Appalachian Trail

 
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Jersey John
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Post by Jersey John » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 11:31 am

Wonder if any of you get out to hike for a day or more? Specifically on the Appalachian Trail which passes between Springer Mountain Georgia and Katahdin Maine. My son is finishing up a 6 months trek, and is currently in the 100 Mile Wilderness with others heading to Katadhin in the next few days.

Personally, my gf and I maintain sections in NJ and supervise nearly 1/2 of the 74 miles that pass through out state. As members of the NY NJ Trail Conference as well as Appalachian Trail Conservancy, we take a lot of pride in providing safe passage and a great experience for those who hike the trails in NJ. I've spent days on end trimming back overgrowth and nasty stickers early in the season, and just enjoyed a walk for a few hours or all day at other times.

Since the trail is 2183 miles, there is a cult like draw for many to hike the entire trail in one continuous time frame. Some save and train for long distance hiking for a year before, and others simply read a book, take a leave from work and head out onto the trails. All who stay with it, come back changed in a way that only other thru hikers know. I'm going to be starting in Georgia on an initial section hike a year from now, with the thought of hiking for 2 weeks up into NC. If all goes well, maybe continue for another couple, before planning my next section hike later in the year.

Of all the places I've visited in my travels, the Smokey Mountains are one of the most beautiful. I'll share some images I took from an RV/Motorcycle vacation I took during Summer 2012 under another thread. But, just wanted to find out how many enjoy hiking, and have been on the Appalachian Trail.


 
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Post by GoodProphets » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 12:01 pm

When I was younger, I always dreamed of hiking the trail.
Read books, studied the different sections, and spent hours making lists of all that was needed
with gear and supplies.

Then life went on, and I never got around to doing it. Kids then came and then more lol.
Still I am aching to either do a section or the whole shebang.

We just went up to mass and maine and stopped in the outlets at freeport.
I got a nice 3850 sqin pack that should be enough to pack up and take the kids for a day or couple day hike.

I started a new business about 5 years ago, so it is smooth sailing now.
I plan to take the kids day hiking as the weather starts to cool.
We have some nice spots up here to trail hike or climb, so the kids enjoy it.

I still dream one day to take off and complete the whole trail.
Mountain climbing is just something out of reach, and I am smart enough to not risk that!

 
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Post by titleist1 » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 1:11 pm

Over the past 30 years I've hiked hundreds & hundreds of miles on the AT, but never for more than a week at a shot. It is my goal to hike all of it in my time slotted way. If I'd have planned this out better in my early years, I may have had it all done by now, but I have duplicated many parts of MD & PA many times. It's only in the past 5 years or so that I developed the goal of hiking all sections and have been careful to hike new sections each time. :doh:

I have had my daughter out for a few day hikes and am getting her hooked on hiking too!

eta....and a big thank you for your service maintaining the trail!

 
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Post by franco b » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 3:11 pm

I walk the same small section of the trail almost every day just for some exercise. Hikers I meet are always friendly and some are awesomely fit while others are awesomely unfit but make up for it in determination. Yes, I think it is a life changing experience for many.

I always thought it would be nice to have a porter service maybe run by college kids on vacation. Like Stanley in Africa with porters to carry the tents and food and of course the bathtub. Set up camp and cook dinner while you commune with nature like a gentleman or lady.

 
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Post by freetown fred » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 9:03 pm

Back in the late 50's myself & 1/2 a dozen other Boy Scouts did the trail from Penna.(Gettysburg) to Georgia(Dalenagha???) on horseback. An experience not to be forgotten. No porters or bathtubs-- :clap: toothy

 
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Post by michaelanthony » Fri. Sep. 13, 2013 11:06 pm


**Broken Link(s) Removed**
This is where I live, work, and play! I just got home and finished cooking for a 100 or so hiker and others> The rain put a damper on tonites event in the park 20 ft. from work, but tomorrow should be a wiz bang of a day............should of had febreeze for the waitresses! :rofl:

 
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Post by michaelanthony » Sat. Sep. 14, 2013 7:38 am

....I have the opportunity to meet many of the thru hikers and talk about their travels. Some come from different parts of the world and make the journey and end up staying! Most folks look fairly exhausted when they get to millinocket and some have that dazed look of disappointment now that they are at the end of the line! I know one thing they are damn hungry when they get to town! :D

Hey JJ, tell your son I have a hot meal waiting for him at the Pelletier Family Loggers Restaurant!


 
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Post by Jersey John » Sat. Sep. 14, 2013 9:53 am

michaelanthony wrote:....I have the opportunity to meet many of the thru hikers and talk about their travels. Some come from different parts of the world and make the journey and end up staying! Most folks look fairly exhausted when they get to millinocket and some have that dazed look of disappointment now that they are at the end of the line! I know one thing they are damn hungry when they get to town! :D

Hey JJ, tell your son I have a hot meal waiting for him at the Pelletier Family Loggers Restaurant!
Awesome offer MichaelAnthony! My son is coming into Millinocket today or tomorrow. I just texted him in the event that he takes a break in town, which no doubt as you say he will. He's looking very much a mountain man, having grown quite a beard in the last 6 months. I was hoping to accompany him up Katahdin, but am photographing a Wedding Shower today. He's going to grab a ride back with other hikers who have to return to Va to finish up a few hundred miles. My son Nick's Trail name is Cocoon.

He came off the trail somewhere in Virginia to attend a Wilderness First Responder Class at Bloomsburg University...then returned for a week of hiking locally into New York...then came off again to volunteer at the Tom Brown Tracker School in the Pine Barrens, where he has attended previous classes on Wilderness Survival, along with his brother and myself. He tends to have a voracious appetite as you stated after long hikes without resupply, but has managed to forage for food in the forest throughout his trip, and has truly been inspired by others to explore a career in Wilderness Emergency Response. Heading out to Ca for a Wildernes EMT class in January and hoping to intern at Yosemite next Summer.

Great to be young! But, even as a 60 year old....which btw I consider quite young for my age, I hike, kayak, motorcycle, travel and camp...and look forward to starting my section hiking the trail next August after the glut of young hikers are well on their way. I think everyone should fulfill their dreams...regardless of the challenges. My intent in the next few years is to motorcycle round trip with both my sons and girlfriend to Alaska.

 
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Post by Jersey John » Sat. Sep. 14, 2013 10:16 am

michaelanthony wrote:http://www.trailsendfestival.org/html

This is where I live, work, and play! I just got home and finished cooking for a 100 or so hiker and others> The rain put a damper on tonites event in the park 20 ft. from work, but tomorrow should be a wiz bang of a day............should of had febreeze for the waitresses! :rofl:
Thanks for posting this...I just added it to my FB page for others to see...with a special note to my son

 
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Post by Jersey John » Sat. Sep. 14, 2013 10:47 am

titleist1 wrote:Over the past 30 years I've hiked hundreds & hundreds of miles on the AT, but never for more than a week at a shot. It is my goal to hike all of it in my time slotted way. If I'd have planned this out better in my early years, I may have had it all done by now, but I have duplicated many parts of MD & PA many times. It's only in the past 5 years or so that I developed the goal of hiking all sections and have been careful to hike new sections each time. :doh:

I have had my daughter out for a few day hikes and am getting her hooked on hiking too!

eta....and a big thank you for your service maintaining the trail!
Thanks for the last comment!

My first weekend with my girlfriend, 8 1/2 years ago was spent trimming and maintaining her section of the trail at Sunfish Pond, one of the loveliest glacier lakes along the entire trail. From the Delaware Water Gap parking lot, it's north a couple of miles. Many day hikers enjoy the cool waters and the unique rock sculptures along the northwest corner. Others looking for an overnight, camp at the Backpackers section just south of the pond, where there is a privy and bear boxes. Yes, there are bears...and depending on the season, quite a few. Never a problem though, just inconvenient if you have to get into camp, set up and eat and hang your food bag before dark.

Personally, I haven't hiked hundreds of miles on the AT, but certainly that and more on other trails in the Adironacks, Catskills, Glacier National Park, Canada...but with my son's epic hike fueling my own desires, it is now my intent to push through as many miles as possible before my knees decide to go on strike....that part of getting older surely contributing to a slower pace than I did when I was younger.

Enjoy the hike! Hope you see it all!

 
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Post by michaelanthony » Sat. Sep. 14, 2013 11:05 pm

To be in the north woods of Maine is a blessing and so glad my 5 yr. old son is gets to look out his front door and see Mt. Katahdin. The snowmobile and atv trails lead to my house ( a block away ), hunting, fishing, and camping is all around me!
Jersey John, your son Nick.. :doh: ..Cocoon, sounds like a giver and not a taker which the world needs more of, hope to see him!

 
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Post by titleist1 » Sun. Sep. 15, 2013 7:48 am

Jersey John wrote: before my knees decide to go on strike....that part of getting older surely contributing to a slower pace than I did when I was younger.
Yes....aches and pains are something I have to consider now when doing this physical stuff. My back gives me problems and the spasms can frequently have me lying flat for 2 or 3 days. The knees aren't too bad as long as I have a supply of advil. My pack just has to be a little lighter than in the past!

 
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Post by Jersey John » Sun. Sep. 15, 2013 2:15 pm

michaelanthony wrote:To be in the north woods of Maine is a blessing and so glad my 5 yr. old son is gets to look out his front door and see Mt. Katahdin. The snowmobile and atv trails lead to my house ( a block away ), hunting, fishing, and camping is all around me!
Jersey John, your son Nick.. :doh: ..Cocoon, sounds like a giver and not a taker which the world needs more of, hope to see him!
Indeed! What a blessing it is to have Katahdin's view as a childhood memory!

Since my sons were old enough to walk, I took them on short hikes on the mountainside behind the small lake we live on in North Jersey. Having a local wilderness are to grow up in is one of the richest gifts you can give a child. Many of our early Christmas cards were of the boys canoeing or hiking in the area. When they were 8 years old, I purchased them each a sit on kayak so they could share the passion of kayaking with me as well. All told, including their childhood boats, I have 9 kayaks on the property, and often share our love of paddling with other friends and family.

It's truly a shame so many parents simply allow their young children to sit endlessly in front of the TV or playing video games when there is such a great vast world for them to explore. Both my boys have spent countless hours hiking, kayaking, camping and motorcycling with me over the years...

I've texted Nick to drop in to see you, but haven't heard from him in the last 24 hours.. I believe he was just 25 miles from Millinocket. Hoping he makes it into town before your festival is over. Sounds like an awesome weekend!

 
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Post by michaelanthony » Sun. Sep. 15, 2013 7:09 pm

Jersey John wrote:
michaelanthony wrote:To be in the north woods of Maine is a blessing and so glad my 5 yr. old son is gets to look out his front door and see Mt. Katahdin. The snowmobile and atv trails lead to my house ( a block away ), hunting, fishing, and camping is all around me!
Jersey John, your son Nick.. :doh: ..Cocoon, sounds like a giver and not a taker which the world needs more of, hope to see him!
Indeed! What a blessing it is to have Katahdin's view as a childhood memory!

Since my sons were old enough to walk, I took them on short hikes on the mountainside behind the small lake we live on in North Jersey. Having a local wilderness are to grow up in is one of the richest gifts you can give a child. Many of our early Christmas cards were of the boys canoeing or hiking in the area. When they were 8 years old, I purchased them each a sit on kayak so they could share the passion of kayaking with me as well. All told, including their childhood boats, I have 9 kayaks on the property, and often share our love of paddling with other friends and family.

It's truly a shame so many parents simply allow their young children to sit endlessly in front of the TV or playing video games when there is such a great vast world for them to explore. Both my boys have spent countless hours hiking, kayaking, camping and motorcycling with me over the years...

I've texted Nick to drop in to see you, but haven't heard from him in the last 24 hours.. I believe he was just 25 miles from Millinocket. Hoping he makes it into town before your festival is over. Sounds like an awesome weekend!

Well I just got home from work, and the festival ended about 5:00. I didn't see Nick, there is a lot of activities spread out around town and I'm sure with all the hikers here he made a bunch of new friends sharing their experiences and reflection as you walk 2183 miles! The restaurant is closed Monday and Tuesday tell Nick to stop in Wednesday if he is still around.

 
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Post by Jersey John » Sun. Sep. 15, 2013 7:56 pm

Well I just got home from work, and the festival ended about 5:00. I didn't see Nick, there is a lot of activities spread out around town and I'm sure with all the hikers here he made a bunch of new friends sharing their experiences and reflection as you walk 2183 miles! The restaurant is closed Monday and Tuesday tell Nick to stop in Wednesday if he is still around.[/quote]

Nick called earlier this afternoon, about a mile from the top...and hopefully by now is already down to the base. Mentioned he was going to try to get into town tonight...think one of his hiker friend's dad was going to drive them. Not sure. Going to try to reach him by phone, but this leg of the journey is over..and we hope to see him before he continues the last segment through the Shenandoah mountains north to NJ...

Thanks for the offer. I know his intent is to get back to NJ by way of someone else heading that way. Otherwise, I would drive up and bring him back. If that's the case, I'll let you know and drop in myself. What time is your restaurant open to tonight?


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