i feel better now.
i absolutely cannot believe we are done with the trail. the only word i can come up with to describe it is "surreal." did we really do that?
the last 100 miles were pretty intense. it was bitter cold the whole time. we were struggling with the concept of being so close and yet having 100 miles to go. we just kept dreaming of the beach we were going to be laying on very soon, and that kept us motivated.
we trudged our way through north carolina and FINALLY got to georgia. we continued to meet more and more north bounders. we continued to meet more and more day hikers telling us the terrain up ahead was rough and maybe we shouldn't go over blood mountain in the rain, we shouldn't walk in the dark, we shouldn't try to make it 6 more miles to the hostel. it is amazing the difference between when we first started and the very last days. for example, a group of strong young men in their 20's were taking 6 days what we did in 2 days. no joke.
our last day was (of course) raining. and 50 degrees. we met a northbounder who was about 5 miles in that said he "loved" rainy and cold weather. talk to us in about another week, buddy.
a mile before Springer there is a parking lot where morgan and jesse met us to walk the last section with us. (we walked; tony ran). then it was over. just like that. just like high school and college. you go and go and then all of a sudden it's over.
people ask us daily if we would do it again. the answer is always yes, we would do it once. not again.
it's hard to explain the trail. it is more than a "hike." it is easily the hardest thing i have ever done. it is blisters and feet so sore you can't put your feet down. it is carrying your life on your back in a bag. it is making new friends that turn into your family. it is having to say good-bye to those friends. it is spending months away from your family. it is climbing mountains and being rewarded by heavenly views. it is climbing mountains and being rewarded by nothing. it is being deprived and cold and hungry and the next hour eating the best mcdonald's you have ever had. it is being so tired that sleeping on a wooden shelter floor feels divine. it is humbling yourself and sticking your thumb out for a ride from strangers. it is hiking miles and miles only to have miles and miles to go the very next day. it is not for everyone.
as happy as i am to be done, i am missing it just as much.
Showing posts with label thru hike. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thru hike. Show all posts
1.28.2013
12.23.2012
Xmas break
Merry Christmas from Nashville!
Thank you so much to Kory Miller for coming to help us this past week! We were able to slackpack several 20+mile days AND sleep in a hotel!! We only had one tiny incident where we couldn't find each other at the end of the day, but it was huge help to have Kory with us.
We decided to come home a couple days early for Christmas break because a bad storm was coming through the Smokies...
Needless to say, it was surreal riding back into Nashville. We were excited, but we had really wanted to be done for Christmas. But as the trail teaches you, sometimes you just have to let things go. We have had our "Alabama"
Christmas already and have a few more to go! We got to go to Tusculum this morning and were really encouraged by all the people who came up and hugged us and told us they had been thinking about us. Betsy almost had me in tears with her welcome. Shout out to the Shackletts!! We really do appreciate everyone reading our blog and following our journey.
Also, it is super crazy when you leave in July, and come back in December. You feel like a whole chunk of your life is gone, and that it should still be summer! But the world just keeps right in turning with or without you.
Lots of people have asked if we were sad about going back to the trail after Christmas. And I can honestly say that I miss it. And I can honestly say that I am ready to finish it up too. I have thought about it every second since we have been gone.
It just gets in your blood, and in your heart, and you just have to go.
1930/2184 88.4% complete ( starting back at Max Patch Mtn in NC)
Thank you so much to Kory Miller for coming to help us this past week! We were able to slackpack several 20+mile days AND sleep in a hotel!! We only had one tiny incident where we couldn't find each other at the end of the day, but it was huge help to have Kory with us.
We decided to come home a couple days early for Christmas break because a bad storm was coming through the Smokies...
Needless to say, it was surreal riding back into Nashville. We were excited, but we had really wanted to be done for Christmas. But as the trail teaches you, sometimes you just have to let things go. We have had our "Alabama"
Christmas already and have a few more to go! We got to go to Tusculum this morning and were really encouraged by all the people who came up and hugged us and told us they had been thinking about us. Betsy almost had me in tears with her welcome. Shout out to the Shackletts!! We really do appreciate everyone reading our blog and following our journey.
Also, it is super crazy when you leave in July, and come back in December. You feel like a whole chunk of your life is gone, and that it should still be summer! But the world just keeps right in turning with or without you.
Lots of people have asked if we were sad about going back to the trail after Christmas. And I can honestly say that I miss it. And I can honestly say that I am ready to finish it up too. I have thought about it every second since we have been gone.
It just gets in your blood, and in your heart, and you just have to go.
1930/2184 88.4% complete ( starting back at Max Patch Mtn in NC)
12.12.2012
recent events:
we hiked our biggest week ever, including a 33 mile (biggest day) slackpack. we got to TN (!!!!!!!) and NC, and will continue to vacillate between the two until Georgia.
we passed over 1800 miles, and are currently at 1833!
my sister has been a tremendous help and was responsible for our slack pack. she has picked us up and dropped us off multiple times the past few days. thank you Laurie and Paavo and Adam!
we spent last night in the "Greasy Creek Friendly" (they're friendly not "hostel"..... get it?) after a LONG 20 mile day over the Roans. tony keeps saying we were in a blizzard up there, and while yes it was snowing and incredibly windy and my hair was frozen, it only snowed about 1/4 inch. Nevertheless it was challenging to say the least.
We got followed by bloodhounds today. Bloodhounds with antennas attached to gps units who were sniffing out bears. Apparently we smelled like bears because those girls followed us for an hour! All the way up Unaka Mountain.
tony ate a ridiculous amount of food at McDonald's---4 big macs, 1 McRib, 1 large fry, 1 hot fudge sundae. He states that he has "reached the pinnacle of his fast food consumption"
Morgan is coming to get us in 10 days! We have done over 20 miles per day more this week than ever before to try and get through the smokies.
our friend James is back on the trail. he is started back in Hanover where he had to get off for a while. it's super cold up there. Let's put it this way: he is bringing snow shoes with him in his pack. Brave, brave boy. So happy for him!
we drank the local Johnson city beverage dr. enuf tonight and also learned the word you'ins. basically substitute you'ins in for y'all or "you guys" and you have yourself a east tn sentence. Ex. Where are you'ins from? Pretty cute huh? EVERYBODY uses it.
I absolutely cannot believe how close we are to the end. 350 miles doesn't sound that close, but compared to the 1800+ we have done, it most assuredly is. that being said, if one more person asks if we plan on doing the whole trail, I may just punch them. of course we are! unless we get hurt or die or it snows 4 feet we are doing the last 16%!
good night y'all. love you'ins.
we hiked our biggest week ever, including a 33 mile (biggest day) slackpack. we got to TN (!!!!!!!) and NC, and will continue to vacillate between the two until Georgia.
we passed over 1800 miles, and are currently at 1833!
my sister has been a tremendous help and was responsible for our slack pack. she has picked us up and dropped us off multiple times the past few days. thank you Laurie and Paavo and Adam!
we spent last night in the "Greasy Creek Friendly" (they're friendly not "hostel"..... get it?) after a LONG 20 mile day over the Roans. tony keeps saying we were in a blizzard up there, and while yes it was snowing and incredibly windy and my hair was frozen, it only snowed about 1/4 inch. Nevertheless it was challenging to say the least.
We got followed by bloodhounds today. Bloodhounds with antennas attached to gps units who were sniffing out bears. Apparently we smelled like bears because those girls followed us for an hour! All the way up Unaka Mountain.
tony ate a ridiculous amount of food at McDonald's---4 big macs, 1 McRib, 1 large fry, 1 hot fudge sundae. He states that he has "reached the pinnacle of his fast food consumption"
Morgan is coming to get us in 10 days! We have done over 20 miles per day more this week than ever before to try and get through the smokies.
our friend James is back on the trail. he is started back in Hanover where he had to get off for a while. it's super cold up there. Let's put it this way: he is bringing snow shoes with him in his pack. Brave, brave boy. So happy for him!
we drank the local Johnson city beverage dr. enuf tonight and also learned the word you'ins. basically substitute you'ins in for y'all or "you guys" and you have yourself a east tn sentence. Ex. Where are you'ins from? Pretty cute huh? EVERYBODY uses it.
I absolutely cannot believe how close we are to the end. 350 miles doesn't sound that close, but compared to the 1800+ we have done, it most assuredly is. that being said, if one more person asks if we plan on doing the whole trail, I may just punch them. of course we are! unless we get hurt or die or it snows 4 feet we are doing the last 16%!
good night y'all. love you'ins.
12.06.2012
good ole ginny
"back where I come from...i'm an old tennessean"
y'all, we are less than 4 miles from Tennessee tonight! we arrived in Damascus, VA (home of the legendary Trail Days) and are staying at the "lazy fox inn." the owner is the cutest 88 year old woman in the world, Miss Ginny (short for Virginia). she runs the place by herself and tells me that she is gonna keep taking care of these hikers despite her sons telling her to relax.
We stayed with my friend Christina's parents Saturday and Sunday night in Marion, VA. such a good break with lots of wonderful food! I think they were appalled at the amount of coca cola we drank!
one of the highlights this week was seeing in the wild ponies in the Grayson Highlands. we didn't see any for the first few miles and then BAM! there they were grazing in the grass! only 2 of them were brave enough to approach us, and one of them was particularly courageous and tried to get into Tony's pack!
also, we visited the one room lindamood schoolhouse. on the wall were the school "rules" and the amount of lashes one would receive for breaking the rules. for example, "going about the barn or doing any mischief about the place" would warrant 7 lashes, etc. we decided tony would be up to about 100 lashes a day if he were an 1800's schoolboy.
Morgan and Jesse are coming to get us the 22nd so we have 15 days until we are rescued for Christmas! hopefully at that point we'll have less than 200 miles waiting on us when we return.
we haven't seen many hikers in the past couple weeks. mostly everyone we know has either quit or skipped
way ahead to finish sooner or are yellowblazing like crazy. we are still trying to be "purists" until the end.
the one hiker we did see told us (quite cockily) "I'm actually doing a 30 mile section so I'm gonna be out here quite a while." Oh really? Us too. But we didn't say a thing, just went on our way.
1717/2184 complete! {78.6%}
y'all, we are less than 4 miles from Tennessee tonight! we arrived in Damascus, VA (home of the legendary Trail Days) and are staying at the "lazy fox inn." the owner is the cutest 88 year old woman in the world, Miss Ginny (short for Virginia). she runs the place by herself and tells me that she is gonna keep taking care of these hikers despite her sons telling her to relax.
We stayed with my friend Christina's parents Saturday and Sunday night in Marion, VA. such a good break with lots of wonderful food! I think they were appalled at the amount of coca cola we drank!
one of the highlights this week was seeing in the wild ponies in the Grayson Highlands. we didn't see any for the first few miles and then BAM! there they were grazing in the grass! only 2 of them were brave enough to approach us, and one of them was particularly courageous and tried to get into Tony's pack!
also, we visited the one room lindamood schoolhouse. on the wall were the school "rules" and the amount of lashes one would receive for breaking the rules. for example, "going about the barn or doing any mischief about the place" would warrant 7 lashes, etc. we decided tony would be up to about 100 lashes a day if he were an 1800's schoolboy.
Morgan and Jesse are coming to get us the 22nd so we have 15 days until we are rescued for Christmas! hopefully at that point we'll have less than 200 miles waiting on us when we return.
we haven't seen many hikers in the past couple weeks. mostly everyone we know has either quit or skipped
way ahead to finish sooner or are yellowblazing like crazy. we are still trying to be "purists" until the end.
the one hiker we did see told us (quite cockily) "I'm actually doing a 30 mile section so I'm gonna be out here quite a while." Oh really? Us too. But we didn't say a thing, just went on our way.
1717/2184 complete! {78.6%}
11.02.2012
shenandoah
a girl stopped me yesterday and asked if i was a thru hiker. when I said yes, she questioned me about how much my pack weighed, what kind of shoes I was wearing, when we started, etc.
then she asked if I would do it again if I had the chance. I had to be honest with her. I told her that today (yesterday) I would say no. I was tired, bored, annoyed, overwhelmed, freezing, hungry, thirsty,my feet hurt, my legs were tired, and I still had 10 more miles to go before I could stop.
then, I told her, if you ask me tomorrow, I will feel better, my legs will feel good, and I will be strong again.
the trail, like life, changes from day to day. one minute you can be tired
and overwhelmed by any and everything and then the next day, the sun is shining and things are ok. things are always ok. and the bad doesn't last forever.
the shenandoah mountains are beautiful, by the way. and so was the snow that we walked in for miles and miles.
the woman that took us to a hotel, a Mexican restaurant, and will take us to Walmart and back to the trail...now that's a whole different kind of beautiful.
56% complete.
then she asked if I would do it again if I had the chance. I had to be honest with her. I told her that today (yesterday) I would say no. I was tired, bored, annoyed, overwhelmed, freezing, hungry, thirsty,my feet hurt, my legs were tired, and I still had 10 more miles to go before I could stop.
then, I told her, if you ask me tomorrow, I will feel better, my legs will feel good, and I will be strong again.
the trail, like life, changes from day to day. one minute you can be tired
and overwhelmed by any and everything and then the next day, the sun is shining and things are ok. things are always ok. and the bad doesn't last forever.
the shenandoah mountains are beautiful, by the way. and so was the snow that we walked in for miles and miles.
the woman that took us to a hotel, a Mexican restaurant, and will take us to Walmart and back to the trail...now that's a whole different kind of beautiful.
56% complete.
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