White Forest

Another snowy morning in Virginia. It is suppose to warm back up soon, though. I woke up last night with snow blowing into the shelter. By morning, the bottle of water sitting next to me was full of ice. I'd prefer warmer weather to sleep in, of course, but I don't mind a little snow. The drastic change to the woods keeps things interesting. The trees may have lost their leaves and color, but the white powdery snow puts some beauty back into the forest.

If all goes to plan, by the end of the day, I'll have less than 600 miles to go. It's strange why that doesn't seem like a lot to me anymore. About one month to go.

Leaving Pearisburg VA

I'm walking back up the road from Pearisburg. I stayed in a motel last night for a shower and laundry. Someone told me once that staying in a motel was cheating. I disagree. I mean, I need to maintain some measure of personal hygiene out here. The woman running the motel offered to do my laundry, which was great. Now I smell as clean as a common dayhiker.

When I stepped out of the shower, I happened to catch a glance of myself in the mirror. The weight loss took me back a bit. I look like I'm getting ready to audition for the role of an AIDS patient in some Lifetime movie of the Week. Maybe an exaggeration, but I see ribs, shoulders, and hip bones starting to poke out like Freddy Krueger pushing through the wall in Nightmare on Elm Street.

I got dressed and immediately went across the street to the all you can eat chinese buffet to gorge. The food was terrible, but I ate what I could. Later, I ordered a large pizza and ate half of it and had the rest for breakfast this morning. Then for lunch, I went to McDonalds, but only managed to eat one McDouble and a hot fudge sundae. I don't seem to have the appetite most thru-hikers have. I never thought I'd ever have to try so hard to GAIN weight.

Early Start

I couldn't sleep last night, so I got up at 4 AM to finish the last 13 miles into Pearisburg. The wind was strong last night and kept me awake. Tree branches creaked above me and all I could think about was how dead branches got the nickname "widowmakers". Anyway, I'm glad I'm up early. The sunrise was beautiful as always and the views today are even better with the low morning fog filling the valleys.

Daylight Savings

I haven't had a cell signal for a couple of days. I'm getting a weak signal now, perched in my hammock at about 3200 feet, between the full moon and a small town's nightlights, The signal isn't strong enough to get any photos uploaded, but I wanted to post something so you'd know I was doing fine. The moonlight is bright enough to hike tonight without a headlamp, but I'm getting up early and going into Pearisburg for a much needed resupply.

I'm seeing fewer and fewer people on the trail these past few days, except on Saturdays, even though it is warm enough for shorts and t-shirts. I met a section hiker today going northbound and several hunters with rifles looking for Thanksgiving turkeys. Another section hiker passed me going north into town for a soda and cigarettes,even though it was 7 miles out of his way. He reminded me of daylight savings time.

"Don't forget to set your watch back an hour," he said.
"Oh yeah, thanks for the reminder," I said. "Doesn't matter that much out here though. I don't even have a watch."

I get up when I see some sunlight in the sky. I hike until it gets dark, sometimes hours after. The distance between the sun and horizon is my clock now. That or the length of my shadow. I rarely even know what day of the week it is. I received a text from a friend after I had been on the trail a while. "Man, I wish it was Saturday," he said. "It's not Saturday?" I replied with sarcasm. "Funny, it feels like Saturday."

Boulder Run

A boulder, about the size and shape of one of your hands grasping a fist, was on the trail hiding under dry leaves. I accidentally kicked it as I passed by. This set it into motion. Slowly it rolled down this hill behind me. I heard it thumping the ground and picking up speed. I turn to look at it as I ran, so it wouldn't collide with the heal of my foot or cause me to trip. I don't know why I'm telling you this, but for the briefest of moments, my life was exactly like Indiana Jones.

Actually the real reason I stopped to write a post was so I could tell you about today's milestone: 1,500 miles!

Look Up in the Sky

Staring up at the sky beyond the towering autumn colored trees, I saw a hawk glide on the wind with such ease it rarely needed to flap its wings. It occurs to me now, although not at the time, that many great minds have probably had epiphanies while staring at such views. They go for a walk in nature and let their thoughts wander unfettered, like the story of Newton and the apple tree.

When I looked up I thought, "In the intro before the old Superman show, why did that guy yell out, 'Look, up in the sky, it's a bird!'? I mean, what if it was just a bird? Then what? He'd be standing there in his business suit pointing at the sky dramatically, with a briefcase in his other hand, looking like a complete jackass. He's lucky it happened to be Superman, otherwise people would be staring at him and pulling their children closer to their side to keep them safe from the deranged man that thinks some pigeon flying overhead demands everyones full attention. Then I thought maybe his buddy turns to him and says, 'Dude what's with all the theatrics for a bird, we're respected businessmen. Besides it's not even a bird... it's a plane!'"

My point here is, I'm no Newton.

The Homeplace

My quest to find an all-you-can-eat restaurant continues. I heard tell of such a place down VA 311, a short distance from where the trail meets the road.

I began road walking with my thumb out until a woman picked me up and drove me what was only another quarter mile. And a good thing she did, I would have walked right by it, thinking it was a house.

I arrived early at this restaurant called, The Homeplace. I will wait on their porch, and then... I feast!

Great Timing

The AT guidebook can be a spiteful, evil thing at times. It said the Pizza Hut down in Troutville had an all you can eat buffet. It failed to mention that it was only a salad bar. A hungry hiker rarely fantasizes about all the lettuce they can eat. I've never heard a hiker say, "Man, when I get to the next town I'm gonna eat so much romaine." You might hear them chanting, "Pizza, pizza, pizza," with each step down a mountain.

We need 5000 calories a day. Never will a passionate word be uttered about shaved carrots, chopped tomatoes, or cucumber slices. Once I heard a hiker exclaim that a salad bar had real bacon bits, but that doesn't count because he was eating them plain with a spoon.

It's okay though. I climbed back into the mountains to what is really important on this trip. The one thing that will always silence the thoughts of fatty foods or the sometimes mindless march forward, when the events of the day put you in the right place at the right time for a sunset with a view high above the valley floor.

Another Marathon Day

My feet and legs ache tonight. Well, they ache almost every night, but tonight it's keeping me awake. It's not surprising after another 26 mile marathon day, bringing my total mileage up to 1,450. Since I'm out of Aleve and Ibuprofen, I thought I'd write something on my blog instead of focusing on the aches and pains. I can't promise anything interesting will come of it.

It began to pour right after I got to the shelter and it continues to patter on the roof overhead. It's strange since I never saw more than a wisp of clouds in the sky all day.

The shelter was already occupied when I arrived. I can see him now tinted red in the monochromatic light of my headlamp. Or should I say her? I can't really tell. I'll just say "he" is licking chocolate from an abandoned candy bar wrapper that he found on the floor. He's staring at me cautiously. His dark eyes like two droplets of black ink. Neither of us are making a sound other than the crinkling of the wrapper. I think he just noticed I was awake, because a look of fear flashed in his eyes and he dashed across the floor then into a hole in the wall.  I should mention that the shelter's occupant is a mouse, although I'm curious what you were picturing.

My feet are throbbing. They ache like... well no need for similes, they ache like I hiked 26 miles today. My left thigh has a sensation like pins and needles are writhing around like knotted worms. I reached down to massage it and it feels slightly numb. Not as numb as my right big toe, though. You might be thinking, at least it doesn't hurt, but sometimes it does without warning. A deep sharp pain all the way down to the bone.

The mouse is scurrying along the rafters now, showing some interest in my backpack that is hanging below him on a peg. Will he fall down onto my chest like one did to a hiker I met in Pennsylvania? Or crawl into my sleeping bag like one did to a hiker I read about in a shelter log yesterday? Maybe it will wait until I'm asleep and run across my head like one did to Thumper in a New York shelter.

My legs and feet are twitching involuntarily. I assume it's just part of my nightly healing process.

I feel I might be making trail life seem less glamorous somehow. Actually, I love all of this. This trip is such a significant part of me now that I know one day I'll miss even these chilly nights huddled in my mummy sleeping bag, with steam pouring out of the opening around my face with each breath. I'll even miss the shelter mouse, who I can now hear scrambling over the dry leaves under the floorboards. I think I may even miss these aches and pains. I often wonder how I could ever go back to a normal life on the "inside". Like the opposite of a prisoner in Shawshank, I'm an un-institutionalized man now.

I think I'm finally tired enough to fall asleep. Tomorrow is a special day for me. The trail comes really close to a Pizza Hut near Troutville, Virginia, with an all you can eat buffet. Now, I have no doubt that when I'm off the trail I'll miss being able to eat whatever I want and still lose weight. In fact, I might miss that most of all.  

Amazon Kindle Review, For Backpackers

I should start by saying; I’m not generally a fan of gadgets on the trail. That being said, on the Appalachian Trail, I had a few. On long distance hikes, a little distraction can go a long way. The one gadget I have begun to take on every trip, however, is my Kindle. It has become my most favorite, non-essential, item that I carry.

Below, you’ll find my review of the Kindle as it pertains to backpacking. I have also included links to various handy resources you may want to have on your e-reader of choice, when on the trail.

So, why is the Kindle my favorite non-essential item?

1 – It shaves ounces from my pack
I can carry hundreds of books and it will never weigh more than 8.5 ounces (9.5 oz. with my homemade protective sleeve, see below). Before the kindle I normally packed two books for a one-week trip, which weighed about 12-13 oz. Also, I will often pick up a new paperback before heading out, and just not get into it, so it just becomes dead weight. With an ebook reader, I can take anything I think I may want to read, and purchase new books along the way, without worrying about the weight.

Not only do I carry dozens of books, but also hiking-related reference books and documents that I created myself, that I would never carry with me including: 
  • Wilderness survival books and quick reference guides
  • First aid guides and emergency phone numbers
  • Town and Backup Trail Maps
    • An ebook reader doesn’t replace the need of a good paper map, of course, but can be used for a backup trail map. These maps can also cover areas you doubt you will need, such as towns and side trails that could be needed in emergencies or resupply. Saving screenshots of Google Maps as PDFs (see below) and syncing them to the Kindle can be very useful.
    • On the Appalachian Trail, I purchased Awol’s loose-leaf AT Guide and scanned it into a PDF file for the Kindle. I kept the pages I would need for a section of trail in my pocket, and put the ones I didn't need in a bounce box that I sent to the post office in my next resupply town. On several occasions it came in handy to have the entire book on the Kindle.
  • Keep information on airports, taxi and shuttle services, and Bus and Train stations. Such as phone numbers, addresses, and schedules. 
  • Miscellaneous backpacking notes, documents, or spreadsheets
    • For example, instructions for tying useful knots, wildlife and plant field guides, tips for predicting weather, or information on what plants or berries can be safely eaten. 
To easily create PDFs, you can download the free PDF creator, Cute PDF. After installing, simply print the document and select the CutePDF Printer to save the file as a PDF.

2 - Battery Life
One reason I’m not a fan of gadgets on the trail, is batteries. The kindle will last up to three or four weeks on a single charge, if wi-fi is turned off. Two weeks is a good estimate if you are a heavy reader and use the kindle for note taking or playing a game.

The e-ink display on the kindle, will only use the battery when you turn a page, or when the screen refreshes while typing or using an app. This means, when I fall asleep in the middle of reading, it won’t drain the battery. Also, when I wake back up it will be on the same page I was reading. 



If longer battery life is needed, I also carried a USB charger (.883 ounces) with two lithium AA batteries (1.06 ounces) that I used for an emergency backup for my cell phone, or if I needed it, to get another couple weeks of power for my kindle.

3 – FREE Internet Access
Free, as in Amazon does not charge you to connect to their 3G network (note: All Kindle's allow you to connect to wi-fi, but to use Amazon's free 3G service, a 3G capable Kindle must be purchased.)  You can't watch videos or visit flash web sites, and the browser on the kindle is a pain to use. But, that is a good thing, in my opinion. I don’t want to be tempted to browse the internet on the trail, or have access to a million apps. It does come in handy, however, if you are able to get a cell signal and want to check the weather, trail conditions, or read trail journals of other people on the trail. It's also handy if you’re nearing a town and want to know what stores, restaurants, or hotels are available, or make reservations. I can also email friends and family. If nothing else, it’s nice to know you have a way to search for phone numbers of business, taxis, or emergency services.

If the kindle ever becomes a better internet browsing tool, I may have to stop carrying it. I don't want the distraction. As it is now, its perfect. Annoying enough to use, so that I only use it when I have a good reason.

4 - The Kindle Store
When in cell phone range, you can access more books, or books about a specific topic you may only have thought about while on the trail. For example, when hiking in Yosemite, I was inspired to read the writings of John Muir. Or, I could have gotten a book about the park in general. It was also nice to be able to download something new to read while sitting in a shelter on the Appalachian Trail, without having to wait for the next resupply town.

5 - Cost
The cheapest Kindle is currently only $79 with wi-fi only. I prefer the $139 3G model with a keyboard (for note taking). The extra $60 is worth it to me to have the unlimited free 3G service, since wi-fi is useless on the trail.

Special Care
The only real downside to the Kindle or any other ebook reader is that they requires special care that books don’t. I found an inexpensive way to protect my Kindle that has survived 2,400 miles of hiking and cramming it in and out of a backpack a couple hundred times. I cut a blue foam mat to torso length and used the excess to make a cheap case. I put my Kindle in a zip-top bag to waterproof it, and slip it into the foam case. I've dropped it a few times without problems. In the zip-top bag, I've dripped water on it and handled it with greasy fingers while I'm eating and it still looks brand new.

I could say much more, but this is strictly a review of Amazon’s Kindle as it relates to hiking, camping, and backpacking. For more specs, and demonstrations of how it works, please visit the Kindle page on Amazon.com.
   
Creative Commons License
A Backpacker's Life List by Ryan Grayson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.