View Full Version : Askus3's Thru-hiker sightings
Yesterday, Sunday, June 7 was the first in a series of Wildcat Shelter Trail Angel Hikes. I plan on photographing all the thru-hikers I provide Trail Magic to on this series of Wildcat Shelter hikes. I just went on WILDCAT SHELTER TRAIL ANGEL HIKE I and I met my first thru-hiker of 2009. Yesterday, June 7 at 8:10 PM on the AT about 1/4 mile north of NY 17A met northbounder Point Two. Here he is http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34171&c=530. He is from DC and has been hiking from Springer Mt. He hopes to reach Katahdin by mid-July. Today he hiked an impressive 15 miles from Unionville. Point Two really enjoyed the famous New Jersey boardwalk and I told him not to pass up a good swim tomorrow at Island Pond. He then boogeyd down the trail to Wildcat Shelter for his evening destination. He is in good shape and doing quite well. I told him that he would have the shelter for himself tonight.
sasquatch2014
06-08-2009, 11:06
I'll keep an eye out for him I figure this will put him near the middle to end of the week up by me.
I'll keep an eye out for him I figure this will put him near the middle to end of the week up by me.
look for myco polo and poncho too. cool guys. saw them near bear mtn, ny on saturday doing 16 mile day.
On Wednesday, June 10, I first spotted Silver walking along NJ 94 from Vernon and a motel heading back to the trail at 7:00 AM. Gave him a ride of about a mile. Silver is a northbound thru-hiker from Preston, MO. His goal for the day is Wildcat Shelter in NY. He is planning on putting in some heavy mileage as he hopes to finish to Katahdin by the end of July.
Then I went to get gas in Vernon, NJ across the border from my hometown Warwick, to save 25 cents a gallon (NJ is that much cheaper). I stopped in at the Vernon Church hostel and offered a ride to Blondie back to the trail. He was the only one there and he accepted my offer. This young fellow is also a northbound thru-hiker from Andover, MA. He is an aspiring journalist planning a more leisurely pace, but today he is hoping also to get to Wildcat Shelter.
Today, Friday, June 12, came upon three more NB thru-hikers: James, Topo, Mosey (Topo's Irish setter) around 11:45 AM near Cat Rocks north of NY 17A and about 1/2 hour further south going northbound was Topo's girlfriend which I did not catch her name. James & Topo were going to eat lunch and wait for her at the Wildcat Shelter (maybe another 1/2 mile up the trail from where I met them. James was from the Kingston, NY area (Ashokan to be exact) and Topo & his girl along with Mosey were from Charlotte, NC. Today they were hiking from the state line (NY/NJ) northward.
Sat. June 13 at Wildcat Shelter (2 miles north of NY 17A, 7 miles north of NY/NJ line & the first trail shelter you come to in NY), on my 2nd in a series of Trail Angel hikes I met:
Downhill a NB thru-hiker from Arlington, TX http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34434&c=530,
Bones a NB section hiker from Montclair, NJ http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34435&c=531
Rogue another NB section hiker (from Salt Lake City, Utah)
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34436&c=531
Then on the way back to 17A I came upon:
Crank a NB thru-hiker just south of Wildcat Rocks. He was from San Francisco and today he was hiking from the Vernon, NJ/Route 94 (stayed at Vernon Church Hostel) AT xing. He is the great ice cream consumer. His photo is here at:
http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34437&c=530
Next I came upon Mtn. Mike from Dahlonega, GA. (another NB thru-hiker) (hope your hand heals nicely) & Madeline from Poland, ME (also NB thru-hiker) midway between Eastern Pinnacles & Wildcat Rocks (about 1.5 mile north of NY 17A).
Photo: http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34438&c=530
Today around 5 PM I came upon Cup O Jo & her husband Paul Man. They were doing fine. I talked to them just after they crossed NY 17 northbound. I recommended a campsite on Island Pond about a mile away which is in my opinion the prettiest site on the lake and it was unoccupied when I left there a 1/2 hour earlier. I hope the skies clear and they can enjoy a swim.
aufgahoban
06-28-2009, 09:48
Thanks for posting those picks! I've heard a lot about Madeline. It's nice to put a face with a name. Madeline has succeeded in conquering some major adventures, most since she retired. She's hiking 20 + mile days most days on the AT. Hats off to the lady.
Trillium
06-28-2009, 21:03
Thanks for posting those picks! I've heard a lot about Madeline. It's nice to put a face with a name. Madeline has succeeded in conquering some major adventures, most since she retired. She's hiking 20 + mile days most days on the AT. Hats off to the lady.Madeline is a great inspiration. I hope I can do as well when I retire.
Today, I hiked southbound from the CT/NY border at Hoyt Road to West Dover Road (County Route 20), north of Pawling, NY. This was a 9.5 mile hike. Along the way we met 14 thru-hikers, 2 section hikers and one dog that we took photos of. I will get the photos uploaded to Whiteblaze and put in the links, hopefully by the end of the week. So stay tuned for a further update.
So who did we meet: Muggins & Double Bow (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34729&catid=newimages&cutoffdate=1) at the crossing of Leather Hill Road - 11:30 AM. They are section hiking from WV to Hanover, NH.
Snuggles from Buffalo we met in the middle of the Pawling Nature Reserve at 12:35 PM. She started her trek on March 19. Link (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34730&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1).
Hi-C is from Wheeling, WV. We met him also in the Pawling Nature Reserve at 2:00 PM. This is Hi-C (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34686&c=530).
Just before we exited the fields southbound to Hurds Corner Road and right after they went over a style across a fence we bumped into 5 thru-hikers coming together. They were: Doc (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34691&c=530), and along with Doc from left to right were Flap Jack, Alaska, M&M and Webs (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34693&c=530). Flap Jack & Alaska had Maggie (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34692&c=530) a golden retriever accompanying them. He was rolling around in the grass after we met.
At the Appalachian Trail (Metro North) Train Station at 2:50 PM we came upon Steam from Baltimore. This is he (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34687&c=). Then two minutes later we met Sue - the Darkness from Washington DC. I don't know how she got her strange trail name. But she looks bright and cheerful in this photo (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34688&c=530).
Up on Corbin Hill at 3:40 PM we came across Know All (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34694&c=530) from Indiana. He started his journey on March 21.
Skip from Orlando, FL we met about 200 yards east of the crossing of West Dover Road at 4:00 PM. Here is his photo (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34695&c=530). Is he in pain?
With our hike over while getting ready for our trip home after our hike at 4:10 PM, coming along the trail were: Truckin' (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34731&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from SC who started on March 19. He was excited to know there were a couple from Sc thru-hiking just about two hours ahead of him. And lastly we met Triple-C from Virginia who started March 13 and Racheopod from near Tampa who started on March 15. Here (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34696&postid=12138#post12138) they are.
sasquatch2014
06-29-2009, 06:40
Sounds like a great trip. I am sorry that I wasn't up here to walk with you. I was still in Baltimore until 11:45 last night. I hope the grass and weeds in my part hasn't gotten too high i need to get out with the gas powered weed trimmer, been doing it by hand and that's slow going.
Chenango
06-29-2009, 14:30
Askus3 - Thanks for these postings. I have been following a couple of these folks on TJ.
This is the final update as I just added photos and links for all the thru-hikers we came across on June 28 in post #10.
Today on the third in my series of trail angel hikes we came upon six northbound thru-hikers at Wildcat Shelter from 6:30-7:15 PM. This shelter is the first shelter you come to when you enter New York. Most of this group slackpacked much of the way today but put in some heavy mileage (20+) as they came from Unionville at the mayor's house. The hikers we met are Grommet (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34717&original=1&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from Portland, ME, (hiking to home) Gritty McDuff (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34718&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from South Pomfrey, VT, Yuki (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34719&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) who has come the furthest is from Tokyo, Japan, Tea Suds (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34720&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from Georgia (hiking from home), Egg (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34721&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from St. Louis and lastly we met as we were departing Tord (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=34722&c=newimages&cutoffdate=1) from Long Island, NY who we gave the royal hospitality treatment welcoming him to his home state.
On this bright sunshiney evening my Wildcat Shelter Trail Angel group of 9 packed in all kinds of beverage and goodies for the ravenous thru-hikers staying there. Recipients of our trail magic today were Grits (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35019&c=530) and Bo Shag (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35020&c=530). This shelter is the first lean-to on the AT you come to when you are headed northbound into New York.
Today when I stopped in at Bellvale Creamery to buy some ice cream, Fat Man Do dropped by. He is an Aussie thru-hiker heading northbound along the trail. It is his first trip in the US and he said he is enjoying America and the AT but not all the rain. The weather was miserable this evening. Heavy rain - jsut plain nasty.
Today my group of eight Wildcat Shelter Trail Angels and a shih-tzu packed with beer, apple juice, watermelon, candy, popcorn & trail mix took off from NY 17A to deliver our package of goodies at the Wildcat Shelter. This is the first shelter you come to in the state of new York. As we got started and before we crossed 17A we came upon Sweet Lou (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35680&c=530) . He started hiking from Springer Mountain back on April 11. Around 6:45 PM we arrived for our party at the Wildcat Shelter. Four thru hikers were there to join in for the festivities. They even had a campfire going to chase away the mosquitoes. Snipe (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35681&c=530) our guitar playing friend from south Jersey supplied the acoustical background for this event. He started hiking at Neels Gap on April 27. Odin (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35682&c=530) is having a blast as he is from Dover, NH. Give him a beer and he is as content as can be. He has been on the trail so long he can't remember when he started but for the record we say he's been thru hill and dale since the end of March. Zen Dog was out there at the campfire enjoying himself socializing that I forgot to take a photo of him. He started hiking from Springer Mt. on April 28. Here is Speed Stick (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35683&c=530). He is really a pleasant fellow even though here he looks so grim. I guess just camera shy. He is doing a flip-flop and left Harpers Ferry on July 1. Who is down in the tent? We need a female - bring her up here to join in the festivities. OK - here she is - Mossy Brown (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35684&c=530)! Residing in Boiling Springs, PA, and starting back on March 30 from Springer, she is tickled to be a member of this evening's party. OK - it is time to go, but just as we are leaving these two bad dudes from the midwest show up: Mayaguez West & Pacer (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35685&c=530). They have been out on the trail since March 28. I gave them a couple of beers and told them they missed the party but there might be some leftovers. The last of the tribe of hikers we were to see for the day we met on our way out at Wildcat Rocks were this trio from northcentral MA: Jeff, Peter & Matthew (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=35686&c=530). These guys were making some great time. They were only out since May 27 when they left Springer Mountain and they already covered two thirds of the AT as they reached us. Way to go. Meanwhile we finished our hike and came out at dark to get some treats for ourselves: delicious ice cream at the Bellvale Creamery and I gave Trekker (http://pets.webshots.com/photo/2638537180063208931CrNPeK), the shih-tzu several dog biscuits for him to salivate over.
Lone Wolf
08-05-2009, 06:49
you shouldn't be posting hiker's whereabouts ya know. the boogie man will find them :eek:
Lone Wolf
08-05-2009, 07:32
you shouldn't be posting hiker's whereabouts ya know. the boogie man will find them :eek:
and posting their pictures ain't cool either
and posting their pictures ain't cool either
'spechly without thier permission.