Mile 275

Arrived in Hot Springs, NC to resupply and take my first full zero day. Myself and 4 other hikers rented a small cabin on the French Broad River. A nice place to relax, with hot springs across the street, plenty of beer and food.

I over did it the last couple days in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park and now have a sore left ankle, the posterior tibialis tendon, I think. I'm not quite ready for 20+ mile days day after day. The weather was very cool, 50s, and lots of trail magic, so I was feeling like hiking a lot. Already feeling better, so should be back to normal soon.

So far NC is more mountainous and scenic than Georgia.The weather has not always been cooperative, so many of the scenic vistas were up in the clouds, but still plenty of views, wildlife, and good company.

Here is the picture show:

Not a dramatic entry into NC, but starts with a steep climb.

Hiking the AT, Hiawasse, GA

5 days on the trail and all is well. Currently at the Top Of Georgia hostel spending my first night off trail and resupplying.  This will be a brief post as there is socializing and sleeping to do. 

To summarize so far: 

1.  There are a lot of people on the trail from all walks of life, even starting as late as I have.  No shortage of good company. 

2. It is a nature lover's delight.  Birds, reptiles, bugs, wildflowers. No bear sightings yet.  I need to brush up on my bird songs and learn some plants, especially the edible variety.

3.  So far my gear is working well.  Some minor tears I've been able to fix with needle and thread. 

4.  Doing 15 mile days so far. Feel ok, but getting good sleep has been hard.  Minor blisters. 

Pictures tell the rest of the story:

Not only did Andrew give me a place to stay in Gainesville, feed me good foodie food, help me ship my bike, and drive me to Amicalola Falls, but he hiked the 8 miles up to Springer Mt to see me off. Here we are at the start of the AT

Gainesville, GA

About 560 miles of pedaling from Norfolk, VA and I've arrived in Gainesville, GA.  Heading out of Norfolk riding was rainy and a bit intense until past Suffolk.  Then I was able to find some enjoyable low traffic country roads. 

Country road and cotton field near the VA NC border

From Norfolk, VA

So far, so good.  I've successfully navigated through NYC, NJ, and down the Delmarva (Delaware, Maryland, Virginia) peninsula with about  400 miles of pedaling, 3 ferry rides (Bridgeport to Port Jefferson, Manhattan to Belford, NJ, Cape May to Lewes, DE) and one Virginia DOT ride over the Chesapeake Bay bridge tunnel.

Heading to Lewes on the Cape May ferry

East Coast Bike & Hike & Bike: The Plan

Long distance hiking and adventure cycling seem to go hand in hand.  I met a lot of people on my first biking trip that were in the process of, planning to or had completed hiking the Appalachian Trail, Pacific Crest Trail, and/or the Continental Divide Trail.  In El Paso, Texas, for example, I met a young couple that was on their way to Maine by bicycle to hike the AT.  That got me thinking.

So this summer I am going to try to ride to Georgia from CT, about 1,000 miles, hike the AT, about 2,200 miles from Georgia to Maine, and then ride back to CT, about 450 miles.  I had lots of ideas from my first trip, so this time I am going to try a few new things.  Many of which involved hours and hours of time with my sister's sewing machine.

First, I am taking my road bike instead of the Surly cyclocross/touring bike. The road bike weighs about 10 lbs lighter and greatly limits what I can carry, so hopefully will be faster riding.  I constructed a frame pack for between the down tube and top tube and modified a compression sack for under the saddle.  I also changed the cassette to an 11-32  (works fine with Shimano 105 derailleur despite some things I read online) and put a 38 tooth chainring on the front for easier pedaling on hills.   I put on some higher spoke count wheels and hoping that durability in general won't be an issue.

Lastly, I broke down and bought a fancy Brooks Cambium Saddle, which I paid about $130 for.  After a few 15-30 miles rides I was impressed, but after back to back 50+ mile rides I had bad saddle sores.  I've decided to give it a 1,000 miles before I definitively say that high end saddles are a waste of money.

While riding I had a number of ideas about creating a tent that could be used as a hammock and also a backpack.  So after a few hundred hours of sewing I put together something that does that.  However, I haven't had a chance to test it extensively other than a few short hikes, which makes me a bit nervous.  Worst case scenario I'll have my backup non-homemade gear shipped to me.  Details and pictures of hiking equipment to follow.  For now, I will say I've got everything to about a 12lb pack, not including food and water.

Leaving today, Saturday April 18, 2015 (Madeline's 6th Birthday).  First stop, New Haven.