Redding, CA

There is no National Park in Redding, CA, I know. We took a slight detour. We were actually on our way to Lassen Volcanic NP only to realize 1.5 hrs before our arrival that the main road through the park was closed and so were all the campgrounds. We've grown so accustomed to summer weather (by Boone standards) that we didn't really consider that winter, unfortunately, is still upon Northern California and the Pacific Northwest. Unfortunately this means no Crater Lake, Yellowstone, or Grand Tetons which is a little disappointing, however, it just means we need to stick to the southerly route on the way back to North Carolina.

Day 2: What's Important in Life?

Lake Morena to Cibbets Campground
13.0 Miles

What's important in life? Is it how much money you make? How successful you become? The things you own? The experiences you have? The relationships you form? This question and all its potential answers have been funneling through my mind over the past two days. I'm sure for most, the answer to this question is some or all of these factors. Or maybe none of these at all.

I'm a very goal oriented person. I make up my mind to do something and I do it; at all expenses and sometimes regardless of the consequences (both positive and negative). I don't like to fail. So when we strolled into camp tonight and my partner looked at me and said she didn't think she could do this I blew her off. It took her breaking down into tears explaining in between sobs that her heart kept skipping beats and she had pain running through her chest for me to start looking beyond my own selfish goals.

Cori does have a heart condition, Wolf Parkinsons White syndome. Basically her heart has a tendency to race and/or have extra beats. She has a regular heart doctor that she sees annually who believed she would be okay out here despite the heat. She is active and healthy. She's ran marathons, played roller derby, and hiked the Appalachian Trail; all with no heart problems. On most accounts she is a healthy person. Still, the condition exists and she's had episodes in the past that caused her to modify her activity levels.

We knew this coming out here so we were careful to train and prepare ourselves to the best of our abilities. While hiking we've been extremely careful to stay hydrated and nourished. So when she first mentioned that she was in pain, that her chest hurt and she could feel her heart skipping beats which was making her uncomfortable I dismissed her. She needed to drink more water. She needed to realize that this was going to hurt. Thru-hiking hurts. We were going to be uncomfortable for a few weeks until we adjusted. She was fine. We hiked on. When we strolled into camp tonight she was in tears before she could even put her pack down. She hurt. Her heart was skipping beats and she was dizzy and nauseous. She couldn't do this. What do I say to that? OK, go home I'll see you in five months? You're being a hypochondriac drama queen. Get your shit together?

Cori and I have been together for almost six years. In that time I have seen her cry three times. Maybe. This was real. So at this point, what's important? The thought of leaving the PCT is devastating. And we just got started. But what are the consequences if I stick to my selfish goals and somehow convince her to stay with me? Daily sobbing episodes? Constant fights? Or something worse? Could she really have a heart attack? Is flirting with the line of dehydration for the next 700 miles really worth it?

No. It is not worth it. This wasn't some leg pain and sore shoulders. Tight calves and sore feet. Blisters. These things are to be expected. We were about to enter the Mojave Desert, the hottest desert in North America. We would have to hike 15-20 mile stretches in blazing heat daily just to replenish our water so we could keep ourselves hydrated.

I've come to believe that the relationships we form and the experiences we have with the ones we love are going to be what we cherish most in life. For that reason (and a few others) I am choosing to leave with Cori. Sending her home alone with no home to go to, and no job, and three dogs to pick up and take care of is not what a good partner does. I wouldn't want it done to me.

We are trying to make the best of a very devastating turn of events. We have rented a car and are making our way North. We plan on visiting Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park, Yosemite National Park, Yellowstone National Park, and the Grand Tetons while we make our way home over the next two weeks.

The PCT will always be there. I'm sure we'll find our way out west sometime in the future.

P.S. I almost stepped on a rattle snake today and it scared the shit out of me.


Drying our stuff out in a lunch break

Day 1: Trail Angels on the First Day

Campo to Lake Morena
20 Miles

My alarm went off at 5 am this morning but I didn't need it. I was wide awake with anticipation. How was today going to go? Could I handle the heat? Would Cori be OK (she was full of nerves)?

We reached the Mexican border at Campo around 7:15. It was 34 degrees outside but the sun rising overhead made the cool morning bearable in my shorts and sun shirt. A few other hikers were already at the trailhead, excitedly strapping on their packs and preparing to head north.

We walked over to the southern terminus PCT monument whose light grey pillars stood out against the tall rusty panels of the Mexican border. Streched out in front of me was a seemingless endless stretch of shrubby green wilderness crisscrossed by by dusty dirt roads which were occupied by the occasional passing border patrol trucks.

After signing the register and taking a few photos at the border we were off.



I was heavy under the weight of my pack. The first 20 miles of the PCT are waterless, so I was carrying six liters (roughly 13 lbs.) of water to get me to Lake Morena, our intended final destination for the evening.

The trail meandered slowly along the edge of a small neighborhood and the eventually turned slightly west bringing us deeper into desert. Our climbs were gradual which was nice and the weather remained relatively cool until 11:00 when the heat started to become unbearable. Around 11:30 we took refuge in some shade to let our feet air out and to let our bodies cool down. This became our routine for the rest of the afternoon. We would hike for about two hours, find shade, air out our feet, snack and hydrate.

We made to Hauser Creek which is a dried up creek bed at mile 15 around 4:00. The was a small water cache in the creek that some nice soul had left for thirsty hikers. We didn't need to utilize it since we started off prepared to make it to Lake Morena but it gave us an opportunity to stop short and camp if we wanted to. After some discussion we decided to push on.

The climb out of Hauser Creek was long, hot, and exposed. I began to question our decision to push on as my heart pounder in my chest and me feet began to throb beneath me. We took it slow, drank plenty of water, and stumbled into Lake Morena Campground around 7 pm.

As we made our way towards the ranger station to check in and pay for a campsite a woman came running over to us. "Are y'all PCT hikers? Yes ma'am" we replied back. "We have plenty of food. Why don't you two come on over and get something to warm to eat. Save your dehydrated stuff for another night." Her name was Cheryl and she was camping with three of her friends. They all worked in the education system and were there relaxing on Spring Break. I was in heaven and no longer regretted our decision to move forward. As we made our plates they also offered us to the chance to camp at their site for the evening which was already paid for.

It was a perfect ending to a tough day.

Dogs, Maildrops, Tattoos, OH MY!

The trail has a funny way of preparing you for what's to come even of you're not even out there yet. Over the past two weeks Cori and I went from having nearly everything set to leave to questioning our ability to even do the hike.

Between the two of us we have three beautiful fur babies:


Jasmine, a 13 year old cocker


Hershey, a 10 year old chocolate lab


Dudley a 4.5 year old Pyrenees/Lab mix

We had homes lined up for them a month or more before leaving, then one week before we were suppose to move out of our apartment and deliver all the dogs to said homes, all of our dog sitters bailed out on us. On the same day. Are you kidding me?!!? Needless to say, all of our carefully thought out plans were thrown by the wayside. We had one week to find new homes for them or there would be no PCT hike. All of the money and time already spent on the trail (train tickets, food, gear, etc.) would be pissed away along with our dreams of spending the summer out west. It was time to pull together all our resources, and be as flexible as possible with our schedules. We banned together to get everything worked out. In the end, friends and family came to the rescue; the dogs have been placed in (temporary) great foster homes and we can't begin to thank them enough. Having already completed a thru-hike once before we both understand that our ability to complete the PCT will be the result of all of the support we are receiving from friends and family back home. Thank you.

Once the dogs were settled, we loaded up my car with all our gear and maildrops, and I headed down to my parents in Blue Ridge, GA. I spent part of my time getting all of the maildrops and extra gear organized and ready to go.




I spent some of my time Cafe Ink and added to my AT tattoo. I've been dreaming of getting this done for the past three years and it turned out better than I've ever imagined! I plan on having the PCT and CDT tattoo ed underneath the AT as I complete those trails.



After some family time in Blue Ridge, Cori and I headed back up to South Carolina where we spent the last three days with her family.

Then, on Wednesday morning, at 2:45 am we stepped onto the Crescent Amtrak train to begin our journey westward to hike the PCT.



We will spend the next three and a half days traveling across the country to Del Mar, CA. There, we will be greeted and hosted by trail angel Betty Wheeler who took care of Cori last year when she got the flu. I can't wait to finally meet her in person!

Until then, Happy Trails!

I'm Going on a Hike!

Oh my Godsh I'm going on a hike! You mean the PCT you ask? No! (Well yes, but that's not exactly what I mean at the moment). I mean I'm going on a hike now...like this week! I've done nothing but day hikes in the last four years. FOUR YEARS. Pathetic. What makes this even more exciting? A new backpack...AND a new tent.

A Day for the Dogs

Today was a day for the dogs... four of them to be exact. After a 10K morning run, and a second breakfast where I discovered that I like strawberry cream cheese on blueberry bagels it was time to give the dogs some fresh air. We loaded up the car and headed toward Grayson Highlands State Park and stopped short at the AT road crossing on hwy 58.

Fall Colors Damascus Virginia

We loaded all the dogs into the car today and headed over to Damascus, VA to spend another beautiful day in fall colors.


Entering Damascus, VA Northbound on the Appalachian Trail








Tennessee/Virginia Border


Cori and Dudley

Fall Colors in North Carolina

I had the pleasure of taking a four-mile hike along the Tanawha trail with a friend of mine during fall colors.

 
Blue Ridge Parkway: View of Grandfather Mountain from Beacon Heights Parking Lot



View of Hawksbill and Table Rock from Rough Ridge



Viaduct from Rough Ridge



View from Beacon Heights

Trailversary

Two years ago today I made the arduous climb to the summit of Baxter peak on Mt. Katadhin. It was cold and extremely windy. My body was tired but my soul was renewed. As I made the climb down I was lost in a bittersweet reminiscence of the past six months of my life; excited by how my experiences had changed me, and of the new person I was becoming, and sadden by the thought that my journey was now coming to an end. I had no idea of what I was returning to once I stepped off the AT, but I new it would be a life different then the one I had left behind.

Two years later I have come to realize that stepping off Katahdin was not the end of a journey but the beginning of one. Thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail opened up a door into a world that was truly my own. The road before me was no longer brightly blazed and defined with the expectations of others. It was unmarked and overgrown, left for me to figure out my own way through. I was only beginning to (re)discover who I was and who I wanted to be.

This new path has not been an easy one, but similar to the AT it has thus-far been filled with incredible memories, and of constant lessons that life is what you make it, that attitude is everything, and that life is whispering the way if you stop and sit still long enough to listen. I have learned that for the most part, I was always headed in the right direction even if I didn’t know it.

I have learned that it is always good to have a plan A, plan B, and plan C, but it’s even better to let go of those plans and adapt to what life presents when life doesn’t seem to go as expected. Rather, planning provides a means to mentally prepare for the road ahead by simply pointing me in a direction, and allowing me a means to take those first steps forward. After that, life unfolds and it becomes this dance between myself and it, requiring me to accept, adapt, and constantly readjust in order to move peacefully forward. I have come to understand that although things don’t seem to be going quite as I anticipated, somewhere down the line things will fall into place in a way that I cannot even begin to imagine or comprehend.

I have learned that I have an extraordinarily, everlasting need for self-challenge and adventure, both physically and mentally. I’m not always sure of what this means, or exactly where it comes from, but it always seems to weave its way into my life. It’s that feeling of I don’t know why I need to do this, but I need to do this. There was a time I never really questioned this sense of need I just followed it, and from it good things always resulted. As life progressed new responsibilities that came with becoming an adult entered my life, relationships formed, and competing I don’t know why I need to do this, but I need to do this moments seemed to form as well. For a while I sacrificed some needs for others but a big part of me felt suppressed. Hiking the AT allowed me to reconnect with this sense of self-propelling need for constant challenge and adventure, and made me remember what it felt like to follow those I need to do this moments. It is a part of me that I didn’t even realize I was missing. It was also the part of me that had been screaming to get out. More recently and perhaps more importantly, I have come to realize that this is possibly one of the most important aspects of my inner self and a part of me that I cannot live without adhering to. Yes, life does often present seemingly contradictory I need to do this moments, but with some reflection I am learning that they are simply that, seemingly contradictory.

Daniel Boone Scout Trail

 

"Bees/yellow jackets on the Cragway Trail." Well thank you to the nice person(s) for the warning and saving me a possible shot with an epi-pen and a mouthful of benadryl. The original plan was to hike the Cragway Loop on Grandfather Mountain today, but getting attacked by stinging insects didn't sound like fun. Instead the four of us, Cori, BA, Hershey, and myself, decided to only hike half the loop, taking the Daniel Boone Scout Trail to the Cragway junction then back. IT was a beautiful day with a nice view of Calloway Peak and Boone Fork Bowl at the junction.

And my Favorite LMAO picture of the day:

More photo's here.

Easing into Nature

Some of us thrive on the outdoors. We depend on the life that it breathes into us. Others, run for the nearest building at the very mention of spending time in the "wilderness". So when one of my not so outdoorsy friends asked me to take her on hike I was excited at the chance to show her why hiking in so great. The challenge; not to scare her away. Like me, she's a gym rat and (unlike me) an athletic rugby player so there was doubt that shes tough but experience also tells me that weight lifting and team sports involvement doesn't necessarily equate to being in good trail shape.

 I settled on taking her on a short, three mile hike at Elk Knob State Park, Todd, NC. The park is fairly new and still under development but there is a 1.5 mile trail that leads to the 5, 520 ft. summit of Elk Knob. I've heard about the trail from  friends and its been on my hiking to do list for some time now. The trail is nice, hardened, with a fairly gradual ascent until the last quarter of mile. At this point the trail detours from the planned route which is yet to be completed and follows a steep, old forest road to the summit. It was at this point that my friend loudly expressed how hard it was. I yelled back to her that the last quarter mile is always the hardest, and I'd see her at the top. Then, I turned around a snap a photo of her struggle at which point she promptly waved a very selected finger. I began thinking I may have ruined her.

At the summit we were rewarded with spectacular views of The Peak, Three Top and Bluff Mountains, Mount Jefferson, Grandfather Mountain, Mount Mitchell, Mt Rodgers (Va.), and the Iron Mountains in Virginia and Tennessee. Oh, and we were also greeted with a swarm of noseums which unfortunately shortened our time at the summit.

We enjoyed our decent back to the parking lot. Despite the lactic acid build-up in her quads, I'm pretty sure she had a good time. If my assumption wasn't enough to go on, I got a text message yesterday afternoon telling me she was taking a friend of hers to Elk Knob to hike the Summit Trail. Mission accomplished.

Finding Balance and New Challenges

If I had endless sums of money and no desire for a career life where I can contribute to the greater cause of environmental conservation then my life's ambition would be to become a trail bum. Hands down. No questions. I have daydreams (and night dreams) about setting off on my next adventure. There's something about not knowing what lies ahead, the unexplored, that pumps adrenaline through my veins and pushes me forward. There is something about the simplicity of trail living that awakens my soul and makes me feel at home. And, there is something about this rugged simplicity that makes me want to challenge myself, to prove to my ever doubting self, that I am truly capable of anything. Then a huge hail storm or thunder storm, or snow storm (or all three simultaneously) comes rushing through the high country, forcing me to awake from my pleasant dreams, and I find myself ever so thankful to NOT be hiking, NOT to be outside, and NOT to be staring mother nature in the face daring her to push me harder.

Yes, I want to be a trail bum, but I also want what so many of use grow up daydreaming about, a career that matters to me, some creature comforts (I REALLY love my iPod, my Garmin Forerunner, and my dog - in no particular order), and a somewhat permanent place to call home. I want to know that I am doing something important with my life. That I am contributing to the greater good. So how do I reconcile the overwhelming desire for adventure on foot with the same overwhelming desire for a career? School breaks and vacation days. Ideal? Not exactly, but it's a start for now. Realistically, long distance hikes will be few and far between and I have spent over a year searching out ways to fill the void that trail life use to take up. Day hikes just haven't been the same and overnights are such a tease. I was in need of a new challenge, something that would force me to push my limits. Answer, running.

I can hear my mother bickering in my ear "You're going to ruin you're already wrecked knees." Yeah, she's probably right. There were days during my thru-hike that I didn't think I'd reach Katadhin. I waited for that morning to come when I would wake up and my knees would be the size of watermelons and I would take the inevitable greyhound home. But that day never happened. It's taken over a year to get my knees feeling decent again, and once they did I knew it was time to hit the trail, well, treadmill. I started in January and there was lots of snow on the ground.

It's now April and I'm gearing up for my first 5k race. I'm not in it to win it, at least not yet. I'm in it to know I can do it. After that, the next challenge is on; to pick up speed at to get competitive.  So far, my knees are doing great.

I'm not giving up hiking. With spring rolling in I have a list of extended day hikes (12-20 miles) that I hope to accomplish on my Sunday's off. In regards to those long distance hikes, the Benton Mackaye Trail (288 miles), the Long Trail (273 miles), and the John Muir Trail (211 miles) are at the top of my list. If I learned anything during my hiking career, it was this: it's nice to have a plan, a vision of what you would like to accomplish, but leave the detailed planning to faith. One day the opportunities to complete these longer journey's will present themselves and I will find a way to go with the flow.