Hiking the Good Hike

Reading the blog, you've heard us refer to a lot of different names, be it given or trail. So below, I have prepared for you a list of names, faces, and brief descriptions of some of the more common names mentioned before or are to come in future blogs. Please enjoy and I hope that putting names with faces will only help to better your reading experience. Oh, and please do not be offended if you are a thru-hiker reading this; the order that you were listed was randomized and based off whose useable photo I found first.

AYCE - also known as Andrew in the real world. Formerly from, with future plans to return to, Massachusetts. Prior to the AT, he worked as an electrical engineer. He loves all food, particularly diners and all you can eat buffetts, with the exception of Alfredo.

Long Spoon - aka Tom is from Colorado. He worked as a geological engineer prior to the AT and is well known on the trail as one of the Colorado Bros. For fun, he enjoys playing the harmonica and mandolin, loves spinach with every dinner, and is a charismatic, yet calming, storybook reader.

Lazer Death Kill - aka Jack is also from Colorado. He is the other Colorado Bro and studied geological engineering as well. LDK has a soft spot for puppies and enjoys kayaking and rock climbing when not getting rad while walking the AT. He also likes playing the banjo, listening to podcasts, and writing his manifesto. 

Witch Doctor - aka Jarryd is from Florida. He graduated with a degree in microbiology and will begin a studious life in pursuit of becoming a physician this fall. He has climbed Mt Kilimanjaro, pedaled with Bike and Build, and loves to wear brightly colored clothing.

Passover - aka EJ is from North Carolina. She has a psychology and women's studies degree with future plans for grad school. She is a "vegetable enthusiast", a hater of all things peanut butter, and a lover of all things coffee. In her spare time she enjoys shopping at thrift stores and local farmers' markets.

Ember - aka Alex is also from North Carolina. Prior to the AT, he studied geography at UNC and was a former 2012 Ridge Runner in Connecticut and Massachusetts. In his spare time, he enjoys working on cars.

Rooster - aka Andrew is from Rhode Island. He enjoys working at a Boy Scout camp and formerly played saxophone in the military. He loves pizza, smoothies, and all things food. Currently, the rooster hikes.

Chickadee - aka Lauren is from "all over". She recently cut her dreadlocks in preperation for the trail. Off the AT, she is a yoga instructor and vegetarian. She enjoys working overseas volunteering at orphanages.

Blue Moon - aka Terry is from New York. He is married with two kids and is recently retired. He enjoys shooting and directing short movies along the trail, documenting memories. Like many thru-hikers, he likes to take full advantage of every food opportunity available. 

Nomad - aka Patrick is from Texas. He worked in the corporate world as a mechanical engineer. When not shuttling and feeding hikers along the AT, he enjoys wake boarding and mentoring high school students through his local church.

Camero (and Chevy) - aka Erin is from Canada. She loves dogs/all animals probably more than humans and definitely more than bugs. Her future pursuits entail preventing and fighting animal cruelty and hopes to run her own animal safe haven someday.

Tail Lights - aka Skylar is from West Virginia. He is the youngest member of our hiking group. He will be attending college in the fall with an interest in dance/performing arts.

Manchild - aka Kyle is from Virginia. He is planning to attend grad-school in the fall. He is known for having the best one liners and for consistently having summer sausage in his trail diet.

Guiseppe - aka Gary is from Massachusetts. This man loves his ice cream and will go out of his way to find a good vendor. He is also a facial hair enthusiast as evidenced by his frequently admired mustache.

Dirty Mike - aka Michael is from Georgia. He is attending Georgia Tech and is studying mechanical engineering. On hot, and sometimes not so hot days, he likes to sport his super short shorts while enjoying a nice Yoohoo.

Coups - aka Matt is also from Georgia and attending Georgia Tech. He is studying civil engineering with plans to return this fall. One of his favorite food venues is Chick-Fil-A, which he is still able to frequent on trail thanks to various family support. On a side note, Dirty Mike and Matt have been friends long before their current AT experience. 

Hope you enjoyed!

Cassandra

4/22 Day 50 Pickle Branch Shelter to Pig Farm Campsite - 16.9 miles

     Started this morning with a long climb up to a rock feature called Dragon Tooth. It was a rocky climb and an even rockier careful decent. We continued at a good pace with Catawba Grocery, where we could get pizza and snacks, as motivation. We hiked on accidentally crossing the road that leads to Catawba Grocery without knowing it. When we got to the next road, the one we thought we needed, we met a man named Jerome from Wisconsin who offered to give us a ride. Still unaware of our mistake, we thought the store was only 0.3 mile away but we took him up on his offer anyway. We hopped in the car and down the road we went coming to a store that was closed. We drove on maybe a mile or two eventually finding Catawba Grocery and realizing our mistake. We thanked Jerome but he insisted we get what we need and he would take us back to the trail. We quickly grabbed enough food for one more day, a couple slices of pizza, and some pop and were on our way back to the trail. As we made our way back we saw Witchdoctor and Passover walking and trying to hitch. When Jerome realized they were our friends he decided he would drop us off and go back for them. We thanked him again and he took off back down the hill to help our friends. 

     We hung out at the parking area waiting for Witchdoctor and Passover to return and the rest of the gang started to show up. They had all gone to the store the right way. Before leaving to hike to McAfee Knob, Witchdoctor talked to his parents who were coming to visit and decided to wait there for them as they weren't far away. The rest of us hiked up to McAfee Knob planning to eat dinner there before moving on to a campsite. McAfee Knob is a rock outcropping with great views seeming to be popular among tourists and day hikers and is said to be the most photographed spot on the AT (though I wonder how this is measured). It turned out to be an awesome place. We had a great time there eating dinner, goofing off, and or course taking epic photographs. Just as the sun was setting we hiked on to the campsite and made our home for the night. Tomorrow we go to Daleville.

4/23 Day 51 Pig Farm Campsite to Daleville, VA - 15.5 miles

     We had all planned last night to go back up to McAfee Knob for the sunrise but when morning came only LDK and I were serious enough to get out of bed. We rushed to get there but it turned out we couldn't even see the sun due to the clouds. It was a nice morning hike regardless. When we got back to the campsite the rest of the group was starting to pack up. We had a nice ridge walk and then hiked along Tinker Cliffs. We stopped at Lambert Meadow Shelter for lunch and met Tanto a southbound section hiker. Witchdoctor caught back up to us slackpacking to Daleville to meet back up with his parents. 

     Before long we were on the homestretch to town where Witchdoctor's parents met us with cookies. We hiked in to where they were parked and they had a cooler full of Snickers, Mountain Dew, and Coke as trail magic. We killed some time there for a while waiting for the whole group to arrive and then made our way to the Howard Johnson hotel for the night. We had been told it was not a good place to stay but it seemed nicer than most places we had stayed. We took our showers and did our laundry and then headed to Three Little Pigs barbecue for dinner with Witchdoctor's parents. We had a nice dinner complete with complimentary banana pudding and Witchdoctor's parents ended up picking up the tab for our whole group. Tomorrow we'll resupply and get back on the trail looking forward to seeing our parents in a couple days. 

4/24 Day 52 Daleville, VA to Wilson Creek Shelter - 11.2 miles

     We woke up and headed straight to the continental breakfast. This was the first hotel where we had stayed offering complimentary breakfast so we were happy to enjoy that. We took our time getting out of the hotel and then headed to Kroger to resupply. It made me feel at home to shop at Kroger. When we walked into  the store we were reunited with our long lost friend Blue Moon. We hadn't seen him since our second day in the Smokies so we took some time to catch up.

     After our Krogering we hit up the Bojangle's for lunch. We were finally back on trail at 1:00 and the hike out of town was not pleasant. It seemed to take forever before we were back in the woods. We took a break at the Fulhardt Knob Shelter which was the 1/3 mark of the trail. We hiked on to Wilson Creek Shelter for the night where we pitched our tent. Most of our group was here but Ember and LDK had chosen to take a zero to remedy some feet issues. 

4/25 Day 53 Wilson Creek Shelter to Bryant Ridge Shelter - 20.8 miles

     Today was a short day time wise but a good day mileage wise. We were cruising as we began frequently crossing the Blue Ridge Parkway. The miles were coming easy. We broke for lunch at one of the scenic overlooks on the parkway and watched the traffic as they drove by staring at us like zoo animals. At this spot we said our goodbyes to Sparks who had to return home for work. 

     We took another extended break at Jennings's Creek swimming hole before moving on to Bryant Ridge Shelter. There was a group of section hikers already there but the shelter was huge so there was room for our whole group. We had a nice relaxing evening at the shelter. Tomorrow my parents and Cassandra's mom will meet us to visit for the weekend and they are apparently bringing food to the trail. We're looking forward to that.

Thanks for reading,

Moose

4/19 Day 47 Rice Field Shelter to Bailey Gap Shelter - 16.4 miles

     Woke to loud winds. It was very cloudy and rain seemed eminent. I was sluggish this morning and ended up being the last one out of the shelter. The hiking was pretty easy in this section. We took our hour lunch break at Pine Swamp Branch Shelter and moved on hoping to get some more miles in before the rain. 

     Just a mile beyond the shelter was a place of mystery described in the guide as "The Captain's" place where camping was accessed by crossing the creek via zip line. The allure of the zip line brought us all to The Captain's just as the rain began. There was a note inviting hikers to camp in the yard or on the back porch and to help ourselves to the soft drinks in the fridge. The Captain wasn't home and left a note, "Gone Hiking." We took a break out of the rain and drank a pop and decided to hike on to the next shelter. About half of our group decided to hang at the Captain's while the rest came with us.

     The rain continued as we hiked three more steep miles to the shelter. By the time we arrived we were soaked and most of our gear was wet. The rain had pretty much stopped but the temperature was dropping. We changed into some dry(ish) clothes and grabbed a spot in the shelter. It was an early bedtime tonight due to the colder temps.

4/20 Day 48 Bailey Gap Shelter to Sarver Hollow Shelter - 21 miles

     Cold night last night. We had some snow flurries through the night. My bag had gotten wet yesterday so I had a cold sleep. We were slow moving this morning and I was last out again. As usual, we stopped at the first shelter for lunch and most of the other guys caught us. 

     We hiked on to a place called Kelly's Knob which was a cool place for a break. When we came to Laurel Creek Shelter we found a note from Nomad that he was just a couple miles ahead with trail magic. We picked up the pace and found Nomad waiting for us at the next road crossing with Nickelodeon and Pack Rat, both who are now injured. We had sandwiches and snacks and hung out for an hour or two before moving on.

     Shortly after leaving Nomad we came across Keiffer Oak which is a huge tree over 300 years old. We hiked on climbing up to a ridge as the sun set. We hiked at dusk to the side trail leading 0.4 miles back down the mountain to Sarver Hollow Shelter. We arrived at about 8:30 and found one person sleeping in the shelter. The shelter was really nice and even had a porch. We were unable to find tenting so we slept on the porch. We went straight to our sleeping bags quietly to avoid disturbing him. 

4/21 Day 49 Sarver Hollow Shelter to Pickle Branch Shelter - 16.1 miles

    Today was a good day for me. I finally saw a bear. I took my time getting out of camp and was nearly the last to leave again. Cassandra likes to get a head start on me and I'm easily distracted while trying to pack so it works out. A short time into my walk I pass LDK and continue walking. As I'm walking I hear something to my right and when I look I think "Wow, that's a big dog." I did an instant double take and had a stare down with a bear. As I fumbled for my phone to take a photo LDK approached and the bear scurried off. I was, however, able to capture a very bigfootesque photo before it was out of site. I had never seen a bear in the wild so I was pretty stoked and couldn't wait to tell everyone. No one believed me and my poor quality photo didn't help matters. I thought bear sitings would be fairly common but I don't know of any among hikers this year. 

     The hiking the rest of the day included a long climb up to Brushy Mountain where we saw the Audie Murphy memorial. As I understand it, he was the most decorated American WWII soldier who had crashed a plane and died near where the memorial now stands. We continued to Pickle Branch Shelter where we all tented as a group just a bit away from the shelter. We met a thru hiker called The Dude who had begun his thru hike in January. Before going to sleep I was able to enhance my bear photo for better proof. See below for before and after bear photo.