Back in November 2008 I got the bright idea to do a life goal I had since 5th grade: Thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. I somehow managed to save the money within four months and March 29th I started. It took just over 6 months and I am back! Finally after a very long walk through the woods. I grew something on my face from the lack of shaving, and am currently in the best shape I've ever been in my entire life; I would bet anyways.
The Appalachian Trail: is a trail from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine. 2,178 miles through the mountains. And I put a backpack with a tent, sleeping bag some food and supplies to start my adventure. Continue reading for more about the trip! Click for Map Image
So I have heard a lot of questions so far; How was the trip? How do you feel now that your finished? What are you gonna do now? etc... the list never ends. Actually I had a nightmare during the last week of the adventure that had people constantly asking these questions, I knew the questions would come. Anyways, the trip was great, more than I could have ever expected. I feel accomplished, and I am now going to find a job so that I can continue paying my student loans which are robbing me of my funds.
So now that we got the basics out of the way I will run through a very VERY brief list of events that happened along the trip. (It is thorough but also brief.)
March 27th, 2009: I got on an airplane and flew to Ft. Lauderdale Florida where a good friend of mine, Miguel, picked me up, hung out for the night and I slept in the offices of Stratogon where I once worked. Since I had to meet with the director the next day it did make sense.
March 28th, 2009: I met with the Mark from Stratogon, then met Bobby who I started the trail with, and who brought me to the start of the trail. We drove through Florida and Georgia and arrived at Amicalola Falls State Park around 3:30am on the 29th.
March 29th, 2009. Bobby and I sign the register and drive to the parking lot at Springer Mt. We walk a mile to the plaque, only to turn around and walk the same mile back to the parking lot. This is because we didn't take the approach trail from the state park and got a ride up. We started walking around 10am or 11am. One of the most exhilarating days of the trip - starting something new and exciting!
March 30th, 2009: Day two of the trip. I woke up with frost on my tent, temperature less than 20 degrees.
Day 3 I walked 12 miles, which was a really long day. Got to a shelter where it seemed that everyone went to. I guess there were 30 to 40 people there, easily. The rain started, and seemed to never stop, for weeks and even months!
Day 5: I wake up realizing a bear stole my food even though I hung it properly the night before. I assume my knot was not tight enough. I walked back a mile to get some food till the next town stop. Never told my parents as I didn't want them to worry so early into the trip, besides it's not like I got hurt - just lost my food... Could have been worse if I was further away from the outfitter at Neel's Gap.
Walked across Fontana Dam in North Carolina, which is the largest dam east of the Mississippi River. Took my first zero day, which is basically a day where I did not progress forward on the trial.
Charlies Bunyon overlook in the Great Smokey Mountains I met a day hiker who talked with me for about an hour or so during lunch. As I walked away he shook my hand, giving me a $20 bill. After attempting to give it back he insisted that I use it and treat myself in town. I was astonished at his generosity and wish I had his contact information since I'd like to thank him and let him know because of that $20 bill, which I kept rather then spending, I did finish the trail. I kept it because it is worth more than the face value of $20. It showed me there are still people in the world that care for one another without even knowing the person! I kept it so that on a really bad day I could look at it and think of how much this person wanted to do the trail, and what generosity he had over just a simple conversation.
Somewhere just after the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, and before Hot Springs, I ended up popping my thermarest, (sleeping pad / matress). I basically slept on the hard floor of the shelter or the dirt ground for several days.
In Hot Springs, North Carolina I bought too much food and took my second zero day so that I could eat some of it, also because the town had a festival thing for hikers that I just happened to time perfectly.
The night after Hot Springs I spent the night with a friend inside a fire tower. Had an amazing view of sunset and sunrise in the morning. To think that we only went up there to see the view and then a small storm blew passed and we decided to stay the night. Was a great time.
In Erwin, Tennessee I bought FAR too much food. $127 at Walmart, and placed it all in or on my backpack... I estimate (with no exagerating) that the food weight alone was near 50lbs. Add 25lbs of random pack weight, (tent, sleeping bag, etc...) and then add 2 quarts of water to that! Somewhere near 75lbs easily. Must say it was very heavy. I took 2 zero days, to keep eating lots and lots of food!
Day 53: May, 20th 2009 somewhere just before Damascus, Virginia I had a very interesting night while camping: While picking the spot for my tent and setting up the tent I realized that the area was very spooky feeling. buzzing sounds every where, constant leaves rustling around and small twigs constantly snapping. Perhaps from chipmunks. I soon got very aquinted with these sounds and they became the norm for the area. It was getting dark and I have yet to eat so I started a fire and by the time I finished cooking it was dark out. I was eating and watching the fire, alone, enjoying the solitude able to think about those things I needed to think about when SNAP!
It was not a small twig, certainly not! I turned on my headlamp and looked around where I saw a pair of eyes less than 30 feet away. My heart started pounding and adrenaline was released through the system while my mind is still calculating what type of animal it could be. The eyes were close to the ground, perhaps 2ft off at most so I wasn't quite scared for my life at the size of the animal. I still can't identify it, so I grab a poker stick for defense and stand up - to make me bigger.
Then the eyes raise up as well! Near 4 or 5 feet. Yea, now my mind is racing, my heart is hitting my chest when it beats and I still can't identify the animal behind the glowing eyes. But I bend down and grab a stick from the fire with flames on the other end, putting it high above my head to hopefully throw the light out. Still can't see. After a moment that felt like five minutes the animal starts moving. A deer... I relax, my heart slows, and I can finally sit and finish eating. A deer won't do anyth... "SCREECH". WTF was that? The deer made a very odd sound, never heard it before. Was it a little deer scared and calling mom? Was it a deer in mating season, which I thought was fall not spring, but I don't know! Anyways I calm myself down and sit by the fire till 11:30 at night before turning into my tent.
My right foot started giving me some issues as I walked into Damascus, Virginia. I ended up timing that perfectly with Trail Days, the largest hiker festival held once a year when the peak of thru-hikers pass through the town. So I stayed and rested my foot for 3 zero days. This place was hiker heaven, plenty of gear, and free food! Got my thermarest fixed so I can finally sleep in a bit of comfort again! Nice weather while in Damascus, but since day 3 it had been raining almost non-stop... And after I left it started raining almost non-stop.
Bland, Virginia a generous man took six hikers into his home, including me. I do have his contact info and am sending him thank-yous and I finished cards soon. We all had a blast and he fed us well! Great guy and we only hiked with him for a couple of days.
After Bland, Virginia, on my way to Pearisburg, Virginia, I ended up pushing myself too hard and getting shin splints on my right leg. These suckers hurt, and they hurt for weeks... The weather still hasn't been much better than rain, rain, rain. I get lucky whenever I see the sun for two days in a row!
Day 67: June 3rd 2009. The night before I had no sleep at all. I had gotten to the planned destination late, at dark, decided to sleep in the shelter and never actually slept because it was too hot to hide in my sleeping bag, and too many bugs not to hide in the bag... Got up and on the trail around 6:30am and started along. The first part of the day was nice, took an hour lunch break by a river to hydrate myself well since I knew the next part didn't have water for a good 7 to 8 miles. I filled up my water bottles and headed on. It was a very solid climb from the river, non-stop. And worse, there were ups and downs which meant the total elevation change was way more than it should have been. Add in an afternoon thundershower while I am near the top of the ridge and things really got exciting! I decided to stop, setup my tent and wait out the 'storm'. Then it stopped. I waited ten-minutes thinking that my plan of action was useless and any other storm encountered I would continue walking. What is sitting in a tent going to help? It won't. So I continue walking, it is now like 4pm and I still have a long way to walk. I am running low on water, probably about 1 cup remaining so at this moment I do not care about being thirsty as I will save this for surviving until I find more water! Then I meet up with the most technical downhill the trail has presented me with during the whole trip so far. Finally I get down and follow a path that is supposed to be 1/4 mile to water. However the water source is dried up, even with the fresh rain... So I continue along, and near 7:30 to 8pm I thought I was 1/2 a mile from the road into town and decided to setup camp for the night and go into town in the morning. But I only had 1/2 a cup of water or less, two swallows really. It was a hard choice to make due to the water situation, but I had been walking for over 12hrs and possibly even closer to 14hrs... Saved the water for the morning. Came very close to wanting to get off the trail, and being in the situation brought me to my senses on how important water really is, even if I planned everything correctly I still ended up in a situation that could continue to worsen since I still don't have water!
In the morning I realized I was not as where I thought I was, I only walked 15.9miles during that day so I was still 2 miles from the road to town, but after those two swallows of water I took to the trail and got to a small gas station where I got a pizza, lots of water, and resupplied, also charging my cellphone since it died the first day out and was not able to call to let people know I was still ok for several days. I did live and continue on the trail, but I did look at that $20 bill and certainly thought about leaving the trail.
Shenendoah National Park, in the northern ~100 miles of Virginia, is where I encountered my very first bear. It jumped me at first since it was so close to me before it started running off, and the size of it moving through the woods. However, it stopped running about 15yds into the woods and I was able to get acouple of pictures of it. Wasn't scared beyond the initial "WTF" moment of something next to me, and really even a rabbit can give you that feeling. I also saw a few more bear in the park, and a LOT of deer. Easily 30+ deer in a day at times...
Day 85: June 21st, 2009 I managed to walk my largest day of the entire trip. It was the last day of the Shenendoah National Park and I kept right on at a good pace all day long. Feet weren't too bad for such a long day, and I even had daylight left when I got to the camping spot. The last mile outside of the park was a long one because the terrain was far worse, and less maintained also steeper.
Day 89 - 90: Harpers Ferry, West Virginia I caught up with a good friend that I hiked with earlier and took a zero day to hang out with him at his house. It was a great time, we all watched Lord of the Rings all day and just relaxed!
Day 95: July 1st 2009, Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Pennsylvania marks very close to the true halfway point of the trail. One of the thru-hiker 'traditions' is to eat a half-gallon of ice cream, named the "half-gallon challenge". However a lot of times in town I treated myself to a half gallon of ice cream, so this would not be a challenge for me. A few hikers chipped in on the second half gallon and I ate a full gallon of ice cream. Let me tell you from experience: That is a LOT of ice cream. Do NOT under-estimate the amount of a gallon!
Day 98: July 4th 2009, Independence Day. Well, I was not expecting fireworks or anything nice. I had a long day planned due to my eager plan to get to NY before my birthday. I walked through Duncannon, Pennsylvania. A long road walk through this town and a very long bridge next to the interstate. Another good long walk uphill, and as the sun started setting I knew I would be walking into the night a bit. Saw the colors of the sunset through the trees and started hoping for a clear area for pictures. And then I crossed a road on a footbridge and was able to get at least a shot. Then continued along the trail for 15 to 20 minutes to some power lines looking over several towns and a large valley. With a beautiful sunset. I knew I would walk into the night so I decided to stop here to take a break and watch the sunset before continuing. While watching the sunset I started hearing small pops, and finally when the fireworks started I was able to watch several different shows in different areas of the valley. It was amazing to say the least. Even if the fireworks were smaller than if I was close, it was impressive to see them that far away!
Day/Night 101: July 7th, 2009 was the first time I set out to walk at night. I have had some experiences walking into the early hours of dusk and a bit of walking at night, but nothing like this. I wanted to wait until dark, then walk into the late hours of the night. I prepared everything, had extra batteries for the headlamp, and started along after a five hour break waiting for the night to fall. While waiting I met two people that I hiked with later on the trail. I didn't know them before this day, and had a feeling I would know them better but didn't know how or under what situations since they travelled at a more relaxed pace than I was setting out for at this point during my adventure. Finally darkness fell and I went out into the night. It was very exhilarating. Adrenaline flowing at all times. Shadows from the light catch your eyes, you can't see further than two trees into the woods and the imagination runs wild at ever small thing including the wind. Was a great experience but by 2am I was exhausted and needed to setup camp and pass out!
Day 111: July 17th, 2009 was my 24th birthday which was celebrated with a few hikers and my mom and dad when they finally got to the correct Unionville, New York. (Apparently four towns have the same name, and my parents were near the top of the state still while I was near the bottom!). Took a zero with my parents, updated MySpace.com/blackbird04217 in less detail than this and was able to relax a bit. Got my shoes replaced thanks to Garmont.
Day 121: July 27th 2009 I stopped in Kent, Connecticut and did not like the town, it felt stuck up and did not have a hiker friendly attitude. Got some food, and continued on the trial. Trying to make it through CT, MA and VT on only $100. Lightning struck within 50yds from me (I guess the distance) because it was a bright flash, all the trees were silhouetted and the boom was IMMEDIATE! A lot of rain, ok thats an understatement. I could have walked through a pond and stayed drier. Dime sized hail, it was a very interesting walking experience. But I wasn't setting up my tent like I did the last time since I knew it wouldn't do any good, just started jumping in puddles and walking through a stream of water 4 to 6 inches deep! Had a blast, however later found out my cellphone fried itself and the camera lens got wet or something, in other words it broke.
The next day, Day 122, I had to cross my first body of water due to the flooding. It was only knee deep. Ended up losing my hiking pole, sat around looking for it and moping around for a few hours before continuing with only one hiking pole...
Day 125: July 31st 2009, After hitching into town and resupplying I was offered a free lunch by some lady at a burger stand. She handed me $10 and just walked off, and I was expecting she wanted to eat lunch asking 100s of questions to make it worth it for her but she just bought it and left, I was amazed. Then after continued hitching to the trail. Once there I stopped early with a few friends that hung out in a greenhouse, played some Frisbee and stayed out of the rain that continued pouring, they hitched into town and got several large pizza's and had a good time.
Day 140: August 15th 2009, got a ride back home for the weekend from Hanover, New Hampshire, so I could visit some family that was coming up for a week. This weekend turned into a much longer period of time since my mother did not setup a ride back for me and it took until her birthday for me to go back. That was 6 more zero days!
Day 148: August 23th 2009, I got back to the trail in Hanover, New Hampshire where I left off, caught up with the two people that I met back at my night hike. It took a lot to go the 10 miles from town to the shelter, physically it beat me up. The next few days were terrible pain wise as well, and I ended up hiking with those two until the end of the trip as their pace was more relaxing and took me back to my original goals of enjoying the trip.
Day 154: August 29th 2009, the group of us stopped at a hostel in Lincoln, New Hampshire for the second time. The first was two days before on Day 152. The owner of the hostel was involved in an accident with his camp stove while preparing to go on a hike, it exploded on him and burned most of his lungs. He was in a coma for several months and was told he would never walk again, a few years later and he is able to pull himself around his house, and even take a few steps from the garage to the house. A great guy with lots of spirit, hopefully he completes his dream of walking the AT through New Hampshire.
Through-out the Appalachian Mountain Club hut system in the White Mountains in New Hampshire was among some of the worst feeling parts of the trail. First as a thru-hiker you are forced to pay $8 or do a work-for-stay where you do some chores in the morning for your nights stay in the hut, and some left over supper and breakfast. Not a bad deal in itself, but some of the work was more than it should have been, not naming what or where. Secondly it sucked that there wasn't other options available since above tree-line you can't legally camp, except for staying at the hut; the presidential range is above tree-line for 25 miles – which would be unrealistic to do in a single day! Also the feeling thru-hikers get here is unfathomable. It feels like your an outsider
Day 160: September 4th 2009, a friend that I was hiking with and myself stopped for a break to wait for others in the group to catch up. During the break we counted what food we had since we were going into town only hours later. After packing our food back up, we got bluff charged from behind by a bear. This bear turned off and slowly came back, during which time we took some pics of it. Then it started becoming more aggressive, to the point where the cameras were put away. I grabbed our poles for some defensive weapons. The bear circled for fifteen minutes and bluff charged, (ran toward and stopped just before us), several times, getting closer and closer each time. It got into my friends pack, stealing his tent, dragging it into the woods where we only heard, RIP, RIP... Finally another hiker came and the bear went around, then started coming back to size us up again staying at a safe distance. Finally more hikers came down and the bear went off. The tent was fine, but the bag that contained the tent was ripped, luckily because that is a cheap item compared to a tent...
Day 161: September 5th 2009, I cowboy camped up on Mt Height while the rest of the group continued on a half mile down the mountain. It was a great sunset and sunrise in the morning, although it was also much colder than anticipated. During the night I woke and saw clouds about 50ft above me moving a solid 30mph or more over my head. It was a very amazing thing to watch and feel.
Day 165: September 9th 2009, I invited a few hikers to my house, dad picked us up from Grafton Notch on RT 26. We drove to Gorham to resupply and had a late night. Also planned to be picked back up at ME17 near Rangely, Maine, which happened on Day 168. About 3 weeks remain until the end of the adventure. We bought food for a mail drop in Monson, Maine and my sister mailed it off for us.
Day 169: September 13h 2009, We camped near a pond with a canoe and had a great night. The relaxed pace is much better than what I had been doing in the middle of the trip.
Day 172: September 16th 2009, Into Statton, Maine we went for one of the final towns. The people I was with treated me to supper and we hung out in the only hotel room I had (besides my birthday) during the entire trip.
Day 185: September 29th 2009: I originally wanted to finish on this date. It is the 6th month trail-versary. Instead I am at Abol Bridge on the Golden Road looking at Mount Katahdin, realizing that I am only two days away from the top!
Day 187: October 1st 2009 was the final day. I summited Mount Katahdin. A great day it was. This mountain was, I believe, the steepest part of the entire journey. I climbed up, stayed for a half hour or so with the two friends I climbed with. We took pics, celebrated and started down when someone they new showed up so we went back up for a bit for their friend to hang out. Then the other two friends I hiked with since Hanover, New Hampshire made it to the top and they got there stayed for 1 minute to take only a picture each and a group picture and BOOM they were gone with the wind, running off the mountain. I don't blame them, it was windy and chilly but it was exciting as well. On the way down the conditions were worse, my beard froze up. It was a class 3 day when we summited, there was no view but the adventure came to an end. Time to get to mom and dad and go home! What an adventure it was.
Here are some pictures for you as well: (100mb files each containing high quality pics)
AT Pictures - Folder 1
AT Pictures - Folder 2
AT Pictures - Folder 3
AT Pictures - Folder 4
AT Pictures - Folder 5
AT Pictures - Folder 6
AT Pictures - Folder 7
Added: Random writings of the points of interest in my scrapbook; unorganized, but may be enjoyed by others.
http://www.timbeaudet.com/goodies/at2009/at09_scraps.pdf
Sorry for the long post. But thanks for reading it if you did!
The Appalachian Trail: is a trail from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin, Maine. 2,178 miles through the mountains. And I put a backpack with a tent, sleeping bag some food and supplies to start my adventure. Continue reading for more about the trip! Click for Map Image
So I have heard a lot of questions so far; How was the trip? How do you feel now that your finished? What are you gonna do now? etc... the list never ends. Actually I had a nightmare during the last week of the adventure that had people constantly asking these questions, I knew the questions would come. Anyways, the trip was great, more than I could have ever expected. I feel accomplished, and I am now going to find a job so that I can continue paying my student loans which are robbing me of my funds.
So now that we got the basics out of the way I will run through a very VERY brief list of events that happened along the trip. (It is thorough but also brief.)
March 27th, 2009: I got on an airplane and flew to Ft. Lauderdale Florida where a good friend of mine, Miguel, picked me up, hung out for the night and I slept in the offices of Stratogon where I once worked. Since I had to meet with the director the next day it did make sense.
March 28th, 2009: I met with the Mark from Stratogon, then met Bobby who I started the trail with, and who brought me to the start of the trail. We drove through Florida and Georgia and arrived at Amicalola Falls State Park around 3:30am on the 29th.
March 29th, 2009. Bobby and I sign the register and drive to the parking lot at Springer Mt. We walk a mile to the plaque, only to turn around and walk the same mile back to the parking lot. This is because we didn't take the approach trail from the state park and got a ride up. We started walking around 10am or 11am. One of the most exhilarating days of the trip - starting something new and exciting!
March 30th, 2009: Day two of the trip. I woke up with frost on my tent, temperature less than 20 degrees.
Day 3 I walked 12 miles, which was a really long day. Got to a shelter where it seemed that everyone went to. I guess there were 30 to 40 people there, easily. The rain started, and seemed to never stop, for weeks and even months!
Day 5: I wake up realizing a bear stole my food even though I hung it properly the night before. I assume my knot was not tight enough. I walked back a mile to get some food till the next town stop. Never told my parents as I didn't want them to worry so early into the trip, besides it's not like I got hurt - just lost my food... Could have been worse if I was further away from the outfitter at Neel's Gap.
Walked across Fontana Dam in North Carolina, which is the largest dam east of the Mississippi River. Took my first zero day, which is basically a day where I did not progress forward on the trial.
Charlies Bunyon overlook in the Great Smokey Mountains I met a day hiker who talked with me for about an hour or so during lunch. As I walked away he shook my hand, giving me a $20 bill. After attempting to give it back he insisted that I use it and treat myself in town. I was astonished at his generosity and wish I had his contact information since I'd like to thank him and let him know because of that $20 bill, which I kept rather then spending, I did finish the trail. I kept it because it is worth more than the face value of $20. It showed me there are still people in the world that care for one another without even knowing the person! I kept it so that on a really bad day I could look at it and think of how much this person wanted to do the trail, and what generosity he had over just a simple conversation.
Somewhere just after the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, and before Hot Springs, I ended up popping my thermarest, (sleeping pad / matress). I basically slept on the hard floor of the shelter or the dirt ground for several days.
In Hot Springs, North Carolina I bought too much food and took my second zero day so that I could eat some of it, also because the town had a festival thing for hikers that I just happened to time perfectly.
The night after Hot Springs I spent the night with a friend inside a fire tower. Had an amazing view of sunset and sunrise in the morning. To think that we only went up there to see the view and then a small storm blew passed and we decided to stay the night. Was a great time.
In Erwin, Tennessee I bought FAR too much food. $127 at Walmart, and placed it all in or on my backpack... I estimate (with no exagerating) that the food weight alone was near 50lbs. Add 25lbs of random pack weight, (tent, sleeping bag, etc...) and then add 2 quarts of water to that! Somewhere near 75lbs easily. Must say it was very heavy. I took 2 zero days, to keep eating lots and lots of food!
Day 53: May, 20th 2009 somewhere just before Damascus, Virginia I had a very interesting night while camping: While picking the spot for my tent and setting up the tent I realized that the area was very spooky feeling. buzzing sounds every where, constant leaves rustling around and small twigs constantly snapping. Perhaps from chipmunks. I soon got very aquinted with these sounds and they became the norm for the area. It was getting dark and I have yet to eat so I started a fire and by the time I finished cooking it was dark out. I was eating and watching the fire, alone, enjoying the solitude able to think about those things I needed to think about when SNAP!
It was not a small twig, certainly not! I turned on my headlamp and looked around where I saw a pair of eyes less than 30 feet away. My heart started pounding and adrenaline was released through the system while my mind is still calculating what type of animal it could be. The eyes were close to the ground, perhaps 2ft off at most so I wasn't quite scared for my life at the size of the animal. I still can't identify it, so I grab a poker stick for defense and stand up - to make me bigger.
Then the eyes raise up as well! Near 4 or 5 feet. Yea, now my mind is racing, my heart is hitting my chest when it beats and I still can't identify the animal behind the glowing eyes. But I bend down and grab a stick from the fire with flames on the other end, putting it high above my head to hopefully throw the light out. Still can't see. After a moment that felt like five minutes the animal starts moving. A deer... I relax, my heart slows, and I can finally sit and finish eating. A deer won't do anyth... "SCREECH". WTF was that? The deer made a very odd sound, never heard it before. Was it a little deer scared and calling mom? Was it a deer in mating season, which I thought was fall not spring, but I don't know! Anyways I calm myself down and sit by the fire till 11:30 at night before turning into my tent.
My right foot started giving me some issues as I walked into Damascus, Virginia. I ended up timing that perfectly with Trail Days, the largest hiker festival held once a year when the peak of thru-hikers pass through the town. So I stayed and rested my foot for 3 zero days. This place was hiker heaven, plenty of gear, and free food! Got my thermarest fixed so I can finally sleep in a bit of comfort again! Nice weather while in Damascus, but since day 3 it had been raining almost non-stop... And after I left it started raining almost non-stop.
Bland, Virginia a generous man took six hikers into his home, including me. I do have his contact info and am sending him thank-yous and I finished cards soon. We all had a blast and he fed us well! Great guy and we only hiked with him for a couple of days.
After Bland, Virginia, on my way to Pearisburg, Virginia, I ended up pushing myself too hard and getting shin splints on my right leg. These suckers hurt, and they hurt for weeks... The weather still hasn't been much better than rain, rain, rain. I get lucky whenever I see the sun for two days in a row!
Day 67: June 3rd 2009. The night before I had no sleep at all. I had gotten to the planned destination late, at dark, decided to sleep in the shelter and never actually slept because it was too hot to hide in my sleeping bag, and too many bugs not to hide in the bag... Got up and on the trail around 6:30am and started along. The first part of the day was nice, took an hour lunch break by a river to hydrate myself well since I knew the next part didn't have water for a good 7 to 8 miles. I filled up my water bottles and headed on. It was a very solid climb from the river, non-stop. And worse, there were ups and downs which meant the total elevation change was way more than it should have been. Add in an afternoon thundershower while I am near the top of the ridge and things really got exciting! I decided to stop, setup my tent and wait out the 'storm'. Then it stopped. I waited ten-minutes thinking that my plan of action was useless and any other storm encountered I would continue walking. What is sitting in a tent going to help? It won't. So I continue walking, it is now like 4pm and I still have a long way to walk. I am running low on water, probably about 1 cup remaining so at this moment I do not care about being thirsty as I will save this for surviving until I find more water! Then I meet up with the most technical downhill the trail has presented me with during the whole trip so far. Finally I get down and follow a path that is supposed to be 1/4 mile to water. However the water source is dried up, even with the fresh rain... So I continue along, and near 7:30 to 8pm I thought I was 1/2 a mile from the road into town and decided to setup camp for the night and go into town in the morning. But I only had 1/2 a cup of water or less, two swallows really. It was a hard choice to make due to the water situation, but I had been walking for over 12hrs and possibly even closer to 14hrs... Saved the water for the morning. Came very close to wanting to get off the trail, and being in the situation brought me to my senses on how important water really is, even if I planned everything correctly I still ended up in a situation that could continue to worsen since I still don't have water!
In the morning I realized I was not as where I thought I was, I only walked 15.9miles during that day so I was still 2 miles from the road to town, but after those two swallows of water I took to the trail and got to a small gas station where I got a pizza, lots of water, and resupplied, also charging my cellphone since it died the first day out and was not able to call to let people know I was still ok for several days. I did live and continue on the trail, but I did look at that $20 bill and certainly thought about leaving the trail.
Shenendoah National Park, in the northern ~100 miles of Virginia, is where I encountered my very first bear. It jumped me at first since it was so close to me before it started running off, and the size of it moving through the woods. However, it stopped running about 15yds into the woods and I was able to get acouple of pictures of it. Wasn't scared beyond the initial "WTF" moment of something next to me, and really even a rabbit can give you that feeling. I also saw a few more bear in the park, and a LOT of deer. Easily 30+ deer in a day at times...
Day 85: June 21st, 2009 I managed to walk my largest day of the entire trip. It was the last day of the Shenendoah National Park and I kept right on at a good pace all day long. Feet weren't too bad for such a long day, and I even had daylight left when I got to the camping spot. The last mile outside of the park was a long one because the terrain was far worse, and less maintained also steeper.
Day 89 - 90: Harpers Ferry, West Virginia I caught up with a good friend that I hiked with earlier and took a zero day to hang out with him at his house. It was a great time, we all watched Lord of the Rings all day and just relaxed!
Day 95: July 1st 2009, Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Pennsylvania marks very close to the true halfway point of the trail. One of the thru-hiker 'traditions' is to eat a half-gallon of ice cream, named the "half-gallon challenge". However a lot of times in town I treated myself to a half gallon of ice cream, so this would not be a challenge for me. A few hikers chipped in on the second half gallon and I ate a full gallon of ice cream. Let me tell you from experience: That is a LOT of ice cream. Do NOT under-estimate the amount of a gallon!
Day 98: July 4th 2009, Independence Day. Well, I was not expecting fireworks or anything nice. I had a long day planned due to my eager plan to get to NY before my birthday. I walked through Duncannon, Pennsylvania. A long road walk through this town and a very long bridge next to the interstate. Another good long walk uphill, and as the sun started setting I knew I would be walking into the night a bit. Saw the colors of the sunset through the trees and started hoping for a clear area for pictures. And then I crossed a road on a footbridge and was able to get at least a shot. Then continued along the trail for 15 to 20 minutes to some power lines looking over several towns and a large valley. With a beautiful sunset. I knew I would walk into the night so I decided to stop here to take a break and watch the sunset before continuing. While watching the sunset I started hearing small pops, and finally when the fireworks started I was able to watch several different shows in different areas of the valley. It was amazing to say the least. Even if the fireworks were smaller than if I was close, it was impressive to see them that far away!
Day/Night 101: July 7th, 2009 was the first time I set out to walk at night. I have had some experiences walking into the early hours of dusk and a bit of walking at night, but nothing like this. I wanted to wait until dark, then walk into the late hours of the night. I prepared everything, had extra batteries for the headlamp, and started along after a five hour break waiting for the night to fall. While waiting I met two people that I hiked with later on the trail. I didn't know them before this day, and had a feeling I would know them better but didn't know how or under what situations since they travelled at a more relaxed pace than I was setting out for at this point during my adventure. Finally darkness fell and I went out into the night. It was very exhilarating. Adrenaline flowing at all times. Shadows from the light catch your eyes, you can't see further than two trees into the woods and the imagination runs wild at ever small thing including the wind. Was a great experience but by 2am I was exhausted and needed to setup camp and pass out!
Day 111: July 17th, 2009 was my 24th birthday which was celebrated with a few hikers and my mom and dad when they finally got to the correct Unionville, New York. (Apparently four towns have the same name, and my parents were near the top of the state still while I was near the bottom!). Took a zero with my parents, updated MySpace.com/blackbird04217 in less detail than this and was able to relax a bit. Got my shoes replaced thanks to Garmont.
Day 121: July 27th 2009 I stopped in Kent, Connecticut and did not like the town, it felt stuck up and did not have a hiker friendly attitude. Got some food, and continued on the trial. Trying to make it through CT, MA and VT on only $100. Lightning struck within 50yds from me (I guess the distance) because it was a bright flash, all the trees were silhouetted and the boom was IMMEDIATE! A lot of rain, ok thats an understatement. I could have walked through a pond and stayed drier. Dime sized hail, it was a very interesting walking experience. But I wasn't setting up my tent like I did the last time since I knew it wouldn't do any good, just started jumping in puddles and walking through a stream of water 4 to 6 inches deep! Had a blast, however later found out my cellphone fried itself and the camera lens got wet or something, in other words it broke.
The next day, Day 122, I had to cross my first body of water due to the flooding. It was only knee deep. Ended up losing my hiking pole, sat around looking for it and moping around for a few hours before continuing with only one hiking pole...
Day 125: July 31st 2009, After hitching into town and resupplying I was offered a free lunch by some lady at a burger stand. She handed me $10 and just walked off, and I was expecting she wanted to eat lunch asking 100s of questions to make it worth it for her but she just bought it and left, I was amazed. Then after continued hitching to the trail. Once there I stopped early with a few friends that hung out in a greenhouse, played some Frisbee and stayed out of the rain that continued pouring, they hitched into town and got several large pizza's and had a good time.
Day 140: August 15th 2009, got a ride back home for the weekend from Hanover, New Hampshire, so I could visit some family that was coming up for a week. This weekend turned into a much longer period of time since my mother did not setup a ride back for me and it took until her birthday for me to go back. That was 6 more zero days!
Day 148: August 23th 2009, I got back to the trail in Hanover, New Hampshire where I left off, caught up with the two people that I met back at my night hike. It took a lot to go the 10 miles from town to the shelter, physically it beat me up. The next few days were terrible pain wise as well, and I ended up hiking with those two until the end of the trip as their pace was more relaxing and took me back to my original goals of enjoying the trip.
Day 154: August 29th 2009, the group of us stopped at a hostel in Lincoln, New Hampshire for the second time. The first was two days before on Day 152. The owner of the hostel was involved in an accident with his camp stove while preparing to go on a hike, it exploded on him and burned most of his lungs. He was in a coma for several months and was told he would never walk again, a few years later and he is able to pull himself around his house, and even take a few steps from the garage to the house. A great guy with lots of spirit, hopefully he completes his dream of walking the AT through New Hampshire.
Through-out the Appalachian Mountain Club hut system in the White Mountains in New Hampshire was among some of the worst feeling parts of the trail. First as a thru-hiker you are forced to pay $8 or do a work-for-stay where you do some chores in the morning for your nights stay in the hut, and some left over supper and breakfast. Not a bad deal in itself, but some of the work was more than it should have been, not naming what or where. Secondly it sucked that there wasn't other options available since above tree-line you can't legally camp, except for staying at the hut; the presidential range is above tree-line for 25 miles – which would be unrealistic to do in a single day! Also the feeling thru-hikers get here is unfathomable. It feels like your an outsider
Day 160: September 4th 2009, a friend that I was hiking with and myself stopped for a break to wait for others in the group to catch up. During the break we counted what food we had since we were going into town only hours later. After packing our food back up, we got bluff charged from behind by a bear. This bear turned off and slowly came back, during which time we took some pics of it. Then it started becoming more aggressive, to the point where the cameras were put away. I grabbed our poles for some defensive weapons. The bear circled for fifteen minutes and bluff charged, (ran toward and stopped just before us), several times, getting closer and closer each time. It got into my friends pack, stealing his tent, dragging it into the woods where we only heard, RIP, RIP... Finally another hiker came and the bear went around, then started coming back to size us up again staying at a safe distance. Finally more hikers came down and the bear went off. The tent was fine, but the bag that contained the tent was ripped, luckily because that is a cheap item compared to a tent...
Day 161: September 5th 2009, I cowboy camped up on Mt Height while the rest of the group continued on a half mile down the mountain. It was a great sunset and sunrise in the morning, although it was also much colder than anticipated. During the night I woke and saw clouds about 50ft above me moving a solid 30mph or more over my head. It was a very amazing thing to watch and feel.
Day 165: September 9th 2009, I invited a few hikers to my house, dad picked us up from Grafton Notch on RT 26. We drove to Gorham to resupply and had a late night. Also planned to be picked back up at ME17 near Rangely, Maine, which happened on Day 168. About 3 weeks remain until the end of the adventure. We bought food for a mail drop in Monson, Maine and my sister mailed it off for us.
Day 169: September 13h 2009, We camped near a pond with a canoe and had a great night. The relaxed pace is much better than what I had been doing in the middle of the trip.
Day 172: September 16th 2009, Into Statton, Maine we went for one of the final towns. The people I was with treated me to supper and we hung out in the only hotel room I had (besides my birthday) during the entire trip.
Day 185: September 29th 2009: I originally wanted to finish on this date. It is the 6th month trail-versary. Instead I am at Abol Bridge on the Golden Road looking at Mount Katahdin, realizing that I am only two days away from the top!
Day 187: October 1st 2009 was the final day. I summited Mount Katahdin. A great day it was. This mountain was, I believe, the steepest part of the entire journey. I climbed up, stayed for a half hour or so with the two friends I climbed with. We took pics, celebrated and started down when someone they new showed up so we went back up for a bit for their friend to hang out. Then the other two friends I hiked with since Hanover, New Hampshire made it to the top and they got there stayed for 1 minute to take only a picture each and a group picture and BOOM they were gone with the wind, running off the mountain. I don't blame them, it was windy and chilly but it was exciting as well. On the way down the conditions were worse, my beard froze up. It was a class 3 day when we summited, there was no view but the adventure came to an end. Time to get to mom and dad and go home! What an adventure it was.
Here are some pictures for you as well: (100mb files each containing high quality pics)
AT Pictures - Folder 1
AT Pictures - Folder 2
AT Pictures - Folder 3
AT Pictures - Folder 4
AT Pictures - Folder 5
AT Pictures - Folder 6
AT Pictures - Folder 7
Added: Random writings of the points of interest in my scrapbook; unorganized, but may be enjoyed by others.
http://www.timbeaudet.com/goodies/at2009/at09_scraps.pdf
Sorry for the long post. But thanks for reading it if you did!
, sounds like loads of excitement! I can't wait till I get off this laptop to download those pictures!
