Date: 2011-03-12
To: View Entry
Miles today: 0.0

Hey folks!I am back from a two day backpacking stint around the Mount Rogers and Grayson Highlands areas along the AT. The weather forecast said rain and an inch of snow was to be expected with skies clearing up the next day and a high of 50F on the third day. Well, after two days of wind, rain, sleet and snow we, Jackie and I, never made it to day 3. We started hiking around noon, a much later start than I wanted, and pumped out 9 miles by 18:30. The rain and sleet turned to snow soon after we started and the wind blew hard all day. If we stopped for more than a few minutes my feet would go numb. This trip takes the prize for the worst weather I¢ve hiked in. As a matter of fact, I have decided to push back my planned start date for my thru hike to try and avoid some of the nasty winter weather. I also learned the term highland is another word for open areas with no trees that leave you exposed to the elements.Most of the trail we hiked was a legitimate creek leaving our boots soaked through. Between the wet feet and nasty weather we needed a morale booster which came when we spotted some wild ponies along the edge of Mt. Rogers after they announced their presence in a loud whinny. Several miles later we came across three more ponies that were much friendlier and less wild. They nosed around in Jackie¢s pack for something tasty then decided to stomp all over it. Dinner was a mac n cheese backpacking meal which I forgot to stir after adding water. It made every bite exciting; would it be crunchy or soft, warm or cold? We set up tents in Wise Shelter then attempted to get some sleep. I had bought a Mont-bell UL Super Stretch down sleeping bag right before this trip and I was sure glad to have it. I always pack super light, sometimes to the point of under packing. This 20 degree bag kept me from freezing while wearing only a long sleeve shirt, socks, and shorts. I could have used a few more layers to stay warm but the bag did well. My MSR Hubba did well to keep out the wind and snow too.The next morning we woke up to 5 inches of snow on the ground and our boots frozen into solid blocks of ice. Getting dressed and packing up camp was slow and we didn¢t roll out of the shelter until a little after 10. I had to push myself against the roof of the shelter to try and cram my feet into my boots. It was miserable. It must have taken a solid hour of hiking before the boots thawed out enough to become somewhat flexible. After only a mile into our hike we decided to cut it short and get picked up at Rt. 603. We got to a shelter around 16:15, took a short break and then sped 1.7 miles downhill to the road making it there before 17:00. I had my first attempt at hitch hiking here! A wonderful woman with a one year old baby picked us up and drove us to Troutdale, the opposite direction she was driving. I wish I had caught her name, but we did find out her husband majored in Fisheries Science at the same University that I am attending. We called some friends and then walked up hill to the local hiker hostel. I want to give a big shout out to Pete, Troutdale Baptist Church and the Pastor who all helped us. The hostel didn¢t open for another week so we huddled in the shower room to get out of the cold. But the lovely folks at the church offered to open the hostel early for us if we needed a place to stay. They even offered to turn on the water if we wanted to shower. Since we were weekend hikers I didn¢t feel comfortable with that but their hospitality was still greatly appreciated. I plan on sending a donation their way for the help.Today has been spent lounging, sleeping, drying out my gear and nursing my feet which are sore and bruised from hiking in frozen boots. It seems I always type so much, oh well. On a side note, we won our rugby tournament in New Orleans last weekend and I scored a try!Good luck to all the thru-hikers out on the trail right now.