Books to Inspire Adventure

Tootsie and AKshepra Feet

Hiking the AT has been a dream of mine since high school.  I can't really remember what sparked my interest but it has always been there.  While AKsherpa and I were preparing for this trip we came across some great books.  Two of the books that we really enjoyed was the Barefoot Sisters:South Bound and the Barefoot Sisters:Walking Home.  These ladies really know how to write.  They make you feel like you are walking along side of them on the trail.

Another book that had us laughing out loud and in stitches was A Walk in the Woods.  Some of you may have seen the movie.  The movie was good but the book is sooo much better.  Bill Bryson is a great writer.  He also weaves a lot of interesting facts and history about the trail into the book.

Here are a couple more books suggested by The Trek that should make for a good read as well!

If you have any suggestions for books that inspire adventure be sure to leave them in the comments.

Day 19: Homeward Bound

Ah, our Appalachian Trail journey is over.  It always amazes me how slow a trip starts out and then before you know it, it's over.  We felt like we had so much time out here and poof, gone.

We started out with breakfast at a great little diner in town.  We ran into Uncle Charles at the Post Office.  You could tell he was a little nervous but a lot excited to get out on the trail solo.  Tootsie was able to give him the remainder of her Hot Springs gift card for him to use at the mineral bath.  He was very excited for that!!!

The only place for breakfast in Hot Springs

We got picked up around 10:30am and made it to the airport by 11:15am.  We were wanting lunch but the only restaurant in the Asheville airport was closed.  This should have been our sign that our trip home would not be the easiest!!!!!  So, accustomed to walking now, we walked outside the airport to some restaurants and got back to the airport in plenty of time.

We hit Charlotte with about 30 minutes until we boarded our next flight to Seattle.  Upon reading the departure boards, we saw that our flight was a hour delayed.  No problem!! We wondered around and got to our gate to see that we were now delayed 2.5 hours.  Still, nothing to worry about as we had a lengthy delay in Seattle before our Anchorage flight.  So, we settled in at a bar, got a bite and people watched.  I never knew Charlotte was such a big airport!!

Finally, we get on our flight.  Only to be told our plane is grounded and we all need to deplane.  Not fun.  I get on the phone with American to see what they can do for us and they come up with a crazy route but what could we do?  We just wanted to get home!!!  So, in checking in for our new flight to Phoenix, the check in guy was incredulous at our booking.  He had never seen such a ridiculous routing then what we had.  He ended up changing us to direct to Chicago, an almost 9 hour layover and then the 6 hour flight home.  Not great but better.

We then got some dinner and waited.  And waited.  Finally on board, we fall asleep immediately, only to be told that we are getting in 40 minutes early!!!  The one time we don't want to be early!!!  For any of you that have been at the Chicago airport from midnight to 9 am, you will know 2 things.  1- they keep the temperature just above freezing!!!  Poor Tootsie had flip flops on and was so cold she couldn't even cat nap.  She ended up winning some socks in a vending machine and that helped some.  2- nothing opens until 5 am!!!!!  Such a long night!!

Anyway, we switched to Alaska Airlines (the only carrier to take in our opinion), left on time and got home to Anchorage early.  A 32 hour ride home, but home at last.

Home

Day 18 - Reward Day

Day 18 greeted us with sunshine and the knowledge that The Family would be rolling into town today.  After just one day in Hot Springs, AKsherpa and I felt like locals.  We sat outside the outfitters just watching the activity of the day and hiker after hiker walking into town.  We dubbed ourselves the official welcoming committee.  We made plans with each of them to meet up later in the evening at the Tavern.

Following lunch we met up with The Family took our last picture together and chatted away.  We said our good byes as the time for our massages creeped closer.  The spa (Hot Springs Resort) was awaiting us and there was not any way we were going to miss it.

Uncle, Tootsie, South Pa, AKsherpa, CoCo

After our 75 minute stone massages we made our way to the mineral tubs to enjoy a hour soak. Which was relaxation piled upon relaxation.   We had a river side tub that made for a spectacular view!

We headed back to the hotel to rest for a bit, work on laundry and get dinner.  We enjoyed the Iron Horse (the expensive restaurant in town).  We thought the prices were great!

After that it was time to meet up with all our hiker friends at the Tavern.  We enjoyed good company and a great closure to our hike.

Day 17: Roaring Fork Shelter to Hot Springs

Holy cow did it rain last night!!!!  All night to be exact.  Around 3am, I started to notice puddling in our tent. Crap.  I did not want a wet sleeping bag!!!!  We were only 20 miles from the end our journey which we weren't sure if we wanted to have a such a big day.

Misty mornings

We were just going to see how we felt as the day went on.  We knew we wanted to spend some time with The Family in Hot Springs, but with their big day yesterday, that was not going to happen!!

Some fungi along the trail

Blaze in the mist

So, we headed out in the mist, down our green tunnel, hoping that it wasn't going to rain the rest of the day.  We stopped at the top of a large hill climb to rest, very thankful we didn't stay there last night.  A very dark and dingy shelter full of mice!!  Drew passed us and we hoped we would see him again.  He was a super nice kid.

Enjoying some sun!!

We got going again and the weather started to improve.  We were feeling good when we hit mile 17, a shelter that we had heard was haunted.  That, combined with a VERY large spider, had us running the last 3 miles to Hot Springs!!!

Maine is still far, far away!!

I would not want to spend the night with this dude!

The last of our blazes

Tootsie glad for the last blaze!!

We rolled in around 630pm, found a hostel, dumped our stuff and went to find food.  We did "clean" up a bit before hand, however.  This just entails wet wipes to get some grime off your face and some stink off.  I was doing this, not really even thinking about who was around.  The owner, who was telling us about the 3 restaurants in town, was looking at me (as I was wiping my armpits and chest, I know, TMI) and said, "um you are in mixed company now, ma'am.  I can't talk to you while you do that."  It was hilarious. I hadn't even thought twice about it.  I wasn't citified yet!  Haha!!

Us with Drew

Anyway, we went to dinner at a tavern, where we met up with Drew.  It was nice to meet up with people we knew!! The tavern had a band playing and overall it was a great night.

Day 16 - Brown Gap to Roaring Fork Shelter

Here is us and our shuttle driver Mark.  He was great and had a impressive physical fitness history of his own.  He picked us up after doing a run and bike working on his transition time for an upcoming triathlon he was going to be competing in later in the month.  After a quick selfie we were ready to hit the trail again. Can you guess what the profile looked like?  That's right straight up for about a mile or more.



Before we started our climb we decided to leave a little something to help inspire The Family.  They

decided to stay on the trail when we had decided to make it a town night.  Hopefully seeing this smiling face would make them smile and give them the encouragement to keep going.  We were excited about what was after the climb for the day.  Not only did the trail simmer down and let up on hills we were heading straight for Max's Patch.  We had heard lots of great things about this point in the trail and were definitely looking forward to it.

On our way to Max's Patch AKsherpa continued with here rock formations and inspiration for The Family.  She has a hidden talent for rock cairns.    We found lots of photo ops today and took advantage for sure.                              

          

   

After all our stops to make cairns and take pictures we made it to Max's Patch.  It was a great view.

We enjoyed our time at Max's Patch and then kept on.  Enjoying easy down hill and even some flat hiking we made it to our Shelter for the night.  Set up the tent settled in and waited for the family to catch up.  

While we waited for The Family another hiker rolled into the shelter.  We chatted him up and found out he had just graduated from Graduate School, had a job lined up in California, and was doing this in between.  He was a great kid and we enjoyed his company.  

The Family finally made it to the shelter.   We had treats and dinner ready for them.  They deserved it after their long day so that we could spend a little more time together.

         

 

Day 15: Cosby Knob to Davenport Gap

We got off to a later the normal start today, due to drizzle and my stove acting up.  It had poured buckets over night and everything was damp.  We were looking at a longer day, and the weather was not favorable.  After getting caught in the downpour once, it would not happen again!!!  So, we set off with our pack covers on, in hopes that it would ward off the rain.  No such luck.  We slogged thru the rain all day.  It wasn't all that bad at first, just a drizzle.

The side trail to Mt. Cammerer

The big attraction today was another old fire tower, Mt. Cammerer.  It was a .6 mile detour, but it was worth it.  We stopped to get out of the rain of a bit and got to look out at the beautiful scenery beneath us.  On our way out, Tootsie got stopped by Park Service Ranger and had to show her permit.  Kind of neat to see they actually check for those things!!

Tootsie in the tower

Inside the lookout

Still a nice view

We started down again, and this time the rain really started.  We got to an older shelter that still had the wire fencing around the shelter.  It was not pleasant.  It was at this point we decided to heck with it, we are finding a gap and going to town!!!

Not staying here!!!!

 So, thankfully, I have Verizon and have service about 60% of the time and I had it here.  We found a ride and a hotel nearby and we skipped down the last few miles knowing we had a warm dry bed in our future!!  Just before hitting the gap, we left Smokies and left our permits in the box.  We had completed the Park!!!

Finishing our Smokies Section

Mark was our driver and he was awesome.  Took us on some back roads and really talked about the local area.  He agreed to pick us up the next morning and take us back on the trail.  A great guy!!!

Day 14 - Peck's Corner to Cosby Knob (Solstice)

Being Alaskan's AKsherpa and I were excited to be on the trail on Summer Solstice.  Not only was it the longest day of the year for sunlight but it is National Naked Hiking Day!  We had big plans, hike a big numbered day, run into other naked hikers, and enjoy the day of sun.  Unfortunately, we were not in the land of the Midnight Sun.   We were in the Smokies where well it's smokey.

The day was overcast and a threat of rain loomed all day.  Despite the impending threat of rain the hiking was really enjoyable.  We were experiencing nice rounds on the elevation map and hardly any shark teeth.  We hiked a lot of the day with The Family.

There were lots of vistas today as well which was a change from the green tunnel we had been hiking in for the previous two weeks.

If you look close it says - Solstice

We enjoyed lunch on an area referred to as an helicopter pad - this link provides a great description of the area and history.  After a leisurely lunch with The Family our feet were rested and our bellies full. We were ready to make our way to Cosby Knob which we affectionally started calling Cosby Sweater.

We made it to Cosby Sweater by 4:30p which is an early day for a 13 mile day aka half marathon.  Our timing couldn't have been better.  Soon after settling into the shelter the rain started.  As Uncle so optimistically stated, "We are dry and in a shelter!"

AKsherpa cooked up my Thai Chicken Curry that I had made and had been looking forward to for 14 days.  It was a huge portion and we were able to finish it so we shared it with The Family.  Uncle had enjoyed my cheesy pasta.  We were told we needed to sell our dehydrated meals. Something AKSherpa and I had toyed with a few months back and may need to revisit.

Everyone was in bed by 8:00p and asleep soon after.  Tomorrow was a big day of a projected 15 miles with a side trip to Mt. Cammerer.

No Naked Hikers except Mindy!

        

Day 13: Newfound Gap to Pecks Corner Shelter

After another very good slumber (but I should say we miss the birds in the morning!!), we had a light breakfast, packed up and were eager to get back on the trail!! Tootsie, Southpaw, Coco and I caught a shuttle back up the mountain and started with a nice, easy climb for once!!

Back on the trail!!

Since Newfound Gap is a very popular viewing point, we had a lot of foot traffic with us.  We stopped for lunch at Water Spring Shelter and met up with Uncle Charles.  We continued on, hoping to get out of the mass of people at the shelter.  REI had a group going up the trail to a popular view point, the Bunion.  Once we passed that, it was just us again.

The Bunion

It was a beautiful day, with many scenic spots.  We stopped for the day at a shelter that was not the greatest but would do.  We shared it with the Family and several other weekend hikers.  They were all really nice people, with one older man have a vast knowledge of the area.  He showed us where all the wild hogs had torn up the area.  Those things are super destructive!!

Cute little guy.  Tootsie DID NOT like him!!!!

That night in camp, while walking around the site near the privy, I heard a screech.  Now, it goes without saying, that while you are in the woods, your needs are very basic.  Food, shelter, water, potty.  Modesty goes out the window quite quickly as well.  So, the screech stops me and out comes this camper that I literaly just met 5 minutes ago.  He askes me, "Did you hear me scream?"  I said I had.  His reply was, "This may be TMI, but I was wiping my ass, and fell off the toilet lid."  I just starred at him and was like gotcha, good to know!!!  There are no off limit subjects out here and its quite funny most of the time!!!  We all got a good laugh over this!!

I started to put these on the trail for the Family to find.  

Random play list today: Johnny Cash You are my sunshine (to ward off the rain) and Burning Ring of Fire (my calves on the way uphill and my thighs on the way down!!)

Day 12 - Zero in Gatlingburg

A zero is day without hiking but from my perspective it's anything but a zero.  There is so much to do even though you are off the trail.  For us Gatlinburg was a scheduled box drop and resupply.  I had also discovered that sleeping in a real bed was a bit of a problem for me.  For whatever reason I didn't sleep as well as when we were on the trail in the tent.  Go figure 😏  But we were so glad we had gotten into town before the down pour!

We started our day off with someone else doing the cooking and enjoyed breakfast at Crockett's 1875 Breakfast Camp.  I loved it!  They had great food, atmosphere, and service.  If you were a patron in the restaurant you probably thought we were P-I-G-S!  There was a lot of food on our table.  Hiker hunger was striking and we were filling the void.

Since we were in a touristy town we were tourist for about an hour.  Got gifts for the family and strolled the main drag, but once the real tourist started to fill the streets AKsherpa and I were out!  We had chores to do.  We strolled over to the NOC were I had sent our resupply box.  Signed into the register and asked the lady behind the counter for my box.  She looked at my I.D. and said, "I hope it's here."  What?? She hopes it's here.  It better be. It has 6 days of food in it and $$$.  I nervously waited and it felt like it was taking her way too long to find my box.  Finally, she returned and handed over our box.  It's like Christmas every time we get a box.  Since we shipped it two weeks earlier we had forgotten what were in them.

                    

 


Headed back to the hotel to organize food, make a grocery list, pack up nonessentials and buys from town to send back home.  Then we headed to the trolley station and headed to the Post Office.  I have to say small town Post Offices have great service. The gal behind the counter helped us save money and use her tape for free.  After completing that chore it was off to the grocery store.  We weren't entirely sure where the store was so I asked, "How far is the grocery store? Do we need to jump back on the trolley?"  The gal laughed at us.  "Honey, just turn around it's that building right across the street.  I think you can walk."  Ha, Ha the joke was on us and we were grateful it was so close.
                                                                                                                                                              Got everything on our list after doing three or four laps of the store.
Became a ValuCard member of Food City, which save me just about $5.

Then headed to the trolley station for the ride back into town where we went to the hotel to actually rest for a few.

South Pa and CoCo showed up and we decided on a restaurant for the evening.  Cherokee Grill - which met all of our requirements.  Meat for South Pa, Wine for AKsherpa, mixed drinks for me, and well CoCo just came along.  We all enjoyed steak and an adult beverage or two, great conversation, and service.  

After dinner we did a stroll of Main Street once again.  The tourist were hiding because it had just down poured during dinner.  We didn't mind.  Just as we finished and headed to the hotel the tourist were back out in full force and we were ready to finish up laundry and call it a night.

We had a shuttled scheduled for the morning to return us to the trail!

Day 11: Derricks Knob to Clingmans Dome

So we got up a little earlier then normal today, knowing that we had a long, uphill day ahead of us.  At this point, tho, everyday seemed like a long, up hill day!!!  Anyway, we had heard the forecast and some grumblings amongst other hikers about the heavy rains that were supposed to hit tonight and the following day.  This would come into play later on.

Breakfast of champions!!

It started out as a beautiful day as we climbed up to the highest peak on the AT.  Since we knew we had a hard day, we stopped for a double lunch.  While we were there, the Family caught up and we chatted about our plans.  When we were packing up, rain started to hit us.  This made up our mind to get off the mountain and into Gatlinburg.  Coco and Southpaw agreed as well and I was able to call our shuttle to see if he could get us a day earlier.  He said no problem.  We were stoked!!

Beautiful view before the rain

The last 3 miles up to the Dome was all in the fog and mist.  The mist moved so fast between the trees it was crazy.  Pictures didn't do it justice!!

Getting closer

We finally made it to the top, with about 2,000 of our closest friends.  This place was a zoo!!!  There is a wide, paved  half mile trail from the parking lot to the curved paved ramp up to the top.  On nice, sunny days, this place can see 30,000 in one day!!!  We walked up the walkway, and got brief views of the landscape thru the fog and mist before we headed back down.  Time for some town food and clean clothes!!!

Clingman selfie

Tootsie enjoying the view

The AKsherpa

Walkway up to the top

Our shuttle drive met us, and whisked us into the touristy town of Gatlinburg.  After being in the solitude and quietness, this town was quite abrasive.  But, they had good food and our resupply.  For that, we were thankful!!

Tootsie, Southpaw, Coco and AK Sherpa