[NEPilgrim]

Hey everyone, haven't posted in a while. I'm leaving on Sept 2 to do another section of the AT, from Damascus to Harper's Ferry, hopefully. That's about 550 miles, but I at least want to reach the 1000 mi point of the trail from GA. Last year I did under 500, so if all goes well, next year I'll knock off the last 1000+ mi of the AT.

David "Awol" Miller from Appalachian Pages has been kind enough to send me a complimentary copy of his AT handbook for use on my hike. He also sent me his book of his '03 thru-hike, Awol On The Appalachian Trail. If you haven't read his book, grab a copy. It's an excellent read & gives great insight into what a thru-hike is all about.

I'll be posting to my blog when I can, www.crudeanalysiz.com, as well as uploading some vids to my Youtube account, Crudeanalysiz . If you have a couple mins from time to time, feel free to check them out. I appreciate all your support!

Steve.

[Stickball13]

Good luck. I wish I had the time and was about 30 years younger then I would be attempting it.

[fishmonger]

Awesome man. The AT is still one of my lifelong goals, but with a baby due next month it is certainly being put on hold. Maybe one of these days I'll get out of the corporate world and become a history teacher. Leaves a lot more time to hike!

I've heard Damascus is a great trail town, any stories?

[NEPilgrim]

Hey guys, thanks for the replies, and sorry I hadn't responded sooner. The trip was fantastic, 5 weeks & 550 miles more of the AT done. I've uploaded some pics from my trip to my gallery here, but if you'd care to see them all, they can be viewed on my blog, Crude Analysiz.

Fishmonger, Damascus is a nice little town. I've not been there during the actual Trail Days, which is when it's busiest, so no really great stories. In '08 I arrived there a few days before Trail Days started, and would liked to have stayed, but needed to get home. One of these years I'll get there for it. According to most of the ppl who live there year round, it's pretty quiet, though hikers & cyclists are going through there much of the year. It's the kind of town I'd love to live in someday. Quiet, but access to great hiking, biking, kayaking, etc.

In '08, Dave Patrick, the man who started the MRO in Damascus, gave me a ride up to Marion, where I caught a bus. We had a good talk about the town, the trail, his thru-hike back in the early '90s. Interesting man to talk with. On this last hike, I started in Damascus, staying at the hostel across the street from MRO. On my 2nd day back on the trail I ran into Dave again. He was out on a day hike, so we talked again for a bit. He built a small cabin nearby, lives out in the quiet.

Congratulations on your newborn, Fishmonger! Hope you're getting some sleep.

~Steve.

[fishmonger]

Thanks Pilgrim, appreciate it. The little guy is 4 months old now, and his neck is getting real strong so I'll definitely be taking him on some local hikes this spring, can't wait! Got this from my wife's aunt as a present so it'll really come in handy.



Congrats on banging out part of the AT. Just curious, how many zero days did you do, and how many miles did you average? I want to try to do at least one 4-5 day trip this summer.

[NEPilgrim]

Nice piece of gear there Fishmonger! Does that have a screened canopy? Pretty neat. I've seen several of those types of baby carriers in Blue Hills when I'm up there hiking.

Thanks for the kind words, too. I did one zero day, averaging just under 16 mi a day. Had a few days under 10 mi. The first couple weeks my mileage per day was low. The last 5 days I did over 20 mi each day to make my deadline.