Broken tent, Erwin, and more rain than you could ever want!

Hi Folks!

It’s been a sec since I’ve been able to write! I am doing well, still pressing northward! Today, I’m staying at The Refuge Hostel in Roan Mountain, TN. This is one of the nicest little hostels I’ve seen! Shoutout to April and Robert for this place! They’ve got a six bunk basement with a sweet little living room setup, and food options for partial resupply; not to mention free shuttles into town for groceries and restaurant food (always worth it, when you can get it)!

After leaving Hot Springs, NC, we had a stretch of really great weather. The leaves are starting to come in down here, so the trail is starting to become nice and shaded. Where the trail does poke up and out of the trees, the views have been amazing. Every now and again, we’re treated to treeless mountain peaks called balds. If you’re lucky enough to hit a bald when it’s clear out, it’s one of the best treats of the trail.

I continue to meet a bunch of great folks on the trail. I’ve hiked most recently with Zeke and Solo, who are staying at the hostel here tonight. Stopping at hostels in towns, or nightly at shelters is always a great way to catch up with all the people you’ve met while hiking. Usually, I roll into camp around 3:00, which gives plenty of time to set up camp, socialize, and, of course, eat tons of food!

If you’re curious what a food supply might look like, I’ve included a photo of the resupply I put together in Erwin, TN, where I stayed at Uncle Johnny’s Hostel. Note, for this resupply, I was going for five days of food, and I actually tried to target 4,000 calories of food per day by keeping track of calories as I threw things in my cart. This resulted in a laughably large amount of food. Honestly, it was so absurd, the hikers that witnessed me putting it together pressed me to weigh it, just to see what suffering I was about to subject myself to. Total, it was 13.7 lbs of food. And, two days out, I can attest that that is a ridiculous amount of food. It is so much to carry, and, personally, I have found it difficult to even eat 4,000 calories each day. This may change as the home goes on, but for now, I will learn and adjust.

The weather has, in the last couple of days, taken a turn for the very rainy and stormy. I’m staying here at The Refuge tonight primarily to dry out. Today’s hike consisted of 17 miles, 12 of which were in the pouring rain. Oh, and those beautiful balds I was talking about can become questionable gambles when you need to get up and over them in a thunderstorm… On top of this, the rainfly of my tent is out of commission. The zipper broke, which means I can’t keep the rain out of my front door. Not good. I’m debating having it repaired or replacing it. I have been asking my fellow hikers how they like their tents, weighing out pros and cons, and staying at AT shelters in the meantime.

Coming up, I’ll be passing into Virginia, at Damascus. There is a trail festival on May 17-19 called Trail Days that attracts a lot of hikers from all mileages on the trail. Really, hundreds of folks shuttle back to or forward to Damascus to hit the hiker fest. I’ll probably be passing through just about the right time. I have heard, too, that there are companies there that repair gear (such as tents!) and sell discounted gear (such as tents!), so it may be good to check out for a multitude of reasons. I’ll fill you in if I go, for sure.

Tomorrow, I’ll hit 400 miles on trail, and in two days, I’ll hit one month on trail! Two excellent milestones. I know a lot of folks have dropped out of the hike at this point, but I’ve got no designs on quitting anytime soon!

Also, feel free to ask any questions in the comments or reach out anytime, folks! I’d be happy to hear from y’all! Until next time!