Date: 2007-05-07
From: Indian Grave Gap, TN

To: Nolichucky River, Erwin, TN
Miles today: 8.3
Weather: clear sky

Got a call @ 7:45 a.m. from the hiker I talked to last nite @ Ms. Janets. Hecalled to give me her cell # so I could find out about the outfitter\slackpackoption today. I don't know who he was, but I really appreciated the fact thathe followed up like that. So I called Ms. Janet, and she was already @ thestore doing stuff (I don't think the woman sleeps) and I explained thesituation. She said that it was definitely possible to do both, and that we'vebeen hiking at the "normal pace" the last 2 days (did you all hear that? We'renot slowpokes afterall LOL) and this 8.3 mile section would only take us about3-3.5 hrs, so we could go to the outfitter's first, and then go directly to ourslackpack, hopefully with new shoes to break in. So I've been trying to think of other information that might be helpful topeople who want to thru in the coming years. Of course I'll have to touch uponsome hammocking stuff too. LOLSocks:Most people wear smartwool socks with or without a liner. I only wear theWright double layer liner socks, which are very thin and cool. Regardless ofwhat you wear, I highly recommend taking the time at the end of everyday andgoing downstream and handwashig them. Take 2 safety pins and hang them fromyour pack to dry as you hike. Getting the sand and salt and grit out of themwill help protect your feet. I have been totally impressed with the socks I wear. I figured since they areso thin, they'd have holes in them pretty quickly, but they don't so far. Because they are so thin and light, I carry 3 pair, and on shoes\socks offbreaks, they dry out really fast. They will not provide the warmth thatsmartwools do when in cold wet conditions though. Your feet will be warm whilehiking but when you stop, they'll get cold if you're in snow. For the ladies regarding the Diva Cup:I still think this is the way to go out here, but I highly recommend having 2. It really speeds up "the change over" if you already have a clean one that isready to go. And, in case you drop it and it goes rolling over a cliff, you'llhave a backup. LOLLadies again:To speed up the process of peeing the million times a day you will, (if properlyhydrated, and which usually means taking your pack on and off everytime),practice doing your biz without taking your pack off. I've just discovered itis actually possible, and trust me, after the first week out here, your kneeswill no longer allow you to squat, so you'l learn what I call the"Quasi-Squatting Bent at the Waist" method. LOLOK, and now for some hammocking stuff:JRB Underquilt Fit:For those of you using one of these great products, you probably did what I did,checked the tracking number and location of the package about 100 times a dayuntil it arrived, frantically tore open the packaging, ran outside, put up yourhammock (even if the first chace you got was at 1:00 in the morning on a 10degree winter nite) and attached the underquilt, meanwhile, the directions aboutproperly fitting it to the hammock are still sitting in the box, never to beseen again.Take the time to get another person and have them help you set it up properly. It's simple and is just a matter of getting the right amount of air spacebetween the bottom of the hammock and the top of the UQ. Once the UQ suspensionlines are set (where they wrap around the HH knot) I took a couple of hairties,cut them and tied them on, right where my UQ suspension should be, so in casethe UQ suspension lines moved up or down (which happens when I skin my hammocksometimes), I can always have that marker (the hairties) of where the UQsuspension should go. (I can only imagine what a new or non-hammocker thinks ofwhat I just wrote! LOL) I'll take a pic of this next time I remember. Marking The Head\Foot End of a Hennessey Hammock:If you use snakeskins or some other form of storage where you don't have thehammock deployed until after it is hung, it is helpful to know which end iswhich. Some locations (like steep hills) call for hanging the footend on theupper part of the hill (so you can still reach the entrance). It helps to knowwhich end is which so you don't have to unskin the hammock to find out. I justtied another hairtie right on the spectra on the head end, so I'd know which endis which. I use hairties because they are colored and I have long hair, so I'vealways got a backup hairtie too. Preventing Waking Up with Your Butt Dragging the Ground:I have actually never had this happen. I think it's because of how I set up tobegin with. After I find my location, I hang it while pulling the hammocksuspension (spectra lines) as tight as I can. I then always sit in it like alounger to allow everything to settle. I also call this "my moment". LOL Itis what I look forward to after hiking all day.During "my moment" I look at both ends to make sure the foot end is slightlyhigher than the head end (this is more comfortable and prevents sliding towardsthe opening while sleeping). After about a minute (or whenever my legs willallow me to stand again), I will retighten usually the footend, which will bringit up a little higher. I tighten the crap out of it this time, and then I sitagain to confirm I'm at a good height above the ground.I can do all of this (now) before Persistent has her tent half-way up. It tookme longer in the beginning, so be patient with yourself if you're new. Repetition is the key. This seems to do the trick and I've never woke up withmy butt on the ground, not even when my hammock was brand new and notstretched. Okie dokie, so about my day's events. We were picked up by Tim, who has become sort of a personal driver for us, seemshe is always the one taking us places. LOL We went to Mahoney's Outfitter inJohnson City. We got awesome help from Dana, who spent so much time asking usboth what problems we were having, what shoes we had been using, she measuredour feet, and I swear she tore every shoe she had in the place out for us totry. The shoe area was a total disaster! LOL She also introduced me to someinsoles called Soles, which have really great arch support.After trying on probably 50 pair of shoes, I have discovered I now where a size8, which is 1\2 size bigger than when I started. I also discovered my rightfoot is now bigger than my left, and it had always been smaller than my leftbefore. I ended up buying Garmont AR2 shoes. They have a stiffer sole, whichmeans the shoe will absorb the contortions of hiking over rocks more.I learned a ton today about shoes. For instance, if you want to test how rigidthe shoe's soles are, hold the ends of the shoe in each hand and twist the shoelike you would if ringing out a towel. The easier it twists (or torques) theless rigid it is, which means it is more flexible, but your foot will do more ofthe work when supporting. So, for my foot's tendons that are gimpy, a morerigid sole helps take a load off my tendons. We twisted our worn out trailrunners, and Persistent's shoes could almost twist an entire circle! LOL As you can imagine, heavier boots are very rigid, so it is a matter of findingthe right amount of rigidity for your foot. I thought it was prettyinteresting. Thanks for your help Dana!!So Tim took us back to Erwin, he swung us by Sonic where we got lunch (footlongConey here). We went back to Ms. Janet's and hopped into her van with 3 otherhikers who were going to Indian Grave Gap. Hangman, Just Jack (who ishilarious), and some other guy who was not slackpacking. We started hikingaround 2:00'ish. Absolutely beautiful day. In the 70's, sunny, and totally easy trail. It wasall gradual and down hill except for the last mile. There were several gorgeousstream crossings, and the closer we got to the Nolichucky River, the wider thestream got. There were little waterfalls, log bridges to walk across, some crossings werejust hopping from rock to rock, and much of the trail today paralleled thisstream. I LOVE being near the water out here. It is so soothing and almostacts as a distraction from the "pain of the day." LOLThere is a point where the trail crosses railroad tracks, and it just so happena train came right before we reached the tracks. You canKt see the tracksuntilyou're right up on them, so it really sounded like that train was headed rightfor us! LOLThere were a lot of people out today. We ran into Half-Pint, who was leavingtown, the couple from Finland again, Leatherneck, Bearfoot, and many others whoI don't know their names. My new shoes worked out pretty well. There was some good rocky trail in which Icould totally tell a difference in the support. It was great, because usually,I could feel every edge and bump in my feet, but not now. Because they arestiffer, it will take a bit more time to break them in, but I think they willwork fine. The forest was fragrant again today. I'm not sure what I was smelling, but itwas sweet and wonderful. Everything was peaceful out there today. I'm feelingbetter than I have in a few days, so that's good. Persistent was in the bestmood I've seen her in in over a week. Her new shoes worked great too. We are very fortunate that this all happened the way it did. If we had been inmost other towns, we would not have had an outfitter this close or the wonderfulshuttle service that Ms. Janet provides.I have never felt so welcomed or taken care of in a trail town before. Ms. Janetand her crew "get" hikers, and I really appreciate that. They go beyond seeingyou as a body to shuttle from point a to point b. They think about what youneed, like lunch, or to drop your stuff off @ the motel, and everything. All ofthis is offered with a smile and sense of humor. We finished hiking @ 6:30 p.m. and hung out @ Uncle Johnnies till Hangman showedup to pick us up. It was Long John Silvers for me, and back to the room. Persistent went out witha couple people for Chinese. We just talked logistics (which Persistent HATES), and I am waiting forsomething that Rachael overnited to me. It will be here tomorrow afternoon, sowe're doing one last 11 mile slackpack, which will give us one more day ofbreaking in our new shoes too. If all goes as we hope, we'll be hiking intoDamascus on Friday, May 18, which is the weekend of Trail Days, and is Rachael'sbirthday too! Man, to think we could have finally made it to Virginia 11 daysfrom now is pretty awesome. After tomorrow's hike, we'll have about 27 moremiles of tough terrain, and then it gets nice and flat for the next 75 miles(with the exception of 1 mountain). I have had some pretty rough days the past week or two. Thanks so much for allof the encouraging comments everyone. It is a special connection we all share,because I'll never meet or know most of you, and yet, your words and thoughtsgive me strength. Thank you. Oh, to RockStar...send them brownies to Damascus lady! LOL Really sorry youwon't be @ Trail Days, I was looking forward to meeting you. Here's how toaddress them:Michele ZehrGeneral DeliveryPlease Hold for AT Thru-HikerDamascus, VA 24236ETA May 21, 2007Also, I want to shout out a huge howdy to my former co-workers atO.S.U.-Okmulgee, Suzie, Virginia, Carol, and Tim. You'd all be shocked to hearmy language out here! LOL ~Certain