Date: 2013-10-16
To: On Trail Towns, Section Hikes and Journal Postings
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

Baxter Park closes every year at this time so the majority of thru-hikers have completed their journeys. If they have not, then the end becomes much more difficult. Technically, they would have to stay outside the park, hiking up Katahdin and exiting the park all in one day. A very long hike! The park reopens in December once the snow pack has stabilized. It must be a very different world in winter - the snow comes early and stays late. I had some questions about journaling and section hikes and would also like to just mention my favorite trail towns. Let's take the last, first.Trail towns quickly become anticipated destinations. There is an excitement in the air as you approach a trail town. Some are anti-climatic, such as Pearisburg, VA. I remember walking into this town, you go into a neighborhood, then have to walk on a street - dogs barking, residents staring. Not very hiker friendly. Any businesses are miles away and to reach them, you have to do a road walk or try to get a hitch. I just hiked on - making my lunch under a highway overpass when it began to rain and calling my dad since I did have service.The best towns are hiker friendly with sidewalks that make it easy to get around and most businesses concentrated in one area so everything is accessible. Sad to say but with our dependence on the automobile, towns have grown to be quite spread out. Things do sometimes come full circle - will we start to walk to places again? I'm ready for it!My favorite towns down South were Hot Springs, NC and Damascus, VA. Both towns go out of their way to make hikers welcomed. The peak hiking season is a big part of their economy so it is a win-win situation. They have great restaurants, Laundromats, post offices, Outfitters, places for resupply and hostels. You can leave your car at the hostels for a nominal charge if you would like to do a section of the AT. Additionally, Damascus has the Virginia Creeper bicycle trail and one can rent a bike to do this. It makes for a great weekend getaway (not a paid endorsement).My favorite town up North was probably Delaware Water Gap, even if some amenities were missing. Access is easy, you just walk into town, there is a great bakery, Outfitter (even if limited), post office, hostel with shuttles to neighboring town that has a grocery store, etc; they could use a Laundromat (I hand washed items at the hostel)and resupply of some type. There were several other Northern towns that I enjoyed but had to be shuttled because there wasn't a hostel in town - Salisbury, CT, Manchester Center, VA. Maine towns were also cute but again, you have to get a ride into town because they aren't on the trail. Usually no biggie - the residents are used to hikers and have no probably picking you up. I found Duncannon, PA to be depressing because the town has so much urban decay. This town is ripe for a revival! I hope it happens someday.Now on to journaling. When I started planning my AT hike, trailjournals.com was a great resource. I learned a lot from the gear reviews and just daily records of hiking. I wanted to maintain a journal as a way to pay back - helping future thru hikers in the same way that I was helped. However, I realized early in the hike that keeping a journal is a challenge - you are sometimes so tired at the end of the day and service is always questionable. My method evolved to write my daily post in a Notes app (my phone is a Droid) so when I had service I could just copy and paste. I also kept a paper journal that recorded my daily miles and highlights of the day so if I didn't do the daily electronic post I could go back for reference. The memory isn't so sharp when you're 60 - lol! I was so happy I kept the journal at the end of my hike. Funny, but I don't remember all that rain back in the early days - it really is true that you remember the good times more than the bad.And now for favorite sections of the trail - there are hikes for every level of fitness and timeframes (there were even a couple of parts that were wheelchair accessible). If I was more up on the trail when I had young children, I would have taken Teachers approach and hiked some miles in every state with my family (she's doing this with her grandson, Snacktime). What wonderful quality time!My favorites - North Carolina - around Wayah Bald and then after the Smokies going over Max Patch and into Hot Springs.Virginia - Grayson Highlands and Mt. RogersMaryland - pretty state and very developed trail - it's like a walk in the park with some rocks to toss it up in the northern part.New Hampshire - challenging but magnificent in the WhitesMaine - I felt this state was a truly wilderness experience. Rugged and beautiful. My nature is to find a little good in anything so even PA would have some selections - mainly the Southern part of PA such as around Caledonia SP or walking into Boiling Springs - go to Caf© 101 for a great breakfast. Happy Trails!