The stench of Achievement!!! Wayah Bald to Brown Fork Gap Shelter

After getting a ride with 70 year old "Sidney " up to Wayah Bald, NC we hiked the 12 miles to Wesser Bald. Unfortunately our hiking buddy Crankin' had to take a few days off for blisters! Like whole bottom of the foot blisters!!! But we did pick up a new buddy named "Sleeping Beauty". He has been a fun hiking partner. We have helped him transfer his over weight JanSport pack to manageable light weight pack.
From Wesser Bald we took a short day down to the Nanathala Outfoor Center where a Thru-Hiker Festival was happening. Free hot dogs and a chance of a shower was all it took for us to want to stick around. It was a total hiker party with at least 75ish of them attempting to hike all the way to Maine.
The next morning we had a 16 mile, 4,000 ft gain, 3,000 ft descending day. Holy Crap was that a long day. The most physical day so far i would have to say. The last two miles were a gain called Jacob's Ladder We cursed Jacob all the way to the top while our calves burned cursing us. But, we made it to victory on top, which is when we realized the achievement came with a price of the showers we just had being long long gone. And as fellow thru-hiker "Buckeye Cornelius" would say: "That's the smell of achievement"

Holy hypothermia!

We knew the rain was coming on Thursday and Friday, but we were hoping that it would hold off until we could get packed up on Thursday morning. That did not happen. It started raining around midnight or so and didn't stop. We were camping at the Siler Bald Shelter which is at around 4700 feet and we woke up to a bit of ice on the top of the tent. We quickly packed up, ate some pop tarts, and got moving so we could stay warm.

We were planning on either hiking about 12 miles to a shelter or if that was full an additional 5 miles to the next shelter. The problem is that when it is raining the shelters fill up very fast and our tent and most of our stuff was wet. To make it worse we were hiking up the side of Wayah Bald which peaks at 5342 feet. Everything started freezing. Everything! The branches, the roots in the path, the grass. Even my backpack gathered about a quarter of an inch of ice on it to the point where I could barely open it up. MerryCline's hat had ICICLES on it for the love of pete. Our fingers were freezing and we had to keep moving to stay warm. We knew by the time we got to the top that we were in trouble and needed to get out of the weather as soon as we could. Our guide book listed a couple of shuttles and taxis and we called them all trying to get off the freezing top of that mountain. By this point there were large branches breaking from the trees around us because the ice buildup on them was so significant. On the trail these branches are called "widow makers" - you can figure out why. Larry finally answered his phone and told us he could be there in 45 minutes. We told him we were too cold to stand still and wait for him so we would be walking down the road toward him. He said he had to stop 3 times on the drive up the mountain to clear big limbs out of the middle of the road. When Larry arrived we threw our ice covered packs into the back of his car and clung to the heaters in the car like we had never felt heat before. He drove us down the twisting road back to Franklin, the town we had just been in the day before. It felt like a step in the wrong direction, but freezing didn't seem like a better option. We booked a room at the Microtel in Franklin, NC and spread our crap all over the room to thaw and dry out. The large pizza and cheesy bread sticks helped us to be happy with the decision to come into town and it hasn't stopped raining all day. We heard of some other hikers who woke up that morning to find their tents so frozen and stuck to the ground that they were not able to pack them and they had to leave them there and decided they would check back tomorrow to see if they had thawed out.

We booked a ride back up the ride in the morning to where we jumped off the trail and we plan on getting in about 12 miles tomorrow after icing our my knee in the hotel room and some vegging out in front of the TV.

Dicks Creek to Winding Stair Gap

Starting out of Dicks creek on April 1st, and after playing a cruel April fools joke on mom (sorry mom your too easy) we made it up to the North Carolina border pretty fast. We were welcomed into North Carolina by one of the most gnarly mountains so far on the trail. We tented at Standing Indian Shelter for the night where Patrick and I acquired our trail names of "Paddy Cakes" for Patrick & "Puddin'" for myself.

The next day we hit the 100 mile marker, and man did we have to work for it. It was a crawling climb up to a fire tower on the top of Albert Mountain. After our 16 + mile day we rolled into a new shelter for 2013 called "Long Branch Shelter".

After a long night of about five thru hikers snoring we hiked the 7.3 miles down "Winding Stair Gap", where we picked up a new hiker companion named "Sleeping Beauty". Crankin and I stuck the thumbs out and hitched a ride for all four if us into Franklin, NC for us to re-supply our food. After a great lunch at a diner called FATZ, we hitched back to the trail and hiked another 4.9 miles to our campsite for the night.

Springer Mountain to Dicks Gap, Ga.

Day one was a beast. We started in snow. The ground was covered in most places. During the day the temperature was so cold that we basically wore every item of clothing we brought to stay warm. We hiked from the parking lot on a forest road southbound for one mile to the top of Springer Mountain. Merry hiked in the freezing cold with us so we could get a picture of us at the start. Very very sweet of her. We backtracked northbound to the parking lot, got back in the car and turned on the butt warmers, and thawed out a bit before saying goodbye to Merry for the last time. From Springer Mountain to Hawk Mountain shelter was 8.1 miles so it was 9.1 miles for us total on the first day. When we arrived the shelter was already full (and apparently had a bunch of mice in it that scurried over those campers that night) so we pitched our tent and made camp. That was quite a cold night, but it snowed enough that it pinned down the edges of our tent and kept most of the warm in.

The starting point at the top of Springer Mountain



Merry and MerryCline bundled up ready to go


The next day we woke up early and started hiking so that we would stay warm. We hiked from the Hawk Mountain Shelter to Gooch Mountain shelter for a total of 7.7 miles. Many others continued on to Woody Gap another 5 or so miles down the trail to catch a ride to the hostel, but we set up in the shelter and enjoyed the fire and the company at the shelter. That was the coldest night. Neither of us got any sleep because the gaps in the floor of the shelter allowed the wind to blow through and freeze us.

Being that cold, we got up with the sunrise and got on the trail. We hiked from Hawk Mountain shelter to Lance Creek campsite for a total of 9 miles. We got there around 1pm but couldn't hike any further because camping over the next 6 miles required a bear canister and Blood Mountain (the highest point on the trail in Georgia) was part of that 6 miles. We met a couple of great people at the campsite that day. "Cozy" and "Crankin" became instant friends with us. We have been hiking with Crankin since.

The fourth day we hiked from the Lance Creek shelter to Whitley Gap shelter for a total of 14.1 miles. We killed it on Blood Mountain. It was not nearly as bad as we thought it would be since they wisely made switchbacks up instead of the usual straight up the side of the mountain you so commonly see on the AT. After Blood Mountain we stopped at Neels Gap at the Mountain Crossings Outfitters for a couple of small things we needed and the most amazing Red Barron frozen pizza ever. We made some phone calls while we had cell service then got right back on the trail. Many of the people we had been camping with stopped there to stay in an actual bed for the night but, with Crankin, we pushed on. We were going to stop at Bull Gap just North of Neel Gap but with the added motivation of Crankin we pushed on to the next shelter. It was 1.2 miles off the trail, but we were so beat by that point that we couldn't go any further so we made camp, played some Farkle, and listened to the owls before getting our first warm night of sleep in the shelter with 3 other older men who snored a lot. We looked forward to a nice easy day the next day with not so many ups and downs in the terrain.

Patrick on top of Blood Mountain enjoying the 360 view of the northern Georgia mountains

An easy day was not what it ended up being. We hiked from Whitley Gap shelter to the Cheese Factory site for a total of 19.4 miles! I know, we couldn't believe it either. We were going to have a 12 mile day, but we got there so early, and the shelter was so full that we kept going another 4.5 miles to the next campsite. There was no water there and it was only 2.5 miles at that point to the Cheese Factory campsite so we ate a snickers for a bit more energy and made it there by dinner time. We felt like bad asses. The other advantage to making it there was that we would only be 13 miles from the road crossing that can take you into Hiawassee, Ga for a hot shower and some greasy food. We ate dinner, hung the bear bag, and hit the sack. We slept pretty well that night with it finally warming up a bit.

Our last day was from the Cheese factory site to Dicks Creek gap for a total of 13 miles. There were a couple of big climbs and one really really long downhill that took their toll on the knees of myself and Crankin, but MC is doing great. We called a shuttle to drive us the 12 miles into Hiawassee. We are now at the Holiday Inn Express which we chose because they have a hot tub and a free hot breakfast. We got into town around 2:30 pm, checked in, and went across the street to Daniels Steakhouse. I got the all you can eat buffet and MC and Crankin both got the half pound cheeseburger. We were all so happy. Stinky too, and I think a couple of the other guests noticed, but we were so focus on our food that we didn't care. After eating we came back to the hotel for a much needed shower (if you are counting it had been 5 days), washed every item of clothing we had, then soaked in the hot tub. We zoned out in front of the TV, then walked .4 miles to the all you can eat pizza buffet around the corner. The guy a the front desk said we couldn't walk there, but our desire for stuffing ourselves proved him wrong in the end. With the weather looking like its going to take a turn for the worst tomorrow and thunderstorms in the forecast, along with the pain in our knees and the blisters on Crankins feet it looks like we are going to enjoy a "zero" in town tomorrow. That is a day where you put in zero miles on the trail and take a full day off. Hopefully the knees will do better after a bit of rest because its only a short 8.9 miles back on the trail until we reach NORTH CAROLINA!!!!

We love and miss all of y'all.

Stay tuned for more updates.



If you look closely you can see all the boots and shoes hanging from the tree where people trade in or retire their old stuff for new lighter stuff.




Yeah, we hiked all of that!



Here we go.....in the snow!

Yesterday Patrick, Mom and I checked out Amicalola Falls State Park in Georgia. We went to the visitors center and officially weighed our packs and checked in for starting the trail this morning. Patrick's pack weighs 30 lbs and mine weighs 33 lbs. We hiked the first two miles of the approach trail to the Appalachian Trail and ran into several thru-hikers. All men, and all with very heavy packs. One guy in particular "Z" had a pack weight of 55lbs. One challenge I foresee having is the lack of female comrades through this adventure. Either way it is going to be a great adventure that we start today. Our plan is for mom to drive us up to the trail where we will then backtrack one mile to the start of the trail on Springer Mountain. We are so excited to finally start the adventure that we have been planning for over a year. Make sure y'all check us out on the map to keep track of our daily progress.

"Let The Great Migration Begin!"

By the way it's snowing today!!

Everyone please remember that we will only be able to make posts when we come to towns. So keep checking back, or better yet, join this site on the right hand side of the screen to receive e-mails when we make a post. Love love -MC

Final preparations

The days of sitting on the couch, watching TV, and talking on the phone are almost gone. Yahoo! From the looks of my belly in these pictures it couldn't have come at a better time. I will miss these warm Mississippi days though.

MerryCline, cute as can be, ready to get out on the AT!

The packs are packed. My pack with 6 days of food, water, and gear weighs about 32 pounds. MC's pack is about 29 pounds. I know, she is a bad ass.

I know, my hair is AWSOME right now.  If we do the mowhawk before I shave it all off I will post pictures. 

Some of the final touches have been spraying our clothes with permethrin so the mosquitos and ticks won't get us (I am deathly afraid of ticks by the way). Getting all of the music, motivational talks, and audiobooks loaded up on our iPods. We made sure all of our tax stuff is taken care of. We have packed our lives back up so that we don't invade any more of the Pickenpaugh's space (and yes, it all fits in the attic). They have been angels dealing with us and all of our stuff spread out all over the place while we have been preparing. The weather is not looking great for the first couple days of the hike, but I figure the sooner we get used to the rain and cold the better, so why not break us in right. I recently read a passage from Eckhart Tolle's book "A New Earth" that says "the primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but your thoughts about it". I hope that I will be able to apply his teachings through the tough times on the trail. My dad would translate that into "Focus on the positive". We have been fortunate to have been surrounded by so many wise and unique people over the last few years and I am sure there will be many more to meet on the trail. Well, until the next post.....

6 more days.....

We can't believe the time is almost here!! 6 more days and we will be hiking on the Appalachian Trail.  All of the final steps are in motion.  We are making sure we have everything we want in our packs, we have been looking over the Data Book and Thur Hikers Guide.  I'm still feeling nervous because this will be our first thru hike and we have no idea what to expect, but hey, isn't that part of the fun.  A new adventure! We are just anxious to get started and I know everything will fall into line once we do.  This has been a dream of mine since I was a child in boy scouts and MerryCline and I have been planning for over a year now to make it happen.

Everything has been purchased, a couple of frustrating hang ups with shipping from some companies, but overall everything has gone very smoothly.  MerryCline's skills at planning and food preparation have been so wonderful.  Our dehydrated meals are in the freezer with just a couple of items that need to be added to the packages.  Merry will be coming back from her job in Arkansas on Thursday and we will be leaving for Amicalola Falls State Park on Saturday, spend the night somewhere and start the hike up Springer Mountain to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail.  Not much left to do but hurry  up and wait while we take care of the last minute small things.