In 1986, a few days after running the Boston Marathon, and following a year of touring the US and Canada in a campervan, I set off by train to realise a dream to walk the Appalachian Trail. I first heard about the Trail from the American wife of a work colleague in Melbourne a few years earlier and had since read widely about the trail. The Trail follows the crest of the Appalachian Mountains for more than 2,200 miles along the eastern side of the US. Starting in mid-spring, I followed the trail northwards from Springer Mountain in Georgia to its northern terminus at Mount Katahdin in Maine, finishing in the late summer. It remains one of the most meaningful experiences of my life, fostering an ambition for more such experiences and inspiring me to retire from work early enough follow through on that ambition. In 1986, only about 80 people each year completed the whole trail, but during that year National Geographic did a feature article on the Trail and its popularity increased dramatically.

Appalachian Trail - Day 103

Day:  103
Date:  Wednesday, 13 August 1986
Daily AT Miles:  18.8
Daily Other Miles:  1.0 (relocation).
Total AT Miles:  1976.2
Total All Miles:  2034.2
Weather:  Mild, sunny.
Nutrition:
  Breakfast:  Eggs, bacon, orange juice.
  Lunch:  Biscuits and peanut butter, health bar.
  Dinner:  Macaroni cheese, instant pudding.
Aches:  None bad.
Animals Seen:  Squirrels, grouse.
People Seen:  15 overnight hikers, 3 day hikers, many others.

Journal:
Got up at 7:40am and finished packing before going down to breakfast, which Jerry cooked.  Two eggs and toast wasn’t really enough, but what could I say.  After breakfast, Jerry gave me a lift back to the Trail for a dollar, and I was walking by 8:50am, which was good.  It was a perfect day as I began the ascent of the Bigelow Range – the last big mountains before Katahdin.  I was in good spirits and the climb wasn’t too tough.  My pace was a little better than expected and I reached the west summit of Bigelow Mountain soon after noon and admired the fantastic views in all directions – lakes, forests, mountains, towns.  I continued on over the eastern peak enjoying views all the way then descended into Safford Notch.  The forest was very pretty in the mottled sunlight.  There was a relocation which added a mile to the Trail, unexpectedly, however it passed through attractive mossy rocky forest and wasn’t too difficult.  The Trail then climbed up on to Little Bigelow Mountain and I found a nice sunny spot on a flat rock with a view for a late lunch at 3pm.  After lunch, the Trail descended from the Bigelow Range using another “relo” and offered some views.  It then went through deciduous forest and some boggy areas.  I reached Jerome Brook Lean-To at 6:30pm and found it empty.  I had a wash and dinner without incident on a pleasant sunny evening and decided to take a chance and drink the water untreated, though the stream was at low altitude.  Went to bed at 8:30pm and did my diary by candlelight.
By

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)