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Astro on the AT 2018

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    • Drybones wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Week from today I will be hiking Mt Moosilauke. :)
      Leaving Tuesday to spend a couple of days with my dad in Franklin, NC. Then breaking the trip up with Harper's Ferry on Thursday and Glencliff, NH Friday.
      Still lots of things to take care of, including mailing my maildrops on Monday.
      Three days left for me, will be in ME heading south Wednesday, hope our paths cross.
      They should unless one of us is somewhere off trail taking a zero, or something like that.
      Look forward to it. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Made it Franklin, NC yesterday. Driving my wife's 2008 Toyota Sienna van made me feel like I had gone back to the dark ages. No XM radio, USB port, or built-in GPS. Speaking of going back in time I had her shave my head Monday night (2 on top, 1 on sides). Love rubbing my hand through it as it reminds me of back in the 60s when my uncle used to give us crew cuts, and you knew it was time for another when you couldn't rub it anymore. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Made my usual rounds of Franklin today. Nothing from the Great Smokey Mountain Visitor Center. At Three Eagle Outfitters picked up a half off AT Class of 2018 t-shirt. Also got an AT Class of 2018 bandanna. Signed thier 2018 hiker sign. So I guess that means I am committed to finish this year. :thumbsup:

      Nothingfrom Outdoor 76, but did check out the new Big Agnes Tiger Wall UL2 to see what having a side door would be like. Laid down in it, and a lot more room, but for 8 fewer onces I will stick with my Fly Creek UL1.
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Astro wrote:

      Made it Franklin, NC yesterday. Driving my wife's 2008 Toyota Sienna van made me feel like I had gone back to the dark ages. No XM radio, USB port, or built-in GPS. Speaking of going back in time I had her shave my head Monday night (2 on top, 1 on sides). Love rubbing my hand through it as it reminds me of back in the 60s when my uncle used to give us crew cuts, and you knew it was time for another when you couldn't rub it anymore. :)
      i drive to tucson from atlanta -- and i'll always have sirius/xm radio. a requirement for road trips! am/fm/cd player never get used anymore.

      a 2 and a 1 -- next step is the razor!
      2,000 miler
    • max.patch wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Made it Franklin, NC yesterday. Driving my wife's 2008 Toyota Sienna van made me feel like I had gone back to the dark ages. No XM radio, USB port, or built-in GPS. Speaking of going back in time I had her shave my head Monday night (2 on top, 1 on sides). Love rubbing my hand through it as it reminds me of back in the 60s when my uncle used to give us crew cuts, and you knew it was time for another when you couldn't rub it anymore. :)
      i drive to tucson from atlanta -- and i'll always have sirius/xm radio. a requirement for road trips! am/fm/cd player never get used anymore.
      a 2 and a 1 -- next step is the razor!
      Probably won't have to deal with the heat as much in NH & ME as I have in past summers. But still nice to have minimal hair on top of your head when you only get to shower about once a week. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Stopped by the ATC in Harper's Ferry today. The bubble is here, hikers everywhere.
      644 NoBo's already got their picture made.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Decided to break my trip up by staying at the Teahorse Hostel. When you have not been out in the woods yet, you sorta forget what hikers and their gear smells like. :S
      After Saturday I am sure I will not notice again. :)
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • For those who have hiked the Whites and ME, how useful did you find your hiking poles?

      Were there times you were doing so much climbing and scrambling over rocks that you just collapsed them and put them away?
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Astro wrote:

      Decided to break my trip up by staying at the Teahorse Hostel. When you have not been out in the woods yet, you sorta forget what hikers and their gear smells like. :S
      After Saturday I am sure I will not notice again. :)
      my living room (where the big screen is) smells like warren doyle is sitting next to me. (doyle is proud of stating that on one of his thru's he never took a single bath or shower).

      some kinda critter crawled in here and died -- but i sure don't see it. i guess i get to play detective tomorrow.
      2,000 miler
    • max.patch wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Decided to break my trip up by staying at the Teahorse Hostel. When you have not been out in the woods yet, you sorta forget what hikers and their gear smells like. :S
      After Saturday I am sure I will not notice again. :)
      my living room (where the big screen is) smells like warren doyle is sitting next to me. (doyle is proud of stating that on one of his thru's he never took a single bath or shower).
      some kinda critter crawled in here and died -- but i sure don't see it. i guess i get to play detective tomorrow.
      Could be a mouse. They stink to high heaven. My old boss had one die in his ductwork. we ended up ripping out the ductwork. I had one die in a pickup truck I had one time and never could find the little bastard, my truck stunk all summer long.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference
    • jimmyjam wrote:

      max.patch wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Decided to break my trip up by staying at the Teahorse Hostel. When you have not been out in the woods yet, you sorta forget what hikers and their gear smells like. :S
      After Saturday I am sure I will not notice again. :)
      my living room (where the big screen is) smells like warren doyle is sitting next to me. (doyle is proud of stating that on one of his thru's he never took a single bath or shower).some kinda critter crawled in here and died -- but i sure don't see it. i guess i get to play detective tomorrow.
      Could be a mouse. They stink to high heaven. My old boss had one die in his ductwork. we ended up ripping out the ductwork. I had one die in a pickup truck I had one time and never could find the little bastard, my truck stunk all summer long.
      if i hadn't hurt my back i'd be a perfect time to take off on a couple month hike and let the problem resolve itself while i'm gone.

      how in the world can a critter get inside ductwork? what a nightmare!
      2,000 miler
    • max.patch wrote:

      jimmyjam wrote:

      max.patch wrote:

      Astro wrote:

      Decided to break my trip up by staying at the Teahorse Hostel. When you have not been out in the woods yet, you sorta forget what hikers and their gear smells like. :S
      After Saturday I am sure I will not notice again. :)
      my living room (where the big screen is) smells like warren doyle is sitting next to me. (doyle is proud of stating that on one of his thru's he never took a single bath or shower).some kinda critter crawled in here and died -- but i sure don't see it. i guess i get to play detective tomorrow.
      Could be a mouse. They stink to high heaven. My old boss had one die in his ductwork. we ended up ripping out the ductwork. I had one die in a pickup truck I had one time and never could find the little bastard, my truck stunk all summer long.
      if i hadn't hurt my back i'd be a perfect time to take off on a couple month hike and let the problem resolve itself while i'm gone.
      how in the world can a critter get inside ductwork? what a nightmare!
      He used poison bait to kill the mice and I guess one of them squeezed thru the floor grille. Only use traps to kill mice because they will eat the poison and go back to there nest and die and stink up the place something terrible.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference
    • Day1
      Slackpacked the 9.3 miles from NH 112 back to the Hikers Welcome Hostel. Weather was great. Glad I went SoBo. Can understand the horror stories coming down North in the rain. Unfortunately I fell in the morning and tweaked my ankle. Really felt it coming down on rocks so had to try to place my weight more on the other foot and poles, which slowed me down. Not swollen now, so I hoping not a lingering issue. By the end of the day my knees were hurting more. 3,000 feet uphill and 3,500 downhill can do that to you. :)
      Not for sure pictures do the panoramic views justice. Hiked in shorts and short sleeves, but put my jacket on at the summit due to viscous wind. Had all my winter stuff in my GoLite 20 just in case.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • So after coming down Mt Moosilauke and just feet before Highway 25 I had to ford Oliverian Brook. X(
      Didn't want to get my wet feet dirty/muddy, so I sat and tried balancing myself on a rock and nearly pulled a muscle trying to get my socks back on. Didn't realize I needed to ford, or I would have brought my vivobarefeet.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • LIhikers wrote:

      I'm glad you had good weather at Mt Moosilauke
      The August day that Kathy and I went over Moosilauke we had a blinding snow storm with howling winds and bitter cold
      Did I mention that was in August?
      When I got off last year that day was raining with an eventual flash floods. I was lucky and most of this week looks good too. :thumbup:
      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Day 2
      7.5 miles to Eliza Brook Shelter from NH 112 Kinsman Notch. No views compared to yesterday at My Moosilauke. An 800 foot elevation gain to start with in the morning, and then another 600 in the afternoon, but it was probably twice that with the continuous roller coaster of going up and down. Ankle was fine, and only fell once this time on a wet rock, but my pack softened the blow. Did start feeling my knees. Woke up that night with pain in my legs. My daily 4-6 mile walks with a pack were just enough to prepare for this. Ended up the only one at the campsite and the shelter was, but if caretaker showed up I thought he might not appreciate me putting my tent in there. Used the bear box although the clips didn't close. Jammed one in sideways just in case there was a smart bear. :)
      Never really saw any good views from Mt Wolf. Did grab this quick one by the power lines before Elza Brook.
      Weighed my pack at Hikers Welcome wHostel before I left and weighed 25 pounds with a week of food (no water). Had getting my base weight down to 14-15 pounds, but up with extra maps and winter clothes.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Day 3
      Eliza Brook to Lonesome Lake Hut for 5.8 miles. Started out with 2000 foot climb. More difficult rock scrambles and decisions of where to move next for me in 5.8 miles today than my previous 1,809. But some really nice views.
      Did Work For Stay (WFS) at Lonsome Lake Hut. They gave me turkey and braised beef leftovers. The beef was go I got seconds. Slept on the dinning room floor and then had breakfast leftovers and swept the floor. The Croo put on a show in the morning (missed the previous night since I got in after 8pm. I believe I had more protein in 12 hours than the previous week. :)
      Some nice views from South and North Kinsman Mountain.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General
    • Day 4
      Lonsome Lake Hut to Franconia Notch, only 3 miles. When leaving the hut this extended family asked me to take their picture for them, which sorta distracted me. So instead of looking good at the sign I just took off afterwards. Well around a mile later (and the trail not really been heading downhill like I expected), I realized I had gone south. So now I have to walk a mile back to the Hut. But this time I remembered to ask a Croo guy for some pliers, and at least I was able to tighten the lock which kept slipping on one of my poles. I bet I adjusted that lock over 100 times yesterday. So now I can start my 3 miles to Franconia Notch, and it was so much easier trail than I had be doing the past few days. Which my body so appreciated (note to self: the Whites is not the place to try to get your trail legs). Also got to walk across a couple of brooks.

      Bisquick from the Hikers Welcome Hostel had contacted me that they needed the key from my van, so I had agreed to leave it at the Flume Visitor Center. I figured a mile in and a mile out on a paved road should be worth a hamburger (although it was not as flat as I had expected). The plan was to next climb the 2.7 miles to Liberty Springs Campground. Well with the earlier mistake of my 2 extra miles I decided a shower might be nice, and after headed to The Notch Hostel instead. Well I walked 6 miles, but it will only count as 3. I may be working on the slowest traverse ever through the Whites, but I guess the real key is that I get through them, with my body in one piece, not how long it takes. So stay tuned, it might be like watching paint dry, but I am going to try to get through this. :)
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Astro ().

    • Astro wrote:

      Day 3
      Eliza Brook to Lonesome Lake Hut for 5.8 miles. Started out with 2000 foot climb. More difficult rock scrambles and decisions of where to move next for me in 5.8 miles today than my previous 1,809. But some really nice views.
      Did Work For Stay (WFS) at Lonsome Lake Hut. They gave me turkey and braised beef leftovers. The beef was go I got seconds. Slept on the dinning room floor and then had breakfast leftovers and swept the floor. The Croo put on a show in the morning (missed the previous night since I got in after 8pm. I believe I had more protein in 12 hours than the previous week. :)
      Some nice views from South and North Kinsman Mountain.
      OK, now I am officially seething with jealousy. ^^ ^^ ^^ Have a great hike Astro!!!! And remember you can never take and share enough pictures.
      "Dazed and Confused"
      Recycle, re-use, re-purpose
      Plant a tree
      Take a kid hiking
      Make a difference
    • Astro wrote:

      Day 4
      ...The plan was to next climb the 2.7 miles to Liberty Springs Campground....
      Waiting to hear your impressions. Only 8 weeks until my climb.
      Trudgin' along the AT since 2003. Completed Sections: Springer Mountain to Clingmans Dome and Max Patch NC to Gorham NH

      "The days I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations...those are pretty good days." Ray Wylie Hubbard
    • Day 5
      2.7m to Liberty Springs Campground. Nearly a year later I finally made it where I was supposed to meet Coach Lou last year. Notch Hostel dropped me off at Flume Visitor Center, took the 1 mile paved road back to the AT, then straight up the rocks. Knew rain was coming in afternoon and night, so did not try to go on to Garfield Shelter. Nice water source. Also got lucky and found a tent pad with a tarp. Got an AMC Thru Hiker Pass. Got to bed early since I wanted to make it to Garfield before rain scheduled the next day in the evening.
      Picked up a new pain to me today in the hip.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General

      The post was edited 1 time, last by Astro ().

    • Day 6
      7.6m to Garfield Ridge Shelter. Storm with rain last night but I slept well as the lightning did not wake me. Cooler today, so for the first time I wore long pants and my fleece top, gloves, and bennie. Got off early by 6pm. First problem of the day was when I slipped and gashed my leg open. Instant pain and my pants leg covered with blood. First reaction was to wipe blood away, but it just kept bleeding, so quickly got leg horizontal so it would clot and then put band-aid on it. After 2500 feet up Liberty yesterday, started up with another nearly 400 feet. After all that continuous going up rocks, Franconia Ridge was pleasant walking, but unfortunately fog and nothing to see. Climbed Haystack and Lincoln and was doing fine other than fog/clouds blocking the views. A little mist to that point but no serious rain. Once I got to Mt Lafayette it started raining hard. It got so bad I could not see where the trail was. My glasses were fogging up and as soon as I wiped them they would fog up again. So now I am soaking wet and above treeline and can not see where to go. Fortunately a guy who camped at Garfield Ridge Shelter was on a day hike and could see I needed help. I am so grateful as he helped me get down below treeline. My gloves were so wet I eventually took them off. Was so glad to make it down to the shelter. Slept in shelter since I thought it might be warmer. Imediately took all the wet clothes off, and put all the dry ones I had left on.
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      The road to glory cannot be followed with much baggage.
      Richard Ewell, CSA General