I get asked a lot of questions about my hike and most are the same. What was my favorite part, what was the worst. Every state had it's best and worst so it's hard to say the overall best and worst but it's a little bit easier to tell what i liked and disliked most about each state. Below is my state by state account of the trail.
Maine
On June 15, 2011 i started my thru hike southbound in Maine. I have to say because of Maine being the first state i ever hiked in i have a deep love for her...i describe Maine as being like an abusive relationship you just can't help but to love. She kicked my arse every day but i loved it...she took me to places both physically & emotionally that i had never been to before and i will always love her for it. Maine helped me realize a good bit about myself and i will always hold a spot in my heart for her. With that said her best and worst...the low down... Maine's best was the newness of it all...the love for Katahdin being my first mountain to climb...the lakes and water everywhere to swim in...the mountain tops with views to sit and reflect...the people i met and got to spend time with and friendships i made...and mostly because of the realization that i am a hiker. The down side..or "worst" parts of Maine... endless rain (which i kinda like to hike in but don't like to sleep in wet clothes), the non stop gear fixes and working out what to carry and what to throw in the fire or off a mountain, and being sick from the bus ride. Maine will make or break you that's just how she is...she's put up or go home.... her parting gift to me was the Notch...which i loved so much i did it 3 times...up, down and back up...why ? why not!
New Hampshire
After an awesome morning triple playing the Notch i entered NH noonish
on July 17, 2011 - day 33. NH summed up is mountain climbing all day every day. This is when the hiker starts to take over and the towny you vanishes...the pack starts to work itself out...the beard takes shape...the smell of you takes hold...farts aren't as funny they're normal... The best of NH is the views...the Presidents are challenging but reward you with the best places to sit, look around, and realize how wonderful this planet we live on truly is. The down side to NH is that it is so awesome that everyone wants to hike it...so it's full of day hikers and youth groups everywhere...they block the trail...drop trash, and basically make you want to run them over...my fix to this...run straight at them like a maniac and they move outta the way...they also give you lots of crap (food, mostly stuff you'd never think of packing out or can't afford to pack out) which works to the upside. This is also where we start running into the Nobos....oh lucky us... we parted with NH by partying in Hanover (called hangover on trail) and packed out as much party supplies as we could...
Vermont
On Day #48 - Aug 1, 2011 we entered Vermont ( we being the group of southbounders i hiked with from early Maine till here, about 14 of us) with full packs of food and booze...we traveled all of 5 miles to the Happy Hill shelter for a shelter party that was not surpassed thru the whole hike...nice way to start a state... other upsides to Vermont were the Vortex stop for my first hiker feed & the first time i hung out at a hostel with ok Nobos...getting to visit with my friend Jill & the kids... Downside...well switchbacks entered our lives...some like em some don't...i liked the straight up the mountain approach of NH and Maine myself but some people like to hike a mile to go 1/4 mile up...to each their own...and mud...lots of mud....
Massachusetts
After barely escaping the gravitational pull of the Vortex i crawled into Massachusetts on Day #60 - Aug 13, 2011. My no zero day hiking (zeros are days you do nothing..usually sit in town eating and drinking and doing town stuff) had made it thru 3 states but that all ended and the new me began. Mass was the state where i let go of it all and settled into being the hiker i was born to be...when i got to the Bird Cage i ran into Mike from Maryland and "earned" myself a zero day...which turned into 5 days fast....mostly because there was a pack of us there...both Sobos and Nobos and a really cool mix...and Rob & Nancy made it hard to leave...and we had to fix the shower...and there was Wiggles (fav part)....and my new pack from Rob that changed my whole gear life and made my back happy. There was nothing trail related that i didn't like about Mass...downside to my time in Mass was the day before i was going to enter Connecticut and attempt the Connecticut challenge (hiking the state in a day/24hrs - 51.6 miles) i found out that my friend Rayanne had been hit by a drunk driver and passed away, she was going to be meeting me in NY 2 days later and we had talked hours before. ....don't be an asshat and drink and drive!
Connecticut
Day #69 - Aug 22, 2011, I entered Conn upset and left it the same...it seemed like an easy state and i'm sure i could have pulled off the challenge but it sucked because of timing...it's not Conn fault it was just in the wrong place at the wrong time...the trail itself was smooth and flat for the most part...and there was a mouse we couldn't kill at a shelter...i sent back traps with a Nobo...rage! I'd like to go back and do the challenge one day just to settle it in my head....time will tell...
New York
I entered NY on Day #71 - Aug 24, 2011, once in NY i ended up going into the city to see Rayanne's dad and get my head screwed back on straight. After returning to the trail hurricane Irine hit and i ended up at a random apartment with a guy who was in the Army after he saw me set up to ride it out on top of some coke machines...hey it was a safe spot! the next morning i decided to hike back out in the rain and basically played a game of dodge the wash outs for days which included road walking down closed highways for miles out of my way & climbing over blow downs and swimming across rivers where streams used to be....on an upside there weren't a lot of people on the trail so i got some alone time i needed. Finally had my pack down to under 20lbs with food and water so i was cruzin...only real downside of NY was the storms effect on the trail conditions and the lack of water i was willing to drink that didn't come from a tap....oh and the price of booze and cigs was nuts too!
New Jersey
Hit NJ on Day #77 - Aug 30, 2011. NJ wasn't a very long state but had some nice ridge walks to start off then to finish we passed a lake with cairns everywhere...i enjoyed building them along the trail so the lake was heaven. Lots of flooding thru NJ and had to do some road walking and hitching around to make it thru it. The water here...well it's NJ would you drink it? The people...again it's NJ...all in all i'm glad the states as small as it is....
Pennsylvania
Rolled into Pa with Sonnie on Day #80 - Sept 2, 2011...there was no state line but we used the 0 mile marker on the bridge as our line. Pa started off kinda bad when i wanted a hot dog and slice of pie and after them making it for me they dropped the bomb that they only took cc for over $10...and i had $6 in my acct...bummer! After a few big mile rainy days i ended up having to hitch around washed out rivers into Duncannon where Link and i helped at the Doyle during the flood and got stuck for days. I then did a little side trip to hang out with my friend for my bday. Pa trail was rocky and these rocks were sharp...Nobos had told us things like they sharpen the rocks in Pa and stuff...we disregarded it as usual Nobo blow up but they weren't kidding...these rocks beat your feet to death. Amp and i hiked together for most of the second half of Pa which slowly gave way to nicer trail & we passed the epic 1/2 way point and then ended up doing one of the greatest stealth moves ever by sleeping in Lowes sheds in the parking lot...what a way to end Pa!
Maryland
MD started Day #95 - Sept 17, 2011. We were barely even in Maryland...took us 2 slacking 1/2 days to blow thru it. Nice trail for the most part and the end into Harpers Ferry was way to easy...i'd like to thank all the donkeys and horses that made that trail so nice...and shame on you to whomever did that to that beaver!
West Virginia
Day #96 - Sept 18, 2011 Amp and I rolled into Harpers Ferry just in time to grab some ice cream and head to a hostel to camp. The next morning we rushed to the ATC and registered he was #47 and I was #48 for the Sobos for the year. I dashed back to the hostel and got a ride into DC for a little side trip (see below). When i got back to Harpers Ferry i got lured into staying in town a few days and working for the outfitter. Nice little trail town with good food but pricey. My last night i stayed at Bosco's house( a local trail angel who lets you crash at his house) with a bunch of the old Sobo pack....we drank, ate, and burned a huge fire... WV was so small it's hard to complain about anything about it...nice trail in and out and Harpers Ferry was a nice rest.
DC side trip
Virginia
Day #101 - Sept 23, 2011 i hiked into Va and this is the longest state we were in and it seemed like it was never going to end. The trails thru Va are for the most part pretty smooth and some of the best maintained. I saw a lot of wildlife thru Va, 100's of deer, at least 40 black bear, foxes, bobcats, and tons of birds. This is also when we started really noticing the color changes in the leafs. There were many fun town stops with friends and awesome "retro" blazing along the Blueridge parkway. I pushed some of my biggest mile days thru Va and was still able to enjoy them. Downside of Va was just that you didn't ever feel like it would end...not that it was always a bad thing. I was also south enough to be able to start getting town food that i could enjoy...sorry yanks but you can't cook like us in the south. My favorite part of Va was without a doubt the Highlands and getting to see the wild ponies...i would love to do that section again!
Tennessee
Hit Tn on Day #128 - Oct 20 , 2011 and this is when it started to get really cold...i mean bone chillin, beard iced, water bottle froozen cold! and i was way under geared for it! the downside of TN was the cold...i liked everything else but was to cold to notice if anything else sucked or not. The views were amazing with the leaf colors and a few really cool 360 degree mnt top views on balds. I also got to witness one of the greatest sunrises i have ever seen on a morning i needed it. I ended my run in TN at uncle Johnny's in Erwin where i got my gear situated for the new cold weather and took a few much needed zeros.
North Carolina
Arrived in NC on my Oldest daughter's bday - Day #138 - Oct 30 , 2011 and I spent the first 12 days in NC in Hot Springs helping Frank the owner of Duckett house move due to the bank (Bank of Amerika) taking it. I came real close to moving into town...and i gained 9lbs eating real southern cooking finally! While i was there i watched everyone i had hiked with and passed for the past few month...and people behind them roll thru town and got to see a few friends for the last time. After i managed to drag myself out of town i pushed on until i got to met up with Wiggles & Ava a few days later for a visit ( this is when i skipped the Smokies...to be done in the spring when we can enjoy them more). We hiked together on and off thru NC between her having to go home for a few days to handle "real world" stuff. The trail in NC was nice with some cool climbs i'm looking forward to going back for the Smokies section! Best part of NC was getting to slow myself down and enjoy myself...and of course getting to see Wiggles again and meeting Ava. Worst part of NC was missing the section and realizing how close i was to being done and having some issues with not wanting to be.
Georgia
Georgia....oh Georgia it's been a journey to get to you! Day #161 - Nov 22 , 2011 at 9am i rolled in... soon after Wiggles and Ava joined me to finish...and we took it slow and had a lot of fun! The trail in Ga is nice...the mountain tops had great views...and i had awesome company. The only thing i didn't like about Ga was it was the end of the trail. But we made the best of the last miles and got to hang out and talk with some great people including partying at Sausage fest 2011 where Wiggles got to be the first ever girl to attend. Ga was also home to one of my favorite spots we camped at, a cave atop a mountain.
Springer Mountain
On my 166th day - November 27, 2011 - at around 1pm Wiggles,Ava, and I hiked up Springer joined by my parents who hiked the last 2 miles with us. It was an undescribable feeling walking up to the sign and knowing i had just hiked 14 states...2181 miles...i had pushed my mind and body to places i never took them and i had made it. We spent about an hour on top taking pictures, videos, Wiggles and my mom hooping, and a bottle of champagne. I walked down that mountain that day knowing my hike was complete but my journey had just began...i stepped on the trail with no real idea of why i had but left the trail knowing i had found something my life was missing... i am a hiker...dirty hiker trash...and i love it!
