After I got back on the trail from my trip to Princeton, I did an ultra-lightweight experiment in which I shipped a bunch of gear ahead to lighten my load and see how I could do with just the basics. Among the jettisoned materials was the digital camera, so I have no photos for the last 9 days. Have no fear, I now have the camera back and will continue on with it. Thought that I might just do a "written update" for the last couple of weeks. That should be easy for you to throw in, since you won't have to mess with pictures. Plus, I can just e-mail it to you. Also got your message about the camera. It wasn't mine, thank goodness, but thanks for looking out for me.
Okay, here's a quick update:
No pictures this time! Read ahead to find out why...
After travelling back to Princeton for my 5th year reunion, I got back on the trail near Blacksburg, Virginia, on Memorial Day. Though I enjoyed the reunion and had great fun catching up with all kinds of college friends I had not seen in some time, I found it cathartic to return to the woods. In fact, I think having the opportunity to get back to the simple, straight-forward lifestyle of hiking really helped me reflect on and process much of what I what I was feeling from my return to Princeton. Perhaps the sudden contrast actually helped me better appreciate and understand what I had gained from the weekend. It was also very important that I was forced to return to serious, physical exercise after four days of pretty intensive over-consumption.
I decided to do a bit of an experiment after my break over the 120-mile section to Glasgow, Virginia. As I attempt to refine my equipment needs and lighten my pack, I chose to go for a week with only the bare essentials. I replaced my sleeping bag with a fleece blanket (actually just a piece of fleece I purchased at a fabric store), I decided to go without both a stove and shelter. I have been carrying a 3-lb. bivy tent which I have only used a few times since I usually sleep in the shelters on the trail. I also dropped my cooking pot (don't need it without a stove!), raincover for my pack, sandals, extra water bottle, t-shirt, shorts, and socks. All of this was mailed ahead to Glasgow. I had hoped to replace my backpack (which weighs 6 pounds when empty) with a large book-bag of Katie's to save additional weight, but realized that her bag was a bit too small, so that didn't work. Unfortunately, I also chose to temporarily give up the digital camera (which, with bells & whistles, is over two pounds), meaning that I have no digital photos of this section of the trail. I continued to snap away with my 35mm camera, however, so it has been documented in the traditional way. All of this lightened my load by nearly 15 pounds, however, which is quite significant.
With no stove, I had to change my diet a bit, eating only no-cook items such as energy bars, dried fruit, beef jerky, tuna fish, GORP (raisins, peanuts, M&M's, etc.), and cheese. I also realized that with the high frequency of road crossings in Virginia, I could resupply frequently. Thus, I changed from trying to carry about 7-days worth of food to only taking about 3-days worth of food. This makes a tremendous difference in weight, and also allows me to get fresh fruits and perishible items such as bread and cheese more frequently, which is good. I've found that I can get in and out of a town in a few hours, so I can resupply without having to sacrifice miles-hiked on that day.
My experiment, so far, has been a huge success, and I'm absolutely loving having a light backpack. [To be able to pick my pack up with one arm is a delight nearly equal to that of watching the BoSox beat the Yankees!]
Once I got to Glasgow on June 5, I picked up the items I had mailed ahead and sent most of them home, so I'll continue to go without them. I did add the bivy shelter back to my supplies, since I feel it is a bit irresponsible to not have any kind of shelter. Though I have never found an AT shelter that was so full I couldn't squeeze in, I do not want to expect others to make room for me on a rainy night if the shelter is already full. However, I (with Dad's help) have ordered a tarp to replace the bivy (it's nearly 2 pounds less) and I have ordered a lighter, smaller backpack, both of which should be waiting for me once I emerge from Shenandoah National Park.
I have also re-acquired the digital camera here in Waynesboro, VA, from which I write this update. Thus, the Shenandoahs, into which I hike today, will be well photographed.
As for my hike over the last 8 days, it's been truly fantastic. The weather has been very sunny, dry, and beautiful. It's even started to get quite hot, with temperatures in the 90's the last few days, but that hasn't bothered me too much. With my lighter pack, I've been doing over 20 miles just about every day, with a personal-best of 26.1 miles on June 3rd. (Almost, but not quite, offical-marathon length!)
Water sources are getting a bit dry and we certainly need rain in this area. Still, it's been extremely nice to not have to worry about downpours, especially since I'm not carrying many extra clothes. Of course, the rain will come and I will get wet... Hey, like they say, if you want to stay dry, don't go into the woods.
The trail through the Jeveryson Nationa Forest and the George Washington National Forest has been in great shape, and I've seen some terrific scenery and some interesting wildlife. Saw a couple of box turtles high up on a mountain, must have caught glimpses of about a dozen lizards one day, and ran into a bird-watcher who taught me how to identify the call of the Veery (Mr. Miller would be proud).
For the last week the trail has roughly followed the Blue Ridge Parkway through the Blue Ridge Mountains, and we cross the road several times a day. This prompted one hiker to write something like the following in one of the trail registers: "Today's hike, featuring trail that crossed over loose rocks, sharp rocks, slippery rocks, rock outcroppings, rocky ledges, and fallen rocks was brought to you by the Blue Ridge Parkway. Our motto: We Got the Level Part." I got a kick out of that.
When I leave here today, I will enter the Shenandoah National Park and, for the first time on my journey, hike some parts of the trail that I've done before. As one hiker said, "Good, some re-runs." I'm looking forward to it, as I have fond memories of hiking in the Shenandoahs both with Princeton Outdoor Action trips and with my TFA friends Jason Martin and Chris Mills.
But, you'll hear about that part of my journey in the next update...
Big kisses,
Reed