Dan Heading out of Hot Springs

Dan left Hot Springs yesterday morning.  Robin and I are planning to drive up to Erwin, TN and resupply him Wednesday or Thursday based on his timing.  A lot of the hikers are contracting the Norovirus in the Hot Springs area and getting very sick, so Dan will be avoiding the shelters for the next several days.

Leaving Hot Springs

View from Rich Mountain Tower

Move over and share the trail !

New friendships in beautiful places

Hey all! Not a very good internet connection but I wanted to give a quick update. I’m staying with Kaity for the weekend again in Hendersonville. It’s nice to see her again and give my legs a break from all of the 20 mile days. Also nice to enjoy the luxuries of fresh food, a hot shower (apparently Kaity thinks I needed one), and clean clothes. The past week on the trail has been my favorite so far. I broke the 20 mile barrier and can feel my legs getting stronger. The Smokies were gorgeous, I had beautiful weather all the way through although the trail conditions were still quite icy and muddy at spots. It’s been great making a close bond with Walker, who has quickly become my closest friend on the trail. Walker is a retired Navy veteran, having served for 23 or 24 years, involved in conflicts such as Desert Storm. A commander in rank, Walker spent most of his Naval career as a helicopter pilot but also taught some classes in the Navy. After finishing up his duty in serving our country, he spent about 8 years teaching at a college in Virginia. Recently retired, Walker and his wife hiked the Camino de Santiago, a famous pilgrimage in Spain featured in the Martin Sheen flick, The Way. Becoming more passionate about long distance hiking, Walker found himself with a desire to hike the AT. He is an incredibly fit and strong hiker and is on pace to finish the trail in about 2/3 the time that it takes most hikers. I am getting behind a bit by spending the weekend off the trail, but he has plans to spend some time with his family soon and hopefully we’ll be able to reconnect at some point. Enjoy the pictures, and try to imagine just how beautiful those places are in person. The sunrise at Rocky Top where I left Memaw’s ashes was almost overwhelming, and it was a very emotional experience that I’ll never forget.

As always, thanks so much for following the blog. Everyone’s support is very motivational and keeps me going, especially on the tough rainy days. Stay tuned for more updates as I prepare to head into Virginia soon!

-Pigpen

Pig Pen's at Hot Springs NC 275 miles !

Just a quick update to let everyone know Dan is doing well and has made it to Hot Srings NC.  His knee is holding up and he has been hiking with a new friend "Walker".  He and Walker hike at similar paces and have been doing 20+ mile days for the past week or so.   Here are some photos from the past week and hopefully Dan will find some computer time to give us some details.

View from Clingman's Dome



Pig Pen and Walker at Clingman's Dome



Campsite between two streams

Charlie's Bunion

Pig Pen

Dan at Max Patch

Max Patch Bald

Max Patch Bald

Max Patch Bald





Snow Melt on Trail in Smokies

Plane Wreckage

Pigeon River at mile 240

Walker at Pigeon River

Walnut Mountain Shelter

Trail Magic !

Hot Springs NC !

Memaw's View

Dan has been carrying a small vial of Robin's late mother's ashes since he left Springer.  Today, at sunrise on Robin's birthday, he scattered them in one of his Grandmother's favorite places on earth - The Great Smoky Mountains.  He sent these photo's entitled "Memaw's View."

Memaw's View at Sunrise

Memaw's Morning View

Doris Wallace and our family in the Smokies
several years ago.  One of her favorite places.

Smokey Mountains in Beautiful Weather !

Dan is hitting his stride now, doing about 40 miles over the past 2 days.  He's in the middle of the Smokies and enjoying some beautiful weather and scenery.  He'll pass by Clingman's Dome and the 200 mile mark probably late today or tomorrow.  Here's a few pic's of the views he's enjoying:

Sunrise over Fontana Lake from my campsite

Smokies from Shuckstack

Fontana Lake from Shuckstack Tower

Report from Dan 4.4.13

Dan reported this evening:

"Bad conditions up high, everything froze and branches are falling like crazy.  We're rolling 14 or 15 deep in Sassafras Shelter getting warm. Planning on 15 tomorrow and passing through Fontana Saturday and starting the Smokies."

Here are some pics from yesterday and today

Silas Bald

Silas Bald from Wayah Bald Tower

Nantahala Outdoor Center

NOC

Pig Pen sees the Dr. and returns to the trail

Just a brief update to let everyone know that yesterday we took Dan to see Dr. Easley, a sports orthopedic specialist who has helped both Dan and Taylor get through their sports careers.  Dr. confirmed that it is just an overuse knee sprain much like those he suffered through during some of his running years.  There is not much he can do if he is going to keep hiking except take Naproxen and keep a sleeve on it, both of which he was doing already.

So, I took him back to Franklin and dropped him off today and  he is limping his way on up the trail.  He also got some new trekking poles which should help him on the downhills.

For those of you who saw his "important update" in the last post, I think I have decided to commit to a long section hike beginning in mid May.  After a couple of weeks, if I'm feeling good, the home life is in good order, and I'm not slowing him down too much, then I might just decide to go all the way and do a flip-flop thru hike.  We'll see.  Thanks for the encouragement.

Brian