Date: 2008-03-11
From: Still in Fredericksburg Vrignia for Two More Weeks

To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Oh well, I lost another possible set of Leki Cor Tec Positive Angle Trekking Poles with Anti-Shock on EBay last night... It looks as though the old LekiSports will just have to do for another year...At any rate, it's time for yet another verse of my Appalachian Trail Song:VERSE:Oh Mountain steep¢¦ Oh Mountain high¢¦        There¢s water pouring from the skyCan¢t get this blasted gear to dry        I miss my Mama¢s APPLE PIE¢¦REFRAIN:A North-Bound hike is painless        It brings on many changesAnd I can take what comes for six more months...and yes, I was able to clear my half of the Master Bedroom Closet yesterday. The Contractors are supposed to start the Bathroom Demolition Project today, but I have yet to see or to hear from them...This verse, as you might have guessed, is about the early hike FLOOD OF EMOTIONS that every prospective Thru-Hiker experiences -- usually in Northern Georgia.Just as we say in the Army that if anybody who has been in combat tries to tell you that they didn't feel fear the first time they realized the enemy was shooting at them [yes, and sometimes even a 'friendly' or two], they're either liars of suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and denying everything.By the way, the bullets passing close to me made cracking sounds -- not the wizzing we normally hear in the movies. Time also passed very slowly. Boredom had given way to sheer terror. The black-and-white-style world that I had once lived in had suddenly become rather gray, and I was amazed at how sick I had suddenly become. That's right -- all of that preparation and all of those daydreams and postulations about how it would feel to be in combat, and I suddenly developed a sore throat; my stomach was very upset; I felt as though I couldn't hear as well as I needed to; things were happening very rapidly all around me. I felt very alone in the darkness -- AND I was SICK!We all make comparisons to our past experiences. Well, I compare my first day on the mountain to my first day in combat. It's a shocker. After all, how high can 4,000 feet actually be? I've climbed a volcano in Guatemala. I spent 75 days at 12,000 feet in the Atacama Desert of Chile and Bolivia [no, I can't really tell you much about that 'visit,' sorry]. I was raised in Western Maryland and these are the same mountains.I admit, however, that it had been years since I had worn a 45-pound pack -- especially packing it up any large hills. Sure, I'd taken some day-hikes with much smaller loads. Most of these had been in good weather (one can ordinarily choose one's hiking weather, after all, and why look for rain if it's not required?).This, in 2005, was a Whole New World for me. I had imagined a fairly level and well-graded trail [similar to the Shenandoah Park...]. It was Spring, so a light jacket should have been more than sufficient. *lol* It was 'Georgia,' for heaven's sake -- not Colorado...Dream on... The place, however, that the 'dream' comes true is at or near a little mountain called, "SPRINGER." ...and very few miles after that, the Georgia Mountains will start to show you, Prospective Thru Hiker, who's the boss...*Thinking Happy thoughts and breathing nice slow, deep, and relaxing breaths****UPDATE** The Contractor called about mid-morning today to tell me they wouldn't be able to start until tomorrow morning. I think she was expecting me to fuss at her, but instead I thanked her for another day with a PRACTICE/CONDITIONING HIKE!It's not as easy to find 'hills' around here as one might think. Much of the hilly property has housing developments all over it and many people take dim views of some, 'homeless person,' climbing their back yard...I do, however, have a pretty demanding ten mile circuit hike that I can do:- Go down through the woods to the abandoned Central Virginia Railway bed -- soon to be a new Rail-to-Trail project unless politics stalls it. This is the same rail bed that was un-finished during the seige of Fredericksburg, but operated between Fredericksburg to Orange, Virginia until it closed in the late 1930's.- Follow the rail trail toward Fredericksburg, portaging around two trestles that are currently, 'out.' Hazel Run is normally a trickle -- today it was a deep flood plane.- Cross Route 1 into Alum Springs Park [a good place to fire up the BushBuddy for tea and a snack, and then follow the power line up the hill and cross over Lafayette Blvd (the back road into Fredericksburg).- Bushwack across undeveloped Fredericksburg Battlefield land through the woods and following the ridgeline to the touristy pavilion/display on top of Lee's Hill [where General Robert E. Lee placed his headquarters because it was the highest land on the south side of the Rappahannock -- where he could see everything the Union Army was doing on the Stafford side of the river...- Continue to bushwack and avoid the park rangers, cutting trough the woods past the gun emplacements and down onto the actual battlefield path that follows the defensive line dug by the Army of Northern Virginia to repulse the invading Federals.- Follow this for several miles and then climb Lee's Hill from the other direction, coming out onto the roadway and climbing Lafayette Blvd to Twin Lakes, and then following it down and again crossing Route 1, re-entering the Rail Trail from the lower parking lot of Towns End Development Center (beside the VA Clinic).- Cross Hazel Run and bushwack over animal trails on the high side of the gorge (now the low end of the new Idlewild Development).There's a lot of history here, but much of it is going away...* I saw four deer; a pair of Rose Breasted Grossbeaks; smelled a skunk and made a detour before actually viewing the creature; a little dog named, 'Cousin Jim,' (don't ask); and a squirrel or two.* I really like the early spring combination of OR Rocky Mountain Low Gaitors and the Merrill Mid-Weight Boots [see Gear Section]. With this combination, I can actually ford small streams without the slightest leak -- as long as I don't spend a lot of time wading, and don't go in over the top of my gaitors...* Several folks were in awe of my BushBuddy Ultra as I brewed tea in Alum Springs Park at the pavilion. I did it the hard way today. I simply found a few dead branches, snapped them off, shaved a little kindling, and started the stove without my normal piece of Trioxane... It works like a charm and I really don't have to carry any fuel.More Appalachian Trail Corollaries to Murphy¢s Law:- The most readily accessible branch for your bear bag is most likely not to support its weight¢¦ or the additional weight of those that follow¢¦- The presence of Park Rangers and Ridge Runners is directly proportional to one¢s desire to set up and to use a Stealth Campsite¢¦- Commercial Dryers in Trail Laundro-mats only burn your delicates if set on, ¢Low.¢- The number of unserviceable laundry machines in a particular Trail Laundro-mat is directly proportional to the number of trekkers who need their services.- The Deputy Sheriff you're most likely to encounter while wearing only a towel or rain pants in the Trail Laundro-mat is the guy who just transferred in from the big city two days ago¢¦- The prevailing weather found on the Appalachian Trail is in direct proportion to the gear you just mailed ahead in your ¢Bounce Box.¢No, I can't wait for the next verse of the song either... It's my favorite.