supposedly, the folks on trail descend on the town for the weekend, then head back to where they left off.  We’ll see.

Not far north of Damascus, the trail passes through the Grayson Highlands.  The highlands are a series of grassy meadows at about 5000 feet elevation which are home to “wild” ponies and other livestock.

Longhorns on the Grayson Highlands

The ponies are wild in the sense that they live off the native vegetation, but are very tame.  In fact, it only takes about five minutes for them to go from “cute” to being a nuisance.  They immediately try to lick the sweat off your arms and legs.  If you don’t keep an eye on you trekking poles, they drag them away and lick the handles and straps. The ponies definitely know where the salt is.

Ponies on the trail

Randy the human salt lick

The pony herd is managed by the Wilbur Ridge Pony Association which rounds them up every fall for a health check.

It is a little intimidating at first to walk through the fields of livestock, but you figure out pretty quickly that they pay you little notice.

Livestock shed

Trail through the pasture

Hey cow! Out of my way!

Living the good life

Grazing at sunrise

I talked to a couple of section hikers from Williamsburg who said this is the perfect time for wildflowers in Virginia. So far, I would agree.

Virginia wildflowers

I have been enjoying the many varieties of Violets I see along the trail.  I thought to try to classify them, but after looking on the web, I realize I am not a worthy enough botanist to do so.  There are just too many kinds.   Here are some that I have seen, with my own captions, not the botanically-correct names.

Purple Violets

Lavender Violets

Yellow Violets

White Violets

The petals have amazing detail if you look closely.

Variegated

White with purple stripes

I had one big success with my birding.  I had been seeing this bird (which is easy to spot in the woods) for about a week before I finally found one to sit still for a photo.  The striking scarlet color is for real. No photoshop needed.

Scarlet Tanager

Scarlet Tanager taking flight

On the Lepidoptera front…

Silver-spotted Skipper

Someone asked how I go about fitting all my gear into my pack.  Here’s a video if you are interested.

One final sighting on the trail.  This person is a day-hiker from Covington, KY, of all places. He said I was about the twentieth person to ask to take his picture. I cannot imagine why…

Trail oddity

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The trail has finally left North Carolina and entered Tennessee for good.  For the last 220 miles, the trail has roughly straddled the NC-TN border which follows the spine of the Appalachians.  On a ridge line, step to the right and you are in North Carolina. Step to the left and you are in Tennessee.

During the past week I crossed a section called the Roan Highlands.  The highlands start with a climb of Roan Mountain, 6285 feet elevation.  The top of this mountain was once the site of the “legendary” Cloudland Hotel which operated from 1885 to 1910. Today, there is barely a trace of the hotel other than a forest service placard.  The hotel was built right on the NC-TN line.  Supposedly, there was a line painted across the banquet room.  On the Tennessee side of the line, guests could legally consume alcohol, whereas on the North Carolina side, it was illegal.

After Roan Mountain, the trail takes a series of ups and downs over a line of grassy “balds” including Round Bald, Jane Bald, Little Hump Mountain, and Hump Mountain, all in the 5500 – 5800 foot range.  The balds have great 360 degree views – when the weather cooperates.

Heading up Hump Mountain

In the highlands, I stayed at a shelter called the Overmountain Shelter.  This shelter is a converted barn.  It is one of the most popular shelters on the AT due to its spaciousness and fine views.

Overmountain Shelter

I was fortunate to be sleeping indoors since a thunderstorm rolled through during the night. When the rain hit, the residents soon discovered that although the roof was good, the walls were porous. There was a mad scramble where everyone scooted away from the walls toward the center of the barn.

Time to rise and shine

As chance would have it, I rolled out my sleeping bag right next to two other hikers from Northern KY.  Jerry (from Covington) and Amy (from Independence) are in the process of hiking a 120-mile section of the AT from Erwin, TN to Damascus, VA.  Small world.

Northern KY Neighbors on the Trail

After leaving the highlands, I hiked through the Laurel Fork Gorge.  This was a really pretty section and I passed many local day hikers. I was surprised to see that the azaleas and rhododendrons were already blooming there – a sign of things to come.

Laurel Fork Falls

I have been photographing many wildflowers along the trail.  Some of my favorites are the Trilliums which come in many varieties.

White Trillium

Vasey’s Trillium

Yellow Trillium

Painted Trillium

My latest birding success was to photograph the Rose-breasted Grosbeak.  When I looked up this pair online, I was surprised to find that they were the same species.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Male)

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Female)

On the Lepidoptera front…

Pipeline Swallowtail

Pipeline Swallowtail