Another hard rain throughout most of last night and the sound of the rain on my tent cover woke me up many times. Once, during the night, I heard something walking near my tent, and after packing up this morning, one of the guys that had stayed at the same shelter site asked me if I heard something “sniffing around” during the night as he had apparently heard the same thing. Who knows what it may have been?

The trail this morning was again wet, damp and humid from the rain of the past few days. Not long after starting out, the trail opened up into a beautiful cow pasture. I had to unlock the gate upon entry and lock it back up when I passed through the other side. The cows could have cared less that I was in their midst. As I exited the pasture I spotted a large black walnut tree which reminded me of my Dad. Each fall he would find a large black walnut tree and harvest the nuts, which leave a deep black stain on your hands if they aren’t covered when you begin to crack them. After drying them out he would use the nuts in his annual fruitcakes that he made for friends and family for the Christmas holidays. He would have given a thumbs up to the tree I passed today!

There were several challenging climbs scattered throughout today’s hike and my legs are now feeling the wear just a bit from the past three days. Around 10:00 am I passed a pretty view of Rye Valley and took a photograph of myself there as well. Shortly thereafter I finally met the first person on the trail headed north, a man whose trail name is Taj Mahal. We talked for a few minutes and he told me that he started hiking the AT 5 years ago and that he does about 10 days on the trail each year, having now worked his way into southern Virginia. Sounded like a pretty good strategy to me.

The views today were definitely better than yesterday and the trail was not nearly as rocky and covered with roots as the prior two days. And,  I think I covered my trail distance today in better time than the past two days. I ended my hike at the Mount Rogers Visitor Center where I had arranged for a shuttle driver to pick me up and take me into the small town of Marion where I will stay at a hostel tonight and tomorrow night. The lady that picked me up, Carrie, was very friendly and I found out that she picks hikers up on a regular basis more out of kindness than for the money. She will pick me up tomorrow morning and drop me off at my starting destination so that I can “slack pack”, which simply means I will ditch most of the stuff in my back back, leaving it at the hostel. This will significantly reduce the load I have to carry tomorrow. Carrie will then bring me back to the hostel I am staying at tomorrow evening. I just had a shower, and am washing/drying my clothes as I write this blog. It really feels great to be clean again. And, I am looking forward to a hot meal for dinner tonight.

The hostel I am staying at, The Merry Hiker, seems to be well setup for hikers. There are two bunk rooms, each with four beds, shower and laundry facilities (no extra charge) and pretty of room to spread out. Only one other person is here so far though I understand at least one other guest, with a puppy, is scheduled to arrive this evening. The rate is definitely right at $35 per night, and I learned upon checking in that they have a special right now of “pay for one night get the second night free” Hard to beat that!!

By now you realize that I have posted all the blogs from the past three days this afternoon. There has been virtually no cell service since I began the hike and without it (or wifi) I have no way of posting anything. However, each evening I try to type up my memories from the day and save them so that when I do have cell service all I have to do is copy, paste and publish.

It began raining during the night and I woke up to a steady rainfall. Dreading to pack up my tent in the rain, I waited for about 20 minutes for the rain to stop, but it did not. So, I began the slow and messy process of packing up my gear. I finished in about 30 minutes, retrieved my food bag (which was also wet), ate 2 pop tarts and began my hike for the day. Soon after starting out I came across a fast moving stream and filled my water bottles. 

In short, today’s hike was a bit low on the fun index. As with yesterday, the trail is literally void of humans. I passed 5 hikers going south, two of which took time to have a quick conversation. One hiker, a young lady, was from Georgia where she began her journey in Maine, in June. The other was a middle-aged man, from Kansas, who was also doing a southbound thru-hike. Both looked very strong and, having come this far, I have no doubt that they will complete their journey. I have not yet passed a single person going north, and every shelter I have passed has been empty – a strange sight from my first AT experience when you could not buy space at a shelter at the end of each day.

There were no scenic views today and, instead, much of the forest was dark with limited views due to the amount of trees and shrubs lining both sides of the trail and due to the heavy cloud cover and fog. Rocks and roots littered much of the trail today which slowed me down considerably. As there are few individuals on the trail, it seems like I took at least one hundred hits in the face from spider webs – a few with the tiny creatures still in tact. The biggest surprise to me, today, was the amount of fallen trees that I saw –  many of them HUGE, that were scattered throughout today’s hike. Entire areas were almost completely flattened and were pretty unsightly. In one area a huge tree had fallen right in the middle of space designated for camping – I sure hope no one was there when that tree came down. Wildlife observations are still rare – the same as with my first trip on the AT. Today’s only sighting was a 4 or 5 foot long black snake that was on the edge of the trail. I was almost on top of it before I saw it lying there and I made an abrupt stop before quickly walking around it. As you can see in the photo, it seems this creature has had a steady diet this summer.

Today’s hike was moderately difficult with 3 challenging climbs that gave my legs a good burn. Fortunately my legs were not sore or tired from yesterday’s hike. Around 1:00 pm it began to rain hard and that continued for about one hour. It was a good test for my new rain jacket, which seemed to hold up well. I had hoped that a fall hike would be a bit less rainy, but so far it has rained both days with rain in the forecast each day through Saturday. 

As with yesterday, cell service has been mostly non-existent. I did pick up a weak signal atop one mountain that was strong enough for me to call my wife and let her know that I was OK. Unfortunately I have no way of posting my blogs until I get a strong signal or wifi access. 

Tonight I am camping at a shelter site and there are three other hikers here. A nice surprise. They told me they try to come out each year and do a week’s worth of hiking on the AT, and from their laughter, piercing the darkness, they seem to be enjoying their time together.

Tomorrow I plan to hike to a destination where I can catch a ride into the town of Marion where I can get a room, a shower and a hot meal. One of the items I did not bring on this trip was a camp stove as I found it to be a pain to clean and carry on my first AT hike. So, this trip I am only packing non-perishable foods that I can eat without having to heat up. 

Lastly, when I spoke with my wife today I told her that I thought it was going to be very difficult writing a meaningful blog each day, due to the lack of other hikers on the trail. I believe it is the human interest stories that make the best blogs. In any event, I’ll see how this all plays out in the coming days.

I awoke to a steady rain as I showered and then put the final items in my backpack before making the short walk to the local diner where I enjoyed a nice, big breakfast. It doesn’t take long, when I am back in the south, to embrace my southern heritage when it comes to food. Bacon, eggs, grits, biscuits and jelly made for a hearty start to my first day on the trail.

My driver, Larry, picked me up promptly at 9:00 am and we made the drive to Grayson Highlands State Park on twisting, turning roads littered with fallen trees on the shoulders from Hurricane Helene. Larry was a character, and I barely got a word in edge wise. But I can tell you just about anything you want to know about his wife (Julie) and their 5 children – especially the one who is currently in jail in Florida! He was the nicest guy and told me if I have any problems to call him “even if it is 2:00 in the morning and I will come and get you!” You can’t ask for much more than that and those final words earned him a nice tip.

After exiting the vehicle I made my way to the entry area into the park. By this time the rain had stopped and the skies were partly cloudy.Waiting to greet me were a small group of wild ponies that this part of the AT is well known for. They looked healthy and pretty. I met a couple from Georgia who were there for a day hike and I took a picture of them. They then returned the favor to me. I then began the hike up the mountain to find the AT trail, which only took 15 or 20 minutes. 

Noticeably different on this hike, versus my prior one, is the absence of other hikers. 4 hikers passed me going south and those were the only people I saw the entire day. Even the 2 shelters I passed were completely empty. While this is not a surprise, as most northbound thru-hikers have either completed the trail or will do so in the next few weeks, I did think that I might encounter more than just four.

The hike today went well but it was very slow and steady. Much of the trail was covered with stones and tree roots, both of which were slippery as ice from the earlier rain showers. I slipped and stumbled many times but never fell. The elevation gain and loss was moderate over the duration of my hike. I was surprised to see that many trees are at their peak, in terms of fall colors, and that there were so many leaves on the trail. In some areas I had to stop and look very closely at the surroundings to make sure I was still on the trail. Throughout the day the temperature was comfortable and there was often a breeze blowing. 

Because I ate such a big breakfast I did not feel hungry at lunch and only ate a handful of of trail mix and some cheese-its. I will dig into my food bag shortly to see what seems good for dinner. As there have been several bear incidents in my area recently I will need to hang my food sack from a tree limb after I finish eating, which is a bit of an aggravation…but necessary.

I made my camp just off the trail this evening as I finished my hike in between shelter locations. My tent is on a nice flat surface and I must be near a highway as I can hear cars passing in the distance. While there were almost no bugs to speak of throughout the day, I somehow managed to pick a tent site where the mosquitoes seemed to be plentiful – forcing me to stay in my tent from 5:00 pm until morning. Throughout the day there has been limited cell service and there is none at my camp site. So, this posting will be delayed a day or two until I can again access a cellphone signal.

So….here I am in Damascus, VA getting ready to head back out on the Appalachian Trail (AT) tomorrow morning. I will pick up the trail at Grayson Highlands State Park, which is the location where I came off the trail in 2023 after having started my hike at Springer Mountain, GA (the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail) in March of that year.

For those who followed my blog on the first leg of my AT adventure you may recall how much I enjoyed the hiking experience but how much I came to dislike the “trail life” experience….which is what resulted in me coming off the trail in Damascus, a little over 500 miles into my journey in May 2023.

For reasons that I cannot fully explain, nor understand, I have decided to repack my hiking gear and get back out on the trail to give it another go. I have no specific destination in mind, nor any duration of time that I am committing to. I will be on the trail, heading north, for as long as the weather is decent and the experience is enjoyable and within my physical abilities. Could be a few days, a few weeks or perhaps longer….we will just have to see how this plays out.

The trip from New Hampshire to Damascus was a short, but fun-filled one. My wife, Diane, and I traveled to Wrightsville Beach, NC on Friday to spend the weekend with her sister (Jill) and our brother-in-law, (Tom). We had a great beach day on Saturday and later that afternoon/evening we celebrated Diane’s brother’s (Richard) birthday, along with his son Ryan. Diane, Jill and Richard so seldom get together at the same time that this really was an extra special occasion.

On Sunday morning, Tom took me to pick up my rental car and I began making the six hour drive from Wrightsville Beach to Damascus. Fortunately, I was able to stop at my brother David’s house in Lexington, NC where he and his wife, Julie, had prepared a great lunch. My other brother, Patrick, drove from his home town of Lenoir, NC to join us along with his daughter Monica, and her 8 month old daughter, Andie (whom I had never met). Even though we only had a short time to be together it was so much fun, as my brothers and I also do not have the chance to get together very often.

After departing David’s house around 4:00 pm I made the final drive to Damascus, arriving at the Dragonfly Inn https://www.dragonflyinns.com/about-us around 6:15 pm. This is the same bed & breakfast that I stayed at in 2023. If you are ever passing through Damascus, I highly recommend this B&B as the owners, Ralph & Patti Wilson, are very accommodating and friendly! I had to drop off my rental car in Abington this morning and Ralph was kind enough to meet me there and bring me back to Damascus. He also gave me a quick tour of the devastation that occurred here last September when Hurricane Helene hit western NC and southern VA.

I will spend the rest of today enjoying the small town of Damascus, preparing my food bag, charging my devices and reorganizing my backpack for the start of my journey tomorrow. I have a shuttle driver scheduled to pick me up at 9:00 tomorrow morning and he will drop me off at my trail head about 25 miles north of Damascus. Again, Ralph was instrumental in helping me locate a driver. My hiking plans tomorrow are modest as it will be 10:00 -10:30 am before I can get on trail, and I am sure it will take a few days to reacclimate to my 35 pound backpack and the terrain ahead.

Thanks for tagging along and we will see how far this adventure takes me!

Note: I had not planned to maintain a blog during this hike as I have no idea how short, or long it may be. However, enough friends and relatives, who were aware of my plans to return to the trail, urged me to do so. (And, my good friend Doug said he would not mow my yard next summer, while I am away, if I did not keep up the blog!) With the exception of this initial posting, I will not link my updates to Facebook as I don’t want to force feed entries to my FB friends who prefer not to receive updates. Readers will need to go to this site (nobo23.com) to check out the updates and anyone who wants to automatically receive an update can do so by clicking on the “Follow And The Journey Continues” blue icon box on this page.

Diane, Alan Jill & Tom

Jill, Richard & Diane

Richard & Ryan

Patrick, Alan, Andie, David

Ralph & Patti Wilson – The Dragonfly Inn

Downtown Damascus After Hurricane Helene (September 2024)

Fours Days Food Supply (I Hope!)

Under a patchwork of blue skies and billowing clouds, I completed my 500 miles of hiking today (and more than 600 cumulative miles walked). This journey is now “in the books”.

Since 2015 I have been on three long distance adventures and have now traveled more than 2,000 miles on foot across some of the most challenging terrain in the western states and on the east coast. I have felt pain, exhaustion, loneliness, frustration and fear that I would wish on no one. But I have seen and experienced some of the most beautiful sights of nature that you can only see if you go there on foot. And, maybe most importantly, I have been humbled and awed by the most amazing acts of kindness from people that I had never before met, and will never see again. Following each of these journeys I have returned home more grateful, appreciative and mindful of the life I have been blessed with. I am, indeed, a “Lucky” man.

I can never adequately express enough my gratitude to my family for supporting me in these endeavors, especially my amazing wife, Diane, whom I have put through more trials and tribulations than any spouse deserves. My good friend Stu reminded me in an email yesterday that, upon my return, the highest priority must be to treat my wife to a trip filled with rest, relaxation and good food. I will follow his wise advice. 

So….what adventure to think about next? There is a 100 mile loop around Mt Blanc that crosses through France, Switzerland and Italy that I would love to do with my wife (and she is only learning about this when she reads this post!😊). Unlike the filthy, mice- infested shelters on the AT, there are quaint, staffed mountain huts – complete with hot meals, waiting at each interval of this hike. Something to think about….

Thanks to all of you who joined me from afar on this journey, who offered words of encouragement and support. On the most difficult of days your words meant so much and lifted my spirits. You were, indeed, my long distance “trail angels”. And, to a few special people who called me ,or sent private messages (you know who you are), please know just much each of you mean to me.

I’m signing off now and leave you with one final thought. 

The journey of your life is up to you. Others may not understand the paths you choose to walk down, the challenges you embrace or the decisions you make. You alone must decide what the tapestry of your life journey will look like when all of the pieces are finally stitched together. Just make sure it’s a masterpiece that shines brightly, long after you are gone, and screams out “I LIVED MY LIFE”!

Alan Barlow (aka “Lucky”) – May 3, 2023

Pics from today: sights from final trail hike, Dragonfly Inn where I am staying (a great place!), murals along Main Street in Damascus

As I will be wrapping up this journey in the town of Damascus, I had a shuttle driver take me 30 minutes north today to Grayson Highlands State Park where I began my hike, and traveled south (back towards Damascus). As I began my hike up the mountain from the parking area things got interesting very fast. The wind speed and force were incredible and it wasn’t long until I was hiking in fresh snow that fell last night. I fell several times on the ice covered rocks and on one of those falls I broke the one good trekking pole I had in half. So, I took both poles apart and made one good pole and stashed the remaining pole parts in my backpack. It was a bit awkward getting used to using just one pole but after an hour or two it felt comfortable. The views from the top of Grayson Highlands were stunning with the blue sky and fresh snow. However, as I was above tree level it became difficult to know where the trail was at as many of the white AT blazes that had been painted on the rocks were covered with snow or blended into the snowy landscape. After hiking the summit ridge line I eventually got below snow level which also helped with the wind gusts. This particular area is famous for the wild horses that live there and eventually I did pass a few grazing amongst some trees. Along the way today I passed several of my hiking friends that I met over the past weeks and I told them I was leaving the trail and I wished them good luck in their journeys. Near the end of my hike, the trail crossed through a farm pasture and I got a lot of blank stares from the resident cows grazing in the area. A young calf and (I presume) it’s mother, we’re standing dead center in the middle of the trail that I was crossing so I just walked slowly toward them and they both moved out of the way. I hiked 17 miles in less than 6.5 hours and arrived more than an hour early at my pickup point. So, I put on my winter coat, gloves and rain pants, ate a few snacks, and eventually my ride showed up. I did pass over the “500 mile mark” on top of Grayson Highlands, and almost missed the rocks designating the spot due to the snow. Of course, for me, traveling south today, it was not the true 500 mile mark as I have just a few miles to go tomorrow to reach that milestone and officially close out this adventure for me. My cousin, Renee Weaver, will pick me up on Thursday evening and take me to her home near Asheville, NC. We tried to connect for a weekend visit earlier in my journey but our schedules did not permit. So, I’m very much looking forward to a quick visit with Renee, her husband Robert, and my Aunt Mary. I will fly back to New Hampshire on Saturday.

Wow! I thought we were going to be blown off the top of the mountain last night!!! The wind gusts were relentless and lasted the entire night, bringing with them bone-chilling cold. I got no more than one hour of broken sleep and was very tired when we started to pack up at 6:15 am. We left camp around 7:20 am and had a short (and mostly downhill) 10 mile hike into Damascus, Virginia. In fact, we covered this distance in 3 of hours, 15 minutes. It was a great feeling to finally cross over into our 4th state. Upon arrival we visited the new Trail Center in town and then went to a local diner for an early lunch. Damascus is known as “Trail Town USA” and is kind of the epicenter of the hiker world on the east coast. The town hosts a huge “Trail Days” event each year in May which draws up to 20,000 hiker enthusiasts. Not bad for a town with a population of less than 1,000. It appears that Mountain Crusher will return tomorrow and join back up with the team as he appears to be feeling better. I sure hope the worst is behind him and that he is strong enough to resume this arduous hiking schedule. 

Prior to beginning my AT thru hike adventure I had never done a single day of backpacking in my life. Everything hiking-related that I have shared on this site has been learned or acquired “on the go”. At the start of this journey I had two major concerns: first – could I physically handle the demands of so many daily mountain hikes and, second – could I embrace and enjoy the “hiker life style”. 

Regarding the first concern, I have been amazed at how well my body has handled the physical and mental demands  associated with such difficult terrain. I have not suffered one injury and have not even had a single blister. I have managed to keep up each day with my young teammates (who are 29 – 40 years younger than me) and I still have hiked the most miles in one day (20+ in the Smokies) on our team up to this point. I am so thankful that I have been able to meet the physical and mental challenges the trail has offered up. 

However….,.(I know, there’s always a “however”, right?), I have struggled, and eventually failed, at embracing and enjoying the “hiker lifestyle”. In fact, I really, really, really dislike it. Poor nutrition, terrible hygiene, inability to get a decent night’s sleep, long evenings in camp with nothing to do but sit and wait until the next day to hike again, going to bed dirty and waking up dirty…. I have just not been able to embrace and enjoy this part of the experience. And, after nearly 7 weeks on trail, and almost 500 miles, it’s clear to me that this part of the experience is not going to change, and my dissatisfaction with it has reached the point that I no longer enjoy the daily hikes and challenges offered up by the trail. And, this adventure is simply too demanding physically and mentally to not get a high sense of accomplishment in the daily miles and routines. 

So….I need a little less than 30 miles to exceed 500 trail miles which I will do over the next couple of days. At the conclusion of that I will hang up my (badly worn and smelly) hiker shoes and leave the rest of the trail to my young teammates to wrestle with. And, I know they will do great. 

Despite not making it further in this journey, I would not change anything. I have learned so much about myself and my abilities/inabilities, have seen so many beautiful places, experienced so much kindness from strangers and Trail Angels,  and met so many fantastic people that it has made all the challenges and unsavory parts of the experience so worthwhile. When I jump off trail in a couple of days I will do so with a huge smile on my face both looking back at what I have experienced/accomplished and looking forward to a return to “normal” life (especially a hot shower every morning!😊). I hope the journey you have taken with me has been enjoyable and that you have learned some things about the AT (and what it takes to be a thru hiker) that you didn’t know before. But most of all, I hope it has instilled in you, in some small way, the desire to take on your own challenges and adventures no matter what the outcome may be. After all, it’s the adventure itself that allows you to push and expand your own boundaries. I will be posting the final couple of days on the trail as usual before signing off after reaching my 500 mile mark. In the meantime, I will be working on the logistics of closing out this journey and making my way home to New Hampshire.  

Pics from yesterday and today – Old barn on AT, oldest shelter on AT (at least that’s what I was told), departing camp this morning – was too cold to take off long underwear😊, welcome to Damascus

Today was a really tough day due to the weather conditions. We packed up our tents just before a steady rain started this morning and we’ve had to eat our breakfast under the overhang of the nearby shelter. Cobweb Rose did an amazing job getting to camp around 10:00 pm last night. She was pretty tired when we left camp this morning, and I’m sure today was a long day for her, but she was a trooper. Our destination today was a shelter site 16 miles away. 2 hours into our hike there was a down pour which we hiked in for quite a while. Around 11:30 am we were able to take cover in a shelter site near the trail with 5 or 6 other people. The temperature dropped very fast and we were scrambling to dig out some warm clothes while we ate an early lunch. After about 30 minutes we headed out with 9 more miles to go and hiked for miles through thick fog and rain showers that would come and go. I took my first hard fall of this journey when I slipped in the mud and  fell hard on my knees, before catching myself just in time to prevent a face plant in the middle of the trail. I’m sure it would have been comical to see. My right knee ached for a while afterwards but the pain gradually went away. About 2 miles from camp the sun finally broke through briefly. We arrived at camp just before 4:00 pm and managed to get our tents set up before the next round of rain showers rolled through. It looks as though tomorrow may hold similar weather in store for us but I’m keeping my fingers crossed. 

Yesterday’s blog mentioned that we were taking Mountain Crusher to an Urgent Care facility to see what options there may be to treat his stomach virus that has persisted and weakened him over the past several days. Unfortunately, he was unable to get a firm diagnosis and only a prescription to treat his nausea. This morning, Snapshot and I left camp around 8:30 am and hiked 16 miles to our shelter site. Mountain Crusher and Cobweb Rose stayed behind to catch a shuttle to a drugstore to pick up MC’s prescription. This afternoon Snapshot and I received a message from MC saying that he was going to come off of the trail for a few days to give his body a chance to recover and that he hopes to catch up with us in Damascus (VA) on Monday. Cobweb is apparently still hiking towards our shelter site this evening but we don’t know if she will stop short and catch up tomorrow or if she may still make it in tonight.

Our hike today was easier than yesterday, both in terms of terrain and weather, and we made pretty good time. Part of our hike was around Lake Watagua and the trail actually crossed over the dam on that lake. As we gained altitude we were able to get some pretty views of the lake below. About 3 miles into the hike we came across some amazing trail angels from Hunter First Baptist Church and they had the most amazing food and drinks to offer us. Ben and Heather (husband & wife) started this ministry a few years ago on their own and later gained the support of their church to expand the great work they were doing.

I forgot to mention yesterday that we saw our first snake sighting late in the day yesterday. It was maybe 24-28 inches long, crossed the trail in front of us and slithered into the woods. The only surprise is that it has taken this long to see one. Our plan tomorrow is to cover another 16 miles.

We had very heavy rain last night and woke up to soaking wet tents, but a break in the rain which allowed us to pack up and eat before heading out at 8:00 am without getting rained on. Our goal today was 17.5 miles to a camping hostel near the town of Hampton, TN. Cobweb and Mountain Crusher had agreed at the end of the day yesterday that MC needed to get to an urgent care center today to see what is going on with him as he has still not recovered from the stomach virus he contracted earlier this week. The hike today was brutal in just about every aspect – distance, elevation and weather. We saw some beautiful sites but had little time to appreciate them as our goal was to get MC to urgent care. I honestly do not know how the poor guy was able to make it to our destination as badly as he felt. We stopped frequently to give him a chance to rest and as a result it turned into a 10+ hour day. When it became apparent that we would not arrive at camp in time to catch the shuttle into town, Cobweb Rose contacted a friend in the area and he agreed to meet us at camp and make sure MC gets to the urgent care center. Cobweb will accompany MC as she is a nurse. Snapshot and I will ride into town with them to get something to eat and pick up some supplies for the next couple of days. We are hoping that all MC needs are a few meds and probably some rest. We are all keeping our fingers crossed for him.

(Pics from yesterday and today)