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I Truly Miss Writing To You All
Zero Day: 6
Goals:
Recover and plan my next outing
Activities:
I have been sitting around for about a week now and am bored! I have thought up a plan for my next adventure. I want to get out there hiking again! Today, my oldest and I went on a walk to a local gas station that is about three miles in total. About a third of the way into the walk, my body said, “You are not letting me recover! You are going to regret this!”
I am happy that we went on the walk as we got to talk about some of my thoughts and hear his opinion about them. I learned on the walk that I need to/ have to let my body recover! I have to do this! I don’t like it; there are only so many movies on Netflix and HBO that I can watch! Baseball season starts in 10 days, 12 hours, and 24 minutes (as of this very second in my life), which will significantly help my boredom!
I was massaging my leg, not sleeping, and thought I would go through my photos of the Pinhoti trail. I deleted a lot of duplicates, which happens when I post on here while out on the trail. I found a few videos I made that I will share with you. The Trek is saying they are too large to upload. Sorry that I can’t share them with you!
Above, I stated that I had come up with my next adventure. As of right now, I would like to go to Eastern TN and get onto the Benton MacKay Trail, which I would be hiking south on.
FarOut BMT Information
That will take me to Springer Mountain and the AT. From there, I would head north on the AT to a trail named Mountain to Sea Trail.
FarOut Mountain to Sea Trail Information
It would take me from Clingmans Dome to Jockey’s Ridge on the Outbanks. I want to point out that, at this point, I would be close to Baltimore! Baseball anyone? I’m doing it! Once I’ve gone to a game, I would take a train to Harper’s Ferry, then head south to Clingmans Dome. Shuttle back to Harper’s Ferry to head north again.
Vermont’s Long Trail has been calling my name for a long time.
FarOut’s Vermont Long Trail Information
It won’t be okay if I don’t make it to Maine to summit Mt Katahdin. I will be upset with myself for not finishing the AT. All I can do is try my best! The Long Trail can wait until after the AT, too. I am going to have to wait and see when I get there. Finishing the AT would be the first goal, though.
There are several other trails on the East Coast that I would like to do. They will most likely have to wait till next year. Once winter settles in, I will head to the southwestern part of this great nation where I live. Arizona is warm during the winter, and I plan to take advantage of that warmth!
Foothills Trail
New England Trail
THIS NEXT PART IS A LOT OF MY OPINION; IT IS NOT LAW OR TRUE IN ANY SHAPE OR FORM! STRICTLY MY OPINION!
My family, who lives in Montana, has asked about the Continental Divide Trail or the PCT. I would love to do those trails! I am not ready to go out west yet. In my opinion, the PCT is a trail that will go away soon. With all the fires, it’s challenging to do the PCT. Oregon and Washington are doable. A significant amount of that trail is in California, and the trail is shut down most of the time right as the hiking season starts.
The CDT first is not marked all that well, mainly because it’s a relativity young trail. I believe more people will start hiking it due to the difficulty of TRULY hiking ALL of the PCT. It will get blazed and officially finished in the next decade or so. I’m not saying it will take me that long to go hike it. I’m not ready to do it yet. Who knows, I might get to Arizona and find myself in Montana one cool summer morning. Time will only tell. There are a lot of trails out west that I would love to do. I want to stay on the East Coast until winter, then the warm Southwest sounds excellent!
These are dreams and huge ambitions! I have nothing better to do with my time. Only time will tell what happens.
What’s Ahead:
Recovery, relaxing, and hanging out with my sons. BASEBALL! Go Orioles! I really hope they finish the job this year!
I have some other plans and ideas to share with you all. I will leave that for the next post, as I truly miss writing to you all every night.
Goals:
Heal up and get back on the trail! BASEBALL is almost here!
Stats:
Mileage of the day: 0
Mileage on Trail: 0/0
Days on Trail: 0
Number of Zero’s: 6 (no miles hiked)
Number of Nero’s: (less than five miles hiked)
States: Alabama, Georgia
Trails completed: Pinhoti
The good: Spending time with the boys
The Bad: Weak knees and inpatients
Thank you for following along! I shall return as soon as I can!
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Comments 13
The bad thing about the NET is that there aren’t many (if any) camping spots in CT. Other than that, it passes through some nice areas of CT, and the shoreline where it terminates is beautiful, actually, almost all parts of the shoreline from New Haven east are pretty.
Chris, I read this and looked at the map/trail, and there are no marked campsites. I will have to look deeper into this. Thank you, Chris, for the heads up!
Great stuff. Sometimes I wish I was back east. So many great trails. And don’t worry about, “In my opinion, the PCT is a trail that will go away soon. With all the fires, it’s challenging to do the PCT.” PCT more popular than ever and while the fires can be a problem, the PCT will always be there. Hey would have the GET? Grand Enchantment Trail? AZ to Albuquerque NM. That might be a big western challenge, much like the Long Trail in VT.
Regardless, I loved this post. Thank you bro! Good good excellent info. I am sure I will read, and read again.
• Hope your knee is getting back up to snuff PDQ.
All the best. Good Walking to YOU.
Leo, I will have to look into the GET, as I have friends who live in that area. Thank you for telling me about it! I appreciate your insight; thank you!
Try ToastedCBD.com salve (legal in all states) on your legs and feet. It removes soreness and pain in about 15 minutes. It’s my walking essential these days. I don’t receive any compensation, I just use the product and it works
John, I will have to get some. I hope that your hike goes great! I will be following you!
Thanks, report back if it helped you.
It can be a bummer having to sit and just recover, but remember: it’s the best way for you to get back out there and accomplish your goals! Hope you heal swiftly and well, and as a lifelong Vermonter I can confirm The Long Trail is amazing! It can be tough, but it’s a great time. Be well!
✌️
Jared, I wouldn’t say I like sitting around all that much. Sadly, I must do it if I want to recover fully. I have to get some gear to help me stay healthy and lighten my load. The LT (northern) is calling my name! It’s on my bucket list, and I have to do it! Now that I have put it on “paper” and let everyone in the world know, it has moved from the buck list to the “now I have to” list. LOL! Thank you for your comment, Jared. I greatly appreciate
I love your posts! Congratulations on your completion of the Pinhoti Trail! Hope you continue to get rest and recovery. Then on to the next adventure when the time is right…
Lawrence, thank you for the recognition! Healing and replacing some gear will get me back on the trail. I will be back out there as soon as I can. Thank you for your support and comment.
Some random thoughts on your future trails:
– Doing the Benton MacKaye southbound should be fun. A friend and I did it that way in 2020 and I’d do it again. Going southbound allows you to better plan your Smokies itinerary since you have to schedule your campsites there. Then once you’re through the Smokies you have more freedom to camp wherever you want for the rest of the trail. Going northbound on the BMT you have the camp freedom first but end with all the camping restrictions at the end when you’re tired and grumpy. The downside of going southbound is that you start out with a HUGE climb the first day. Since I live in Georgia, hiking southbound on the BMT meant I was walking home the whole way. You’ll end at Springer Mountain, where you can catch a shuttle or hike the 8 mile Approach Trail down to Amicalola State Park and catch a ride (or leave a car if you want to).
– If you’ve got a week or so, try the 116 mile Bartram, an under appreciated trail. There’s a 10 mile road walk in the middle into Franklin, NC, but it’s easy to shuttle around that or take a day off to resupply. I can recommend Chica and Sunsets Hostel; I’ve used them twice for Bartram hikes, just as a shuttle/resupply. I’ve also stayed with them once. The Bartram, in my opinion, is best done northbound so you can end at Cheoah Bald.
Drew, thank you for the suggestions! All these trails are on my mind. I will most likely hit them all after this summer. Best of luck to you and thank you for being here!