Almost Done!

We are in Maine! And it is beautiful! We only have about 150 miles left of the Appalachian Trail, and the past few weeks have been unreal. Phone reception and wifi have been rare to find, so sorry for the lack of posts. All is well and we couldn't be happier :)

Roxy and I have had amazing trail magic and met great people in the northeast. When we arrived at the Hiker Hut in Rangely, an amazing package full of goodies from Bob and his dog Buster was waiting for us. 

Look at all this awesome food! Definitely just we needed to get through the rough Maine terrain. Ever since we crossed into Maine, the trail has been crazy tough. I've climbed more ladders in the passed week than I have in my entire life. Roxy has tackled every obstacle like a champ. 

Ladder use is optional for Roxy. She usually finds an alternate route. 

In the package from Bob and Buster was a pink squeaky toy. Back home, Roxy doesn't get squeaky toys because they annoy me, but out here I allowed her to enjoy her special treat. Additionally I decided to pack the toy along since I only have a few more miles to go and my pack weight doesn't really bother me anymore. Every time we reach a summit or take a break, Roxy gets to play with her toy and she is so incredibly happy. I kind of feel bad that I haven't carried a toy for her all along. 

Playtime on the mountain :)

With the new toy along, Roxy is noticeably happier. The trail has definitely been wearing on both of us. We still have been doing about 20 miles per day, but they keep getting harder. The surprise trail Magic from Bob and Buster really reinvigorated both of us and got us pumped for these last few miles. As of now the plan is to summit the final peak, Mt. Katahdin, on October 9th hard to believe the end is in sight! 

Mountains as far as you can see! Once we reach the end we will have to find a new trail to follow :) 

Do I have to go back to the real world?

I decided to finally take a day off from hiking. During my thru-hike, I've only taken 3 true "zero days" without any hiking. Today is day #4. Since I am nearing the end of my hike, I decided to look into some real world issues I am going to have to deal with soon. The result was not pleasant.

I have no idea if I currently have health insurance, my bank account balance is slowly dwindling, my resume needs a major overhaul, and I definitely need to start looking for potential employment opportunities. I thought about updating my resume and writing a generic cover letter today, but all my prior job experiences seem so trivial and insignificant compared to what I am accomplishing out here on the trail. The idea of going into job interviews and pretending that any of my prior employments were stupendously incredible portrayals of my skills, just seems like such a joke. Of all my prior experiences, the only one that I am remotely proud of is organizing fundraisers for Friends for Animals. That actually required me to independently acquire and utilize a novel skill set. Being a good teacher was easy. Being a good student was even easier. Nothing about "working" was ever difficult. Not to sound too pompous, but when I decide to do something, I always do it well, so of course I was good at everything I set my mind to. (This is actually due to a personality disorder I've been diagnosed with. If you're curious here is more info about it: https://iocdf.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/OCPD-Fact-Sheet.pdf)

Anyway after a few hours of dwelling on the fact that the real world is looming in my near future, I've decided now is not the time to worry about it. Resume writing can get taken care of some other time. Whenever I think too much about what lies ahead, I like to make myself feel better by looking at all the pretty things that are around me right now, so here are a few pictures of how much better life is in the woods:

Fall is turning the forests into a beautiful kaleidoscope of colors. 

When in doubt, the AT always goes up the steepest rock in view.

But after you climb the steepest rock, you get to look back and see this.

At the end of a long day, it is nice to get home.

Beautiful views with my beautiful Roxy. The real world can wait.

White Mountain Wonders

Up above treeline in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

As I neared the end of Vermont, I had a temporary freak out about finally entering the White Mountains. According to my Appalachian Trail Thru-Hikers' Companion guidebook "each year, carelessness ends in death for a a few visitors to the Whites." DEATH. Yeah, these mountains are intense. Everyone I've met recently has felt the need to share their horror stories about how tough the Whites are, and how it isn't possible to do 20 mile days in the Whites, and how there isn't any safe camping in the Whites. No matter who I talked to, everyone did their best to convince me that I was going to have a hard time in the Whites, especially with a dog in tow. I would have no where to stay, no where to get food, and no chance of maintaining my current hiking pace.

That pile of rocks is the trail. 

Map and elevation profile of Mt. Moosilauke

Wooden blocks cemented into a stone wall.

All the hype I kept hearing from everyone eventually started to get to me. I was planning on continuing my pattern of 20 mile days, but according to general consensus, that wasn't going to be possible. For me the problem with doing shorter days is that I have to resupply more often, and resupply points in the Whites are very limited. This stretch of the Appalachian Trail is definitely more remote, so finding places to get food for me and Roxy is a challenge.

But as with every challenge we've met along this adventure, Roxy and I decided to prove everyone else wrong. Day 1 hiking into the Whites we completed 23 miles and hiked over our first above treeline peak: Mt. Moosilauke. The summit was over 4,000 feet above sea level and the trail traversed many steep segments that were augmented with rebar, rock steps and wooden blocks for footing. Roxy of course navigated all these obstacles like a champ, and I carefully followed behind her. Although it was challenging, the trail was by no means as impossible as most people implied.

In retrospect, I'm not sure why I let the negativity of others influence my outlook on the Whites in any way. My very first real hiking experience was in the White Mountains during the winter. Several months later, I returned and hiked several of the peaks in summer. I didn't have any issues hiking the mountains during those two trips, so I should have been confident all along. However after constantly hearing about the difficulty of the Whites from so many hikers, I started to doubt my own memories. Maybe I didn't have an easy time during my last two trips to the Whites, or maybe hiking with a 35 pound pack would really make a huge difference.

The views from the summits are worth hiking all day for.

Turns out that just because everyone else thinks something is true, doesn't mean it has to become your reality. The Whites were my first love. They inspired me to find myself and focus on making my own reality. They showed me that I am strong and can overcome any obstacles. Last year when I was facing a very heart-wrenching and emotionally draining divorce, the Whites kept me moving forward toward a better future. The challenge of hiking over mountains kept my mind focused on what really matters rather then dwelling on all the heartbreak and manipulation I had put up with for 6 years. In the Whites is where I learned what really matters in life. This is where I first found purpose, strength, and peace. Although these mountains might seem tough to many hikers, for me this is a place of serenity and clarity, and no amount of physical challenge is too grand to stop me from doing what works best for Roxy and me. We will keep hiking 20 miles per day and loving every minute of it.

See those peaks in the distance? I'll be up there soon :) 

Things I Love About Vermont

I've been in Vermont for about a week, with only about 40 miles of the state left to go, and I am in awe of how outstanding this state is. The trail maintenance is superb, the people are friendly, and everything is beautiful.  

That's my brother Thomas hiking up to Bromley peak. 

Once again my dad came to visit me, this time with my brother Thomas, and we had the most amazing experiences. On the first day of hiking we were greater with trail magic for breakfast. A team of three hilarious men with a truck made us breakfast sandwiches and spoiled us with fresh fruit and beer. 

Trail magic! 

Our great luck in Vermont continued as we spent two days hiking with stunning views and perfect weather. 

Just taking in the awesomeness of Vermont. 

After Thomas and Dad departed, I had another perfect day of hiking over Mount Killington. The summit offered panoramic views, and even had an upscale lodge serving Starbucks coffee! This is the first time since Gatlinburg, TN that I have had actual brewed Starbucks, not just the instant Via coffee. 

Starbucks with mountain views, life can not get any better. 

Fancy lodge with fantastic food, electrical outlets, and real bathrooms!

To end this perfect day in Vermont, I arrived at Gifford Woods State Park, which for only $10 gave me a gorgeous campsite, hot water shower, free wifi and charging station, and Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Vermont knows how to treat its hikers!

Roxy enjoyed Killington Peak too. 

Happy in Vermont :) 

Hello Vermont

Officially reaching the northeast has been a thrilling point of my adventure. Seemingly overnight I've seen a drastic shift in many respects: mountains are higher, nights are colder, views are more spectacular, and my spirits are higher than ever. My first true mountain hiking experience was a day-hike up Camel's Hump Peak in Vermont several years ago, and ever since then I've been captivated by the stunning beauty of this state. 

Hiking in Vermont is a treat for all your senses. The Appalachian trail through this state finally veers away from major highways, so the background noise of speeding cares is no longer heard (this was an obnoxious issue in New York and New Jersey). The forests of Vermont even smell amazing. The first 40ish miles of Vermont were all pine forests, so with every step I felt like I was surrounded by a Christmas wonderland. 

Continuing north, I am now encountering stunning maple forests that are beginning to show signs of Fall. Many people travel to the northeast just to see the Fall foliage, and I'm going to spend an entire month walking through the epic beauty of colorful leaves. 

There is also no lack of water in Vermont. While in Pennsylvania and New York, finding decent drinking water was a constant challenge. In Vermont there seems to be a fresh mountain spring every few miles. Additionally, there is free food everywhere! Blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries have been a constant treat along the trail, but in Vermont there are also apple trees randomly growing throughout the forests.  Life is easy when the essentials are literally just a few steps away. 

To make this state even better, I got another visit from my dad! This time my younger brother tagged along as well, and we are going to hike the next two days together. Having great company on the trail always brightens my day and makes the hiking even more enjoyable. At the pace I'm going, I'll be out of Vermont and into New Hampshire in just a few days, but as always I am going to make the most of every moment I have along the way.