Originally Posted by thevagabond79

I love the idea of getting a dog. Same value and understanding are crucial to me. If s/he would let you do what you love to do and show the support, this person has one of the qualities to be in the same marriage. That said, marriage is like a long hike. If dangers appears, I would expect my second half would stay with me rather than running away or adding more pressure to the situation. If s/he lowers the quality of my living, I would not marry this person. To be married, one thing is to advance the quality, rather than becoming a slave or object.

I dropped off the trail at Snowbird Mountain after getting brought down by the local fire dept. I screwed up bad but have gotten over it now and am going to continue my journey, however I will be starting at the Lehigh River Gap and heading south back to Snowbird. If all goes well then I will jump up to Baxter and hike back down to the Lehigh Gap.

I'm hoping to begin my Harpers Ferry to Maine, Harpers Ferry to Georgia thru-hike around the 8th of June and I couldn't be more excited. Life here in California, in the Santa Cruz Mountains has been absolutely wonderful the last few months and a lot of that has to do with this dream to hike the trail. This winter was one of the hardest times I can remember: a failed relationship, waning confidence and a general feeling of being lost. I remember sitting in my friend Jordan's house up in Marin County, during my lowest point in January. I started writing a list of all the things I could do with my life at that moment. I wrote down about 50 options when I finally came across the idea of thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. It was a dream I have held onto since I hiked my first section of the AT as a nine year old.

20 years ago, as a camper at Catoctin Quaker Camp, I hiked for three days on a portion of the trail from southern PA back to our camp in western MD. On that trip, I did my first 20 mile day and ever since that day I have been hooked on long distance hiking. The counselors and older campers on that trip helped me so much. They carried much of my gear and kept my hydrated and motivated through that very challenging day. Their kindness changed my life forever and sent me on my path as a mentor, outdoor educator and naturalist.

Ever since I came up with this plan to hike the AT, the world has seemed so hopeful. The excitement generated by this dream has jump started a revelatory path long before I have even set one foot on the trail. I can't wait to see what happens once I actually start walking.

Part of this joyful resurgence is also linked to a physical recovery which coincided with the decision to commit to this adventure. Two years ago, I suffered a very painful back injury which left me wondering if I would ever be able to do a long distance trip again. It was extremely disheartening to think that I would never again be able undertake the type of adventure that had brought me immense joy and inspiration in the past. In 2003 I hiked about 385 miles of the AT in VA, 2004 I hiked the northern half of the Long Trail and 2005 in I hiked about 300 miles in VA. Every one of these trips left me with a more positive outlook on life, a greater level of confidence and deeper connection with the earth. These trips also brought about a sense of hope and an appreciation for human kindness. I can't wait to see where my thoughts take me once I start the trail. I can't wait for new stories to unfold.

The warm-up trip on the Lost Coast boosted my confidence in my back and I'm feeling strong. I can't wait to get started. Only a few more weeks.

I have been think alot lately about what comes after the AT? For as long as I can remember I have dreamed and planned this trip. Now the time for action seems to be here. My question is what do you do when you cross #1 from the old bucket list. Dreaming about thru hiking has gotten my through some really bad times. I just hope it is close to what I have imagined.

I am currently in unionville New Jersy took a week off at my sisters house in Stroudsburg PA thats about 5 miles from the Delaware Water Gap. my pack weighs 25-30 lbs and i am doing abou 30 miles a day the trail has been great but not to many changes since my Thru-hike in 2006 the only thing has changed is the prices on every thing i quit my mail drops since they kept getting lost and buying all my food at thegrocery stores. good luck and keep hiking. RED-DOG

Disclaimer: this blog has nothing to do with hiking, but only the surgery I had to have if I wanted to continue to do so. Feel free to ignore if you have no interest in that.

Although ANY arthroscopic knee surgery is something a White Blazer wants to avoid, the one I had today went about as well as anyone could expect.

The lead-in to the surgery did NOT leave me impressed. The pre-operation sheet said that (1) I should make an appointment with my primary physician and (2) I would get a call from the hospital's pre-op office to set up an appointment with them. I called the ortho-doc's office to find out the purpose of my appointment with my family doc; the former replied that they would send that info to my doc.
I had little problem making an appointment with the latter. When I got there, the conversation went:
Doc - "So what are we here for today?"
Me - "Didn't you get a message from my surgeon?"
Doc - "Let me check your portfolio. Nope -- all we got was a fax saying that you needed a pre-op for surgery; there was nothing specified about what that involved."
My family doc then did a general checkup, just like I had gotten a month ago. That took about ten minutes, and then I was told I should hang around -- they were in contact with my ortho-surgeon. After about fifteen minutes of waiting, they noted that they had gotten the info they wanted. All I needed was an EKG (just like the one I had gotten less than a month ago) and some blood work.
The next day I got a call from the pre-op office, noting that (just as was promised) I should make an appointment with them. Then the pre-op office noted that I had just gotten a pre-op exam from my family doctor.
"Does this mean I won't need one with you?"
"Let me check."
Within an hour they confirmed that I didn't need to also meet with them.
In other words, my ortho-surgeon had to be reminded to tell my family doc what tests to run, and also failed to make clear that I only needed to have one appointment instead of the two they mentioned. This wasn't a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing, this was the left hand not knowing what the LEFT hand is doing.

So now I was ready for the big day.

Shuttle was kind enough to wake up at 4:30 am, so that I could get to check-in by 5:30, so I could be ready for surgery at 6:30. Check-in was no problem, as I had a good idea what to do and not to do before surgery. The only un-nerving request was to remove my wedding ring -- in 29 years of marriage (as of May 21), I've never removed it for more than a few seconds. But health takes precedence over symbolism, so (after a little skin cream) off it came.

The surgeon requested spinal anesthesia instead of general -- I'd like to think because spinal has smaller odds of side effects, but possibly because it takes less time to get the patient sedated. After the anaesthesiologist (yes, that's how it's spelled) stuck the needle in my hand (where it's a lot easier for him to make dosage adjustments), he explained what would happen. Spinals, he explained, allowed the patient to be alert doing surgery, and even observe the work.
"I have no interest at all at watching that," I said.
"Lot of people say that, yet they still end up watching intently."

His last words I recall were, "This chemical I'm now giving you won't knock you out, but it will make you REALLY happy. In five minutes you won't remember a thing."
The next thing I remember was the nurse in recovery asking me if I wanted some juice.

I was surprised I was allowed to eat anything, just out of surgery, but the nurses explained that recovery from spinal anesthesia-
1) had fewer side effects than general.
2) took longer than general.
3) involved a few hours of the feet and the pelvis SLOWLY regaining a sense of feeling.
I loosened up my surgical gown to confirm that both those parts were quite numb. More on that later.

"So when do I get to leave?" I asked.
"Not until you walk on your own, as well as urinate." More on that later.

Shuttle was with me very soon, letting me know that she followed my progress like someone at an airport could get status on a flight. She got to speak with the surgeon right after he was done, and the doc stated that the surgery had gone quite well. The meniscus had been repaired, and all the damage had been cleared out. So now it was just a matter of waiting for my being able to do two simple things. More on that later.

Shuttle and the recovery nurses were more patient than I was as time wore on, providing me with drinks, snacks, and reading material.
One would think that consuming the former would assist in one of the tasks I needed to perform. Unfortunately, pelvic numbness makes that task problematic. So I just kept waiting. And waiting. And waiting.

After a couple hours I thought I had enough feeling in my feet to at least get from the bed to the chair. Unfortunately, being able to feel my ankles doesn't mean I have feeling in my feet. Within a few seconds it was obvious that I had to go back to the recovery bed -- and waiting.

Not wanting to repeat my mistake, I decided to check the feeling in my heels before any attempt to stand. When I had good feeling, I asked to be moved to the chair. I stood up with no problem, sat down, had my foot raised -- and promptly had my first attack of nausea. And vertigo. And heavy sweating. Shuttle reminded me these are all symptoms of a heart attack -- not what I needed to hear! Fortunately, all three symptoms disappeared in a couple minutes.

Which means I had only one task to take care of. Pelvis numbness made this difficult -- so I waited. And waited.

I speculate that I actually had a full bladder, but that my numbness made me unable to notice that. My muscles were holding it in, but (again) I couldn't feel the stress. As time wore on, I kept get more and more out of sorts, but couldn't understand why.

As the pelvis numbness wore off, it became more and more obvious that I HAD to get to the bathroom. I asked for help from the nurse, who gladly assisted me there -- even as I was dizzy and bent over due to muscle aches in my lower abdomen.

But, despite my numbness, I accomplished my task!! Literally, within a minute, my entire malaise had vanished. I can only speculate that the relaxation of my pelvis muscles allowed the rest of my body to unwind. Within five minutes I had my street clothes back on and was ready to go.

Shuttle got me home with little trouble, and immediately e-mailed family and friends. This is now a more full description.

I'm happy to report that I have no pain in my knee, only stiffness -- no surprise after having an immobilizer on the leg, that must remain there for two days. When I have any more to report, I'll continue to post here.

Here two photos of me in the recovery room: soon after I awoke from there, and right before I left.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pr77x/7...in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pr77x/7...in/photostream

Would appreciate any and all comments about a Mid-February NOBO start. I see most start beginning in March and later. Any negatives about mid Feb? Thanks.

Hey everyone. It's been a while since my last post but I'll try to get all the detail I can in, the trails been so exciting I haven't been being as dilligent as I should about keeping everyone updated. I left Franklin with way too much food, something the other thru hikers seemed to replicate! After running out of food on the way into town I made the additional mistake of going shopping hungry! My pack was heavy but I kept on plugging along. The weather out of Franklin was unfortunately miserable. Anyone who knows my history of why I moved to the south in the first place knows I can't stand snow and for the next 2 days out of Franklin there were flurries and cold nights in the 20's. After hiking over Siler's Bald I entered Wayah gap and was about to prepare myself for the 1500 foot climb to the top of wayah bald. As I was standing in the road, contemplating what stupid reason made me ever come out here and gearing my self up for the cluimb a man pulled up behind me with another thru hiker and offered me a ride down to the nantahala outdoor center. Boy it felt good to get out of that winter weather. I got a hot meal and a bunk and started my hitch back to Wayah gap the next day. After walking 3 miles and getting 5 different rides I finally made it back to the gap and continued my hike to the top of wayah bald where the views were spectacular! I was glad I waited because it always sucks to climb a big mountain and only be abl to see 20 feet in front of you due to bad weather. I stayed at wayah shelter and we had some crazy thunderstorms but other than that it was pretty uneventful. The next day I hiked 16 miles down to the NOC to meet Dylan and Emily who were coming up to see me for the weekend. We had a great time at the camp site (except for the giant spiders) and I got to show them Wayah bald at sun set which was very cool but unfrotuantely as we were hiking back to the camp site in the dark I sweverly sprained my ankle. The next day they headed out and I limped down to the NOC for some R and R to help my ankle recover. Unfortuabntely I was laid up there for 4 days while my ankle went from the size of a grapefruit to only slightly bigger than my other ankle. It sure felt nice to be able to soak my ankle in that cold river everyday! After my recovery I took a moderately short day but the climb was ridiculous. I went from 1700 feet above sea level to 4800 feet in 6 miles! After that my ankle had had enough for the day so I rested a shelter with two people I'd made friends with at the NOC, RE and Lavender. The next day was slow hiking as well, I had trouble even getting my boot on in the mourning and after another 7 miles of hiking I was not feeling too hot. As i climbed down into stickoha (sp?) gap my anklle really started acting up but luckily someone had left some trail magic in the form of mountain dew and swiss rolls. As the sun began to set and as i contimplaited climbing jacobs ladder (800 feet up in .3 miles) RE and Lavender showed up. We collectively decided that we should check out the town of robinsville near by and ended up hitching our way down there. Unfortunately what we didn't realize was there was a minicooper convention in town and every single room in the town was booked. Luckily one of the inn owners let us camp out on the inn's lawn and we were even treated to breakfast by the minicooper drivers. I guess this is all I can write for now because my time is about to run out on the library computer I'm writing on but I will continue this entry when I can, Thanks for reading!

Hello! I'm planning my thru hike for march 2013! Other than dehydrated foods, what else should I bring? Thanks!!!

Hey all! Im doing a thru hike in March and was wondering if anyone has used the Sawyer Squeeze water filter??? It seems reliable, versatile, light weight, easy to use, an has good reviews. Any suggestions and/or comments would be greatly appreciated! :) thanks!!!

Originally Posted by BHound

I just got this info yesterday from GMC (copied and pasted only the Section 12 info), who document is 4 pages - hope this helps you!:
DIVISION 12 (Rte 58 to Canadian Border) Montgomery Center, Jay
Shuttles/Public Transportation
Everywhere Taxi of Vermont, Colchester, Louis LaRose 802-238-4121 info@everywheretaxi.com
New England Taxi, Don Corbett (802)598-7254 http://www.newenglandtaxi.com/ will cover
entire state. Journey’s End to Burlington $150
Montgomery Adventures, Keith Sampeitro 802-370-2103 mthavensledogs@yahoo.com
Rte 109/118 to Journey’s End
Buon Amici Motel (North Troy) 802.988.2299
1893 House (North Troy) 888.988.9614
North Troy Inn (North Troy) 802.988.2527
John Selmer (Westfield) 802-744-6319
Steve Merrill (North Troy) 802.988.2958 email hopkorv@mac.com (Journey’s End to Burlington)
****please arrange pick up with Steve at least a week in advance
Andy/Carlene Squires (Richmond) 802.434.2533 Lincoln Gap to Journey’s End
Louanne Nielsen (Jericho) 802-899-3266(h); 802-598-280l© $ Rte125 to Journey’s End
Dave and Louise Ransom 802-644-8144 spoons@sover.net rte 108 to Journey’s End

Parking
Hazen’s Notch Assoc. Welcome Center (Montgomery Center) 802.326.4799
Montgomery Adventures, Keith Sampeitro 802-370-2103 mthavensledogs@yahoo.com
North Troy Inn (North Troy) 802.988.2527
Buon Amici Motel (North Troy) 802.988.2299
1893 House (North Troy) 888.988.9614
Steve Merrill (North Troy) 802.988.2958 email hopkorv@mac.com at the Catholic Church behind Steve’s house

Mail Drop
Hazen’s Notch Assoc. Welcome Center (Montgomery Center) 802.326.4799

Hi!

I am looking for anyone who has met a Moses Sobo. I am looking for imformation about his family. Someone had suggested that I try here. He was from Mississippi, but started hiking the trail from Miane or Massachusett around 2008. If you have met him or have information please contact me it is important!

So I am headed out this weekend to try and complete what I have yet to hike of the AT in CT. I will be starting in Kent at the Stewart Hollow Shelter (as I have made it from new york to this point) and will be traveling northward. I will finish by hiking up and over Bear Mountain then back tracking on the Paradise lane trail as I have already hiked into MA from that point.

I just got a new back pack (osprey keltos 55) as I was carrying around an ancient behemoth and am hoping this move saves me alot of weight and aggrivation.

I am super excited and just can't wait to hit the trail especially with it only being 4 days away now.

I will fill you guys in once I complete it.

Bussey Point Trail Over-nighter: Late April 2012. The Bussey Point Trail is a multi-use trail on the “Clarks Hill Lake” J. Strom Thurmond Lake in Lincoln County Georgia. This trail is primarily an equestrian trail but also allows hikers and bikers on the trail. The Bussey Point Trail has a one mile approach trail that leads into a 12 mile loop equestrian trail and also has around 8-9 miles of old jeep trails entwined in the mix which have all been named for ease in navigation. There are four separate camping areas at the Bussey Point Recreation area and all campsites are water front sites; sites 1-10 Fee sites are mixed tent, small camper trailer primitive camping sites, and sites 11-14 Fee sites are strictly equestrian only camping; the Owl Island and Bussey Point free sites are primitive boat-in sites or in our case hike-in.
To reach the Bussey Point boat-in sites by foot requires a short six mile hike along the jeep trails, from the large trail head parking area continue down the approach trail on Pace Ferry Road about 2 miles until Lockhart Road. Continue down Lockhart Road until you reach the campsites at the end of the peninsula.
We started our hike after a 45 min drive from Augusta Georgia at the trail head. Chris and I were rearing to go by the time we made it to the trail head. It would be his first hike with gear and mine first in many years with anything more that a day pack. He started the trail with great enthusiasm, chasing butter flies and making short videos of his adventures. I had him geared with my old pack from when I was a teenager in the 80’s only having his sleeping mat that lined the inside, sleeping bag, change of clothes, swim trunks & shoes, mess kit & dehydrated meals, personal hygiene and any personal comfort gear he chose to bring ie. IPod. He is only 13 and already a track star in his mind however, after about two and a half miles into the hike he started complaining about the pack and said that walking is boring and if he were running he would have already be there. He created a game that helped pass the time and to get the thoughts of hiking with gear out of his mind. We would come up with short words from the wilderness and see if the other could guess it with as few clues as possible. He kept on saying that when we get there the water is going to be what made the walk worth the trip because he was going to dive in and have fun.
Once we achieved the goal at the end of the peninsula and was shed of our gear sure enough he was changed and in the water. After playing in the water for what seemed hours he joined me on shore as I had gotten out long ago and we began to fix dinner. His Backpackers meal didn’t mix well and he didn’t like it so I split my Mt. House and he loved it. He told me to stick to Mt. House when he is along with me. Shortly after dinner it was night time and to hot & windy for a fire so we prepared for bed. We never used the tent we brought along because we were the only ones out there and the shelter was empty so we slept in it. Meanwhile, he sorta snuck my Colman Max self inflatable sleeping mat and left me his blue foam mat that I literally picked up along the medium of the Interstate in Texas years ago. Well, needless to say at my size I need a little more padding than that little foam pad could provide for me.
After a night of tossing and turning and very little if any sleep a crow, that sounded as if he were on the arch of the shelter, started squawking. We got up and started breakfast. I use a Colman Max butane stove because one small canister usually lasts me a week or more but we had to use it to boil both our water to drink and eat with and when it ran out after just our evening and midway through our breakfast meal you can imagine my surprise when we had no more fuel. Last night Chris’s Ibex stick failed to boil his water even after using the entire purple stick and then this morning my fuel canister fails. Hmm, it’s a good thing that I had a backup Ibex in my survival kit. These little white cubes have never failed me either to light or to boil 24 oz of water. After consuming our Mt. House eggs & bacon we were packed and ready to walk back out.
My little hiking buddy said that he wasn’t up to hiking all the way back to the truck and I needed to take it slower. Well, needless to say after a mile or so he was complaining about his pack hurting his back and he didn’t want to have it on. I then took his pack and fixed it to my chest so he would have a good experience. Then having only ¾ of a mile left I then gave his pack back to him and he never complained the rest of the way. As exhausted as he was once he could see the truck about 100 to 150 yards away he ran the rest of the way being all dramatic as he went just as he had done when the trip started.
Then when I finally slugged my way to the truck he said that he wanted to do it again once I got him a different pack. Guess this is something to go down as gear counts and it’s all just a mental game after all.

video coming to youtube soon.. just search shadowleep for my video's thanks!

Well here i go again after my accident last year to complete the whole trail. Had surgery for a miniscus tear in my right knee. Hopefully by May 15th. i will start out and God Bless that i finish the AT so i can be put on the 2000 miler club. Starting in Piedmont,Mass to Katahdin then Bus it to Delaware Water Gap,Pa. Going SOBO to Springer. I will more than likely run into happy&peaceful hikers again. God Bless all hikers