Well hello folks! We know that we just had an update but we can type up another already, it's not a problem for us. Ah, where to begin, well we, Mango and BabyFeet, made the decision to stop and join forces with Yogi, Count, and Smurf in Harpers Ferry. After leaving the cabin we went to Washington D.C. to meet with Smurf and Count before Count flew home for a week. The three of us returned to Harpers Ferry and the warmth of Yogi! Since then we have been moving together as an ever-changing blob. At the real half way point (Pine Grove Furnance State Park) Smurf, Mango, and Yogi each put down a half gall of the cream de ice. Damn it's harder than you could possibly ever imagine! We each took about an hour to finish. As the children were getting ready for bed that night, a car with a nervous yet excited young pup was preparing to hike 1000+ miles! Damian, with his enourmous pack, met us at the hostel. The following day, Count caught up to us and we continued walking home. Damian quickly got accustomed to the lifestyle as he was around five hairy, stinky men who knew a thing or two about hiking. From then on we became: MTFKS The Magic Treehouse Funktastic Kill Squad. (yo wuddup to Mary Pope Osborne)
We hiked through the wet, rocky, boring terrain that some call Rocksylvania (also dubbed chipmunklandia) however we were able to keep our spirits high (hehe) and experienced some of the greatest trail magic from the legendary Trail Angel Mary in Duncannon, central PA. Trail Angel Mary allowed us to go to her home while she was running errands for other hikers to hide from the brutal heat and watch Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. We were able to show young Damian that it was perfectly normal for thru-hikers to crash on the apartment floors of complete strangers...Damian was learning fast and we were all so very proud. Mango and Yogi went ahead and did a big favor for Trail Angel Mary later that night, driving out to Harrisburg, PA in Trail Angel Mary's busted old Buick to pick up a hiker at the bus station and bring him back to Duncannon so she could attend a pool match at the bar down the street. Little did these young men know that they would be driving through a tornado storm. Yogi kept super calm and collected as he drove down the highway through horizontal rainfalls, giant trees blown down into the road, and a real tornado. well done Yogi.
The next day we said our goodbyes to Duncannon and stepped back onto the brutal sharp rocks of the PA trail. Many days in PA we would not see a single view and the trail began to feel more like a grind. Some of us were becoming majorly affected both physically and mentally. Yogi's foot pain eventually drove him into the Palmerton, PA emergency room as the other 5 moved on into New Jersey. At this point we encountered a major turning point on the trail. Count's family friends picked Yogi up in Palmerton and met up with the rest of the gang at the NJ borderand then drove us all back to their luxurious woodland fortress in New Jersey.
The Gage family welcomed us with open arms into their home,we were met with warm beds, showers, and an obscene amount of food. During our stay we had the pleasure of making a trip to Asbury Park, New Jersey with Count's father Keith, Smurf's father Stevie, the Gage family, and some of their good friends. Typically a hiker would set out to a populated beach thinking about how it's gonna be swarming with beautiful women in bikinis, however to our surpirse we soon realized that it was gay pride weekend. We found our-selves doing some people watching and encountered characters that were not often seen out on the trail, like 60 year old men dressed up as dolls. The place that we most wanted to be in the end was at home with our lovely New Jersey family, Richard, Pegasus, and Matt. Yogi got stuck and ended up staying with the Gage's for the next week while Mango, Smurf, BabyToes, and CliffyMcFly walked through the hottest of weather across the beautiful mosquito-infested ridglines of New Jersey. Yogi met up with them just shy of the New York border with WELL rested feet. We would like to shout out to the Gages for supporting him so much with resting his foot, including even taking him to their chiropractor. We love and miss you Gages!!
Life has been moving quickly as usual, especially since it's taking us less than full weeks to get through states. From New Jersey we moved into New York where we got to take frequent lunch breaks at Delis and Pizzarias. Then came Connecticut where the prices on food SKYROCKETED in every uppity town we walked through where everyone dressed as if they were going sailing. Highlight in Connecticut was our pleasant visit with NATTLES!! Natalie Dellinger is a good friend and strong supporter of the MTFKS movement. Yogi, Smurf, and Mango met her on their South America semester abroad trip this fall, and she was able to come and meet us in Kent, CT. While in Kent, Natalie happened to mention that she had grandparents that lived in Becket, MA, which is mentioned in our guide books as a town the trail goes through. So now we write to you from Natalie's grandparents lake house! We took a day of rest here yesterday in the comforts of this awesome house. There's a music room with a pipe organ that we jammed out on, we all lucked out with our own beds, we even went kayaking on the lake outside of the house. Stevie, Smurf's dad, met us here and now the team, with Stevie included, is ready to move. We are very close to Vermont. Then comes New Hampshire. Then comes the promised land...Maine.
We love you all.
MTFKS
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Sunday, May 8, 2011
VIRGINIA: Pearisburg to Waynesboro
Back on the trail after Pearisburg we had some beautiful days with some crazy river crossings--all the rain we had avoided during our stay in town really did a number on the water level. The trail in Virginia is often not much different than what we'd already seen in the South, with the exception of all the cow fields. At first the occasional field was a treat; wide open clearings had been rare so far on the trail, but now it seemed like we were walking through several a day--and some of them even had cows grazing in them (we made sure to treat our water). After a few days of hiking Mango and Johnny Appleseed split up for a bit. We parted ways at Sarver Hallow Shelter, a crazy nice and new shelter almost half a mile off trail--but worth the walk. Deer walked all around the shelter and even came right up to it while we were in it. Over the next two days or so Mango went ahead to visit Carrie just off trail, and Johnny Appleseed took it easy and rested his hip. After a little over a day apart we met back up again and also caught up with our pals Goose and Always Fine. The next morning the four of us all got up before the sun to head to McAfee Knob for the sunrise. There was some pretty intense cloud cover, but the sky was still beautiful. Since we had started so early we made it to Daleville by lunchtime and had settled into our hotel room not long after. We ended up taking a zero day the next day because Johnny Appleseed went to the clinic and was told he had hip tendinitis, and to rest it/take it easy however much he could. We ended up dodging another rain storm that day, so the zero fell in a pretty good place. We headed out the next day with big plans to make it to Buena Vista (and then to Lexington) for Mango's accepted students day at Washington and Lee. We got picked up at the trailhead by Mr. Webster and headed into the city of Lexington, where he gave us the grand tour. The next day Johnny bummed around town while Mango was at school, and by that afternoon--thanks to Mr. Webster!--we were back out on the trail. Mango met a lot of professors and future classmates at ASD, it was exciting and overwhelming to think beyond the AT and imagine living there for the next four years! However, for now the woods are our home. We only did about 3 miles that afternoon, but man it was one intense climb! We spent that night at Cow Camp Shelter--and what an insane night it was (the night of the tornadoes). It stormed all night with heavy rains and intense winds, blowing down branches. The next morning it was still raining pretty hard, so we got a bit of a late start in the interest of staying dry. From there it was two decent days of hiking to Waynesboro, our next stop just before the Shenandoahs.
Waynesboro was possibly the best trail town we've been to yet. It's about 3 or 4 miles off trail, but there is no trouble at all getting a ride in. At Rockfish Gap (a visitors center/parking area at the start of the Shennies) there was a list posted on a fence of all kinds of Trail Angels who would pick you up and give you a ride in for free--you just had to pick one and dial. We were brought to the YMCA because they offer free camp sites for thru hikers, as well as free use of all the facilities AND a goodie bag of candy and toiletries! Before heading home, the nice older man who was shuttling us brought us around town showing us where the resupply store was, and then finally dropped us at the Ming Garden, an all you can eat Chinese food restaurant. Back at the YMCA campground we cowboy camped, so when we woke up the next morning we were covered in dew. Being wet and cold, we opted to chill at the YMCA for a bit instead of heading right out to the trail. We were back on trail by noon and began our Shenandoah National Park experience. We had great weather, low 60's with some clouds and a steady breeze, combined with the soft earth and easy grades to make for some big days. The SNP was filled with wildlife! We saw rabbits and deer daily and Mango spotted a four foot black snake on trail one day! We met a lot of day hikers, sections hikers, and weekenders that all praised us for our perseverance and high spirits. One thing I did not like about SNP was how close the Skyline Drive was at ALL times, it was impossible to feel completely at home when you hear a thundering motorcycle overpower the simple chirp of a bird. However, this also meant easy access to WaySides and other eateries which were abundant throughout the Shenandoahs! However, the restaurants also slowed us down and made us feel invincible! We had "planned" to do 64 miles non-stop at a slow pace and arrive at Mango's aunt and uncle's pad a night early so we could have more time with the family. Well, 10 hours, 28 miles, and a lot of hiking in the dark and rain convinced us otherwise. We stopped at a shelter around midnight to get some necessary shut-eye. And what a lucky stop that was! Sleeping already was our good friend Spam who we hadn't seen since North Carolina! So, the next morning was all catching-up and who did this, what happened here, and a lot of smiles. We left camp a little later and decided to try our "hike long but slow" method and arrive at our destination Thursday morning. Pshh it was only 36 miles...W started late in the day and hiked until midnight where we reached a shelter just 12 miles shy, so we figured a nap would be a good idea before we continued north. At 4am we awoke, packed up, and kept our feet moving. Finally, after four long, tiresome hours we sat down on some rocks and waited for the faces of family to gather our spirits and deliver us to memory foam clouds buried deep in the mountains where we rested our tired and sore bodies and minds. And now, in a few minutes we will again be hiking north into more familiar territory.
Peace and Love, Johnny AppleSeed and Mango
Waynesboro was possibly the best trail town we've been to yet. It's about 3 or 4 miles off trail, but there is no trouble at all getting a ride in. At Rockfish Gap (a visitors center/parking area at the start of the Shennies) there was a list posted on a fence of all kinds of Trail Angels who would pick you up and give you a ride in for free--you just had to pick one and dial. We were brought to the YMCA because they offer free camp sites for thru hikers, as well as free use of all the facilities AND a goodie bag of candy and toiletries! Before heading home, the nice older man who was shuttling us brought us around town showing us where the resupply store was, and then finally dropped us at the Ming Garden, an all you can eat Chinese food restaurant. Back at the YMCA campground we cowboy camped, so when we woke up the next morning we were covered in dew. Being wet and cold, we opted to chill at the YMCA for a bit instead of heading right out to the trail. We were back on trail by noon and began our Shenandoah National Park experience. We had great weather, low 60's with some clouds and a steady breeze, combined with the soft earth and easy grades to make for some big days. The SNP was filled with wildlife! We saw rabbits and deer daily and Mango spotted a four foot black snake on trail one day! We met a lot of day hikers, sections hikers, and weekenders that all praised us for our perseverance and high spirits. One thing I did not like about SNP was how close the Skyline Drive was at ALL times, it was impossible to feel completely at home when you hear a thundering motorcycle overpower the simple chirp of a bird. However, this also meant easy access to WaySides and other eateries which were abundant throughout the Shenandoahs! However, the restaurants also slowed us down and made us feel invincible! We had "planned" to do 64 miles non-stop at a slow pace and arrive at Mango's aunt and uncle's pad a night early so we could have more time with the family. Well, 10 hours, 28 miles, and a lot of hiking in the dark and rain convinced us otherwise. We stopped at a shelter around midnight to get some necessary shut-eye. And what a lucky stop that was! Sleeping already was our good friend Spam who we hadn't seen since North Carolina! So, the next morning was all catching-up and who did this, what happened here, and a lot of smiles. We left camp a little later and decided to try our "hike long but slow" method and arrive at our destination Thursday morning. Pshh it was only 36 miles...W started late in the day and hiked until midnight where we reached a shelter just 12 miles shy, so we figured a nap would be a good idea before we continued north. At 4am we awoke, packed up, and kept our feet moving. Finally, after four long, tiresome hours we sat down on some rocks and waited for the faces of family to gather our spirits and deliver us to memory foam clouds buried deep in the mountains where we rested our tired and sore bodies and minds. And now, in a few minutes we will again be hiking north into more familiar territory.
Peace and Love, Johnny AppleSeed and Mango
Saturday, May 7, 2011
VIRGINIA: Damascus to Pearisburg
We ended up leaving Damascus around 4 in the afternoon with a 9 mile day planned, however when we got to the shelter around nightfall and found it full, we figured a little more night hiking wouldn't hurt us and continued on to the next shelter. The next morning we left the shelter with two friends, LaLa and Moose, who we ended up sticking with for most of Virginia. We hiked up Whitecap Mountain and Mt. Rogers (the two highest peaks in Virginia) in sub-par conditions before ending up in the Highlands. The Highlands were a very different landscape than we had been used to on the trail, and supposedly wild ponies wander all around. Reading the logbooks we found out that the ponies enjoy messing with hikers, like our friend South Butt who had his pack slobbered on by the ponies or our friend Denver was violently chased by a lonely mare that wanted a "friend". We figured that since we badly wanted to see the wild ponies they messed with us by standing us up! How rude. The next day we were back under the familiar cover of trees and away from the empty plains of the Highlands. We were walking along at a pretty good pace and were ahead of schedule, so when we ran into a man and his dog who offered to give hikers rides into town in his ambulance for free, we figured why not? After a quick lunch at a dinner we were back on the trail. The storm that was supposed to happen that night seemed to be starting a bit earlier, and we ended up running the last four miles to Trimpi Shelter. We spent at least the first hour in the shelter trying to dry out and stay warm with our buddies Moose and LaLa; we were all spread out and had our wet gear hanging everywhere when we heard more people coming. At first we were bummed cause we were cold and wet and wanted all the space we could get...but then we saw who it was--IceAxe and Mancub! Quick breakdown: IceAxe is going to be a Triple Crowner this year when he finishes the AT, in '09 he hiked north on the Pacific Crest Trail, in '10 he hiked north on the Continental Divide Trail, and he will complete the TC on top of Katahdin in Maine. Mancub is a fellow New Englander who is famous on the AT for doing crazy miles (35+), with shin splints, in sandals, during winter. They both started March 15 and are more than a week ahead (ultralight insanity!). They told us we would definitely be expecting one more guest in the shelter that night, a fellow Triple Crowner and friend of IceAxe named Handlebar (who wore a hiking kilt!!). We spent one of the most unreal nights on the trail crammed into a tiny shelter, hiding from the rain, listening to Iceaxe and Handlebar exchange epic stories about climbing insane mountains all across the country. The magic of the night continued the next afternoon when we found some trail magic that Handlebar had dropped off at a shelter up the trail from us. Before long we were at the outskirts of Atkins staying at the Relax Inn and bouncing back and forth between gas stations getting some eats. After Atkins the next stop was Pearisburg, and we looked forward to being in a real town. We figure it would take us about 5 days of hiking to get to Pearisburg, and it would have...if we hadn't done another crazy night hike! We were on our fourth day of hiking and had stopped by a gas station/dinner deal just off trail for an extra treat. Back on the trail with full stomachs we somehow convinced ourselves that instead of hiking just a few miles short of Pearisburg we could go the whole distance that night. We couldn't convince Moose or Lala to join us on this adventure, so we headed out just the two of us. We ended up getting into town around 11 at night and had plans to get to the 24 hour Wal-mart for some victory food. It took us about an hour to get to the Wal-mart...but we made it, and ended up staying over 3 hours just bumming around the store. We left at about 3:30 in the morning and decided to check out the hospital so that Johnny Appleseed could get his feet looked at. If you ever wanna beat the wait at an emergency room, we recommend going in just before 4am on a Friday morning. It turned out that Johnny had a case of trench foot. His gortex shoes kept too much moisture in and his feet got a bunch of infections. The doctors there hooked him up with some antibiotics and a foot creme and ordered at least a few days rest. Things seemed to be looking pretty good...the only question left was what to do for the rest of the night? We tried crashing on the floor of the hospital, but were quickly approached and offered a ride. A very friendly cop gave us a ride in the cruiser (Johnny got to ride in the back) to the cheapest motel we could find where we had to wake up the attendant and get a room. We were bummed thinking that we would have to pay for an extra night since we were checking in so early, but the lady really dug hikers and ended up hooking us up with the best price she could give. We stayed a few nights, dug the town of Pearisburg, dodged some nasty rain, and healed our bodies. Before long we were headed back to the trail and onward to our next stop: Daleville.
TO BE CONTINUED...
TO BE CONTINUED...
VIRGINIA: Introduction
Oh my my, where do we begin! So much has happened since our last post, actually we've doubled our miles since Damascus (we're at mile 984)! We are currently resting and relaxing at my aunt and uncle's cabin just a mile off the trail with my brother. We got here after hiking 18 hours (another Damascus '11 all-nite hike repeat) so we could have more time to relax and visit with my relatives. Big shout out and thanks to my aunt, uncle, and Jon for being so kind and generous allowing us to crash here and call this home for three nights and hooking us up with massive amounts of food! This place is dabomb.com!
So, since we have mountains and mountains to write about, we're going to break down our Virginia experience into a couple of chapters. Please sit back, drink some tea, maybe munch on some poptarts OR our new favorite the NABISCO snak-saks (holla IceAxe), and live the experience!
"Mission control we are go for throttle up"
So, since we have mountains and mountains to write about, we're going to break down our Virginia experience into a couple of chapters. Please sit back, drink some tea, maybe munch on some poptarts OR our new favorite the NABISCO snak-saks (holla IceAxe), and live the experience!
"Mission control we are go for throttle up"
Monday, April 25, 2011
Monday, April 18, 2011
Lots of Walking...
Howdy, Folks!
Well, over a quarter of the trail is now behind us, with many more wonderful miles to go. I (Smurf) am currently writing from Wood's Hole, a truly amazing hostel about 615 miles down the trail. It's amazing to have a warm, comfy couch, a guitar to play, home cooked meals, and incredibly friendly folks to talk to. So, where to begin! I haven't even written a blog entry yet. I've been with Count the whole time, but I suppose I could add a little something myself.
This has been a truly amazing experience. I couldn't have imagined meeting so many amazing people and seeing such beautiful things, being in so many unique places. It's a great feeling to not know the day of the week, to not need to know what time it is, to have no defined responsibilities except walking and staying alive. Sure, plenty of the time has been miserable, who enjoys having every article of clothing soaked as you trudge up a hill that lasts forever? But for all the pain there is so much more to look forward to. After days of rain and fog, seeing sun and finding a beautiful panoramic view is the most unbelievable feeling in the world. After days of camp food, real food becomes an object of fantasy; numerous times we've found ourselves talking about food for literally hours at a time. And when we actually get to eat it, everyone is completely silent until all the food is gone. Man, life on the trail is good.
Virginia has been great so far! It's so much easier than the states before it. Gradual hills, miles of ridgeline hiking, and plenty of spectacular views. We've been averaging around 20 miles a day, more if we're feeling motivated, less if we decide to drink Four Loko in the middle of the day to celebrate 25% of the trail complete. Hiking after that...trust me, not a good idea. Anyway, we've been with a really great group of people. Count and I have been sticking with Backflip and Patches, and usually Trailmix, Scavenger, The Cops, and Feisty. We have plenty of friends close behind us, hope to see them again soon! It's such a community experience. Well, I could write plenty more but I think I've gotten the idea across...plus, dinner's cooking and it smells delicious. Time to go relax for a few and then eat obscene amounts of food!
Lots of love to friends and family, I appreciate all of the support. Until next time!
Smurf
Well, over a quarter of the trail is now behind us, with many more wonderful miles to go. I (Smurf) am currently writing from Wood's Hole, a truly amazing hostel about 615 miles down the trail. It's amazing to have a warm, comfy couch, a guitar to play, home cooked meals, and incredibly friendly folks to talk to. So, where to begin! I haven't even written a blog entry yet. I've been with Count the whole time, but I suppose I could add a little something myself.
This has been a truly amazing experience. I couldn't have imagined meeting so many amazing people and seeing such beautiful things, being in so many unique places. It's a great feeling to not know the day of the week, to not need to know what time it is, to have no defined responsibilities except walking and staying alive. Sure, plenty of the time has been miserable, who enjoys having every article of clothing soaked as you trudge up a hill that lasts forever? But for all the pain there is so much more to look forward to. After days of rain and fog, seeing sun and finding a beautiful panoramic view is the most unbelievable feeling in the world. After days of camp food, real food becomes an object of fantasy; numerous times we've found ourselves talking about food for literally hours at a time. And when we actually get to eat it, everyone is completely silent until all the food is gone. Man, life on the trail is good.
Virginia has been great so far! It's so much easier than the states before it. Gradual hills, miles of ridgeline hiking, and plenty of spectacular views. We've been averaging around 20 miles a day, more if we're feeling motivated, less if we decide to drink Four Loko in the middle of the day to celebrate 25% of the trail complete. Hiking after that...trust me, not a good idea. Anyway, we've been with a really great group of people. Count and I have been sticking with Backflip and Patches, and usually Trailmix, Scavenger, The Cops, and Feisty. We have plenty of friends close behind us, hope to see them again soon! It's such a community experience. Well, I could write plenty more but I think I've gotten the idea across...plus, dinner's cooking and it smells delicious. Time to go relax for a few and then eat obscene amounts of food!
Lots of love to friends and family, I appreciate all of the support. Until next time!
Smurf
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