First Month

Yes, it truly has been a month.  We started on May 7, and I write this on June 6.  Crazy. . . That first day seems like yesterday and a lifetime ago--at the same time.  Time feels different when you're out here.

Anyways, I am in Erwin TN happy, healthy and hungry.  It's been a week since Gatlinburg and we are at mile 342.  We beat the rain and arrived at the hostel in time for the shuttle to all-you-can-eat-pizza so life is pretty good.  

 

Leaving Gatlingburg was an ordeal.  It was the Friday of Memorial Day weekend, so all the tourist were coming in and we wanted to go out.  We ended up Ubering out to Newfound Gap (Yes, I turned Uber into a verb but it's acceptable, I Googled it just to be sure).  We did our first night hiking since Amicola getting to the shelter where we camped for the night. 

The next week was pretty normal all things considered.  The weather was great for the WHOLE WEEK.  Which, after the Smokeys, was a HUGE blessing. We made good time, even doing 20.7 miles one day. 

We did encounter two things multiple times throughout the week.  We hiked over a bald (a mountain top that is not tree-covered) or a ridgeline almost every day (I've now decided that balds are my favorite places on the trail).  Also we encountered an abnormal amount of graves and/or memorials.  I'm not sure how i feel about that.  It is a little morbid to be hiking along and see a headstone off to one side.  In the back of my head I wonder if someone was hiking the same section and died, and then what are my odds surviving the same climb.

The one exception was the Shelton Graves. Apparently during the Civil War, two brothers fighting for the union snuck through the enemy lines to visit family.  Unfortunately they were caught and hung as spies.  they were buried not far from  the trail.  There's you bit of history for the week.

Already the trail has changed me. But there still a couple of things I still can't swallow:

-The bugs. Especially the gnats. They swarm your head and buzz into you ear! So annoying... particularly when you're trying to sleep.

-The other thing I still cannot stand is when he last mile to where we have planned to stop (for lunch or for the day) is all uphill.  I just want to be done with it, but I still have to slave up the hill.

Now that I have my negativity out of the way, here are some of the ways I have changed:

-Filth. There is a level of dirtiness that you just have to live with. A part of this is that I've gotten used only one shower per week.

-The mice. All shelters have them. You can hear them and sometimes catch a glimpse of them. The only issues I had with them was when one pooped on my face while I was sleeping. 

-Traillegs. We are trying to do a minimum of fifteen miles a day. And I feel good when we roll in for the day. You know you are getting used to hiking when you say, "We'll take it easy and just do 16."

-Flushing.  When you dig a cathole or use the privy, no flushing is involved.  So when I finally use a real toilet, I to make a point of remembering to flush otherwise I forget.

On a more serious side, I've learned how to keep going when it's hard--especially when it's hard. I don't pop up every morning ready to go. You have have the right mindset. It is hard, but a hard day hiking is better than a good day doing anything else.  If you can't remember that, well, foul weather and steep climbs ruin your day pretty quickly.

Magic is real. People call it "trail magic," but I think "Providence" is a better name. For example, I missed a resupply and I technically had enough food to make it. Yet, over the course of two days, I received two freeze-dried meals, two Cliff bars, four apples, and homemade chocolate chip cookies. Which meant I had more than enough to make it.

I've also learned how important it is to stop and sniff the roses. I mean this a figurative sense since I haven't seen any roses on the trail. When you see a rock outcropping or a cascade, you have to stop and appreciate the handwork of the Creator. It's those views that make it worth it. I try to capture some, but my pictures never do these views justice.

Lastly, I have learned that miracles are real. This past week I was coming down the trail and I fell hard. It was when I stood up o realized that I rolled my ankle hard. I was able to keep moving for a while, but after a while the pain was so bad I couldn't move. I downed some ibuprofen and wrapped it the best I could with my handkerchief since my legit wraps had gotten soaked and were worthless. I still couldn't move. 

So there I was, sitting by the trail, caught between a rock and a hard place. I could set up camp and while I had enough foods, there wasn't any water near by.  I was out options--so I prayed.  I don't remember what I said, but I stood up and hiked to the shelter. Since that moment my ankle hasn't given me trouble.

I've learned a lot and come a long ways. I still have a long way to go and much more to learn.

Oh, I almost forgot. I flunked the homeschool weed course. We ended up at this shelter with these guys who alternating between chewing tobacco, cigarettes, and weed. They asked Tenderfoot and I where we had gone to school.

We replied that we were homeschooled.

He asked us how we "met chicks," and where we got our weed. (Which, out of all the question I've received about homeschooling, this has never been one of them).

We told that we don't do weed and there were other homeschool families that we would hang out with .

A little bit later he offered to give us a class in weed, "homeschool style." We politely declined and that is how I flunked the weed class.

That's all for today. Have a great week. Virginia here we go.