It’s Been So Hard. April 8, 2022. Day 38. Mile 478

Honestly, I've avoided saying this for a while.  I know yinz have such faith in me that I didn't want to disappoint.  But, honestly I've been so frustrated at times that I've thought of giving up.  Time after time I've gotten my hopes up thinking this will be the day I make this work.  But, time and time again I've been disappointed.  I look at my trail guide to see what's ahead and where I can get a break from repeatedly finding that I just can't do it.  But, I hate the thought of quitting so soon.  I've only been blogging for a month.  Who knew that blogging would be so hard!!

So far I've been 0/8 on hostels and hotels promising computers with this symbol in my AT Guide. 

  

And, the few libraries I could get to were either closed or closed shortly after I arrived.  But today is different.  Today I'm sitting at a lovely new computer with a large monitor at the Damascus Public Library.  And, they don't close for hours!  I'll review hundreds of pictures, select a few, crop some and  add them to this post. Yay!!  This blog post is getting done today!!  

And the hiking has been gorgeous, fun, faster and easier. I have been hiking through amazing beautiful, biologically rich habitats of the border between western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee - the trail runs along  the border of these two mountainous states.

It's Been So Much Fun

I've been putting on the miles.  Sitting here in Damascus I have completed AT sections in Georgia, North Carolina & Tennessee and have hiked over 472 miles.  For the last 300 miles I've been hiking with my new friend “Martian” since I entered the Great Smokey Mountain National Park.  We have been racing along the trail at the same pace.  Everyone on trail says we're fast.  And, we are when hiking.  But, we also love taking off-trail excursions to find rare plants, visit old growth forests and check off 6,000 foot peaks that are near but not on the trail.  So far, I've crested these big ones:

• Mt Buckley 6,560 ft.
• Mt. Love 6,400 ft.
• Mt. Kephart's 6,217 ft.
• Mt. Collins 6,188 ft.
• Mt Ambler 6,120 ft.
• Roan High Knob 6,186 ft.
• and nearly to the top of Mt Chapman, Sequoyah and Old Black

Martian

His folks call him Bruce, but he's Martian on trail.  Like The Martian's Mark Watney (played by Matt Damon), my Martian is a botanist. So, I have been learning a lot about Rhododendron, orchids, spruce and fir. We extensively explored and documented the range of Rhododendron Smokianum, a recently identified species that only grows on steep (near 90 degree) rock cliffs above 5,500 feet where rain is plentiful and the soil rich in magnesium and iron, and only in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee.  We found it all over the cliffs at The Jump Off, Charlie's Bunion and surprisingly in several other sites that may represent additional habitats for this rare species.  Thanks to Martian there are dozens of hikers on trail who now know all about the rare Rhododendron Smokianum, R Catawbiense and R. carolinianum, and other beautiful native plants.

Rhododendron smokianum

We've also made sure to get up early to watch the sun rise from Clingman's Dome, highest point on the AT.  We got up a couple of hours before dawn to hike the three miles with our friend Harmony and were the only ones atop this famous peak with 360 degree views when the sun rose.

And, on a morning that promised 70 mph wind gusts we awoke to light rain and moderate wind so we headed out pre-dawn to reach the Mt. Cammerer Lookout. We were rewarded for our adventure with clearing skies and a rainbow.

So, you might not be too surprised that Martian, his friend Charlie and I also hiked late to watch the sun set from Max Patch.  

And, Martian, Aaron and I set up camp at Big Bald shelter then ran back a mile to catch the sunset on Big Bald where we were joined by a confident young deer.  Ahhh, the views!

    

Unlike the blogging, the hiking has been getting easier by the day.  I mean I huff and puff (long slow deep breathes) for 8 - 10 hours each day.  If the temp reaches the 50s I sweat like a water sprinkler. My right calf starts the day in a knot.  But, three hours later the calf feels better and my hamstring takes over - tightening up as I hike to the top of the mountain of the moment.  One ankle or another feels slightly tender.  And, I know where my hip flexors are!  But, I keep hiking.  One foot in front of the other. Repeat.  And, the pain fades into the past as the miles increase.  

Speed and Distance Are One of My Things

Over the past weeks Martian and I have extended our daily miles from 15 to 18 and most recently 24.  We like hiking fast.  Martian leads and I keep up.  We power up the hills and recover on the downs.  And, if the downs are gentle or we're really motivated  ...  to get to town for beer and lunch .. we run. Weeks ago I hiked at 2 miles an hour on average.  A 16 mile hike would take 8 hours.  Lately, I'm covering ground at 2.5 miles per hour.  And, yesterday we completed our 18 mile day in under 6 hours of hiking. 

Why so fast?  Well, climbing a 2,000 foot peak is a lot of work with a pack on your back.  But, climbing it slowly, taking breaks on the way up is interminably tortuous compared to racing up to the top and catching your breath on the way down the other side.  And, I do want to finish this thing in less than five months if possible.  So, with Martian as my pacer, I move quickly through the woods.  And, it's fun.

People Are Everything

And, above the beauty of orchids, Rhododendron tunnels and 360 degree mountaintop views lies the loving kindness of strangers.  There are so many stories of folk I've met that have extended an open hand, warmed me with a smile or given my sweatiness a hug.  

Shortly after exiting the Great Smokey Mountains the trail crosses Newfound Gap, a popular site for locals, tourists and other day visitors.  The hike north from the gap is busy with families, friends and others enjoying a beautiful day trip to the mountains.  Claudia Torres, a science teacher from Miami greets me as I huff and puff up the hill she is descending with her two sons, Matias and Lucas. They asked about my plan to hike all the way to Maine along this trail.  They were kind, compassionate and my heart was filled.  My pack felt lighter.  My steps were quicker.  I was lifted once again by the loving kindness of strangers.  Well, Claudia, Matias and Lucas are strangers no more.  Be well, my friends and thanks for your supporting love.

Claudia Torres and sons Matias & Lucas

Trail angels also make our days easier, surprising us with cold drinks, snacks and more when we hit a road crossing on the trail, need a lift to the grocery store or back to the trail from town.  

Aya took us to our hotel in Erwin, TN and also drove me to the library. Trail angels like Brother Tom, Cookiemon, Zoomie, Ito and O.G. Bob have appeared with food at road crossings. Angels truly all.  Thanks to their kindness the trail is made easier.

Brother Tom met us with hot bevs and treats

Aqua Man offers yummies

Cookiemon, Zoomie, Ito and O.G. Bob feed hungry hikers

I need a photo of Aya 😐

Martian, Harmony, Freedom & Gorby at Newfound Gap with ice cold beer left by a trail angel

And, at Carvers Gap, Tennessee Martian and I met up with my 2018 hiking friend, and member of my Tramily, Sweet Tea (Anna Jones) and her mom, Susan.  They fed us a great meal and after an hour we hiked north with belly's and hearts full.  Love you, Sweet Tea.  Only thing sweeter would have been if her husband and 2018 tramily member, Moose, aka Brandon Jones, had been able to join us.  Miss you, too, my friend.

In Roan Mountain, TN we stayed at the Exchange at 19E, where we met some hiker friends, played some games and enjoyed the music that abounds there.  Gail Attaway Elkins, an accomplished pianist at the Ballet Conservatory of Asheville, regaled me with stories of her experiences playing for the Bolshoy Ballet, B.B. King and more.  What a treat!  Check her out here. 

Gail Attaway Elkins entertains at The Station at 19E

Sprinkles, Lindsey, Jordan, JukeBox play HeadsUp with Martian

More Friends at Every Bend

I keep meeting the most wonderful folk out here.  Jordan, one of my new friends put it well.  When you meet folks in a normal social setting you have to figure out if they're the kind of folk you would want to know.  Out here, it's almost certain that you will.  Below, a small sampling of the great folk I have met recently.  Wish I could post more, but as you know I have to finish this post and publish it today.  

I will be back to you in a couple of weeks.  If you want to here when I post please find the subscribe link and you'll be the first to know when I post next.

Be well,

John "Buddha" Inserra

Every day is a journey and the journey itself is home.

~Matsuo Basho

Me, Brian and Adam "Old Man" Botkin, Martian

Martian,Cereta "Deliberate" and husband Jim at camp

Jordan playing the Oreo game at The Exchange at 19E 

Kelly & Juniper who helped me find camp at Yellow Mtn Gap

Me and No Steps from Heidelberg, Germany

Martian and I with Taco Bell and Smiley

 

Volunteer Trail Maintainers, Tom and Hurricane Eddie

Courtney needs a trail name

As does her friend, Caitlin 😊

 Martian and I arrive at Damascus, Virginia
April 7, 1:00 PM

Solo Hiking

Mountain Tuna - strums some 
and is fishing the trail

By all appearances I hike alone. It is true that a videographer who was following me on trail would not see me hiking within a few yards of another hiker except to pass them but only after pausing or pacing with them ... Hi! I'm Buddha. What are your names? How'd you get the name AquaTuna? Where ya headin today? All the while my right brain is doing a quick assessment of their health and safety on trail. How you guys for water?

If we've met before we check in effortlessly, "Pilgrim!! Good to cya my friend. See ya up trail." And, most will. As fast as I am on foot, I am equally as slow. ying-yang. I joke with Bill, “I don’t drive like this, but I hike like this! See ya up trail. And, I will. Like racing to the red light. It’s how my legs like to go.

Case in point. A couple days ago, I reach the Nantahala Outdoor Center and whose sitting there?  The Québécois I met my first night on trail.  Now, she is Grits, a hiker with a name I’ll remember when I see her up trail, again.

But, I digress. Ah, so it is with the attention span of a gnat. Or, living in the moment, if you’ll have it. 

Way above I began saying by all appearances I hike alone. But, I hike with soooo many people - people that nobody can see.  Tears well just thinking of all the people I hike with every day. It’s why I am so light on my feet every day, running the soft downs with my pack on my back and soft, squishy leafy mud underfoot.

And, here I save you from another tangent ~ my most natural mental formation ~ I promise to get to all these tangents and more in time. I’ll describe more clearly a day in the life on trail, my gear, why people do this thing, and a day in town. Promise. And gear, and orchids, birds, and bears. Later.

This post is about people. About love. About never being alone.

All the loving people in my charmed life hike with me every day. Let’s start with my teachers.

My 2018 Tramily

Littlefoot, as I mentioned in my first post taught me, by daily example, that you just don’t stop going up hill, recover on the downs. Just Josh - Don’t carry water to water. At 1 kg per liter you will carry an extra 2.2 pounds (for the Americans) up and down every hill. Harder ups and more painful steep downs. Ironman - long slow deep breaths always and the benefits of music on the trail! Fox - quiet confidence Pony Express - don’t count on Priority Mail to cover faster than you are! He sent his bounce box ahead a 60 miles by highway, but a couple weeks for him on trail. And, he beat the package. Sweet Tea & Moose - making me want to hike the southern.

2018 Tramily

Friends & Family

My family at home cheering me on, worrying appropriately and giving me short simple instructions like, “Put your sunscreen on in the morning before you start sweating." Thanks Deb and Lizzie. I chat with my boys Jake and Jonah every day … If they only knew. It’s like the sound a tree makes when it falls in the forest with nobody to hear it. The sound of one hand clapping as we talk and laugh as I climb Siler Bald. Not a sound beyond my long slow deep breaths. But I hear their voices all the same. Cousins, friends, my Uncle Ben and Aunt Marion. Oh, the power of love. Dips, who hiked last year, shook my pack down this year and unburdened me of pounds of fears I had planned to carry. Fear of norovirus on trail. Fear of cold and wet together. Fears of ice. “It happens all the time down here when your high up on the ridges and balds,” I’d defend my heavy gear choices. I’d heard the stories and watched YouTube vids - to excess. Dips calmly reassured me and told me what I needed and what I didn’t want to carry. March 9, one week on trail, the sun is setting and I’ve pitched my tent in a cold downpour at Muskrat Creek. I got in the pleasantly dry tent , switched from wet to dry and slid into my warm sleeping bag … with my fear of the cold and wet. I take my phone out of airplane mode so I can send a message via my Garmin Mini satellite transmitter letting Deb know my location for the night and that I was tucked in. Whoop! I had a bar, and a text appears. It’s Dips checking in on me and reviewing tips for keeping warm and dry. By the way, she’s a wonderful story teller. www.andtheniwalked.com

Strangers

Bob and I.   Delaware Water Gap, NJ 2018

The kindness of strangers blows me away. I stopped watching TV a few years ago. Too much hate. Real or imagined. It was a great start. Then while hiking the AT in 2018 north toward Maine from Delaware Water Gap, New Jersey I was blown away by the kindness of strangers. Over and over again. The father and son that pulled over and picked my brother Bob and I up, stinky and mud caked on the side of a country road and drove us a 20 minutes out of his way so we could get to the Ashford Cottage B&B after a hard and hot first week on the AT together. Unprepared and out of shape but together. And an ideal time for showers, laundry, pub food, blister care and air-conditioned rest.

Hike-Man and Lisa who refilled dozens of jugs with cold fresh spring water every couple of days and left them in the shade at several road crossings over a 20 mile dry stretch in New York.

And, the Mom and son restocking a cooler for hikers in Pomfret, Vermont.

Kindness in Pomfret, VT with Pony Express

The folk on Elm Street in Norwich, Vermont who placed cold drinks, food and invitations to use the pool.

Elm St, Norwich, VT 2018

Kindness of Strangers 2022

Kindness in 2022 is going strong as I’ve been offered rides into town from the trailhead to Hiawasee, Georgia and Franklin, North Carolina.

A trail angel Sunday morning breakfast buffet just north of Neel’s Gap, Georgia came with a prayer for our safety and well being on the trail.

Cold drinks by Bouncer waiting for hot hikers at several crossings in Georgia.

Last night, arriving late at Brown Gap Shelter in the dark after a long arduous 17 mile day, I did not look forward to slipping my way down to the creek to get water. Jerry, who I’d awoken, replied when I asked which direction the water was, said, I’ve got water right here for you. We can get more in the morning. 

Ranger, Jerry and I  Brown Fork Gap, NC

I’ve decided to stick with love. Hate is to great a burden to bear. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr

That’s my story for much of North Carolina. I’ll be in Tennessee and the Great … and cold … Smoky Mountains of Tennessee tomorrow. High country. And, I’m high on love. Love to all. Be well. Buddha

Catching Up

It’s March 11 and I’m in Franklin, North Carolina.  I woke at 4:45 this morning and with my headlamp making a small tunnel through the cold fog I started hiking toward Mt. Albert before 6:00 .  The last bit before the peak was the first “scramble” on the trail, where hands and arms become more useful than poles as you climb rather than hike over boulders.  This was a really small scramble for me and I love them anyway.  But I knew some hikers would look up the trail and say WTF!#@$!  And, some would make the decision this AT thing is not for them.  There are plenty of much bigger scrambles ahead. It’s not for everyone.

   

But whoa, Buddha.  You’re getting way ahead of yourself.  This is your first blog post since you started this thing.  Roll the tape back to March 2 and let everyone catch up. Early in the morning on March 2, I start out on the Approach Trail to the AT, climb stairs along the boisterous Amicolola Falls and have my feet on dirt for the next 8.8 miles to get to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail - the starting line for a thru-hike. 

The first hiker I met, still 7 miles from the top of Springer Mountain, wasn’t gonna make it.  I greeted him and introduced myself as he stopped for a rest on the wall I had dropped my pack on. I was shedding my light rain jacket.  He said his name was Old Crab and this was, he figured, "my last chance to do this thing." He wore a knee length green parka with fur, leather boots and a pack so large enough I could see it above his head as he approached.  It was chilly, but I was in shorts and a lightweight breathable long sleeve shirt and trail runners.  Sadly, I knew he wasn’t gonna make it to Katahdin.  Not to say, you can look at someone and know their future.  But, in this case, it was true.  He explained life’s responsibilities had kept him from trying this thing.  But, with blood clots in both lungs, bad knees and other problems he figured he was running out of time.  I wished him well and climbed to the top of Springer in a couple of hours.  Two hours later when I stopped for lunch at Stover Creek Shelter, I met a ridge runner (folks paid to walk sections of trail to make sure folks are OK, tidy and respectful). I asked her to make sure someone checked on Old Crab. I also met Dao there, as he was making his last stop before finishing his SOBO hike. He was already starting to feel sad and didn't want his hike to end. Buddha on his first day met Dao on his final day. 😄

I ended my first day at Hawk Mountain Shelter after 16.9 miles. I pitched my tent, collected water and bird bathed down at the nearby creek where I met a Quebecois named Ruby and showed her how to backwash her water filter. I heated up my ramen bomb dinner (ramen with stuffing mix) and was off to sleep by 6:30 as others were congregating around the fire circle near the shelter, camp chairs and an ukulele appear.

For the next week, the days were pretty much the same. Up early. Hike ~15 miles. In my sleeping bag by sundown. Hike for 10 hours. Sleep for 12. Repeat. Ahhh, sounds boring and repetitive. But it's actually commands all my attention. One foot in front of the other up the mountain. No stopping on the ups. Shorten steps if you have to but keeping moving. Recover on the downs. Thanks to Littlefoot for teaching me that. Take long deep breaths. Scan the rocks, roots and leaves ahead for any hints of dirt between em. My pack feels heavy but I'm moving well. I'm happy and drenched in sweat on 50 degree days. Wishing it was colder.

But, then there is this blog I've promised everyone. I couldn't get a couple of features to work before I hit trail, so I'm planning to find a computer. I scan my AT Guide for the 💻 symbol. Above the Clouds Hostel in Suches will do the trick. Lucky picks me up at Woody Gap and an hour later I'm clean, in pajamas being squeezed by a shiatsu massage chair, and drinking a Black & Tan from the hiker fridge. Turns out the laptop was broken but Michelle is washing my clothes, Nimrod is chopping vegetables (ahh the comforting aroma of a mirepoix. More massaging, more Yuengling and "dinner will be served in 20" I hear from the kitchen where the chat is light and quick and weaves together the Bolshoi Ballet and trail tales. Nimrod pokes his head from the kitchen and scans the pajama filled room as he advises "I just wanted to see who it was the drank all my beer! .... So, I know whose food to spit in". Yep, I drank almost all (3) of the cook's beer. Another hiker, following my lead had helped out, but his empty was out of site. It's OK, he says, "Just can't find good help", referring to the owner Lucky who had not given me a proper tour of the house when I arrived. I did hear him say there are "sodas, juice and drinks in the fridge. Mark down what you take on the clipboard. We'll settle up when you leave." I just figured beers were drinks. 😆

When I reached Neel’s gap on Friday after 10 miles in the heat I again thought of getting to a computer and made the call to the lovely Your Home in the Woods B&B with Bonnie & Paul Hayward. Lovely in every way. Back at Your Home in the Woods Hostel, I was again clean, napping by 4:00 and waking for dinner at 6:00. Met Billy Goat, a really cool guy who was starting his hike soon. I hope to see him u-p trail. A lovely homemade meal with Bonnie, Paul and Billy Goat was all I had in me, and I was again snoozing in a bed. The blog will have to wait. The next morning Bonnie and Paul awake at 5 to cook me poached eggs with parmesan twists, blueberry pancakes and a buttermilk cornbread while Billy Goat sleeps in. They pray over me and my journey and Paul drops me back at Neel's Gap where Paul took this picture.  

The next computer appeared to await at the Holiday Inn Express in Hiawasee I had hiked 78 miles in six days. Monday, March 7 I hiked 4 miles to Dick’s Creek Gap, caught a shuttle into Hiawassee, Georgia was in bathtub soaking by 9:50AM at the Holiday Inn Express for a NERO (near zero miles day) to rest after hiking 78 miles in 6 days.from camp and hiked ~ 4miles to a road where I was shuttled into town for $20. By 10:00 am I'm checked in, had the buffet breakfast and am soaking in a tub. Laundry gets washed, and I'm off the the computer center where I find a Gateway PC . Are you old enough to remember Gateway Computers? Next morning I wait for the Town County Library to open. I get on a modern computer and learn that my entire site (hikingbuddha.com) is locked, compromised and my situation has been elevated to top-level tech support. Check back in 48 hours. ENOUGH! I gotta go. And, I'm back NOBO after a lovely ride by JC who drove me the 11 miles back to the trailhead.

Looking back on my first week, it's been warmer than expected. I'm sweatin' all day. Sleeping all night. I've heard coyote and helicopters (the trail passes along Camp Merrill: 5th U.S. Army Ranger Training Battalion). It’s been warm - so I priority mailed my mittens, Merino Wool 250 base layers, and microspikes north to Fontana Dam, NC. I don't want to carry the extra couple pounds. I’ll be there in another week and will put my warmest layers back in my pack before I head into the often frigid Smoky Mountains. Looking ahead, I’ll reach North Carolina today and say goodbye to my first (of 14) states. Yay! Only ~2,100 miles to go!

The hike’s been hard but good so far, but the blogging and posting to instagram have been harder!  Since my hikingbuddha.com site has been a disaster, Debbie, my love, has helped me pull this together on Blogger. And, she's created the Google map where you can track my progress. Hope to post again in a week or so when I reach Fontana Dam, NC.