Pictures

I tried uploading more pictures to the blog - but it's refusing... therefore - for anyone interested in pictures to accompany this journal - please just check out my album on facebook!

Pennsylvania June '09

Thursday - 6.4.09 - 7.4 Miles

Rain. Rain. Rain.
That's what we got today. Still a pretty fast first day. Only saw 3 people (hikers) at P.G.F. (Pine Grove Furnace) - didn't stay to chat. My feets are sore and shoulders - but not unbearable by any means. My pack (at 40 lbs) felt like someone was hugging me all warm and tight around the waist. We cooked dinner and hung the bear bag with no major issues. Keith is stretching now - (AKA yoga?). He needs a good trail name. Maybe tomorrow. It's early, but sleep will feel good tonight.

Friday - 6.5.09 - 8.4 Miles

I used to like rain. I really did. But it's been raining non-stop since we set foot on the trail! Last night ended up sharin gthe shelter with Dancing Wolf - a guy from Georgia - doing the southern half this year. Then, today - we're in a 7 person shelter with 9 people and 2 in a tent nearby. It's raining again. Keith and I got into the shelter around 11:45 AM (eek!) It was too wet to do the 18 to Darlington Shelter. Saw a bunny and a snail today. Exciting! Not really too hungry yet - weird.

Saturday - 6.6.09 - 20 Miles

Long - Painful - but sunny! Went in to Foundry Day at Boiling Springs. Ate yucky (yummy) deep fried things. Decided to tent out tonight rather than crowd the shelter. So far (8 pm) good choice. Saw deer, cardinal, blue jay, rabbits, chipmonks, squirrels, a hawk and lots of other unknown birds. I'm - surprisingly - not very hungry yet. I think it takes a few days to work up that hiker appetite. I am - however, very stinky. I think yesterday I passed the point of realizing it though - because now I kind of like my smell. Was very cold the first night - not so last night - and tonight I'm sweating in the tent with keith. my hair is holding up well - just a little sweat and grease so far. Finger nails are dirty. We bought fingernail clippers at a gas station in Boiling Springs today because Keith's toenails broke the clippers I brought. My left outer ankle is noticibly painful - as is my right hip abductor. Everything else is just minor bumps, bruises and blisters. Looking forward to Duncannon tomorrow. Oh - Keith's trail name is now "Tails" - because his pack has extra straps (4) hanging from it and when he walks, it looks like he has Tails. (Also the name of the sidekick in the sonic the hedgehog video game)

Sunday - 6.7.09 - 15.6 Miles

Good day. Hot. Experienced Bueno trail magic in Duncannon. Water Spigot and free sodas from the Presby church - then free snickers bars from Trail Angel Mary at the quick mart. Big ups after town - so far sharing the shelter with Triple C and Rachiopod. Nice gals - thru-hikers. Lotsa big blisters - but not ready to stop yet. I got to wash my hair under the spigot today. Yay! Onward and Upward.

Tuesday - 6.9.09

Didn't even write yesterday because it was so miserable. Got trail magic (broccoli and cheetos and wine coolers and sports drinks) Then went up a major hill. Stopped to tent at nearly the top and were surrounded by bugs! Then - it started thundering in the distance - so we hunkered down - and it let loose! Finally fell asleep - then at 5 AM -all the heavens poured down. I thought we were going to die. The lightening seemed like a strobe light. I was sure it would hit a tree nearby and the tree would land on my face. Oh - did I mention the little square of flat ground we had stopped on had overturned rocks and loose dirt dug up? Sure sign of active bears in the area. I was nervous to say the least. We made it through though. Wet. Hiked 8/10 today to Rausch Gap - got here at 1 and decided to stay. Built a nice fire, have a shelter full of people and others tenting. I'm a feared of more rain. Met a bunch of camp counselors who had heard of SB2W!

Wednesday - 6.10.09

Interesting Day. Left the shelter at 7 am. Hiked slow, long and hard. Saw 3 or so copperheads. Got to a 4 sided shelter after 17 hard miles - just minutes before a downpour and hailstorm hit. Managed to take showers in the rain (and hail) from the rain-collected over-head shower. Ordered pizza - while we're waiting for them to DELIVER our food, a car pulls up and a girl hops out and asks if we want food. YES! She brought spicey shepard's pie, cream cheese cakes, cornbread and coconut pie. Her name was Snack Break. It's a good thing she came - because our pizza didn't come. All the other hikers who ordered pizza got theirs, but they forgot ours. Finally, Webs and M&M offered us a piece of their spinich and broccoli pizza. It was ok. Probably better for my health and stomach that I didn't eat half a pizza. So.... we're warm, dry and full and I am grateful. We're even semi-clean. Everything we own stinks though. it's a funny experience. When a port-a-john is high class for the evening. Gotta love it.

Thursday - 6.11.09 - 15 Miles

I think today was the first dayI wish I had packed a blow-up Kayak with me. The AT had turned into rivers and streams for the few miles it wasn't actually boulder fields. My poor feet. It didnt' rain too hard on us - and we got to the next shelter by 2:30. Nice. I have recently had a great dislike/jealousy of the female thru-hikers who are able to hike sans bra. Not fair! Full shelter again - so far. Webs, M&M, Blueberry, Wizard, Jeremiah Johnson, Maggie and Hoosier Ben. We'll see who else shoes up. Port Clinton tomorrow to shower, wash clothes and watch the final Penguins game. I guess I'm excited. not sure if I want to hike more after Russia or if I've had my fill. I am finally (day 8) getting into trail shape - so it's not too hard - it just isn't as fun anymore. We'll see. Stuffy nose every night - but the contacts work great - thanks Dr. G!
"It doesn't do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him." - JRR Tolkien

Friday - 6.12.09 - 9 Miles

Got to Port Clinton by 11. Checked in to the Port Clinton Hotel (above a bar). Did laundry - showered - ate HUGE burgers. Napped. Watched TV, ate. Watched the Pens. Talked on the phone - much needed town day. So full! There was a yard in town with 10-15 deer, bobcat, and ram archery targets. too funny. Good day. 7 more.

Saturday - 6.13.09 - 13 Miles

Woke up at 5:30 - decided to sleep in! Left the "hotel" at 10 - had a wonderful hot breakfast at the 3 C's left town at 11:30. Got to Pinnacle Rock - and it thunderstorm/downpoured. Yay. Kept going - found a nice field and camped with Doc, Jag and LuLu. Wet again - no surprise. Someone said - "the real world will always be there - so enjoy the trail while you can." I'm trying, it's just not really what I want to be doing.

Sunday - 6.14.09 - 21 Miles

As we were hikin gup cruel, deadly rocks today, a girl about 8 years old passed us headed the opposite direction towards a parking lot. She asked me, "Are you going camping?" I was caught off guard by the question and said - "yup - going camping." As I reflected, I really like camping. Maybe all this hiking is getting in the way of what I really love to do : Sit in the woods and EAT! Hiked too far today - to set ourselves up to see Keith's friend Brandon tomorrow. When we were going over knife's edge, I was (again) scared for my life. If we had fallen in either direction, at any time, we were goners. Saw bear tracks in the mud today - but no live ones yet. Apparently there's a black snake nest in our shelter tonight. Guess we'll risk it. Looking forward to tomorrow and most especially, Friday.

Tuesday - 6.16.09 - 16 Miles

What a great surprise to see Brandon yesterday! He picked us up and took us straight to a chinese restaurant! Yummy. I had about 4 cokes. Then - he took us to his house and let us use his shower and laundery, internet and TV, video games and his mum made us spaghetti and watermelon and green beans and brownies. WOW! Plus - he even gave up his bed so Tails and I could have our own beds - Thanks Brandon!
He dropped us off at the bridge in Lehigh Gap at 11 and the next hour was the most intense rock climbing I have ever done - and I did it with 40 lbs strapped to my back! I was on all fours trying to scramble up these rocks. I felt (AGAIN) like I was going to die. Luckily, we found tons of ripe, wild blueberries at the top - so I had crushed oreo's and blueberries for lunch. Also while in Lehigh, I bought Rainier Cherries! So good. About 11 miles into today, my right inside thigh muscle began to give out. I had to hobble the last 5 painful miles. It only misted though - no rain today (yet). it's actually rather chilly. We are currently 20.5 Miles from the Deleware Water Gap. WOW. almost there. Lots of Hikers here at the Leroy A. Smith Shelter tonight - so we're tenting (and tempting the rain). Sore body - excited spirit to see Ben and go home!

Wednesday - 6.17.09 - 14 Miles

It's very cold tonight. VERY cold. Another full shelter. Did I mention it's cold? DWG tomorrow. Excited. Clean. Warm. Good food. See Ben soon. I think I am finished. I don't want to hike anymore. I'm happy as a lark believe me - as we go rolling rolling home.


7.6.09 - (from home)

The church hostel at DWG was awesome - Hiker dinner, bakery in town - free hot showers, we were spoiled. Walked 2 miles the last day to route 80 where we met Ben for a 6 hour ride home with three across in a Ford Ranger. Good memories though - that's for sure. I'm fairly certain we will not return to the trail this year. I found what I needed. I know who I am. I love and appreciate the simple things in life like running water and showers and clean clothes and electricity. I don't need to finish to feel like I've accomplished something. Maybe I'll go back - who really knows. But for now - I'm happy here. (On a side note - we just spent 2 weeks in Russia - and boy oh boy do I love the USA!)

Til my next adventure - adieu.
-Jenga

Home Sweet Home

We made it back - in one piece - and we've showered and eaten and feel like normal people again
(almost)

I will work the next few days to get my journal and pics up before we leave for Russia. For anyone interested, I plan to post my Russia pictures here too - so you can check them out sometime in July.

Thanks for all the comments and love!

Allentown

Greetings!

We are alive and well - as Karina alluded to. We've been hiking hard and fast, as the rain and torential downpours push us onward. We've had perhaps 2 days this whole trip without rain. A lot different than my last outing. We called yesterday afternoon to a friend of Tails' *(Keith's trailname) from college who lives near here. He graciously agreed to meet us on a road near Allentown. Little did he know at the time that he would take us to chinese food, then bring us home to his parents house and let us shower and eat and most likely sleep here too. It's wonderful and clean and bug free! I love showers. I love food.

We are scheduled to rendezvous with our pick up on Friday around noon, and with 37 miles left and 4 days, we are in good shape. We've been averaging 15 or so a day - yesterday was too far at 21 miles, but it wasn't raining - so we felt we had to take advantage. We walked into the mall today for chinese and when we walked out - the downpour had been so hard that there were rivers on the road.

Maybe I'll post more later - but we're doing well.

Back in the Saddle

Well, the time has finally come. I am headed back out - Into the Wild.

This time - with my brother.

We leave June 4th from Pine Grove Furnace - and our goal is the Delaware Water Gap by June 19th. We'll see how that 200 miles in 2 weeks turns out.

I'm super excited to go back. The things I think I'm most looking forward to are: hard work and sweat, meeting new people, spending time with Keith - and of course, eating!

I've been running - maybe against my will - and I feel physically and mentally ready.


For the two weeks we are out to start, I will not mail home journals, but I'll update when I get back. We leave for Russia June 24 and return to the states July 5th. The plan is to head back out for an undetermined amount of time after Russia - conquering another great portion of the AT.

It's on my mind. My feet are itching. I can't wait to get started!

GCC Newspaper

Greetings.

I recently wrote an article for my school newspaper - for non-grovers, it will be published below - for any first-time visitors - click on 03.06 to your left under *archives* to start from the VERY beginning. Actual letters/journal entries and pictures from the trail don't start until 06.06.

I have been in civilization for a little over a month - and I am just reaching the point where I really truly want to be back out in the mountains. I miss it. I miss hiking. I miss discovering new people and places and things. I even miss eating the same thing every day, over and over. Anyways, here's the article that will be/is/was in the GCC newspaper.
__________________________________________________________________

Yes, I walked here from Georgia
Senior takes the path less traveled
By Lauren Carlson
Guest Writer

You think the hike from Colonial to HAL is tough? Imagine hiking through seven states: roughly 1,053 miles in 80 days. Maybe you wouldn’t get so winded on your jaunt to upper campus.
On June 4, my best friend and I left the Atlanta airport with just the packs on our backs to walk home. We expected some painful days, some fun times and maybe a little bit of rain. We found so much more.
The longest I remember going without a shower was ten days, but who was counting. I drank iodine purified water from streams, carried 35 pounds on my back and saw 11 black bears. I ate Milky Ways, Ramen noodles and so many clif bars that I cringe when I see one now. It was amazing.
The Appalachian Trail traverses 2,000+ miles from Georgia to Maine, and I hiked half this summer. For as long as I can remember, I had wanted to hike this trail. Through various family vacations, I experienced small sections of the trail. The opportunity arose when I was asked to be in a fellow Grover’s wedding in Georgia on June 3rd. My immediate thought was, why spend money for a two-way airplane ticket? Why not walk home to Pennsylvania? So, I called up my best friend from high school and convinced her it would be a fun summer endeavor, and everything seemed set.
Then I mentioned my plans to my parents. They were, to put it nicely, ‘not keen on the idea’. They were primarily and understandably concerned for my safety. Think ahead 25 years to when your 20 year old daughter comes home from college and says, “Hey mum and dad, instead of getting a summer job this year, I’m going to live in the mountains with the bears and rattlesnakes and other scary, dangerous people who don’t want to get jobs. Can I borrow $500?” I suppose as a parent I wouldn’t have been thrilled either. Eventually, they offered their approval and support.
Now I bet you’re curious about hiking. My pack contained a sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent, raincoat, one change of clothes, one gallon of water, a pop can stove, denatured alcohol, toilet paper, journal, cell phone, guide book, and about 15 pounds of food. I hiked nearly 15 miles a day. That’s equivalent to spending eight to ten hours on the elliptical machine in the weight room.
During finals last spring, I spent my spare time planning out where I would be along the trail on what dates. At home, I rushed to pack cardboard boxes with food and supplies to mail to myself in small towns close to the trail. We only walked through three towns all summer, the other town trips required multiple mile side trips to pick up ‘mail drops’. My regular diet included cold oatmeal, clif bars, peanut butter bagels, GORP, instant mashed potatoes and maybe an ‘O.C.P.’ (oatmeal cream pie).
The toughest times on the trail were not so bad. I had been warned to expect rain three out of every five days. I remember seven of 80 days where rain was even an issue.
Not showering sounds gross at first, but after three days of constant sweat, any number of days added to it hardly makes a difference. I took a few showers at hostels along the trail, a couple at state parks and one memorable shower at a truck stop. (Truck stops have sweet showers!) I got blisters on my feet and my big toe went numb for three weeks. I almost sat on a rattlesnake and I accidentally stepped over a copperhead… apparently I survived.
There’s so much to tell. I kept a journal, my sister posted it: www.somethinghidden-at.blogspot.com if you’re interested; there are pictures too.
Now to end, let me share some things I learned. Duct tape is a great fire starter. People are genuinely kind by nature and most black bears will run from humans. Water is a necessity, Pop tarts have 490 calories per pack and rattlesnakes let you know before you step on them. Things don’t have to be planned to be fun. Perfect is all a matter of perspective, relationships mean the most in life and dreams do come true. I will never regret or forget those 80 days. So now I encourage you, pursue your dreams, live your life.

I love my mum.

So I'm working on writing an article for the Collegian about my summer. I sent it to mum to for editing and here is her reply:

"LC, great article. My only suggestion is to consider this a chance to attract guys (since you don't like my hot dog cooking idea) and portray yourself in a favorable light-less about no showers and stinkiness..."

I love my mum.

Lessons Learned + Motivation

Lessons Learned
1 - Somedays you gotta walk in the rain
2 - The best method for going uphill: no matter how slow, don't stop till the top!
3 - Inevitably by day 2, your default thoughts will be about food.
4 - Your boots will dry... eventually
5 - The way to cure anything on the trail, "Walk it off."
6 - NEVER turn down food
7 - The trail, like life is all about people and relationships - without them, the meaning is less
8 - HYOH - Hike Your Own Hike - its for you, not for anyone else
9 - Nothing (nobody) is perfect, yet its just the way it was meant to be
10 - The trail doesn't give you what you want, it gives you exactly what you need
11 - smelling bad is all relative
12 - In berry picking, as in life, it's all about PERSPECTIVE

My Motivation
campfire's at night.instant mashed potatoes.meaningful conversations.wild blueberries.rattlesnakes.night hiking.milkyways.showers.lightning storms.trail magic.frogs.waterfalls.trashcans.flush toilets.sunsets.crocs.popping blisters.sunburn.fording rivers.tenting.marshmallows.boy scout troops.bug bites.sweat.trail logs.double blazes.road crossings.sweet springs.striped fawns.newts.the breeze.taking off your boots.privys.headlamps.ripped shoes.white clouds.grassy balds.smelly socks.neat trailnames.new friends.pine trees.trail mix.shooting stars.pizza for breakfast.maildrops.black bears.feral ponies.flat terrain.man calves.dry clothes.rainy days.calvin & hobbes in the shelters.suspended bridges.drink mix.OCP's.decisions on the fly.unexpected food.owl calls.big rocks.blackberries.peanutbutter.hanging bear bags.flossing teeth.time alone.crickets chirping.treetop pictures.dirty hands and feet.cold nights.city lights.random cravings.singing as you hike.random questions.sitting down.and so much more.

The sunset from Stony Man Cliffs