Making My List and Checking It Twice

I've made my list and I'm checking it twice ... wait a minute it's not Christmas.  It may not be Christmas but it is just a few days away from hitting the trail.  When planning for our trip I had my own gear list in mind but my gear is specific to Alaska backpacking.  Is backpacking different in the lower 48?  The answer to that is YES, but not by much.  

Alaskan Bear on the Prow

For example, in the lower 48 there is concern about ticks, snakes, and bears.  Of course, we have bears in Alaska too but generally hanging food bags are not a concern.  On our trails there are bear boxes to put your smelly items in.  To be prepared I will be bringing the necessary items to hang our food.  

PCT Bear Bag Hanging Method

Just so Alaska and I won't forget anything I made us a gear list. Since we are hiking together some of the items that would normally be carried by just one we were able to split and not duplicate. For example, Alaska is in charge of the cook stove and water filter, I'm responsible for the tent. Below is our list.  You can see that I have put in notes as to those things we didn't want to duplicate and who would be responsible for it.  Also reading through our list you see that I am thorough, I included our Mail Drop Supply List and our Route To Do's.

This is a long list and you are probably saying, "No way" you can't fit that all in a pack and it be under 100 lbs.  I have to disagree and I will show you how I organize and make it all fit in my pack.  All of these items can be separated into 2 major categories; the Essentials and the Almost Essentials.  

Essentials: tent, sleeping bag, pad, backpack, clothing, footwear, water, guides/maps, stuff sacks, hygiene, and first aid.  Everything else on the list are almost essentials.  Here is what is looks like in stuff sacks.   

This first picture features my sleeping bag, sleeping pad, tent, tent poles, and my beloved pillow.   

This group includes my hygiene items, clothes, hiker goo for my feet, bug net, 

head lamp, and first aid kit.

  

Finally is my camp shoes and water bottles

Believe it or not I stacked in all into my bag and here is the final product.

Packed and ready to go! Almost.  I discovered when I did one final gear check I was missing a trekking pole.  So off to REI to get new trekking poles.  Even though they are on the Almost Essential list I wouldn't do the trip without them. What's the total weight you maybe asking? Well according to my scale, 35 lbs.  I will report the official weight when we check into the airport and you can check out the pic on Instagram - Trail Gals.

Logistically speaking.....

One would think that planning a hike would be simple.  You just decide where you want to go and put one foot in front of the other, right?  Wrong!!  So much planning has gone into our 3 week hike its crazy.  You would think we were going to the moon with how much research and time we have put in.  A big part of the planning was logistics.  How do we get to the start of the trail?  How do we get our resupplies?  Where do we stay?  Thankfully, I really enjoy this type of stuff, as I do it daily with my job, and I took on the task!!

We first got our flights to Asheville, NC.  Easy enough.  However, our start of the hike in Deep Gap, outside of Franklin, is over 90 minutes away.  So looking at our options, I came across a hiker friendly hotel that would pick us up, spend the night, and drop us off the next morning!  What a deal!

Next was finding a ride and hotel in Fontana.  There are many options in getting to town and a popular way is hitching a ride.  Thinking that both Tootsie and myself were not really up for that sort of thing, I found and an amazing hotel that picks us up from the trail, does our laundry, takes us into town for our resupply, houses us, and then drops us off back at the trail the next morning.  So awesome!!

Gaitlingburg was next on my list.  Now this town is over 25 minutes off the trail so getting there was not going to happen by foot.  Looking over some blogs, I found Tom Bazemore.  He was awesome and so helpful!!  He is picking us up and taking us to town to resupply.  He said he would give a bit of a tour of the town as well.  This is Tom's full time summer job, helping transport hikers on the AT. He loves it!  I had mentioned that we will be ending in Hot Springs and looking for a ride back to Asheville.  Tom said no problem!!


Our final stop is Hot Springs.  We thought this would be an excellent end to our hike.  I found another hiker friendly hotel which is near the Hot Springs spa.  Our spa appointments are already made!!

Tootsie - Not the Candy

How does one get the trail name Tootsie?  Well, let me share with you the back story.  It seems like there is a big trend towards using trail running shoes as backpacking footwear.  The advantages are they are light, waterproof, and have good traction. Having done my fair amount of trail running and my love affair with my trail running shoes I thought I'm doing.  I'm going to do an overnight backpacking trip in my trail running shoes. They are all the rage, everyone is talking about it, I want to be hip and trendy!  I'm jumping on the band wagon!!

I procured this picture from Cleaver Hiker

But... NO!!! Not for a gal like me that is full figured and carrying about a 35 pound pack. They just don't cut it. Let me break it down for you so that you are not sucked into the hype and try it without the proper knowledge.  Mindy and I headed out and for the first half of the trail my shoes were glorious. My feet felt great and I felt like they were supporting me and the weight of my pack. Now imagine a typical Alaskan summer day in August and you know that rain is a factor.  

I did NOT have the traction that I would have liked.  With the added weight of the pack and the wet conditions I was slipping and sliding all over the trail.  That brings us to the wet factor.  Having to go through very shallow puddles and stream crossings my feet were now becoming prunes.  I trudged through and we made it to camp.  My feet received the well needed ventilation they needed to dry out and breath.  

Being naive I thought my shoes would surely dry by morning and I could trek out the next day in comfort. I awoke to very soggy shoes. 😞   So being the trooper that I am I decided I would improvise and put my feet in plastic bags to provide a barrier between my shoes and me.  It worked for awhile until we had to do a stream crossing that went badly and everything got wet.  You may be reading this and laughing, shaking your head, or even feeling just a bit sorry for me and I don't blame you.

So, what I learned is that trail running shoes just don't make the grade.  Since my feet were a constant discussion during the trek Mindy dubbed me Tootsie.  I love my trail name and can't wait to introduce myself on the AT as Tootsie.

Tootsie formally known as Bethany

FOOD!!!!

I really enjoy eating.  It's the whole package for me:  the planning, the food prep, the actual making of a meal and then the enjoyment of sharing it with friends and family.  I feel like I'm missing out when I don't make dinner at night.  I know, I'm weird!!

Alaska about to get her cook on!

In the planning phase of our hike, Bethany and I went over many blogs, read books and just over all researched what most people did on a lengthy hike like ours.  It was all over the map.  From just winging it and filling up on food as they came into towns to fully thought out meals dropped at trail stops.  It was overwhelming to say the least.  We knew we did not want to survive on ramen and Snickers bars and have a majority of our food be healthy and nutritious.  So we came up with our own plan and hopefully it works like we planned!!

First version of our dehydrated meals

So I was excited when we went with dehydrating our own food and making all of our own meals. I got to get my food prep and making a meal fix in!   Looking at the premade meals in the store, we just weren't happy with the added chemicals and lack of veggies.  Plus the cost!!  Holy crow, those meals are spendy!!  So, we figured we could do better.  We both got dehydrators and starting searching and trying out recipes.  Our poor families were subjected to many a dehydrated meal last summer and fall!!

Eggs baked and ready to dehydrate

Overall, we came up with some great meals that we really enjoyed in the taste test.  Fiesta chicken, cheddar and herb chicken, unstuffed peppers, curry with chicken, apple pie, sweet potato porridge are just a few that we will be dining on during our trip.  It doesn't sound like we will be roughing it with our food!!   We are glad that we took the time to do this all ourselves to have variety and some healthy choices that will fuel us on our hike. Cant wait to start eating!!

              

Alaska preparing a meal

Tootsie enjoying the meal :-)

                     

Mindy arrives to the party

Hi there! My name is Mindy and I was lucky enough to have my good friend Bethany ask me to section hike the AT!!  We have been friends for over 10 years and have done many outdoorsy and athletic races together so we know we travel well together.

We started last summer with an overnight hike that I think really got Bethany's blood going to hike her bucket list hike: The AT. We had such a blast and so when she suggested this 3 week hike, I was thrilled!!!  Thankfully, we had almost a year to plan which I'm needing every day of!  My job as a corporate pilot and personal assistant keep me very busy and out of town a lot. Thankfully, with 2 of us, and being that we are both big planners, we are pulling it all together!

Now, with only weeks to go, things are getting real!  Did we make enough food? Ship enough supplies? Bring the right gear? Do we bring a shovel? What about bears? The questions are endless. I think, tho, that between the two of us, we will make it all work out and have the best time in the process.

Fun. That's what this has been. From the initial planning meetings to the food trials to the gear checks. From the tedious food dehydrating to the packaging meeting, it's all been fun.   I cannot wait to get on the trail and and disconnect from the world a bit and have some serious fun with my friend.

Picking A Path or Section At A Time

Picking which path to take is a human condition.  Picking a college, picking a significant other, picking what pants to wear with which shirt.  It is never ending, ugh.  Some paths however are easier and more fun to pick than others.  One such path for me was picking which path (section) of the Appalachian Trail to hike.  A trail that passes through fourteen states and covers over 2,200 miles offers a lot of choices.

When making a decision I like to know all my options so the research began with the following considerations...

1. Recommended Best section hikes on the Appalachian Trail

    List of Best 12, Outside Magazine, and here is another good resource from USA Today.

2. Most appealing and scenic

3. Mileage/time 

4. Accessibility

5. Rewarding End

My research steered me toward the Great Smoky Mountains.  The Smokies have been sung about, talked about, featured in movies, and written about. Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt. -John Muir.  I am walking the path covered in dirt.

Smoky Mountains

After researching the geographic features that surround the Smokies the section I wanted to hike started to materialize.  Shortly after leaving the Smokies there is a great town on the AT, Hot Springs, North Carolina.  Like the name suggests there are hot springs. This town also offers a spa with massages for the weary hiker and minerals baths.  A great motivator to make it to the end.  Especially when your hiking pal gets you a gift certificate to Hot Springs Resort for your b-day. 

Fontana Dam

At the beginning of the Smokies lies the tallest dam in the United States, Fontana Dam.  

From Fontana Dam to Hot Springs is just about 100 miles.  Just didn't seem long enough.

Taking into account where we could fly in and out of, our starting point ended up being Deep Gap, NC. Deep Gap is located close to a hiker friendly town of Franklin, NC.  

Having worked out the section, scenery, mileage, accessibility, and a rewarding end.  The path was chosen and the planning continued.

Keep reading to find out ... How We Get There, What Gear We Take, and What We Eat for 200 miles.

Back to the Beginning

How does one plan for a adventure? What starts the momentum?  How do you begin?  To understand that we have to go back to the beginning.

The beginning started in high school.  I had heard about a hiking trail named the Appalachian Trail. It runs from Georgia to Maine and is over 2,000 miles long. I knew that one day I would hike the AT so in college I took a backpacking class, researched, and longed for the day that I could be on the trail. My passion for backpacking has continued throughout the years with local hikes and adventures.

Fast forward to fall of 2016 and dinner with girl friends.  Discussing the usual topics work, family, the upcoming election (Trump vs. Clinton), and things we should do but never have the time to. Following our dinner I was fired up and wanted to make hiking the Appalachian Trail happen.  I texted one of my bestie's and asked if she would be interested. She replied with a maybe.  That gave me the fuel I needed.

I created a itinerary, cost estimate, proposed dates and demonstrated incredible enthusiasm.  You know what? My friend agreed!!! Oh happy day, she would hike a section of the AT with me Summer of 2017 and then the planning began. Looking back at the beginning of this journey I can't wait to see the end.

This blog is where Alaska and I will share how we planned and implemented our plan.  Keep checking back to see what we have learned along the way and how it all turns out!

Alaska and I on Johnson Pass 2016