Hiking Dude Blog

I've arrived in Harpers Ferry after 26 hours on Amtrak. Warm, humid, and very noisy with insects chirping everywhere in the trees. Time to start hiking.

After about 1500 miles, my inexpensive hiking poles are battered and bruised. The carbide tips have worn out, the plastic around the bottom is gone, and the aluminimum poles are now wearing away. It's time to get new poles, but I've really liked these and only the tips are done for, and I'm sure there's still more miles in them. I know, I should have tried to replace the tips when they first wore down, but I was in the middle of an 800-mile hike at the time so it was not an option.

Rather than buying replacement tips, since the pole shafts are now worn and irregular, I came up with a free solution that's working great.

1. I filed the soft aluminum tip of the pole so it is flat.
2. Scrounging through my 'junk jar', I found two hex head screws that fit into the hollow shafts. (these have the most head material so I figure they'll last longer and be easier to remove later)
3. I screwed the screws in and they bit into the soft aluminum, nice and tight.
4. Ta-Dah! Now, I have steel tips that are easy and free to replace when they wear down.

Hike On

I've been told that hitching a ride into trail towns is a common thing on the Appalachian Trail, but it's new to me. I hitch hiked once about 30 years ago in Normandy, France while trekking through Europe. So far, my long hikes have had trail towns right on the trail or I've walked to them. I've gotten a couple rides, but not by standing by the road asking for one.
Looking at the A.T. maps, and reading what others have done, it sounds like hitching into towns works pretty well and often can save hours of off-trail walking. So, I expect I'll try it and see what happens.
To improve my odds of catching a ride, I printed this sign and slipped it into a plastic sleeve, then taped it shut. I'm pretty sure it's waterproof, and I hope an 8.5x11 sign is big enough to get someone's attention while adding only .75oz to my pack.

I'll hang it on my pack while I'm walking or hold it while standing and practicing my pathetic sad puppy eyes. I suppose some dreary rain or scorching heat might help me as well.

Feel free to click the pic and print out the PDF file for your own sign. Would love to hear if you use it successfully!

Hike On

Who doesn't love stickers? My son's water bottle is plastered with layers of stickers!

The official "Hiking Dude" stickers are starting to show up in some rugged places!
Here's some that have been posted already:

I have a bunch of these to hand them out to people I meet on my long trails. I'll have some on the southern AT starting next week for those lucky hikers that track me down.
If you'd like your own, and don't expect to run into me on the trail, I'd love to send you one. The problem is that it costs $.50 for the stamp, $.33 for PayPal fees, and $.10 for an envelope to get the sticker to you. To cover all that, I have to ask for $1.00 for a sticker. But, since the shipping is no more, I'll send you 2 stickers - all you have to do is ask.
Just click this Buy Sticker link.

I'd love to get a Selfie of you and your sticker to add to my collection.

Hike On

I'm off on my next hike in a week.
The plan is to hike from Harper's Ferry, WV south on the Appalachian Trail to the terminus on Springer Mountain, GA.

After checking out buses, planes, trains, and automobiles, I've decided to go by rail across the country. Bus was $90, plane was $100, and train was $150. So, why did I choose train?

First off, I will only ride a bus if it's the very last possible option. My Greyhound experience last year was enough to last a loooong time.
Even though the plane was less money, it got me to Washington, DC so I would need to take a commuter train to the trail, and it landed at night so I'd need to pay for a place to stay.
The train takes a bit more than a day and costs more than flying, but I step off the train right onto the trail, I can pack all my food and gear at home, it arrives at mid-day, and I stay on the ground. Plus, I've not been on a long train ride in many years so it will be more of an adventure.

I've looked over the AT Guidebook, set up resupply spots, figured out how far I'll hike each day and where I'll spend each night. Of course, as soon as I set foot on the trail, the plan goes out the window but it's a good exercise to get a general idea of what to expect. You can check out my rough hiking schedule if you're interested. If it all works out, I'll reach the end by Oct. 15, but I can take as long as I need.

If you know someone along the trail that would like to visit with a hiker, send me an email. I'd always prefer a home over a tent or shelter any night on the trail. And, I'm hoping some Scouts might be able to join me hiking for a couple hours or days.

Check out my current location on the map. Did a short hike around Ft.Snelling and pike island yesterday and found this elusive wood nymph along the trail. It was only about 4 miles but today I did my hill climbing and a little bike ride. I'll mow the yard and that will be enough exercise for today.

Since January, I've been preparing for my half-hike of the Appalachian Trail. I leave in 2 weeks, and I'm just about physically ready for the trek. I'd like to share how I went about ramping up for the hike - not that it's the best way for everyone, but it's what I planned and completed.

Starting in January, I started walking 3 days a week. I started with 2 miles the first two times out, just to make sure my legs weren't atrophied after being pretty sedentary since Thanksgiving. It was very cold, for me as well as the animals along the trail. I moved up to 4 miles per day and walked that distance until February.

During February, March, and April, I just walked 5 miles most mornings on the trail. The goal was to just keep muscles moving and being outdoors. I believe walking year round is certainly a good thing to do, but I don't think pounding out 10 or 20 mile days months before starting a long hike helps prepare for that hike. So, I just made sure I was active for at least 1 hour each day. My long-term goal was to cover 1000 miles before starting on my 1000-mile long hike - not an important number, just something to shoot for.

With the spring, came thawing trails, new leafs, and migrating birds. Reducing the layers I had to wear, I increased my daily hike distance to 6 miles and spent about 90 minutes each morning on the trail. May was nice, and we were fortunate to have a cool, dry June, so the walks were beautiful. The trail got more busy with bike riders, runners, and dog walkers.

One thing I've done poorly is weight training and upper body exercising. Many long distance hikers see upper body weight as just extra weight to move up the trail. That's true, but I think keeping the entire body toned makes all the muscles work better together, and that's something I need to work on before my next long hike.

With a couple weeks lost to vacation and family visits, I've spent July doing longer walks. Anywhere from 8 to 12 miles, at least twice a week, with 6 miles other days. To help get ready for the strenuous, rough, steep nature of the Appalachian Trail, I've added hill climbing. I walk 3 miles to the closest steep hill of only about 120 feet, walk up and down as many times as I can, and then walk home. I'm now up to walking it 10 times in 1 hour which is my goal. I'll do that a few more times before leaving for the A.T. but I know I'll still be woefully under-prepared for the climbs on that trail. :-)

Fortunately, the A.T. doesn't have high elevations so oxygen will be available in the air. My challenge will be getting it into my body for my legs to use. Forcing myself to take it easy for the first week or two will also be a challenge since I tend to push myself each day to cover more miles.

If you have any hints, tips, tricks, or secrets to help prepare for long hikes, please feel free to comment about them. One thing I've not done before, but just started for this hike, is drinking chocolate-flavored whey protein right after my daily walk. I don't know if it's helping, but I like the taste and the expectation is that it will help recover and strengthen the leg muscles that have been fatigued.

Hike On

I've accumulated almost 800 miles on my daily walks this year. Hiking pretty much every weekday for 6 to 8 miles in the early morning doesn't sound too interesting to share online, so I've not been blogging. Since it's getting close to time for my next long hike, I figure I need to make sure the blog stuff still works.
It has been fun watching the trail change over the months and I've seen many animals along the way. Here's just a few pictures of my little friends and I'll share some more over the next few days.
Now that it is mid-summer, everything is in full foliage, flowers have bloomed, and fruits are ripening. It's nearing the best time of year for hiking, so I'm preparing to leave in two weeks.

Last year, my try at the northern half of the Appalachian Trail didn't go as hoped but I'm ready to take a shot at that tough trail again.
This year, I'm going to do the southern half with a more casual schedule and not push so hard. Well, I expect I'll wind up pushing it but I'm hoping to at least pull in the reins for awhile and take it a bit easier.

Over the next couple weeks, I'll share what I've done to prepare for my long hike, what my plan is, challenges I expect to encounter, and anything else that folks ask about.

Hike On

Back home and walking in -15°F yesterday. That's just 80° lower than my last walk down south. ☺

The vacation to Marco Island in Florida is over, and was a great time. It ended with a walk through the Edison/Ford Winter Estates in Ft. Myers before catching a plane home. Those two guys were amazing, and left legacies that huge parts of our current way of life are built on. Batteries, music, movies, automobiles, and much more were created, improved, or made available to consumers through their efforts.

If you're looking for an escape from cold winter, the Ft. Myers, Naples area has a lot to explore. The one thing I missed doing was visiting the official southern terminus of the Florida National Scenic Trail. I plan to be hiking it soon - "soon" being arbitrarily relative.

Now that the manatees, alligators, seashells, and birds of all sorts are just things to fondly remember until next time, I'm enjoying the local trails again. Yesterday was the coldest hike of the winter for me. I thought this steam coming out of a sewer cover and freezing onto the branches above was very interesting. The upper branches are about 8 feet above the opening and still covered in frost. You can click the photo for a larger view.

Even though it was quite cold, I was comfortably warm for the 90-minute, 6-mile hike - all except my toes which started complaining after an hour.




I've developed a clothing scheme that works well for me based on the air temperature and wind. I don't want to be too hot or too cold, so different layers for different temperatures are important. I'll share that in a couple days.
Just like the steam from a sewer, -15°F does a great job of frosting up a lone hiker. I even got frost on my eyelashes and inside my coat. With projected warmer temperatures (today it is 30 degrees already), this will probably be that last really cold walk about.

Oh, if you are admiring the scarf, I'm sorry but it's not available in any stores. It's a one-of-a-kind, custom knit creation that I got for Christmas!










To close, I just had to share this bit of trail trash. Someone was a wonderful valentine, getting a balloon for his sweetie, but it escaped. A week later, I found it in the brush along the trail. I wonder how long of a flight it had? But, now it's in the garbage can outside waiting for pick-up.

So, tether your balloons! And don't be afraid to pick up and properly dispose of trash you notice along your trail.

Hike On

The big arctic cold blast that has been setting record lows around the country even reached this far south the last couple days. Instead of highs in the 80s, it's only been in the 60s - but that's fine with me since there's still been lots of sun! You can see I had a jacket on today.

On this last full day, I got to hike a couple miles on the beach. They call this the 'west coast' even though I'm in one of the states on the Atlantic Ocean. I'm actually on an island just off the west coast of this eastern state, so that's weird.








We found lots of seashells and enjoyed the sunshine. We also walked 3 miles roundtrip to the store to get food for dinner this evening. So, it was a pretty relaxing day, but I did get in a few miles.

Last things left to do are visit a museum and see a few more manatees this morning before catching a plane home.

Brrrrrr. I'm not really looking forward to doing my hikes all bundled up again. Oh well.

Hike On