Samwise Hikes the Appalachian Trail! - Trail Journal -
	Home	| Updates	| Map	| Journal	| Photos	| Resources	| FAQ

May 22, Jenkins Shelter - mile 563.5

  I just finished an inventory of my feet, which sloshed through puddles steadily for about 8 hours today & 4 hours yesterday. They are pretty disgusting! My skin is wrinkled beyond belief, the sores & blisters where my new shoes are rubbing are open & red, my pinky toe nails are attached now by only the slightest bit of skin, & to top things off I have a swollen patch of fluid formed on the top of one foot. Lovely! I am praying desperately for a dry day tomorrow so that these feet of mine can start to heal.

I'm really tired tonight & I feel like I hiked 20 miles today. Wait a minute --- I did hike almost 20 miles today! Most of them in the rain & some in hail, too. I can't recall ever feeling so thoroughly drenched in my life. What me me most unhappy was that I stopped after 9 miles at the first shelter for lunch, & I decided to stay there. It was actually more like a cabin than a shelter - fully enclosed & wooden bunks built inside. Then I wandered outside & saw a tiny patch of blue sky & felt one ray of sunshine & my resolve to stay fell apart. Before I knew it, I was packed up & headed on to the next shelter, 10 miles away. Only half an hour later, the sky grew black & a gale picked up & the heavens opened on me. Rain so heavy I felt like I was swimming instead of hiking, & then hail to add to the fun. Because the weather is now so warm, I don't bother with rain gear any more, but I was wishing I had today. Unfortunately, by the time I'm being beaten senseless by ice stones from the sky, I refuse to stop & open my pack because every thing would get soaked inside. So I merely endured the beating & gave myself a lecture to put my jacket on next time.

After all that, I arrived at the shelter tonight just one person too late & had to set up my tent out in the elements. Granted, the sky cleared during dinner & it looks perfectly safe, but I don't trust it for a minute. It's cleared so many times these past few days, only to return with a vengeance. Last night it rained so hard, I didn't think anyone's tents would survive (they did, of course). I surely hope we're not in for the same kind of storm tonight!

May 23, Helveys Mill Shelter - mile 577.8

A nice short day today to compensate for the abuse I gave my feet yesterday. I'm not sure it was short enough, but this was the very next shelter & there weren't many camping options in between. Besides, with this streak of thunderstorms we're had, I'm aiming for shelters as much as possible. I was absolutely thrilled to wake up to a dry morning today. Every thing was still damp because of the humidity, but at least it wasn't raining. Putting my cold,wet clothes back on - on a 40* morning, when I could see my breath, was a very difficult chore! I bundled my rain jacker & stocking cap on top of the wet mess & after a half hour of uphill hiking, I was warm.

The exciting experience of today was taking the 2 mile high water trail around Little Wolf Creek. The guidebook says it "can be a joy on a sunny day but can be dangerous after a few days of heavy rain". When I got to the trail junction I didn't even stop to think twice, but turned immediately down the high water trail. After all the precarious stream fording I've done the past two days, I didn't have to personally visit this one to know it would be bad, too. The blue blaze was a nice trail, too, & it came out at the other end of the stream where there was a bridge built across. Listening to the roar of the stream as I came down for a mile up the trail, I knew I had made the right decision. If I had tried to ford that raging water, I would have washed down stream in a minute.

Besides a few other stream crossings, the rest of the day was calm & uneventful. In fact, I would say it was one of the most perfect hiking days we've had. The temperature wasn't more than 60* & the sun was warm, the trail was as level & nicely graded as I've ever seen. What a great day!

Well, it's closing in on 2 months on the trail. Some days I feel like I'm a pro, but most days I still feel like a newcomer to it! I still wonder when that glorious "trail shape" is going to occur. I haven't lost any fat, though my muscles are definitely bigger. I still huff & puff going up hills - just as bad as when I first started! The only thing I can definitely see improvement in is my level of endurance. When I started, a ten mile day was exhausting, whereas now I can go 17 or 18 miles to achieve the same exhaustion. And here, where the terrain is milder, I can even go 20 miles & still be able to walk the next day. Not well, mind you, but a hobble still qualifies when you're a hiker. Actually, I'm not so sure I will ever walk normally again.

I think I'm going to schedule a visit to the doctor in one of these next towns - maybe even Pearisburg if I can get in early enough on Saturday. This foot swelling thing is starting to bug me, so I think I'll get it checked out.

It's another interesting night at the shelter, a few people just out for a short trip & about 7 thru-hikers here. I must say I miss the usual crowd that I hiked with before Damascus. I hope some of them start catching up soon. Max has been hiking the same schedule the last week, but other wise we've left everyone else behind. And this particular group we're with is filled with folks who like to cuss & drink, mostly. One guy here tonight has a bad cold & he's been spitting loogies all over camp & touching everybody else's food - gross!