Day 90 - Changes, Updates & Reflections

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Instead of looking back on the last 1000+ miles, I am taking a different perspective. I am looking down. Remembering an early picture I took from the begging of this hike,  I look at my shoes, feet and all the other surrounding characteristics and detail from the picture . In the picture you can see me shorts, legs, socks, shoes, trekking poles and the trail.

Now when compared to my recent photo I took today, you see many of the same objects. However if you look closer you the differences in details tell a story all by themselves. Legs: thick and more muscular. I didn't think it was possible. Socks: little did I know that I wore my socks inside out for the first couple of weeks. Gators: Dirty Girls is the name brand and keeping dirt out is the plan. Who would have thought that you kick up so much dirt inside your own shoe! Shoes: yes they are different. My last pair just "blew out"from walking so much and grappling rocks. I just hope the wears in process of these new shoes don't kill my feet. Trekking Poles: the bottom halves have been replaced  (due to a trail running incident) and are now adorned with Ken and Barbie decapitated heads. Trail: sure it looks the same but you notice many of the old leaves are now in smaller pieces and there is a couple greenish brown newer leaves scattered about .

So what does this mean? Well I see it as just a state of progression, like most things in life. You obviously learn from your simple mistakes (socks). You see growth in your strengths (legs). You replace the limiting factors of your success (shoes). You repair things you damage along the way (poles). You update your tools to protect yourself (gators). You display knick-knacks to keep memories and promote conversation (heads).You witness seasons change (leaves). Ohhh yeah you also learn to double knot your shoes! 

P.s. all of ththis was written from my Verizon Wireless phone... god bless the speech to text feature!

Day 88 - 2nd Semester

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Remember that first day of college when your parents drop you off at the dorms with all your stuff and you don't know anyone, you feel like your in a foreign land and you have faintest remembrance of how to academically study... Well that's what I feel like for me right now. Especially when my parents (BackpackingAT friends : Eric, Lauren and Bo), foreign land (new part of the Appalachian Trail) and study (general hiking practices and  mindset) are all preparing me for what's to come. Not to mention it costs too much to drop out half way through!

After a SOLID week of male bonding, acting silly and floating down a river (winter/summer break) its time to get back into the groove for my second semester as freshman on the trail. 

With a couple heart warming "see you soon" exchanged, I am dropped back off on the trail. 

Slowly warming my thought process to nothing less of Bear Grylls, I realize that i need to be cautious of my new shoes, where I reorganized my belongings in my backpack and.....ohhhh shit.... I forgot to get gas for my stove! 

Walking a mile into the trail, I mentally calm myself down knowing that I will be passing through a town within the next couple of days that should have gas for me. Meanwhile I just have to build a small fire like I would have, had I not brought my gas burner. No Big Deal.

But what is that? A hot sensation coming from the left side of my left foot. Is my pinky toe already being irritated by the new shoes? Perhaps I should walk on it a little bit further as the shoe has time to loosen up.... Right? Well after a stopping every couple miles to readjust, I think I might be able to live with it. 

Now it's getting dark...I'm in between shelters and not looking to hike in the dark. I hear the tops of the trees move in the distance like static on a broken TV getting louder and louder. With the sudden drop in temperature and the smell of humidity in the air, you know it's about to rain. So I find a small open area (with minimal rocks covering the flat spots) and set up my tent as fast possible. As soon as my last stake was forced into the rooty soil, rain drops start bouncing off my tensioned vestibules walls. Enter the thunderstorm which sets the tone for a mental horror story...

Now here I am; Alone, Without gas and friends. 

Luckily It's not that dramatic (but it is when your in my shoes and not behind a computer in your house/work) and I have my good friend Mr. Technology to keep me company. All of a sudden being sent to my room by Mother Nature is not so bad. Having all the Verizon 4G service my phone's battery can use, I pass the time writing thoughts out like this (or actually being lazy and using the speaking-2-text feature), uploading the days pictures and catching up for a hot minute with friends and family. I'm no longer alone. It's nice to know that even in the absence of most comforts, technology somehow has/is a remedy. GenY for life.

Day 74 - Breakfast and Entertainment

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Both of these areas are very important to me simply because I love to eat and I constantly have to be entertained. 

Breakfast

I know that most people out there do not share my same opinions but, I dislike breakfast foods. If I had it my way, I would eat lunch and dinner items for every meal! Regardless, I know that there is some importance in eating a healthy breakfast. So as a hiker, trying to make the most of my morning before rushing out of the camp site, I have gotten into a new routine. Boil 2 cups of water and add 2 packets of oatmeal and pouch of Carnation Instant Breakfast. This powdered packet is the key ingredient to my breakfast in which I attribute my first 10 miles of hiking each day. What's so good about them? Well they provide a poop load of nutrition which I believe your body is craving after making it hike a marathon each day. Secondly they come in 3 different flavors (chocolate, vanilla and strawberry). I like to think of the vanilla packets as my milk powder substitute. It makes my oatmeal (any flavor) taste that much creamier. Chocolate I add to my Starbucks Via Packets when I want to spoil myself in the morning. As for strawberry... It's a wild card. It goes well with many of the oatmeals (blueberry, banana, original, strawberry and even apply) but just have to plan ahead. That's all. To be honest I plan on carrying on this Carnation Instant Breakfast habit to "my real life" once I get of the trail . I am that stoked this goodness!

Entertainment

Listening to nature is great, don't get me wrong... but I do get bored starring at the same scenery sometime. Coming from a very active childhood and even busier adolescent, I sometimes feel that I am wasting my time as I am not efficiently using my time wisely.  Enter "Ted Talks". Ted Talks are informational speeches from leaders in their prospective fields. These talks are usually in regards to new technology or ideas that are slightly radical at first, but once they explain the process you end up saying to yourself, " that makes to much sense ". Listening to these 12 minute lectures really gets your brain thinking. In my case, I reflect on the conversation and have a mental brainstorm to see if this concept or adjacent ideas applies to anything in my life/future. Right now my favorite talk was from a person who turned his curb into a garden for people in his community to pick in hopes to combats bad diets and fast foods. He is making gardening "gangster" to appeal to  new demographics. 

Day 71 - Trail Days & Technology

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Alright I know it's been a while... Well almost a month to be exact. However i have been updating Facebook on the regular.  In fact i am outsourcing some amazing talent to help me redesign the flow of the website in order be more reader friendly. Luckily for you I have decided to get back on the hoarse and bring you updates in various aspects of our adventure... Piece by piece. Today's topic: Trail Days and Technology!

Trail Days

What happens when 15,000 hikers enter a small town of nearly 1000 people for a weekend? Trail Days.

For those of you that don't know Trail Days is a weekend festival for hikers and the community of Damascus. Throughout the town, church groups, vendors and the local vendors provide (cheap to free)'services for hikers. All the while, the hikers invade this small town and enjoy all the pleasures of a town (restaurants, bars and grocery stores) while wearing loud thrift shift clothes as their own clothes are being washed 2x in hopes to get the 2 month hiker funk smell out. 

Unfortunately a tragic event occurred this weekend as well. During the hiker parade (current and previous hikers walk in succession of the years they hiked) a gentlemen in his car parked on a side road, had a heart attack and ran over 5-6 people. In the end no one was severally injured ( just a couple broken bones and scrapes) but you can imagine at that point in time everyone was going crazy - even from 100ft away (where we were walking).

On a lighter note... BackpackingAT had a huge presence at this festival mostly due to our very own Bo Comfy. He was able to secure a 40x40 ft tent near tent village, where 75% of the hikers hang for the weekend. Underneath our tent we were able to provide free wifi (Thanks to Verizon Wireless), entertain hikers with a folk band ( again thanks to Bo), and provide a safe heaven for those sweet enough to melt in the rain. In fact we even held a wedding underneath our tent on Saturday - who would have thought! During the evening hours next to our tent, an uber large fire was built in which hundreds of hikers would dance around  the fire and engage in a drum circle. This would last late into the night, far past my time. 

Technology

America's most reliable 4G network is my backbone for our BackpackingAT adventure. From pictures to video to uploading to blogging to responding to logistics to talking to loved ones, Verizon Wireless makes all this possible. I am fortunate enough to have been chosen to be an official Verizon Wireless Blogger throughout my 6 months on the Appalachian Trail. My area, of course,  is fitness centric. Hiking 2184 miles is no easy task. Nearly hiking up and down a marathon of trail each day is a very physical demanding activity. 

Sure it helps that I have spent the last 4 years of my life helping to develop and market for Verizon Wireless. Using this technology and array of devices, this is nothing foreign to me. So when it comes to incorporating the newest technology into an otherwise minimalistic environment I am able to share so much of my everyday experiences with the rest of the world. Who knows, this may encourage those on the edge to fall off their seats and strap on some boots - I could only hope! 

Not to be tutting the horn more than I should, but I really enjoy ( for whatever reason ) love when people as to use my phone at shelters. I always ask, "What service do you have ? Ohhhh I see, well I have Verizon and I have service....". Granted there are some dead zones, but more often than not, I am able to continue walking a quarter mile and get at least 3G signal.