8/10: Story Spring Shelter, 1626.7

Just so everyone knows, I am typing this blog while lying flat on my back atop a picnic table in Vermont at roughly 2700 feet staring into one of the most beautiful night skies I have ever seen. A perfect natural clearing in the forest has allowed me to enjoy this crystal clear night and the spectacular stars. I am out here because I was told there was a meteor shower tonight, but I haven't seen any shooting stars yet. Still, I'm glad I received the tip. If I hadn't I never would have faced the cold, thereby missing this wonderful sky. Cold in August...I truly had to see it to believe it. My Georgian brain wouldn't allow itself to be wrapped around such a foreign concept. Anyways, now that you're sufficiently jealous I guess I can continue on with my post.

Ever since I returned to the trail from Boston I have been working my butt off trying to catch my friends Sriracha, Fool Hardy, and Spider. After hiking a few 20+ mile days in a row, I found out this morning that I had somehow overtaken them while they were in town! A northbound thru hiker I know informed me this morning that I had passed them and that they had camped at the last shelter 8 miles back! Once I found that out, I decided to hang out at my campsite until they arrived. My day was looking awesome. It had finally stopped raining, I was going to do a much deserved short day, and I could lay around camp till lunchtime! But wait, it gets better! As I was waiting for them to arrive, a lady that had camped beside the shelter last night came up and we started chatting. She introduced herself as Sky and explained that she was an AT section hiker that had just finished her last section by summiting Katadhin! She then went on to explain that she had met some awesome southbound thru hikers in New Hampshire, and that she had promised to give them trail magic once she was done with her section. Well today was that day, and she was surprising them with backcountry cooked breakfast burritos! This lady brought the works with her for this feast! She had with her bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, 18 eggs, sausage, and more hash browns than you can imagine! Naturally, she also had beer and candy bars, like any good trail angel would! When the south bounders showed up they were floored. Hardly anyone does personal trail magic anymore, and you never, ever get it in the middle of the woods! The south bounders and I feasted all morning while Sky served up breakfast burritos for not one, not two, but three rounds! I literally had a hot, delicious breakfast hiked up, cooked, and served to me in the middle of Vermont! I didn't even have to hike for it :).

Once all the food was good and gone all of my friends showed up and we had our big reunion! We swapped our craziest stories from our time a part and caught each other up on what we've been up to. Man have they had some adventures themselves, and retelling all my stories reminded me of how much I've seen and done the last few weeks. It amazing how many stories one can accumulate in such a short amount of time. I'm out here living folks. Are you? :)

Breeze

P.s. My awesome parents bought me a brand new waterproof camera as a super duper early Christmas present because they knew I really needed one. As a consequence, I am no longer using my phone as my main camera, so unfortunately I don't have any pictures to share :/ I'll try and snap a few with my phone so that the blog doesn't look so empty. 

8/5: On a bus headed back from Boston!

I think I have finally found my true calling in life: professional tourist. I don't know how to say this without coming off egotistical so I'm going to just say it. It seems I am really good at walking into a city having little to no prior knowledge of the area, and somehow leaving that city feeling like I nailed the visit. I've pulled it off in Washington, New York City, and now Boston. Like always, let's start from the beginning, shall we?

First I need to thank Ms. Darby Jane Herrington for treating me to one of the greatest weekends of my life. I still can't believe she was willing to fly up here and take me out on the town of Boston for 3 days and pay for everything! I don't know how I got so lucky finding such a wonderful friend like her. We had a great time exploring the streets of Boston together. We did all sorts of things, such as stumble upon an Italian street festival in North Boston, gaze out at sailboats at Boston's beautiful old harbor, and watched street performers dance, backflip over tourist, stand perfectly still, or juggle knives atop 6 foot tall unicycles at Franeuil Hall Marketplace. We ate delicious food at some of America's oldest restaurants (Darby was pretty shocked at my new found food capacity! But we worked out a good system. I ate all my food and then ate her leftovers too lol), drank local craft beer by the pint, toured Samuel Adam's Brewery, got extremely lost (sorry about that, Darbs...wow were we in the wrong neighborhood!), and even went to a stand up comedy show in the shadows of Harvard! Darby and I aren't used to having people around that graduated from a better school then ours lol. By far the coolest thing we did however was follow the Freedom Trail.

Now I know exactly what you're thinking. In fact I am thinking the same thing. I mean seriously Breeze, another stinking trail? Well, yes, actually :). The Freedom Trail is truly the best way to see Boston by foot and should be the first thing you do upon arrival. First, it gives you a great look at the entire city and all the things it has to offer, such as bars, restaurants, parks, and museums. Second, it takes you by some of the oldest and most historical landmarks in the United States. Being able to say I saw the church where the lanterns where hung to alert the Bostonians of the arrival of the Red Coats by sea is really cool. Seeing the graves of Samuel Adams, or the site of the Boston Massacre, or the bar where the idea for the Sons of Liberty was conceived made patriotism course through my very veins. Oh here is some fun trivia for you! Here are three misconceptions that are present in "The midnight Ride of Paul Revere" poem by Henry Longfellow. 

1) Paul Revere did not ride alone. Two other riders were also delivering the message at the start, and many others joined throughout the night.

2) Paul Revere definitely did not yell "The British are coming!" Revere, along with the rest of the New Englanders, were still British citizens. In fact, many of the people living in Boston were English loyalist. He more likely said, "The regulars are coming" very quietly to known patriot houses. Secrecy was critical to their plan.

3) Paul Revere was captured and interrogated by British troops before completing his ride to Concord.

There are actually plenty more, but I don't want to blow anyone's mind any more than necessary. I hope everyone had a great weekend like me!

Cheers!

Breeze

8/3: On a bus headed for Boston! 1546.8

That's right folks! I have pulled off the impossible! I have successfully pulled off a plan that has been in the works for weeks! I'm on a bus headed for Boston, MA!! But first, let me catch you guys up on what I've been up to the past couple of days. Buckle up, it's been a wild ride.

First, let me go ahead and take the main issue at hand head on and get it out of the way: Yes, I have pink hair. Allow me to start from the beginning.

Wednesday I hiked a solid 19 miles to reach Great Barrington, MA to resupply and grab a Powerade. The plan was to do a quick in-and-out, grab my food, and spend the night at a campsite near the road. I was feeling really good about my plan at first when I thumbed down a ride on my very first car! That's a really random fact and has absolutely nothing to do with the story, but I was very excited because I've never been able to pull that mythical "one thumb hitch before". That honor is usually reserved for my female thru hiking counterparts. Anyway, I'm doing my shopping in this very swanky high end MA grocery store, receiving my normal "what are you doing in here" looks when a lady comes by and asks if I am thru hiking.

"Yes ma'am," I respond as if by reflex. I always say ma'am...I mean duh. She smiles and asks if I'm from the South.

"Yes ma'am, I'm from Georgia," I respond and we strike up a conversation about why ma'am isn't used in the North and about thru hiking. After a few minutes she asked if I need a place to stay for the night and if I'd like to come to her house for some dinner and laundry. To my mom's horror I immediately take her up on her offer. She was a very peculiar lady but didn't seem dangerous. Plus a free meal and laundry is always worth the risk :). In a few minutes I was in her car headed to her house.

Now I've ridden with so many different people from all over the east coast, but there is one common thread that nearly all of them share: they love telling you their problems. I guess they view me as a free pair of ears that they'll never see again, a kind of free therapy vent session that is my price to pay for a ride into town. I've heard it all, from boneheaded kids to our current administration to their battle against cancer. It can get awkward at times but thankfully the rides are typically short. I really like hitching with other people so when we get out of the car we can look at each other and say, "What in the hell just happened in there??" This ladies problem was that her car was in the shop, and they wanted 1300 dollars to fix some part of the engine she couldn't recall...I just hope they weren't changing her headlight fluid or something....

At the moment she told me the cost of her repair bill it hit her like a ton of bricks. You see, she was in a borrowed car. A car that she was returning to the owner later that night. She wasn't going to be able to get me back to the AT the next day.

Seriously space cadet?? Come back down from the moon Buzz Aldrin, welcome to Earth! But I tell her that's fine, and that she can just take me back to the trail. In a panic she says she doesn't have time. She's really frazzled now, and immediately pulls off in the middle of Great Barrington and wishes me luck as she kicks me out and drives away! I'm left standing in God only knows where MA with my groceries in one hand and my pack in the other wondering what on Earth just transpired in a matter of 30 seconds! I look around for a second and start pulling myself together when I hear a familiar voice call, "Hey Breeeezzeee! Over here!"

All the friend I've been trying to catch the past few days are all sitting out on a patio of a bar just a few yards from where I got dropped off! I've said it so many times on this blog already, but I'm going to say it again: the trail provides! I end up going and hanging out with everyone the rest of the night, drink a few drinks, and listen to all the awesome musicians and performers at open mic night! We all had a great time and I even yogi-ed a few free drinks off some easily fascinated townies. A few hours later...well, you guessed it! I had pink hair. I wasn't alone though, and believe it or not, mine doesn't look that bad compared to some. Poor Home Brew tried to dye his beard. Talk about a disaster. I've been planning to buzz my hair anyway; I found a tick in there the other day. But it'll be a lot of fun walking around Boston with my pink streak!

I hope everyone is behaving themselves back home :). I'll have a blog post for you when I get back from Boston.

Hike on!

Breeze

Oh and I also went up on a roof. But that's a whole different story. Can't hear em all!

NYC Pictures

Just a few pics from Mantattan. Wish I could post more!

Breeze

7/30: Brassie Brook Shelter, 1500.9

That's right folks! I have officially hiked 1500+ miles (the plus sign obviously symbolizing that extra 9/10th of a mile I tacked on for good measure :P). Also, tomorrow morning I will say so long to the state of Connecticut! That means just 4 states and 685 miles is all that separates me from Mt. Katadhin! Wow. Unfortunately the 4 states I have left are the most difficult of the entire trip, but by all accounts also the most beautiful, so I have a lot left to do and a lot more to look forward to!

The past few days I have been hiking and camping primarily alone. I had to temporarily leave my friends Spider and Sriracha behind so that I could meet Darby in Boston this weekend. But don't worry, I'm just getting a head start on them so that we can continue to hike together after the Boston trip :). I am SO excited to see Darby!! I don't even want to think about how long it's been since we last saw each other :(. I'm glad she is able to come out and meet me while I'm on this trip too! Just another awesome chapter in an already incredible book of adventure. And I get to check yet another east coast city of my list of never-before-seen-places!

Hiking alone the past few days has been really enjoyable; I haven't done hardly any solo hiking the entire time I've been out here. I am able to take a break whenever I'd like, read my book, hike fast, or journal whenever I see fit. It's so peaceful out here in the forest of Connecticut. It really is a beautiful state, even if it does have some steep ups and downs! While in my solitude I've had a few random thoughts. Would you like to hear? I thought you might!

I would like to first start off my mindless tangent by thanking the makers of DEET for creating such a wonderfully horrifying chemical. While I'm fairly certain DEET was created by the NAZIS during WWII as a means of chemical warfare, and that it is probably more healthy for me to stick my head in a microwave than to spray this stuff on my skin, I must say it does a remarkable job at keeping both mosquitoes and ticks at bay. Getting skin cancer at 70 sounds better than getting Lyme's disease tomorrow. I'll just discontinue usage post thru hike :). Today I got DEET over spray in my mouth.... Yuck! I tried to wash it out with Mio flavored water. The result was as you would expect: Mio flavored DEET water. Why is DEET always seen in all caps anyway? Does it stand for something?

Anyways! Today I also thought of 3 of the biggest letdowns of my trip 1500 miles in. Are you ready?

1) I have not developed the calve muscles of a Greek God.
          - What's a guy got to do to get sexy calves around here? Clearly it isn't walk up mountains for going on 5 months with 35 lbs on your back! I mean don't get me wrong, they're way stronger. But they don't look way stronger! I'm looking for definition! You know why the definition of my calves are? Shapeless muscle masses.

2) I have not made eye contact with a single bear.
          - Now this may sound like a victory to some, but I have only seen two bears this entire trip, and both were ALREADY in the act of running from me by the time I noticed them! I mean don't get me wrong here, I don't want to actually feel in any way endangered. But good grief people, the back end of a bear crashing down the hillside isn't even enough to get adrenaline flowing! I mean I just saw a bear, and it might as well have been a deer or a chipmunk!

3) I have developed 0 zombie apocalyptic survival skills.
          - Pardon me, but I thought that living in the woods this long would make some sort of survivalist out of me. I didn't expect to walk off the trail wielding a crossbow or even be Rick-esque...but I at least thought I would have a leg up on all you normal every day folk. Nope. I'm just as doomed as the rest of you. Unless walking for 10-12 hours a day at around 2 mph will benefit me at all? No? I thought not.

Well that just about does it for me!

Breeze

New York City

Alright everyone, buckle up, because this is going to be a crazy one! I've got a TON to catch you up on since I last blogged on the 19th. Thankfully I am sitting in the Pawling, NY city library so I have an actual keyboard at my disposal! And here we go!

As you probably noticed, last week was one of the most challenging weeks I've had on the trail. And by challenging, I mean it was hell. However, as I have learned time and TIME again, the AT giveth and the AT taketh away. And man did the AT giveth this time! On the 19th, I had all but given up on my goal of going to NYC.  However, I woke up the next day, pulled on my "Big boys don't cry" pants, laced up my "I hate walking sometimes" boots, and hiked 23 miles - heat rash, toe and all. That Saturday actually turned out to be a really good day, and I was feeling great until I got a call from my Dad late Saturday night. My whole world once again came crashing down when he informed me that my free place to stay in the city was no longer available. I hung up the phone and immediately sent texts to every thru hiker I knew looking for a place to stay, or at minimum some new ideas. Sunday morning I woke up to a text from my good friend Sriracha, whom was just a few days behind me. She said she had a family friend in the area that was going to pick her up that day and take her close to the city, and that I was welcomed to join them! At the time I had no idea what the plan was, but I immediately jumped on the opportunity anyway. If I was going to make anything work, it was going to be now or never! Sriracha and her trail angel, Harriet, come and pick me up at at the predetermined road crossing. I literally ran the last three miles so that I wouldn't be late! Harriet turned out to be one of the sweetest trail angels I have met on this entire trip. In fact, I am going to take this opportunity to thank her for all her help and hospitality. She gave me a ride to and from the city, picked me up at 2 a.m., did my laundry (3 times! - they were pretty bad...), and gave me a place to stay Tuesday night. Sometimes people's kindness is literally overwhelming out here. She took me and Sriracha to a great little diner on the outskirts of the city and we ate as we discussed our options. Sriracha was only going to stay one night at Harriet's and then go hike the next day, but as fate would have it, Wendy and his family were vacationing in Manhattan through Tuesday morning! Seriously guys, what are the odds?! I get a random, last second ride to the city just in time to catch the Dents in New York? I don't know how the stars could have possibly aligned this well. My only explanation is that the Appalachian Trail truly is a magical place, even if it likes to torture you sometimes. I quickly asked permission to stay with the Dents through Tuesday, and Harriet agreed to drive me to the Subway station. I was actually going to the city!! 

The next two days were absolutely picturesque. I had so much fun with Wendy and his family on Monday. We went to an amazing pizza place near Times Square called John's Pizzeria. Seriously the best pizza I have ever had, and my first slice of truly authentic New York pie. We then went down to south side of the island to see the new World Trade Center Building, the Brooklyn Bridge, and the Statue of Liberty, all by water taxi! We wrapped up the day by checking out the USS Intrepid and heading back to Times Square for dinner. At this time I would like to extend a huge, warm thank you to Wendy's parents. Thank you so very much for allowing me to stay with you in the city, and more importantly, treating me as if I were your own son for the day. I had the best time hanging out with you. Your generosity cannot be overstated and was much appreciated. 

I ended the day by going to Citi Field to watch the Braves take on the Mets, which I am not ashamed to say is the the whole reason I even wanted to go to NYC in the first place. The game was absolutely incredible come from behind win for the Braves that ended with a spectacular game saving catch by Jason Heyward! Surprisingly however, that is not the reason this was such an unbelievable night. I previously mentioned that the AT is a special place, and you are about to read why I came to that conclusion. So I am standing under the over hang in left center field watching the final few outs in the game when I notice a Braves fan next to me. We begin chatting about the season when he inquires about my Saints hat. I quickly mention that I grew up in Greenwood, MS and was raised a Saints fan. When I mention that I was from Greenwood, the man hesitates, then tells me that he is with someone about my age from Greenwood. He goes to get his friend and introduces him as Tyler Floyd - which just so happens to be my childhood best friend from grade school!! Oh my good lord in heaven, are you kidding me?! I haven't seen Tyler since my going away party when I was 10 years old! I never in a million billion years would have imagined I would have run into him at a Mets game in New York City! Seriously, what are the odds of that???

Tuesday was nearly as awesome as Monday. I start the day by going up the Empire State Building to the 86th floor! I then go and meet Sriracha in China Town, and we go and eat Dim Sum at the Golden Unicorn before heading over to Little Italy for gelato and cappuccinos. Talk about an amazing lunch! Dim Sum is a crazy experience. For those that do not know (I didn't before Tuesday), Dim Sum is basically a Chinese style buffet where they bring carts of food around to your table. I had no idea what most of the food was, but it was all delicious! Shortly after our incredible lunch, we meet up with two of our other thru hiking buddeis, Tumbleweed and Fool Hardy! Tumbleweed is the comic book artist, Jessi Sheron, that I have mentioned in previous posts. As fate would once again have it, she has just recently gotten her first ever comic book published! We all went to a comic book store on Times Square to see her very own comic book on the shelf! What an incredible experience that must have been for her! I am proud just to know her at all and be there for that experience. Just amazing. 

Well guys, the above is truly a reader's digest version of my time in NYC. Unfortunately I haven't even talked about my time on the trail since the city, but rest assured, I am having a blast! I am actually going to get to see my good friend Darby in Boston next weekend!  Laissez les bon temps rouler! 

Breeze

p.s. I'll post some pictures in a little bit. I'm on a computer and my pictures are on my phone and quite frankly I'm too lazy to do the transfer. Cheers! 

7/19: Wawayanda Shelter, 1357.6

On a day that had so much potential, I had one of the worst trail days I've had in a while. I woke up this morning thinking I was going to knock out a solid 16+ miles today, get into New York, and be a little bit closer to my goal of catching a Braves game in NYC. I hate to say it, but I think that dream died today.

The day started out like any other day lately. I woke up sweating and began breaking down camp as I fought off the mosquitoes and gnats. I ate breakfast, purified some water, and set off in the blistering heat around 8:30. It was hot, no doubt, but it wasn't any hotter than it has been the last week or so, with the high being in the mid 90s. But for some reason the heat and humidity really got to me today, and I didn't feel the energy I've come to expect from myself. I was dying going up every mountain and through every clearing. I just couldn't get it together. I took a long break at an amazing farm market called Heaven Hill Farms. I bought a few plums and peaches and sat underneath a shade tree drinking tons of water. A lot of other thru hikers were there too so we all hung out together and had a lot of fun beating the heat. Also, the owner of the farm market was super hiker friendly! Eventually I felt a little better so I pressed on up the trail. A few hours later I began itching everywhere! I'm pretty used to being itchy because the mosquitoes are so bad, but this was different. I took my shirt off too discover that my entire torso had broken out in a rash. A heat rash. I stopped and took another long break trying to cool off and figure out how this could have happened. I mean I was hot, but I've been this hot for days, and I've never gotten a heat rash in my life. Good lord do heat rashes itch! I'm finally starting to feel better again, when boom, I feel a piercing pain in my right shoulder! Some unknown insect had just planted it's stinger right into my skin. It immediately began swelling up. I have no idea what stung me but man did it hurt! It still kind of hurts actually - the swelling and the mark has gone down but my arm still feels a little achy. Well, I pull out my guide book and see that I am only a few miles from a state park, so I begin walking to get there. I show up at the state park to discover that the office is closed, but my good friend Jackalope is hanging out by the office. He says his parents are coming to get him for his 30th birthday, and that I am more than welcome to go by their condo to eat, shower, and hang out in the AC for a while. Finally something is going right today! While I'm waiting, another friend of mine, Predator, gives me some Benadryl, which knocks me out but makes me feel a million times better.

I take Jackalope up on his offer. I hadn't done the miles I was supposed to for the day, but I needed some trail magic in the worst kind of way. Olive Oil, Wet Bag, and I accompany Jackalope and his parents to their condo where we hang out, cool off, and eat delicious food! Jackalope's parents have their own garden, and nearly everything I ate came from it. The spaghetti sauce was homemade from their tomatoes, and the salad was made up of nothing but fresh vegetables. Jackalope's mom even made homemade bread and apple pie! Talk about awesome trail magic! So my day was finally turning around....or so I thought.

Jackalope's parents took me, Olive Oil, and Wet Bag back to the trail later that night. We only planned to go a hundred yards or so to the campsite, so I didn't bother putting on my boots. Maybe 50 yards in, I kick a rock in my sandals and slice my big toe wide open. So there I am, a mere 50 yards from camp, attempting to stop the bleeding sitting in the dark with flies and mosquitoes attacking my headlamp from all directions. And there my friends is where my epic NYC push will probably die. I don't see any way how I am going to be able to do the necessary miles to NYC with my big toe in this condition, or this heat rash which has only slightly improved.

Yep, today was pretty miserable, with a few good things sprinkled in for flair. And I wonder why only 17% of thru hikers made it to Katadhin last year. I wonder why I see my friends dropping like flies every day around me. All I can say is that the sun will rise. I will be in a new state tomorrow. This to shall pass.

Breeze :/