Date: 2004-06-04
From: Hot Springs, NC

To: Damascus, VA
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: moderate rain

They say if you make it to Damascus, you'll make it all the way. That means i'll make it all the way!460 miles down, 1714 to go.Last update was from Hot Springs. It was Friday of Memorial Day weekend, and the last vacancies in beds were taken by a group that yellow blazed from davenport gap (~35 miles). Greg and i eventually left hot springs about 6, and after hiking an hour, decided to push all 10 miles to the first shelter. That means my first zero day was more like 15 miles. We got to the shelter at 10, past dark. I think i saw a bear's eyes at one point. They were too large for a racoon, too far apart for a deer. They looked the right hight for a large dog, but that's unlikely.Greg and I spent the first 4 days trying to make a 30 mile day. We ended up a little over 20 every day, which meant it was just far enough we never got to see the same people two nights in a row. We usually got up too late to fit in 30 miles without hiking into dark. The night of sunday, 5/30, we stayed on bald mountain shelter, and had the worst thunderstorm i had ever seen. A guy in the shelter said the wind was well over 60 knots. The wind was so loud, you couldn't hear the thunder that was hitting trees less than half a mile away. We slept in until almost 9 when it died down, and there were blowovers across the trail all over the place.Since we got a late start, we decided to enjoy our 20 mile day. We passed near Erwin,TN, so we hitched about a mile off the trail to a gas station/convienience store/A&W. I had 2 bacon double cheesburgers, a calzone, a pint of icecream, and 4 refills on my lemonade. We hitched back to the trail and got to bed early. We got started at 7 for another attempt at a 30 mile day (32 if we were to make it to the shelter.) the 32 miles included the 6,000+ foot Roan Mtn, which has a 2000 foot climb over 2-3 miles. We got to the top completely exhausted (28 miles). We decided to stay at roan high knob shelter, the highest shelter on the AT. It was two stories with closing doors and windows. We put off our dream of a 30 mile day for the next day.About an hour after we got there, another thru hiker arrived- we were surprised to see someone catch us (he was the first person who's done it). His name is will, runs track and william&mary, and hikes 30 miles a day. He started may 20, a full week after us. He hiked the PCT last summer,and wants to do the AT in 80 days. We decided we would try and stick with him.The following two days were both the longest but also the greatest days on the trail. Wednesday mornining, we hiked down roan mtn, and over roan high bald. (bald=mountain with no trees - just grass). If roan high knob was not impressive enough, we then went over little hump and hump mountain - both balds. It was amazing because you could look behind you and see the last two miles of trail, and the ant-sized people ahead and behind you. The pictures should be up soon....After the impressive 14.8 miles in the morning, the 18 miles in the afternoon were a disappointment. Between applehouse and moreland shelters, there are no real landmarks except for contaminated springs with log bridges. Theres also no real elevation change. Pointless ups and downs (PUDS) do not count as 'real' elevation changes.After a sore 33 miles, we went to sleep without worrying about what to do thursday. When I got up, i felt fine, so i decided to try for another 30 - this one would be easier with much less elevation change. After about 8 miles, we got to laurel falls, an amazing waterfall. I went swimming. After that, i was completely rejuvinated. If that wasn't enough, 8 miles later was watauga dam, complete with rope swing....... library closing, will finish tomorrow...........anyway, i had never been on a rope swing before in my life, and this was a pretty extreme rope swing. I didn't realize until i was midair how high the rope swing actually goes over the water - it was at least 15-20 feet in the air. I survived, and enjoyed it enough to try it again. Pictures will be up soon.Another through-hiker we met in the smokeys said the 40 miles from watauga dam to damascus is the 'tennesee highway', and compared to the mountains, alot easier. The trail was well graded, wide in most spots, and not too many rocks. We climbed about 2000 feet, but did it over the course of 10 miles or so, so it wasn't that bad. Got to Iron Mountain shelter just before dark and just before the rain started, so i was happy.The last strech into damascus was 26.4 miles, almost completely downhill. My plan was to wake up early and try and make it into damascus before the PO closed at 4:30. It wasn't a big deal since it would be open saturday morning too, but it would make things easier. I got up at 6 and got ready to go, then it started to pour at 6:30. I hung around in the shelter for half an hour before i decided it wouldn't stop. (it finally stopped about 1pm). I hiked at what i thought was a normal pace (3 mi/hr) to the next shelter 8 miles away and ate breakfast, then had a snack and the next shelter 8 miles beyond that. The last 10 miles into damascus seemed to go by very quick. Since i don't have a watch, i have no idea what time it was until i got into the post office, and saw it was just past 2:30! That means i did about 4 miles per hour for 7.5 hours with a few breaks. And I wasn't even sore.I am staying at "the place" in damascus. It's a hostel run by the methodist church. It's essentially an open house full of bunk beds and a box that you put your $4 a day donation into. There's no registration, no desk, no staff, the hikers and bikers who stay there are supposed to maintain it. There were at least 20 people there last night, all hikers, some injured who have been there for a couple weeks. Will showed up about half an hour after me, we went and did laundry and had some bacon double cheesburgers and milkshakes. An intense thunderstorm rolled in and out while we were at the laundromat. Greg got in about 5, and we went to the pizzaria for dinner at about 8. The pizza claimed to be 'new york pizza' and it got at least a B+. The crust needed to be a little crispier, and the cheese distribution was uneven, but the cheese:sauce:crust ratio was dead on. It was certainly better than anything you could get in massachusetts.The plan for today is to get some stuff at the outfitter, eat a lot, and relax all day. I'll try go to bed by 8 and wake up early and get back on the trail (of course in reality, i'll probably sleep till 11)Quick summary of miles to date:Day 16: 21.3 miles to flint mtn. shelterDay 17: 18.8 miles to bald mtn. shelter. 12 miles to the next one, we got in late, and it started to rain, so we took a 'short' day.Day 18: 21.1 miles to curley maple gap shelter. Started really late and knew we wouldn't make 30 miles, so we stopped in Erwin,TN for a burger or 4.Day 19: 27.3 miles to Roan High Knob Shelter. after the 2000 foot climb to 6200+ feet, we were too tired to hike another 4 miles and make a 30 mile day. Will caught up with us at the shelter.Day 20: 32.7 miles to Moreland. First half was great. Second half was hell.Day 21: 30.4 miles to Iron Mtn Shelter. No residual pain in the morning, easier terrain, and a few swimming holes made for a great day.Day 22: 26.3 miles to Damascus - hiked it <8 hours with stopsDay 23: 0 miles in Damascus. My first REAL zero day.Between 3:00 on monday and 3:00 on friday - 4 full days - i hiked over 120 miles from erwin to damascus. Now that i know i can do it, i have a feeling i will settle down with about 25 miles a day, maybe a longer day here and there.Time to go to the post office before they close.