Craig and Suzy's 2006 Appalachian Trail Journal

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Day	Date	Start	Finish	Miles	Journal	Photo
64	5/20	Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days)	Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days)		Day: 64 Date: 5/20/06 Start:Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days) Weather: Clear Finish: Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days) Miles:0 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 534.8   Clay: Branch's parents, siblings, and Grandparents came into town last night. How fun! We spent the entire day with them, Kneebee, and Medicine Woman, Leigh and Caraleigh today.   Since entering Virginia, we have noticed that the springs and water does not seem as aesthetic as GA, NC, or TN. So, we decided to purchase a water filter. We can't wait to use it.    The hiker parade was a huge highlight for me today. As soon as a kid from the crowd on the sidewalk would spray a hiker in the parade, 10 hikers would spray the kid. It was all in good jest. Fishin' Fred and A.T. Troll soaked me the most today. They crack me up!   Branch: I had the best time spending the day with my family! This morning, while Clay organized our receipts, the rest of the family and I left to do our town chores. What usually takes us several hours on foot, we managed to do in about an hour. All 9 of us tackled the grocery shopping like a military operation. I hardly had to look for anything before someone had found it.   After completing the chores, we walked around the small town of Damascus for a while. Clay and I had to buy a water filter, and my sisters, Michelle and Rachel wanted to buy a "hippie skirt". I had the best time being one of the crowd, laughing, and being around familiar happy faces.
65	5/21	Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days)	Atkins, VA		Day: 65 Date:5/21/06 Start: Atkins, VA (Damascus for Trail Days) Weather: clear Finish: Atkins, VA Miles:0 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 534.8   Clay: After having a great time with Branch's family, Medicine Woman, and Kneebee this weekend, we opted to stay at the Relax Inn today. We were overwhelmed by so many positive people and events this weekend, we needed to take a Sabbath. Branch: It was super hard to say good-bye to my family today. They drove us to the trail, treated us to one last meal, and my grandmother even tried on my backpack! Part of me wanted to beg them to stay just one more night, but each of them have lives to go home to. It really hit me how much I'm going to miss them when I hugged my sister and she said, "I'll see you in 4 months." Wow! That is a long time to be away. These last few days with them have definitely been days that I'll treasure for the rest of my life.
66	5/22	Atkins, VA	Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA	13.9	Day: 66 Date: 5/22/06 Start: Atkins, VA Weather: Blue skies Finish: Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA Miles: 13.9 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 548.7   Branch: Our intent was to get a fairly early start this morning, but when the alarm went off, the intent definitely changed. Without even discussing it, Clay and I decided that it was better to get to the shelter later than to leave the bed sooner. So, we layed around watching the tv show "Saved by the Bell" and avoiding the inevitable walk today. It was interesting, both of us were looking forward to getting back into our trail routine, but not in a terrible hurry to get it going. We finally left the hotel room around 9:15 or so and by 9:20 we had made our first stop of the day--breakfast at a restaurant called "The Barn". At the restaurant, we met and had breakfast with Handlebar who is getting back on the trail after spending about 3 weeks nursing a hip injury. He seems to be doing well as he is planning to hike about 18.5 miles today.   It was a little difficult getting back on the trail after a whopping 4 days off. Our muscles and joints groaned as they readjusted to life under the weight of the pack. Clay's feet hurt because he is having to break in the shoes he bought in Damascus. All of this was expected, though, so the aches and pains did little to hurt us mentally.   Towards the middle of the day, we found a huge shade tree to sit down under and eat our lunch of tuna and mayonnaise (a welcomed break from the usual pb&j). Until this point, we had seen only one other person on the trail this morning. We were beginning to think that the rumors about the post Trail Days crowds were just rumors, when in no time, there were 5 other hikers sharing the shade with us. We had a great time eating lunch with Beth, Michelle, Garrett, Caveman, and Jumpstart.   Tonight the shelter is full and there are about 8-10 tents jammed around it. A quick and general head count revealed that there at Very least about 25-30 people sleeping here, many of which we have never met before. We look forward to getting to know the new faces as we travel north.   Clay: A few weeks ago a hiker friend of ours was at a library at the checkout desk. With her backpack on, she noticed a puddle of water beneath her on the floor. Referring to her Playpus water bladder, she exclaimed, "Oh, my bladder! It is leaking!" Everyone in the library looked at her and the puddle. Realizing that they thought that she was referring to her urinary bladder, she said to the crowd of onlookers, "Oh no. It's just water." Unfortunately, this did not help the situation much. She left the library embarrassed.
67	5/23	Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA	Jenkins Shelter, VA	19	Day: 67 Date: 5/23/06 Start: Knot Maul Branch Shelter, VA Weather: Clear blue skies Finish: Jenkins Shelter, VA Miles: 19 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 567.7   Clay: Today I woke up in the "sergeant" mode. We had a 19-mile day ahead of us and I was ready to knock it out, full steam ahead. I did not realize I was in this mode of thought until I started hiking behind Branch. I was riding her heels and I was impatient. Within the first hour I recognized my attitudinal error and I corrected my paradigm. Branch has always pushed us through big mileage without injury. Today I chose relationship over RPMs (i.e. speed). I was proud of myself for recognizing my error in attitude early in the day and correcting my focus. We started out the day by gaining about 600 feet in a mile and then dropping down about the same altitude. We had the pleasure of hiking with Cabin Man and Wood Chicken this morning. They are a fast-hiking, very nice newlywed couple. Cabin Man had some great dreadlocks. I wonder what I'd look like with dreads? Amidst our conversation, they were kind enough to ask me about my M.A. thesis on God's relationship to time. Not wanting to bore them, I gave them the condensed, easy version. The conversation was light and fun. As we encroached on the first big hill of the day, I realized that we could not keep up with them. They have hiked over 500 miles in a month! They are a wonderful couple and I wish we could keep up with them. A while later we began climbing 2,000' over 4 miles. The climb really was not too bad. The long ridge to the top was grassy and beautiful. As we looked behind us, we could see ridge after ridge of long and level looking Virginia mountains. At the 4400' top was a shelter. The 360-degree views were phenomenal. Even the views from the privy were great. Atop this mountain were Bear Bear (shaved "A.T." logo in his hair), Handlebar (named after his moustauche), Michelle, Beth, Beernuts, and another young woman. We filled our bellies with lunch and our eyes with God's glorious scenery for a half hour or so. Our lunch became a little less satisfying when Bear Bear said that one of the "First in Flight" crew vomited both at the privy and in the shelter due to drug usage. This group of three guys smoke marijuana literally every night. Bear Bear said they are either wanting to take or do take other drugs too. I worry about these guys. I hope to run into them again. After lunch we got water at the gap. I am so glad that we bought a water filter. The iron rich water in Virginia, even in the springs, does not look as satisfying as the water did in the previous states. The iron-colored water does not seem to bother some people. By far, the toughest part of the day was the flattest part of the day on the profile. The ridgewalk between the shelter and the first campsite was rock-laden and brutal on my feet. Today was day number two on the trail for my new shoes. My feet were screaming as the rocks tenderized them like meat. Despite my removing the shoes on the hour, loosening the laces, wearing sandals for a while, and wearing new socks, I experienced my first day of pain on the trail today. By the end of the day, I could feel every bone in my feet and toes. I truly wondered if I had broken both of my feet. I was also chaffed a little and shivering somewhat. I may have been running a fever. I could not socialize tonight. I was out of my mind. When I got to camp, we set up the tent and I went to bed without eating. I knew that my hike might be in trouble the next day. I am thankful that Branch took care of me on this rocky 19-mile day. Branch: Today was the first day that I've ever seen Clay in any real pain from hiking. As we hiked the last few miles, I could hear him wince with each step. I truly became worried when we got to camp and he did not even feel well enough to eat the mashed potatoes that I cooked. I am exhausted, so I cannot imagine what he must be feeling. I pray that God will allow him to rest tonight and that his feet will heal quickly.
68	5/24	Jenkins Shelter, VA	Bland, VA/Big Walker Motel	11.5	Day: 68 Date: 5/24/06 Start: Jenkins Shelter, VA Weather: hot, sunshine Finish: Bland, VA/Big Walker Motel Miles: 11.5 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 579.2 Clay: Today I woke up cheery, with no pains, and very late. Ranger Dawg camped (on a slant) 3 miles prior to the shelter and he was at the shelter by 9 AM. Poor Branch worried about me during the cold night and did not sleep well. By 9:30 AM we were on our way. There were still lots of people at the shelter. Yesterday was tough for everyone. Two big highlights for me today were hiking for an hour with Ranger Dawg and listening to his military P.O.W. accounts and gaining a hitch for 10 hikers and a dog after a minute of prayer. I'll expound on the latter.  When we got to the gap today to go into Bland, VA to re-supply, there were 3 hikers sitting in the shade away from the road--Michelle, Beth, and another fellow. It was as if they had given up on hitching in. Five other hikers had given up on hitching and they were well on their way to walking the hot 2.5 miles into town. When Branch and I got to the gap, we knocked on the door of the church across the street to no avail and then we prayed. Sitting in the shade with the other hikers, a truck pulled up beside us. Still sitting down, I half-heartedly put out my thumb. Despite my lack of enthusiasm to wave the truck down, the fellows, named Steve and Frank, pulled over and began to take us into town. We only waited about 5 minutes for this hitch! It was fun as we passed by hikers were road-walking, shouting at them, and then picking them up. By the end of the ride, 10 hikers, 2 trail angels, 11 backpacks, and a dog were in the truck heading to Dairy Queen. Branch has a migraine headache today, a sore knee, and she appears to be running a low-grade fever. So, after grocery shopping, we are staying at the Big Walker Motel tonight. A few of the hikers scoffed that we were staying at a hotel instead of hitching back and hiking 4 more miles to the shelter. One foreign fellow that we had just met said that we must be rich. I just laughed at his unwarranted belief. While we are spiritually rich, we are quite the opposite of monetarily rich. My wife needs rest and she is in pain. I'm fatigued as well. She took care of me last night while I was wincing. Tonight she is hurting and I need to nurse her back to health. Branch: Even though the terrain was easy today and the miles were few, it was a super hard day for me. I woke up this morning, after a night of very little sleep with a headache. As we hiked north and as the sun grew higher, my headache became much much worse. Usually, I am so excited to see the sunshine, but today it felt like lasers gunning right for my eyes and searing my brain. So, when we got into Bland, and saw the Big Walker Motel right across the street from the Dairy Queen there was no question about what to do. We headed straight for a room indoors so that I could rest in a controlled environment. Tonight I am once again reminded of how wonderful Clay is to me. He is doing everything that he can to make me feel better. I praise God that I can spend my life with such a wonderful, caring, husband.
69	5/25	Bland, VA	Jenny Knob Shelter, VA	12.1	Day: 69 Date: 5/25/06 Start: Bland, VA Weather: blue skies, breezy, humid Finish: Jenny Knob Shelter, VA Miles: 12.1 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 591.3 Branch: Last night was a tough night. I think I had a fever for much of the night and was plagued by constant body aches. So, when our shuttle, Dan, knocked on our hotel room door at 6:35 AM, I was not altogether thrilled to see him. Dan was an interesting fellow. He played us a CD of him playing the organ, piano, and keyboard. In his day, he was apparently quite the musician. Once we got to the trail, I was glad that I got up the nerve to leave the hotel behind. I felt comfortable and at home amongst the trees. The terrain was super amicable today and I had the best time walking and talking with Clay. Clay: The most fun event during the hike was also the scariest. We were taking a short break, as we do each hour, when all the sudden we heard a shrill, "Squeek, squeek, squeek...!" As immediate as the cry for help was there was a crash in the brush on the hill just a few feet from where we were sitting. Then, something like a black volley ball came tumbling toward us. The leaves crunching and the sticks moving only magnified the sound. I said to Branch, "Go, go! It's rolling towards us!" As soon as I had shouted this, the ball had stopped. Upon closer inspection, it was a black snake that had caught a rodent and had tumbled down the hill. It was coiled and ready to eat. It did not like us watching it eat. So, it tried to make sounds like a rattlesnake. We did not want to ruin it's lunch. So, we moved on. Our perspective has changed now. 12.1 miles was a short day for us. We finished by 1:30 PM. We were exhausted. So, we ate a lot of food and we elected to take a two hour nap. We feel a lot better. Good sleep is rare in the woods. Tonight we are with Veto, Weatherman, and Montreal 2006 (formerly "Foreigner"). We laughed at all of our quips tonight. What a fun group.
70	5/26	Jenny Knob Shelter, VA	Wapiti Shelter, VA	14.2	Day: 70 Date: 5/26/06 Start: Jenny Knob Shelter, VA Weather: Cloudy, rain, blue skies, repeat... Finish: Wapiti Shelter, VA Miles: 14.2 Cumulative A.T. Miles: 605.5 Clay: The hike today was relatively easy compared to what we have done. We saw that Ranger Dawg had lost his glasses by the side of the road. So, we picked them up and we will try to find him tomorrow. The highlight for me today was getting to the shelter and meeting some Christian section hikers that were hard-core space scientists too--Happy, Snowman, and another fellow. We talked about some heavy stuff. They were so very edifying to us. I finished reading Jeremiah and now I'm reading about the meaninglessness of life without God in Ecclesiates. Tomorrow we are hiking 17 miles into Pearisburg. Every time we go into town it seems that we run into the town eccentric. For example, in Damascus we have run into an interesting person. This fellow, in all seriousness, has a slight brain problem we believe. He is young and he rides his bike around town during the day but at night he sometimes frequents The Place hostel. He kept telling us how much he hates his father. At the hostel he will butt into conversations and steal food and gear from hikers. When we were there the police asked him to leave The Place. In Troutdale, we were eating at the Trading Post when a guy came in and asked, "Are you thru-hikers?" We answered in the affirmative and he offered to buy our dinner. He explained that he wanted us to enjoy our stay in his hometown. "How nice!", we thought. We thanked him and we began to eat. More hikers came in and he offered to buy their meal too. Then, cross-country cyclists came in and he offered to buy their meal as well. Something smelled fishy to us and it wasn't the food. In the end, he did not pay for our our meals. The waitress said that he was the town drunk! We are expecting some grand adventure like these in Pearisburg tomorrow but we are praying that we won't have this type of adventure. Branch: Today we reached the 600 mile mark! Yeah! So, at the point on the trail where we believed we reached mile 600, we stopped and partook of a celebratory Grandma's Cookie. It was a great time. Today was a day of ferocious animal encounters. This morning, as we were climbing, I heard a noise similar to the screeches of the mouse desperately but unsuccessfully trying to escape the clutches of a snake (see Clay's entry from yesterday). At the same time, I heard a huge crashing in the bushes next to me. As the creature burst onto the trail, I let out a guttural scream and raised my hiking pole to attack the vile snake who I was sure was poised to attack me. In the split second before I swung my pole, a terrified guinea fowl-looking bird stared at me in a paralyzed fear. The poor bird, must of thought us both to be quite odd and it clucked and followed the trail for about 15 feet and then meandered back into the woods to get away from the crazy pole-toting animals. About an hour later, we were hiking downhill and were moving pretty quickly. I was not really paying attention to where I was stepping until something in the trail did not quite look right. A fairly well camouflaged snake was lying in the middle of the trail catching some sun. This time I did not jump and scream, but did stop rather abruptly. Clay, not expecting the sudden halt, ran into my pack. However, I held my ground. Being the brave woodsman that he is, Clay took control of the situation and helped to encourage the offending creature to leave the trail. This afternoon, as we were hiking along as we always do, I heard yet another crash in the woods next to me. This time, however, I was so conditioned to the animal encounters that I merely looked around waiting for the attack. No attack came. A huge whitetail deer bounded away from the trail hoping to avoid an attack from us. Well, its about 9:00 and we are hoping to get a super early start to tackle a pretty big day into Pearisburg. So, I'm going to snuggle up inside my sleeping bag and fall asleep listening to the sounds of rain hitting the tent. Goodnight.

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