Smokin' (Part 1)

     I left Fontana dam on a cloudy wind swept day around noon with my father in tow.  All the maps had indicated that I could expect to be walking uphill most of the day.  I felt good, no pains, plenty of energy and raring to go.  My pop and I shortly said farewell and I was off alone again.  For some odd reason I have been able to walk at a pretty fast, steady pace while going uphill.  This time was no exception either.  I just kept chugging like a train up, up, up.

Machete Mitch

     I am not foreseeing the ability to post for a while so I will leave you with a story that has been moving along the trail with me.

Spring

     Walking up and out of Frankilin, NC I felt great.  It was a beautiful day, if not a little warm.  Two small blue butterflies danced around me as I climbed my first hill of the day.  Signs of new life were slowly emerging from the forest floor.  Little white, yellow and blue, at least I think they're blue, flowers were popping up all over the place.  Green grass was sprouting through leaf litter bordering the trail.

Breaking In

     I set out from the same spot where I got off a few days ago with a new rain jacket, new hiking pants and a new set of hiking poles.  I felt like a new man as I started climbing out of a place called Unicoi Gap heading towards Tray mountain.  My hiking poles seemed pretty intuitive to use, but I grew up skiing so maybe that has something to do with it.  "Crap!" I left my camera with my father.  Oh well, it's gorgeous day, I can't let that get me down.

Roller Coaster

      After a half a day with my friend, the frozen pea bag, I headed back out on the trail feeling reinvigorated.  My pops hiked to the top of the first mountain with me and even carried my pack up it.  While we were going up we were sporadically passed by army rangers running down the mountain.  Smiles and pleasantries were not returned.  They looked as if they would be lashed and hung upside down by their knee caps if they were the last ones down or showed any signs that they were enjoying themselves.

3 days in

     Started at Amicalola falls state park around eleven thirty on Thursday morning.  My father joined me on the walk to the top of the falls.  There are something like 460 steps to the top.  My father made sure I paced my self by stopping on every other series of steps.  I am actually very thankful that he did.  I think that I would have just ran up them in my excitement and then have been spent already.  We said our farewells at the top and  I set off alone.

T'was the night before...

      Flight from San Diego started under overcast skies before dawn.  I had the entire row of 3 to myself, so I am thinking this will be a wonderful flight.  Right before they close the doors to the plane a lady toting her infant in a car seat makes her way down the aisle and sits directly behind me.  Great.  Fantastic.  Now I have to listen to a baby crying the entire flight.  Turns out the baby wasn't loud at all, but the mother was horrible.  She coochie cooed that little baby at the top of her lungs, was incessantly rattling something at the kid and coughing.

A day away

"You're Nuts!"

"Mad."

"Are you bringing a gun?"

"Will you at least bring pepper spray?"

"What about bears?"

"You're walking? The whole way? On foot!?"