day twenty (april 10) bittersweet....

the big boys decided that it's time to come home.  i started to write 'admit defeat' but that would only be partially true.  in hindsight, it's easier to see that maybe the goal was unrealistic from the beginning.  i do know they made it three weeks longer than i would have :)

so, why did they reach this decision?  from what i can tell there were many factors that played into the final 'yip, we're done.'   the missing family is obviously the underlying factor, but it went deeper than that.  i think they both thought it would be more of a solitary adventure, and it was anything but that.  there were probably 30 - 40 tents at night gathered at the different stops.  and it seems that hiking the AT has become the hip, chic thing to do among a largely young group.  which is fine and i wish i would have thought of it when i was young :)  but with it, came nightly partying.  and, don't get me wrong, no judgment here.  it's just that it put the big boys into their tents way earlier than they would have liked.  i asked greg one night how they could be carrying alcohol in their packs up and down the mountains?  he said that not only are they carrying a liquor stash but even glass bongs. that takes some seriously careful packing.  oh, and guitars.  thirty years ago, i would have been the ring leader most likely.... but when the big boys are 60, Believers, and doing this for fitness more than fun, it just wasn't an endearing combination.  and secondly, it was sleeping on the hard, rocky, unforgiving ground.  i am pretty sure i remember writing about the ground...ummm, lots of times :)

while they don't like feeling that they may have disappointed some, the feeling that now is the time to stop was even stronger.  they so appreciate the prayers, comments, and encouragement!  whenever you undertake an adventure (adoption comes to mind....), it is such a good feeling knowing that others are standing in the gap for you -- rooting for you in the stands!  that's what you guys felt like to them.  so to wind this adventure up, here's what i am personally thankful for...

1.  the big boys' friendship is stronger than ever
2.  care bear and i have a stronger friendship too
3.  greg's and toby's cardiovascular fitness is greatly improved
4.  they both have a desire to continue getting in shape and have a good platform to build from
5.  they met a lot of interesting people with interesting stories
6.  God spared them from getting sick or injured in the midst of many conditions that could have been painful or life-altering
7.  the lessons they learned probably won't totally be seen until some time passes.  God is good at not wasting one thing.  especially on an adventure like this...

day sixteen (april 6)

what i wouldn't give to have first hand captions instead of my interpretations of what i think these pictures represent ... but i am happy to at least have pictures :)  i do know a few things -- check out the kid with the artificial limb!  that is impressive!  and the last picture is a german guy and his dog 'fritz'.  another 'that is impressive!'  moose, our yellow lab, looks exactly like fritz but i am thinking moose might not have what it takes to hike the AT.  he might surprise me, but hiking would interfere with sleeping.  that could be a problem.

the rain storms have been ridiculously unrelenting.  i know some of these pictures are older because the big boys aren't wet.  but the two pictures (one of smurf, one of toby) in the rain gear?  well, those expressions say it all.  think grumble, murmur, grunt.

as you can see, there's still quite a few folks out doing the crazy.  lots of younger people who make it to shelter earlier in the day than the big boys.  that's okay; they prefer tent life to shelter life. except in the storms.  a little protection would be nice.

right now, they are in franklin, north carolina in a hotel room trying to get all their wet stuff dry. tomorrow is their first actual zero day.  my bad.  last time i reported a zero day, come to find out it was a nero day -- stay in hotel to shower and wash clothes but you walk your miles.  who knew nero was something other than a roman emperor?

yesterday (weds.) was probably the most harrowing day yet.  they climbed mount albert at 5,200 elevation.  the picture below was taken off the web as greg said the thought of stopping for a picture was the furthest thing from their minds.  it was a wild and crazy storm and it's mostly boulder climbing. wet boulder climbing.  with lightning.  and if you look carefully in the background, you can see a fire tower.  uh no, they didn't climb it once they reached the top.  but two much younger kids did.  N-U-T-S.  so super glad their mothers weren't there.

day fourteen (april 4)

can you guess which is my favorite picture?  yip.  hiker smurf.  he got left in the kitchen sink window and it looks like he caught up with papa smurf somehow :)  well they've been on the trail for two weeks now.  a couple of times i didn't know if they'd get to this point.  the rain and storms have just made for some really really not fun days.  you're wet, the trail is wet, your pack is wet.  we've thanked the Lord many times for safety thus far and for in the storms specifically.  today was a clear and warm day and they were especially grateful.  temperatures are dropping, as they are here the next two days.  they've taken one zero day and plan for another one this thursday.  they are averaging 8 miles a day which isn't too bad considering the elevation changes.  they toppled over the 100 mile mark today.  great job boys!!!!

my sister emailed me this:  "Have you seen this perspective of the AT?  It shows the elevation changes.... aaauuuggghhhh.  overall 430,718 feet uphill and 429, 252 descending.  http://www.postholer.com/elevation/Appalachian-Trail/3

yip, they've seen this.  they are carrying several little maps showing each section with corresponding elevations in all its glory.

p.s. boys.  stay away from them chunky gals, you hear?

day twelve (april 2)

well, i got behind and now i can't tell you much about the pictures..... do they speak for themselves? okay, not so much.  i do know the one of greg shows THEY MADE IT TO NORTH CAROLINA! WOOT!  that's a big accomplishment because the big boys' big adventure is a butt kicker.  from what i gather, it's a combination of climbing mountains with sleeping on the hard, rocky, unforgiving ground. greg lamented friday night how he went from flying business class and staying in five star hotels to primitive living...  not really how he went from there to here, but why?!!!  LOL!  so, for the sake of keeping it real, the goal has been revised.  from hiking the 2,178 miles to making it through another day :)  they came into hiawassee on saturday where they scored a hotel room.  they washed clothes for the second time, ate good food, and slept in a bed.  a gloriously wonderful bed! that's the picture where toby is opening their food box that was waiting at the post office.  i have talked to smurf a couple of times and he usually laughs a good portion of it because he realizes the craziness of the stories he shares (we always do when it is after the fact, amen?).  he called from atop a mountain one night when it was 40 degrees with 20 mile an hour winds and cried thanking me for a text picture of the kids at beef cake burgers (his normal go to spot with them).  note to self:  no kid pics from special places.

they now have nine days before they will see a town again.  please say a prayer if you're reading this because storms are coming and there ain't nothing to do but keep on putting one foot in front of the other.

day nine (march 30)

they had a good day today.  a day off proved to be very good decision.  they hiked 6.4 miles up two big mountains.

this picture of toby absolutely cracks me up!!!  joy!!!  when we packed all the food bags, i decided we would separate their daily ration.  it's either oatmeal or ramen for breakfast (alternate days), two cliff bars in a variety of flavors, a small baggie of powdered gatorade, and one freeze dried dinner to be shared.  greg told me it wasn't necessary to have separate baggies for each of them per day; they'd just share out of one.  i am grinning thinking about it.  i told him "no way!  you would take the other one down if you thought he'd gotten an extra cliff bar or oatmeal pack!"  these boys like their food and seeing that they have somehow managed to get an amazing looking sandwich is awesome.  tobe, you are adorable, mustard and mayonnaise in your beard and all 😝

leaving a comment :)

didn't realize i had made it harder than necessary to leave a comment.  now you can leave one anonymously :)

day seven (march 28)

sorry for missing a day.  somebody didn't send pictures or any rivoting information deemed blog-worthy - LOL!   from an outsider's perspective, here is what i am gathering.... this trail has earned a new level of respect from the big boys.  they finally made the decision that weds. they would take what is called a 'zero day'.  a day off.  zero meaning no miles crossed off.  their bodies pretty much demanded a break.  they've gone 53 miles in seven days and it's been all up and down mountains. greg said you climb about what would be equivalent to a flight of stairs, with 30 lbs. on your back, and then you stop for a minute to catch your breath.  then you repeat over and over again.  and you add to it that they're 60 and not in peak condition and you get old guys who are sore and tired... but determined 😋.  going down then takes a toll on your feet, knees, and hips. and many of the rocks are loose and you stumble repeatedly.  and then you get to sleep on the ground!  and you might be lucky enough to have been rained on all day!  you get the picture. they ended up in a little town at a holiday inn and ate a meal even though they could hardly stand the smell of themselves. greg said they definitely had a food buzz because they were giddy and goofy and didn't even care about how badly they smelled.

tomorrow, they hit the trail again feeling a little better than before.  they leave unicoi gap and go uphill 1,000 feet, downhill 1,000, then up another 1,500 feet where they will sleep on top.  i asked if there are several people along the way as the pictures seem to indicate, and he implied definitely yes. most of the people that left the same day they did, they've never seen again; but an average of 30 people are leaving springer mountain every day this time of year with most seeking to accomplish a life goal of thru hiking the AT --  all hoping to get to maine before october 15 when the mountain closes for the winter.

they anxiously await getting into the smokeys where small, rolling bumps will be commonplace.  the part they are in now is separating the men from the boys.  getting into north carolina and tennessee will feel like a walk in the park.  well, maybe not a park, but you get the idea.

p.s.  the little building in the fourth picture is the potty 😏

evening of day five (i think :)

some evening scenes.  beautiful for sure.  i imagined the hiking to be more solitary than these pictures reflect.  maybe all through the day it is and then at night people congregate?  seems safer that way. each person represents an individual journey -- all ended here at this point in time.  would be neat to know the stories.  deb, the second picture is the one he thought you'd be able to identify.... do you know?  my guess is you'll find out if you don't know already :)

day five (march 26)

smurf called this morning.  good to hear his voice.  he sounded well-rested and still excited.  he told me many stories about many people. in a nutshell, there is a crazy wide spectrum of types of people who do the AT.... from super athletic who run up and down the mountains to ones that are inching along.  i should have taken notes because details are now lacking.  i do remember his saying they stayed in a cabin last night with two other big guys!  they slept on a cot, had a shower, and washed their stinky clothes.  he said the southern couple of states and northern couple of states are, by far, the most challenging.  you are either going up or you are going down.  greg's struggle is the uphill because he gets winded.  toby's struggle are his knees on the downhill.  haven't received any pictures today, but i hope to get some.  will post if i do.  i will ask him to give me some more people details again because there are some interesting people hiking the AT.  i thank God for safety thus far.....

day four (march 25)

on top of blood mountain.  i see a drop of sweat of his nose.  must have been a hard hike.


tree of failure:  zoom in on tree and you will see boots hanging from people who quit.  25% of people who start thru hike quit after blood mountain at neel gap.

day three (friday, march 24)

got all these pictures today!  and a text.... "heading out from gooch mountain.  got our bootie kicked yesterday."  and later this text.., "stayed last night in gooch gap.  staying tonight in lance creek.  good day.  church group fed us breakfast and a man had sandwiches, chips, and gatorade at a road crossing. he did the trail a few years back and does this every year for thru hikers.  big climb tomorrow over blood mountain."

i talked with carrie today and we agree that it is neat to see the unique ways folks minister to hikers. so many ways to be a blessing to others.  nice to see smurf and toby on the receiving end of these acts of kindness.  the second picture had the caption of 'we meet rainer 'frodo boggins'.  Lord of the Rings fans might see the resemblance.

click here to read a little history about blood mountain:
http://www.unioncountyhistory.org/page3/page202/page27/page110/page110.html

evening day two

day two (thursday, march 23)

got this early today....  happy to see they are up and moving after their first night sleeping on the ground :)