Hiking Schedule

Here is a table with my planned stops. I'll definitely hike at whatever pace is comfortable for me, but this is what I kinda expect to do. I doubt that I will go any faster, but if you are going to send something to a mail location, send it earlier rather than later. The post offices will hold packages for 15-30 days. And check back here to see if I've updated this...I'll try to if I start to get drastically off from what is here.

NOBO

ETA	Place	Cum. Miles	Resupply
5/14	Harpers Ferry	0	Start
5/18	Smithburg, MD	31	Shop
5/23	Pine Grove Furnace St. Park	78.8	Shop
5/27	Duncannon, PA	123.9	Shop
6/1	Port Clinton, PA	193.8	Mail
6/9	Del Water Gap, PA	270.1	Mail
6/13	Unionville, NY	321.6	Shop
6/17	Ft. Montgomery, NY	379.0	Shop
6/22	Kent, CT	449.2.6	Shop
6/26	Great Barrington, MA	497.0	Shop
6/30	Dalton, MA	549.8	Mail
7/3	North Adams, MA	568.4	Shop
7/8	Manchester Center, VT	626.9	Shop
7/12	Killington, VT	680.0	Shop
7/15	Hanover, NH	722.8	Shop
7/18	Glencliff, NH	766.2	Mail
7/21	Crawford Notch, NH	819.7	Mail
7/24	Gorham, NH	866.8	Shop
7/28	Andover, ME	908.2	Mail
8/2	Stratton, ME	976.9	Shop
8/7	Monson, ME	1046.9	Shop
8/16	Abol Bridge, ME	1149.6	Shop

SOBO

ETA	Place	Cum. Miles	Resupply
8/28	Harpers Ferry	1164.7	Re-Start
9/2	Front Royal, VA	1221.5	Shop
9/7	Waynesboro, VA	1325.7	Shop
9/13	Glasgow, VA	1415.0	Mail
9/17	Daleville, VA	1468.9	Shop
9/23	Pearisburg, VA	1552.2	Shop
9/30	Troutdale, VA	1665.9	Mail
10/3	Damascus, VA	1715.1	Shop
10/8	US Rte 19E	1789.6	Shop
10/12	Erwin, TN	1836.4	Shop
10/16	Hot Springs, NC	1904.5	Mail
10/20	Gatlinburg, TN	1971.6	Shop
10/25	Fontana Dam, NC	2013.7	Shop
10/29	Franklin, NC	2068.6	Shop
11/3	Neels Gap	2145.5	Shop

Hammock

I finally tried to set up my hammock. It is a Hennessy Hammock, the Ultralite Backpacker A-Sym.

I was out at The Fells with S a week and a half ago and we tried to set it up. It kinda worked, but the instructions on the hammock bag were not very clear and I had no clue how to tie the knots! So last week I got online and found a video. That helped a lot! I watched it a bunch of times and practiced the knots at home.

Then I took my hammock out to the closest thing I have to a backyard. The Paul Revere Mall - a stretch of brick and trees between the Old North Church and some other church. I picked out two of the smaller trees that looked a good distance apart. It took a few minutes to get it all untwisted from when I'd tried to hang it previously. The actual hanging wasn't too bad though. Next time it will be quicker. I spent lots of time centering it and not a whole lot of time tying the knots.

Once it was up, I figured I should try getting in it...just to make sure it would hold. I crawled in through the opening on the bottom (the top is bugnetted) and stretched out. It didn't fall!

It was pretty dark out by then, so I didn't get any pictures of it hanging. I wanted to pack it up in the snake skins. That actually took more time than hanging it. I'll know how to wrap it up better next time though so it should slide in easier.

Here is my hammock all ready for me to take it out and see if I can replicate my successful hanging.

mini test hike

I did a short hike this weekend, partly so I could test my new pack. 2 friends (umm, maybe they need nicknames, I'll think on it) and myself went out to The Fells on Sunday morning. I loaded my Moonbow pack with 18 pounds and it felt really good. Soooo much better than my Osprey felt at 20 pounds. We took the bus replacement service* to the end of the subway line and it was a short walk to the trails. We hiked probably 3-4 miles on the trails, plus the 1/2 mile to and from the subway and the 1/4 mile to and from the trail...5-5.5 miles total. Not too bad.

I found the Moonbow really easy to pack. I put my sleep pad down and then my sleeping bag. I stuck my hammock in the fold, then a sack with all my hiking clothes (way more than I'll take on the trail). I stuck in a few Nalgene bottles of water for weight, my stove, and some toilet paper. Folded it in half and snapped it shut. After a brief technical difficulty (some of the buckles needed to be taken off and turned over and put back on, they were not holding when I tightened the straps, but a super easy fix was all it needed) I had a ready to go pack. I stuck my trekking poles in one side, another bottle of water+snack+purse in the outside pocket and was on my way.

This was also good because it looks like I'm going to be at a good weight for hiking. I wasn't too worried as I've been shopping for lightweight stuff, but it was good to estimate that I'll be at 15ish pounds without food and water.

*bus replacement service = the f-ing subway seems to always close the same section of tracks on the weekends. They do run buses, but I get bus-sick and it is never a good experience. I was ready to upchuck on someones shoes by the time we got off on the way home from our hike. Luckily I don't get subway-sick.

trimming the weight

Quite literally. I did a preliminary cutting down of my maps. I trimmed off as much of the white space as possible without taking any words off. The map paper is heavy and I have to carry at least a few of them at a time!

Next time I'll be taking off the information that I consider unneccessary. Elevation profiles (they are in the guide I'm taking) and info about the area. I didn't want to get too carried away the first time though :)

Gear - shoes, socks, stove

Wanna see some pics of my gear? Probably not, but here they are anyway! I've got some more stuff that I don't have pictures of yet. And my pack has been ordered, I'm so excited! I'll make a real gear list sometime.

Shoes: Merrell Moab Vents, size 36. I'm wondering if I shouldn't have gotten a size 37, but I didn't want my shoe falling off so I can buy a larger size part way through if I need to.



Socks: Smartwool medium weight hiking socks, women's size small. And FoxRiver Sock liners, size small. I like the Smartwool socks okay. 3 out of the 6 sock liners have had holes in them though, so I'm going to return another pair and see if they have a different brand of liners. I'd heard good things, but holes in the socks that I've never worn is not cool! I wanna make my own holes in them. I need some more socks, I think I'll order the smartwools online (cheaper) and maybe the liners too once I figure that out! I'll be taking 3 pairs of smartwools and 2 liners, but will surely need to replace them. I'm figuring at least 2 replacements for each sock.



And a stove: Jet Boil. They only had black, I wanted red. Oh well. This worked great when I tried it. Lights super easy, even in the freezing cold! The black stove under the cup comes off and fits inside with the fuel cannister. The black plastic cup to the right fits over the silver part on the bottom of the cup.