Saint Francis of the Injured Feet

Stealth Camp to Greymoor Friary 19.6 Miles
I just wanted to sit there and wait until whatever it was outside my tent went away but then I heard another one farther down the hill from me. I was hoping they might go chase each other around so I could pack up and get the hell out of there while they battled each other in territorial combat, claws and fangs locked in mortal struggle so that they never notice the lone hiker skirt their blueberry-covered arena. I eventually mustered the emotional strength to get out of the tent to look around and a deer went bounding away. I hate being scared of a deer. Here I am all wide awake at 6AM and even out of my tent! I packed it up and got out of there by 7. Some guys passing me before I got on the trail found my headlamp on the trail, right where I pulled out my sleeping bag to look for it. Oh well, at least I got it back. There were blueberries everywhere. Only a few of them were ripe but I decided to start eating them. I could use the vitamins and stuff. Ramen and tuna and Vitamins aren’t going to cut it I think. The trail was nasty as usual. New York’s trail system seems to have been blazed by someone who really had something to prove; like, “I’ll show you guys we have tough terrain in New York even though the altitude doesn’t go over 1300 feet, I use all 1300 feet, over and over again.” The terrain was wearing on my still-wet feet and I’m getting this pain in my pad of my right foot that’s starting to feel serious. I got new boots and I don’t think they are working well with my feet. I don’t have the money to get more new boots so I’ll just deal with it until something falls off. As I was climbing Bear Mountain the automatic gunfire began. I wasn’t expecting to hear .50 cal fire and an M249 SAW going off in the woods below but it was unmistakable. Then I heard the claymores and a few grenades. I was having visions of a takeover, a coup d’etat where the Marines finally take back the country and ask me to join back up. OF COURSE! Later someone informed me that West Point is over there and I guess they were exercising their right to automatic weapons. I love that! I ate blueberries all the way up Bear mountain and the downhill into Bear Mountain The Town was extreme and the foot was really going crazy. By the time I got to the town I was limping. Fortunately there was a kid there selling Italian Ice on the promenade next to Hessian lake and I sat myself down a spell to enjoy it, paying with two of the dollar coins I got from the Soda machine in Lake Tiorati, briefly wondering once again if they were real before the kid took them, without a word to their authenticity. I got a burger and “Blue” Doritos as they call the Cool Ranch style here in New York, Ostensibly because they come in a Blue Bag VS the Red of the Nacho Cheese. Briefly I wondered if this was a regional bastardization or a freak occurrence. There is a Zoo here that the Appalachian Trail passes through. They have the blazes right there on the path that runs through the zoo, which is stocked with animals who are injured to the pint that they wouldn’t be able to make it in the wild. The bears had been put to bed and I had to sneak past the closed gate to get through but there were still people walking around so I figured it was OK. I made it through the zoo without getting stuck for too long. I’m interested in identifying the types of plants I’ve been passing, especially edible ones J The path let out at the Hudson River Bridge and I crossed it instead of staying in town there. I wanted to get toe the Friary. Greymoor Friary is an old Franciscan worship center that has housed AT Thru Hikers since 1972. They used to feed people here but at some point they discontinued that and now they offer a shelter at the ballfield that you can stay, recharge cellphones and take a cold shower, all for free. It was nice; but, a lot further from the trail than they let on and by the time I walked the 7 miles from the zoo to the Friary, I was limping badly. I hope I don’t have to zero here. I would love to see the Friary though. They have services for hikers at 7:30 PM I just couldn’t get up the oomph to go tonight but it would be something I’d like to see. In the guide book it says you can order food from a local pizza place here and we tried but their driver was absent tonight. I had already gotten it in my head to eat pizza so Magnus and I searched the internet until we found something. I got a big pepperoni pizza, wings, a salad and two bottles of Coke. We feasted like kings and the pizza was a really good East Coast Pizza. I haven’t had really good East Coast Pizza in a long time. I wish my foot wasn’t so jacked up, I’d be a lot happier right now if I didn’t think I was going to have to Zero tomorrow. The keyboard for this computer hasn’t been working very well. The USB port rarely recognizes it and I’ve been forced to wait until I can figure it out. Well, off to bed and I’ll see how the foot feels in the morning.Windjammer, Brühawk and Magnus stayed here with Toad and a couple of other guys I didn’t know

David AKA “Mister Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

New York, Stealth Camping, Bathroom Laundering, and Fear Based Bear Bagging.

Wildcat Shelter NY to NY17 Arden Valley Rd 10 miles
NY17 to Stealth Campsite 8 miles
18 miles total

New York is starting to irritate me. The trails here are tough to get up to any kind of good speed because of the rocks and the constant ups and downs. The terrain is steep both up and down and you can’t really get a pace going. Whoever blazed New York had an evil sense of humor. There are many places where there’s no particular reason to go up and down, you could just follow a line just below the ridge; but no, up and down and up and down. Bastards! There were quite a few places where we were scrambling up and over rocks, foregoing our poles for handholds and clambering down backwards in some places. In one section there was a ladder to get you up the rock face. I bailed over a log in the morning and rolled to the outside on some rocks. I thought I had broken my guitar (and a few other things) but I got up and all my parts seemed to be working properly. The final plunge into NY17 was so steep I was having trouble slowing down at times. They call that section “Agony Grind” and I’m grateful to the hiking gods that I didn’t have to go up the bastard. When we go down to the gap, Rolex was there with his girlfriend Barb to pick us up. Oh yeah, I forgot, it was raining too. Cyclone and I changed in the middle of the road under the canopy of Rolex’s hatchback door. Rolex was taking us in to get a last meal together until I get finished in September. We went to TGI Friday’s and I had one of everything. I was hoping to pick up gaiters but they didn’t have any outfitter nearby and Rolex had to get back home. I picked up a nex Under Armor shirt at Modell’s and I’ll be wearing Purple until September now. I needed a long sleeve UA so I wouldn’t get sunburn on my arms. I don’t like putting sunscreen on my skin and I do need to protect my tattoo. I grabbed the rest of the gear I would need from Cyclone and my pack was about 60 pounds. I don’t know that for sure but I’ll find out the next place I go. That sucker is REALLY HEAVY. The two of them did interviews for the film and I loaded up and got out of there. The next rise was tough with the new weight but I can go at my own pace and stop when I want now. Hiking solo is much simpler logistically; however, you can’t have a real conversation about anything with people you don’t really know. I like meeting new folks though so I’m not worried about the loneliness factor, in fact, I’m kind of relieved they split because now I can do the sort of things that I did tonight:
It was rough going but I wanted to make sure I got a bunch of miles in. There was this thing in the trail book that said “Lemon Squeezer” and me and Cyclone were wondering what it was; well, I found out. I filmed a clip of me trying to get through there with a pack on. It’s these two huge boulders and a narrow chute between them where you and a pack can hardly get through. It looks like you can’t get through but it had been raining a little so I slid through it. Them there was this wall thing right afterwards that you have to actually climb. It was hard to find the handholds. It looks easy in the video but that’s because it was the second time I had done it. It rained pretty heavy on and off all day after that and I was getting soaked. I was walking in squishy boots for hours. There was nothing I could do. I really need to get a pair of gaiters. When I got to fingerboard shelter there was no water and I was bone dry. I would have to walk to a lake about a mile away. I was pretty tired but they told me that if I walked down the trail a little further it was close to the lake and I could just camp somewhere. I decided to take off, it would be getting dark soon though. The Christian Brothers and Dad (as I’m calling them) graced me with a blessed (two syllables) liter of untreated water. I wondered, briefly, if you have to treat water that has been blessed or if it’s just given as a blessing then maybe it still needs to be treated. Since it came from a still pond, I figured to go with the God helping those that help themselves and I treated it, threw in some flavoring and gulped it down. The Christian Brothers and Dad are a family of four brothers and their Father is the principal of a religious school. They are very nice and say cool things like “God bless you” and cook pizza in a funky contraption with a computer CPU fan and a No. 10 can. They probably saved my life. I got to the road and hung a right to go to Tiorati Lake. They said there were showers there too but by the time I got there they were closed. Everything was closed except the soda machine which charged me two dollars for a one-dollar, orange soda. I had put a five in the dollar slot hoping it would work and then they only gave me three of those dollar coins back; although, it was neat because I have never seen those particular dollar coins before. I wondered, briefly, if they were real. I eventually found a legitimate bathroom that was open and it had a hand dryer! I was there until well after nightfall trying to dry my socks and underwear after washing them with fresh water in the sink. The socks never dry because they are so full of salt so I rinse them out when I can and then try to let them dry. Dry socks are more puffy and it makes a big difference on your feet in the rocks. I’m wearing two pair at a time now. By the time I got out of there it was really dark and I had nowhere to camp so I hoofed back up the road to the trail and just started walking in the night. I can’t find my headlamp so I just kind of felt it out until I couldn’t be sure whether or not I was on the trail. I pulled out my sleeping bad to see if my headlamp was in there but I couldn’t find it. It probably fell out and is on the trail right in front of my face and I can’t see it. I still have to hang a bear bag and set up camp somewhere with no light. This is going to be interesting. Thunder was booming off in the distance and I could see by occasional lightning flashes, expecting to see a bear appear in front of me at any moment. I put on all my rain gear and covered my pack and realized I have a light on my camera, although it’s really bright and I wasn’t supposed to be camping here. I managed to find a tree to hang my bear bag and I was searching for a rock to tie to the rope when I hear this crazy noise about 50 yards away. It almost sounded like one of those impact drills that a pit crew uses to bolt on the tires. Then it happened again. I was hoping it wasn’t a bear telling me I was too close to its cubs. And then I heard the next worse thing I could have heard: Beep Beep Beep just as my battery died on my camera, enveloping me in a thick cloak of darkness, pregnant with fear and the occasional lightning burst, oh yeah; and the sound again. Suddenly that last shelter seemed like a really nice place to be. Too bad I would have a hell of a time finding my pack with no light and no idea where I was.
I found my pack after a few minutes of stumbling around in the wet blueberry bushes as my night vision slowly came back. I took off the cover, fished around until I found another battery, loaded the camera and went back out to find a better tree, presumably better because it was not in the vicinity of the sound of the pneumatic lug driver. At least, I was hoping it was just a pneumatic lug driver, or a deer. If I remember correctly, deer make this funky sound like that when they want you to skedaddle-most-prompt or clearing their nostrils or something. . I was clinging to the deer theory while I hung my bear bag and made it back to my hammock. I never really got my socks to full dry and my feet have been pickled now for a couple of days. I got in my hammock just as the rain started pouring again. Good timing. I hope the rain dampens the smell of the bag of GORP that I forgot was in my pack, DAMN! Sleep eventually came until I was awakened again by that pit crew just outside my tent!

David AKA “Mister Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org/
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Squishy Boots and Ice Cream Hiatus

Wawayanda Shelter to Wildcat Shelter 12 miles

Last night I managed to clean up a little bit in the bathroom at the nearby ranger station and we haven’t needed to use our water purifier much because there have been spigots or restrooms around us. We got up and left just behind the Scarlet Seven Crew and spent some hours trying to figure out the “what fits under the Umbrella” game. I’m still not sure what fits under the umbrella but I know the umbrella always fits under the umbrella. That’s all I know. We were cruising right along and then the trail started to get interesting. We traversed long ridges of smooth rock and lots of ups and downs. We finally crossed over into New York for good, goodbye to New Jersey and signed the Logbook with lots of sweat drops blurring the ink. I thought this section was supposed to be easy but I started sweating a lot and my socks kept getting really wet. I have to wring them out and change them while I hang the old ones on the back of my pack although they never really get dry. I’m completely out of dry socks, or dry anything for that matter. We got to NY17A and someone hipped us to the Bellvale Farms Creamery. We got some ice cream of course; it was about 300 yards west of the trail so we just had to, twice. It was hot and sunny and I rinsed out my socks and left them on the hot concrete to dry from a spigot that was on the side of the building. Cyclone and I eventually stayed there for several hours as lots of people we knew kept rolling in and getting ice cream, then moving on. Not us! Birch beer in a bottle and vanilla ice cream… Ahhhhhhhhhhh, satisfaction! It rained for a little bit and we eventually got back on the trail; wet socks and wet boots. Hiking with a heavy pack and pruney feet is not a good idea. Every couple of hours they start squish squishing and I have to take them off and wring them out. I feel like I’m getting blisters under my feet in a weird place in the middle of my foot but under the pads next to the ball of my foot. I’ve never had that happen before. I need gaiters desperately. Maybe I’ll get some tomorrow when Mike picks Cyclone up. Since we spent so much time at the Ice Cream place, we didn’t think we could make the next shelter so we just packed it in at Wildcat. It was only 12 miles but I could use a rest with my feet acting up. The Scarlet crew was with us as we came in to the shelter and so were some of the other guys we have met. I met a couple of new hikers: Baggins and Mr Burns (who looks just like Mr Burns from The Simpsons). We ate and I played guitar and so did one of the Scarlet Seven, his name escapes me, and another of them sang. I’m writing this like four days later so please forgive me for not being able to recall your names, email me and I’ll fix the blog. Tomorrow Cyclone goes home.

David AKA “Mister Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Wawayanda Watermelon Haul

The Mayor’s House to Wawayanda Shelter 19 Miles

We got out of there and the Mayor dropped us off at the trailhead. Breakfast was wonderful and we said goodbye to the Mayor, Butch and Bill. We had a long one in front of us but we knew we were going to run into a bunch of people that had been at the Mayor’s. We were going for a 20 mile day and we’re going to try to make the Hudson River by Sunday evening. It’s going to be a long haul but we want to make it as far as possible before Cyclone heads home. We really took our time today. We stopped and ate a bunch of berries, filmed a bunch of stuff including another bear that was hanging out on the trail ahead of us. We stopped at a cool produce place called Heaven Hill Farms where they had great ice cream and fruit and stuff. We got a little to eat; it was only a tenth of a mile off the trail. Then I got the wacky iodea to carry a watermelon up the 1000 foot vertical climb to the next shelter. I knew I had to do it as soon as I thought of it. No one would believe I would do something like that which is exactly why I had to do it. Defining moments come along pretty often on this trail and I like to take advantage of all of them. We got a seven pound watermelon and I found a way to stuff it in the pack. I carried that bastard all the way up the hill but I wasn’t sorry I did it. It was so cool to pull that thing out when we got to the shelter after a 20 mile day and give it to the Ohio State crew. Riddler and the Scarlet Seven are a group of people who are hiking for six weeks as far as they can go. We knew they would be able to appreciate the true value of a watermelon on the trail after climbing that hill themselves. It’s weird without Rolex. We had too much spaghetti but man was it good! We finally killed the bottle of parmesan cheese. I’m a little concerned about all of the food smells tonight. There is a ton of stuff in the bear boxes and I can guarantee a bear comes by tonight and tries to get into that thing. I’m just trying to get this blog out before that happens. It’s been dark for about an hour now and this is the time they come by. A group of six girls came up to the shelter late and cooked this amazing mud pie, peanut butter, jello thing and there’s no way five bears can’t smell it from all over the state. I better get this posted and get in my tent before I become dinner.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org/
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Hangin' with the Mayor

The Mayor’s place to the Mayor’s place
We stayed another night. It was weird after Rolex split and we had a bunch of stuff to get done so we did it. Post office, re-supply, pizza etc… A few more hikers showed up at the Mayor’s House and we hung out and ate dinner and went to bed after watching Million dollar baby.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

The Mayor of Unionville and sad parting.

Gren Anderson Shelter to The Mayor Of Unionville’s House

That’s right baby! Hanging out in style at the Mayoral Residence in Unionville NY. We had dinner with about 20 other thru-hikers, it seems the Mayor, Dick Ludwig, has a thing for thru-hikers and he really offers a wonderful service here. He fed us and let us wash our bodies and clothing. We’re all camped out in his back yard. I’m not kidding! Anyway, bad news today… Rolex has decided to split the trail. We’ve been having some head butting moments and I’ve been pretty antagonistic toward him lately. I’ve been a jerk for the last couple days and he’s finally sick of it. I have some issues, mostly Ego issues, and I have a tendency to try to squash him when it’s really me I’m disappointed in. We talked about it and we’re cool with each other but he’s pulling off to spend the summer working on the shore house with my Dad. He was going to pull off soon anyway and that’s another reason I’ve been a real ass lately. I need to work on that. For now we’re cool but he’s splitting. I don’t blame him. We had a long hike today. Tempers were flaring and things came to a head. We stopped at a park where one of Rolex’s buddies from his swim team works as a lifeguard. The concession stand was closed but we got a quick swim in and Rolex’s buddy Anthony gave us some grub which we immediately stuffed (except for the granola bars which we eventually ate). We got back on the trail and headed for Unionville NY. When we got down to the road we called one of the numbers on the trail book and believe it or not we got the Mayor. He picked us up in his silver Prius and took us to his house where we ran into all of the hikers we’ve met so far in Jersey. CRAZY. We met a bunch of new ones too. There was no room in the house so most of us are sleeping in our tents in the back yard. We sat around eating and talking and then me and Rolex and Cyclone had a long discussion and talked about the situation. I think we cleared a lot of things up. I have been resentful because those guys can go so fast and are so young and strong and it really fractured my pride. I end up being a real jerk in an effort to make myself feel better about who I am and what I can and can’t accomplish. It’s much easier to recognize it after the fact than when I’m all wrapped up but sometimes that’s too late. The damage has been done. There don’t seem to be any hard feelings, we got showers and then we went to the local bar to get more grub. We met some more interesting peeps there and after dinner went back up to the Mayor’s house and BSed with the hikers who were still awake and I hit the blog and we are going to bed. I feel pretty crappy about the whole situation. My Dad is coming to pick up Rolex at 10 in the morning (it’s a three hour drive from home) and I guess me and Cyclone will try to get along for a while until he gets off the trail in July. It’ll be weird without Rolex but in the long run I know he’ll have a better summer helping Dad out with the new house down the shore. There’s lots of work to be done and Dad hasn’t had a chance to show him how to do carpentry and plumbing and stuff so it will be cool for him to learn those things. I’m going to miss you Rolex. You would have gone a lot further if you didn’t have to wait on my slow ass all the time. I’m sorry I can be such an asshole.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org/
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Watch out for that COPPERHEAD!

Long Pine Pond to Gren Anderson Shelter 15 miles

We got up to a steamy pond and it was beautiful. There were frogs chirping and birds croaking and caterpillars shitting on the tent fly so that it sounded like rain; but, not to be confused with the actual rain that fell in the night. It was awesome. I love the rain in my hammock. The patter of the raindrops on my tent fly is soothing and hypnotic. I love falling asleep in therain while in a tent. I used to love sleeping in my jeep in the rain, down by the beach with the heater and the radio on. I miss ‘ole Lucille, my trusty four-wheeled friend. Anyweay, we got up and packed up and I had to go back around the lake to make sure I did all of the Appalachian Trail while the other guys went around the back of the pond. Much to my chagrin I found a note that Dad had decided to pull off of the trail because he lost feeling in his legs. Dad had a back injury a few weeks ago and he was feeling weird on the trail. When he started up he was worried he would get worse and get stranded way out in the bush so he decided to head on back to the ranch. I didn’t find out until a few hours later ‘cause I was hiking a few extra miles and I was about a half an hour back. While I was hiking I almost stepped on a Copperhead that was basking across the trail. I don’t know how I saw it, I was just about to step on the little bastard and he didn’t move at all. I was like, “WHOAH!” and I pulled back and took a few pictured than tried to get him off of the trail. Copperheads are supposed to be pretty aggressive so I was worried about lifting him with my stick but it looked like he might have just gotten a chipmunk for breakfast so he was pretty docile. I poked him a little and he finally went away into the brush. Needless to say I was a little nervous walking from then on and my eyes were glued to the trail. I met up with Cyclone and Rolex at the Brinks Road Shelter and then we moved on. We got to Culvers Gap and snuck down the road to Gyp’s tavern and got some burgers and pierogies and pizza and stuff. The folks were cool and then we sat there fro like 3 hours. The fellas were starting to talk about getting a motel and I had to put the Veto down. The next shelter was only 3 miles and I wanted to be able to get out of the town. I’m really sick of towns. “They are a trap,” Rolex says and he is right. The terrain here is really leave for the most part although it’s difficult to hike on the rocks with any confidence. You have to watch your step although you can still cruise. I packed up and decided to carry an extra 3 liters of water up to the shelter so we wouldn’t have to purify any when we got here. I left as they were filling their water so they couldn’t change their minds and get a hotel. I pulled in to the shelter a little more than an hour later and met Booger and her dog Buddy. Singer and Land Surfer. We ate dinner and I’m going to retire early. We have great internet service so I’m going to blog and post tonight.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org/
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Jersey Bears and Long Pine Pond

Mohican Outdoor Center to Long Pine Pond campsite

We got up earlier than I like to and hung out at the Lodge and ate breakfast. We got out on the trail and it was cool but Dad was having a really tough time. It’s easy to forget how painful it was for us on our first week and we’re kind of champing at the bit and I can see it in the guys’ walks that they want to take off but it’s cool to be hiking with our Dad. I’m a little worried about him cause he is stopping a lot but about halfway through we relieved him of some extraneous gear. I added a lot of weight to my pack and I hardly noticed it. That’s encouraging because when Cyclone and Rolex split in July I’m going to be carrying a bunch more weight. Just after midday we were walking and Mongoose told us to stop and back up. I thought there was a Rattlesnake and I started to pull out my camera but it was a Black Bear. He didn’t seem to interested in us but he was right on the trail. At first we were all pretty worried he was coming towards us and I think he was but we made a lot of noise and he didn’t seem to notice but then he eventually crossed the trail and kind of ambled and meandered off into the brush. I got some footage and that was cool. New Jersey has the highest percentage of bears. They say they have an average of 1 bear per square mile. Our first Bear Experience was pretty good, I hope they are all like that. We were going to do 14 miles today but it became apparent around 1 o’clock that we were going to have to find another option. We decided to pull off and go to this campsite about a mile off the trail and I’m really glad we did. It’s beautiful! Rolex and Mongoose jumped in to the lake and then Mongoose spotted another bear on the bank on the other side of the lake/pond. They call it a pond but it’s pretty big, you could probably land a pontoon plane in here. We set up our tents and then all these thru-hikers came in. This guy Toad is a botanist and he’s been catching all these snakes and toads and stuff. There are non-hikers camping here and we’re supposed to leave them alone and not use the facilities here so we’re all watching them swim around. It’s crazy all the caterpillars here. There is a ridiculous infestation of gypsy moths and they are EVERYWHERE. We’re stabbing them, slicing them, stepping on them and every other way of destroying them. They are killing all of the trees around here. Sometimes the trees like they are wearing a fur coat of these caterpillars. It’s horrible. When I was a kid they had a big thing about it and they were destroying our local woods so we try to kill them whenever we can. They supposedly introduced some crazy beetle to eat them but it obviously isn’t working around here. I’m playing some guitar and going to bed soon. We are going to have a campfire and sing some songs I guess. I think Mongoose will do better tomorrow, we’re going to take as much of his gear as he’ll let us but I know how he is, he’ won’t want us to do that so we’re going to have to be subtle J
Trail names of the guys here: Stripe, Shadowcast, Toad, Tangent, Daddy-O, Peacock, and Jack Frost

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org/
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Back out on the trail; but, with Dad

Delaware Water Gap to Mohican Outdoor Center 11 miles

The family got up at 6AM and got everything together. We were supposed to all leave at 6:30 but it was apparent that that wasn’t about to happen. So we got it together eventually, threw everything together and sat in the driveway while we kept remembering things and running back into the house to get them. When we finally got on the road we had a couple of hours to drive up tot the Delaware Water Gap and I passed out on the way. It was raining a little and we stopped in some crazy place to get gas. JESUS GAS IS EXPENSIVE. I’ve been on the trail so long I haven’t notice but you guys are paying WAY TOO MUCH for gas. It’s time to blow up another one of those OPEC countries again. Where’s George Bush when you need him. Let’s take out Saudi Arabia this time! We really need to take those bastards out after Iran. Anyway, we got on the trail by 11 or so and headed up the trail with Dad leading the way. His trail name is Pennsylvania Mongoose. That’s been his CB handle since forever so we’ll take that until we give him one. We had a short incline and then a really rocky flat. The elevations are not really changing at all but the rocky grounds are making it tough to go at any good speed. Dad’s on his first day too so we’re taking it easy. We got in to the Mohican Outdoor Center and got some sandwiches from Dave at the center and then I played some instruments. They had a piano and a guitar and bongos so we all fooled around after we set up our tents and we hung out with Sara from Hungary. Sleep was wonderful. The skies threatened hail and thunderstorms but it never came to pass.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Damascus to Philly

We got a ride back to Philly from Gregg AKA "Blue Blaze" and we regrouped, got our equipment fixed and exchanged. I had already blown out a pair of Vasque boots in just one month and REI did a wonderful thing by replacing them. Gregory Mountain Products' customer service also gets the Oscar nod for prompt replacement of a broken hip strap on my pack which I love. We're going back out on the trail in a few hours, resuming at the Delaware Water gap on the border of PA and NJ. Our Dad will be joining us for a few weeks on the trail so we'll have to get you some pics of that and some updates. I am exhausted right now, I met a few cool peeps tonight while we were having our second going away party and I'm really itchin' to get back on that trail. I'll be right here, on the trail, hope you are having a great summer.

David AKA “Mr. F'n Gentle Spirit”
Website
http://www.wbafinc.org
Photos:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Videos:
http://www.youtube.com/WBAF1

Damascus in Record Time

Going through Damascus Gate


Iron Mountain shelter to Damascus Hiker Inn 25 miles

It rained last night. I didn’t sleep steadily and I was up all morning. Normally I sleep until the birds start waking me up but I was uncomfortable all night. We made the decision to skip ahead to New Jersey yesterday and we weren’t sure how we were going to get up there but this morning Doug got a text from our old pal “Blue Blaze” who said he’d meet us anywhere, anytime; so, we told him tomorrow, 9AM and that meant we had to do a 25 miler to get in to Damascus today. We looked at the map and the terrain didn’t look too tough. We shouldn’t have too much trouble getting in. Along the way, we met two girls named “Truckstop” and “Ashwaghanda” (chosen because it’s some weird tea or plant or something that helps her fall asleep). We paused at the last shelter before Damascus and BS’ed with the girls and some Boys Scouts training for Philmont next year. We ate a bunch of our remaining food to lighten our packs more than from hunger since we weren’t going to have to stay that extra day in the woods.

We hoofed it in to town and got in around 5:45 PM. We FLEW! It was like a 3.5 MPH pace over the whole day. We were very proud of ourselves. When we crossed the Virginia Border, we ran into the two girls again and we took some pictures. There was a little archway in Damascus where they hold the “Trail Days” festival and we walked along the trail, following the blazes through town.

In town we looked at a few of the hostels and settled on the Hiker Inn. After showers, changes and shaves, we headed out to Dot’s for a burger or two and all she had playing on the TV was the “Stars In Black” movie channel. I thought that was a little weird. I was surprised it wasn’t NASCAR, that’s for sure. We had our customary in-town stipend of greasy food and stopped over at this place where they were sitting outside playing guitars and singin’ tunes.

We joined in a little and I brought out my harmonica and backpacker guitar. Finally, we came back and decided against Monopoly. I blogged and Cyclone decided to go out to the store. He couldn’t sleep because we had the lights on and were talking and stuff. It’s so strange how attitude plays such a big part in your fatigue level. Here we just pulled a 25 mile day and we couldn’t go to sleep with the anticipation of traveling back to Philly tomorrow. I have this crazy looking burn or something on my leg and I’m trying not to pick at it. I can’t figure out whether I got it from a bug or a plant but it’s this narrow bubble about two inches long and it’s all yellow and juicy underneath. I’m waiting ‘til I get back home so I can ask my stepmother what it is, she’s an RN and so I’m sure she’ll know what to do with it. I’ll get some sleep soon and “Blue Blaze” will be here in the morning. We’ve decided to give him the trail name “Blue Blaze” because blue blazed trails are side-trails; usually to water or a shortcut to town or something. Since he’s always taking us somewhere or helping us get to and from the trail, we’re naming him after the Blue Blazes of the Appalachian Trail. He’ll be here at 9 AM. We’ll go to breakfast, the post office and drive the 8 hours home to Philly where we will prepare to go back on the trail with our Father, restarting in New Jersey at the Delaware Water Gap, a place where we’ve all hiked together many times before. It seems like we’ve come soooo Far and yet, we still have sooooo far left to go.

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Changing Plans: Going to New York

Butterfly on Poison Hemlock


Watauga lake Shelter to Iron Mountain Shelter 14 Miles

One thing I’ve noticed out here is that people keep saying, “The next section is pretty easy, you’ve gotten over the hard part,” and they are always LYING BASTARDS!

We woke up late and in the morning everyone left us. Rolex got up earliest and left without me and Cyclone. We took off last and crossed the Watauga Dam. Two huge brown Eagles were on the dam and unfortunately they took off before we could get good pictures of them. It was a tough day and Cyclone and I had a lot of discussion about what we are going to do about our schedule. If we are going to get off the trail by August 24th, we are not going to make Maine, it’s just not possible. I want to skip ahead to New York and at least finish out to Maine but Rolex doesn’t want to do that. Cyclone seems cool with the idea but I just found out he has to get off the trail the first week in July. I wasn’t aware of this; I thought we were all clear to go all the way to August 24th.

When we got to the shelter we had decided we would talk to Rolex and try to convince him to skip ahead. This way we can start again next year at Damascus VA during what they call “Trail Days” which is a festival for Thru Hikers in the second week of May. That way if we decided to finish the trail next year, we can start then at Damascus and just finish up through PA. After talking to Rolex we discovered he’s planning on leaving the trail when Doug does so I guess I’ll be the only one on the trail. I’m not sure how I feel about that. That’s not true; I’m sure how it makes me feel, it pisses me off. I’m cool with hiking the trail alone; but I wasn’t planning on it, and I have trepidations about the situation. I really don’t have a problem with hiking alone, we’ve been having such a hard time getting along I would prefer it at this point. I’m planning on making it to Katahdin before I have to be back in San Diego in September. I’m not sure how it will affect the film but whatever happens is part of the story.

We met some folks at the shelter here tonight and they are marveling over the computer and we are showing them some of the videos that we’ve taken. Four are from Miami, their trail names are Sunshine Bee (who spotted a mossy gorilla at Laurel Fork Falls); Piecemeal (67) (It’s taken him 7 years to get from Springer to here); Burninator (who burns things); Sweat Heifer (who shot one of her ex-husbands) and a large group of young fellows from Greensboro who roasted tortillas over a custom Spit and Grille thing made out of wood.. Right now they are throwing knives. I may go over later and give them some lessons. For now, I’m going to post blogs since we have a good internet connection from this shelter out here in the middle of nowhere.

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Night Hiking to the Lake

Turtle Crossing in the Dark

The Castle to Vanderventer Shelter 15 Miles

We get up and argue about what to do for breakfast; eventually deciding upon the walk down to McDonald’s. It’s already burning hot at 8AM. At some point we decide to chill out and brave the heat by lying on the porch for a few hours. We’re contemplating a night hike instead of getting murdered in today’s humid heat. We have extra miles to do because of the way we side-hiked to get into town yesterday. The consensus is to head out of town before dark so we can follow the blue blazes back to the AT. It will be too hard to see the difference between blue and white blazes in the dark; so we need to get that first section done before the sun goes down.

We cook dinner in the little kitchen at the Castle before we head out on to the road in the late afternoon. I opted for Pepperoni and Tortillas for my breakfasts and my pack feels heaver than I remember it. The boys are antsy. The longer we sit around, the worse it gets. It feels strange not to be leaving when we have nothing to do.

Eventually we get on the road and hike out of town on the shoulder of Route 321. This will be our first, real night hike and we’re thick with anticipation and trepidation. I can already feel us ready to snap; we don’t know what to expect. We leave the road to take the side trail knowing that we have a painful six miles to go, straight up and straight back down, before we cross this same road again only a mile away from where we are now. It is tempting to just walk a mile up the road and skip the rough section, especially when we want to make up time. There was some discussion about it a few times in the past 24 hours and I can feel them thinking hard behind me as I pull right on to the blue blaze trail. I just couldn’t skip a section. I’m looking out for my future well-being.

Once we get back to the main trail, the first climb is straight up and with each step; I can’t help but think of how pointless this section is. I have to keep reminding myself that I would have tortured myself forever if we had skipped this section. Night hiking is tougher than I thought. I don’t have the best headlamp for it and the shadows cast by my two brothers’ headlamps behind me are confusing. Several times we scare up something in the brush beside us and it scares the living hell out of us. It’s probably just a small deer or a raccoon but it sounds like a herd of elephants as it tramples up the hill just outside of our light radius. I feel like the little kid in “Where The Wild Things Are” with inconceivable monsters lurking, only their eyes visible, just outside of lamp shine. As the sky gets completely dark, it’s difficult to navigate and the Mosquitoes are relentless razors of distraction.

We get to the road and cross over into a park at Watauga Lake. It’s a huge lake and the shelter we’re trying for is about ten miles away on the other side of it. We’re not having a good time in the dark. We lose the trail in the open park and can’t figure out which way to go. After a frustrating hour of searching and map referencing, we find it. The stars are bright and it’s beautiful looking over the lake at night. The moon isn’t full yet but it gives us some light while we are in the open. We re-enter the woods and trudge thorough a swampy section that slows us down tremendously.

I thought I would love hiking in the dark but it really sucks. It’s tough to find your footing and although it’s great not to have to hike in the heat, you’re still sweating from all the exertion and frustration of keeping on the trail and trying to make sure you don’t miss the blazes. We’re in a park so there are side trails all over the place. We’ve come up with a system of yelling out “Blaze” whenever we see one so that we don’t miss them but it’s frustrating and confusing and I’d give anything for God to just turn on the lights.

Sometime just before midnight we come across a bright sign that indicates the side trail to a shelter. The shelter we want is still another six or seven miles away. We had expected to go much further tonight; but, noone complains when I take the turn and head for the shelter. We’re all in silent compliance. Cubit and HaHa, who had left out earlier from the castle were there; we woke them up. We needed to talk to humans and shake off the night terrors. I set up my hammock in the dark and sought solace from the flying razors. Night Hiking sucks, and that’s all I have to say about that!

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

The Castle

Jones Falls the day before


Moreland Gap Shelter to Hampton TN 10 Miles

Dawn came, and with it birds of a cacophonous chirping nature. I’ve been listening to the chirps of the birds and figuring I could write lots of songs by stealing their tunes. Some of these birds come up with some crazy intervals. I can’t stay asleep once they start; my brain is trying to figure out the tune and then they unexpectedly change it. I thought birds didn’t change their tunes? I stayed up late reading “Catch 22.” This book keeps getting stranger; but I like it. I ate my customary breakfast bar; more like forced it down, and then packed up as everyone roused and got ready. We only had 6 miles to go to the Kincora hostel where we are planning on stopping today. There should be a shuttle there to take us in to town to resupply. The forecast predicts a 70% chance of rain in the afternoon so we figured we had plenty of time to get to the hostel. Dad has been sending us texts from the National Weather Service to help us plan our days.

When we got to the hostel some guy was handing out cheeseburgers and they were GOOD! We didn’t dig the accommodations so we split. It was only a few more miles up to a road where we could just walk in to town. We hiked the 3 miles to a side trail that took us to Route 321 and then we hiked a couple of miles in to town and another hostel called Braemer Castle. It’s a huge house and there are so many rooms here, you can see why they call it a “castle.” It reminds me of the house I grew up in but bigger. We walked a mile or two to McDonalds to eat, Dollar General to re-supply, Meme’s Café to do laundry and get some caffeinated beverages then eventually went to dinner at Hillbilly Bob’s Barbecue and Catfish. We heard the Baked Potato With Everything was amazing but of course they were out of those by the time we got there; DAMN! Every bastard in this state has thousands of potatoes growing in their backyard and this place is out of them? We had some BBQ and then I went over to the local bar to check out the home-grown entertainment.

The band was cool: two guys on guitar and bass with a drum machine. They did that Wagon Wheel song from Old Crow Medicine Show. I wasn’t expecting that; Rolex has been playing that song nearly every night that we break out the guitar. The bar was interesting, I met a relocatee named Angela and we talked about the practice of starting businesses and the nuances of a Philly Cheesesteak. Cubit, HaHa, Cyclone and Rolex were back at the Castle, so I came back to post blogs and read my book.

I’m tired, and my legs are still doing this crazy thing where they seize up when I’m walking. I look like some kind of invalid walking down the street. When I left the bar to walk home my legs weren’t working right and I’m sure I looked really drunk, hobbling down the street like some moonshined, old bastard. I’m surprised the local sheriff didn’t swing by with a “Hey Boy! Where you goin’ to tonight?” I got back to the hostel and I’ve been loading up my blogs from this past week. Hopefully we’ll be in Damascus, Virginia in a few days. We just passed 400 Miles!

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Mister F. Gentle Spirit

Mountain Harbor Breakfast!


Mountain Harbor B&B to Moreland Gap Shelter 18 Miles

Got up and had an awesome breakfast. The house at the B&B was beautiful and the food was incredible! Terry and Mary cooked the most delicious food. I watched some news on this huge TV while I sipped my coffee and we were surrounded by amazing people in an amazing place. It was painful to leave but we had to. We got out on the road and up the hill a thousand feet. It was rough going.

Along the way we passed a cemetery and some people were hangin’ out, paying their respects and they gave us a “hey!” as we walked by. It was kind of weird just rolling by a cemetery like that in the middle of the mountains. It was a good sized one too, just sitting right there in the middle of nowhere. We passed a road with some horse and buggies. Someone had told HaHa about a cool waterfall named “Jones Falls” and when we saw the sign we took the side trail. It was awesome! We climbed up the falls and Mike slid down, hurting himself, but not too bad. He got a nice sized gash just above his right ass cheek. They decided to find an alternate way up. I stood under the frigid rain of the falls and we got some footage of that. The footing was very treacherous under the falls and I eventually came down before I hurt myself too.

Refreshed, we moved on and the trail got really boring. Cyclone and Rolex took off as usual and I kind of hung back with Haha for a while. The trail was so boring after the excitement of the falls. I eventually got to Laurel Fork and there was a strong, cool stream. The book said it was contaminated; but, I jumped in anyway and rinsed off my aching feet. I needed something to break the monotony of the last section. If the stream wasn’t contaminated before, it sure is now! My feet were putrid! The next climb up to the shelter was long and just kept going and going and going. Finally I got in to the shelter and besides my brothers; there were some people already here. A young girl and her father (can’t remember their names) with their dog, “Maddie” were there along with two other women. I can’t remember any of their names; I have to take better notes… Haha rolled in later and tented up but we didn’t really hear from him tonight, he just kind of disappeared.

There was cell service here so I logged in with the computer and decided to check my bank accounts. Yesterday I had tried to get some money out and it was telling me I had no money. I checked the account and it was horrible! I’m way overdrawn and there are a ton of bounced check fees! I started to look at the charges and got really pissed. I called Jeff to find out what happened and the situation isn’t looking good. As if I need more stuff to worry about, there are hundreds of dollars in overdraft fees. DAMN! How am I supposed to stay focused on the trail with all of this other crap going on? Tomorrow, we’re going to try to get in to the Kincora Shelter and get a re-supply in Hampton, TN. I’ll have to get on the horn then and figure out what we’re going to do…

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Dehydration into Paradise

Looks easy doesn't it?


Ash Gap Campsite to Mountain Harbor B&B 17 Miles

My brothers left out of the camp early. They knew it would be a long day. We had a thousand-foot climb in a short distance up Roan Mountain and I had heard it was going to be rough. It wasn’t that bad; but while I was running down the hill from Roan Mountain to Carver Gap, my GPS fell off. We had taken a break at the Carver Gap Sign and that’s when I noticed my GPS was missing from it’s clip on my shoulder strap. I hiked all the way back up Roan Mountain looking for it because I had remembered glancing at it just as I passed the turn off for the Roan Mountain Shelter. I scoured the trailsides and never found the bastard. It seems sadly ironic to lose a GPS. This is the second one in as many months. I am so PISSED at myself! Now we aren’t going to be able to track our progress unless I can find a way to buy another GPS. We don’t have the funds to be able to do that right now so I guess we won’t be GPS logging anymore. It really hurt to lose that thing. I’m pretty upset we can’t track our trip on the website anymore. Oh well, I just gotta forget about it; find Acceptance… UGH! DAMNIT!

Earlier in the week, everyone was talking about how tough Roan Mountain was going to be and although it wasn’t easy, it really wasn’t all that bad. That’s probably because we did it in the morning. I’ll bet most people try to do it at the end of a long day so they can stay in Roan Mountain Shelter. I’m kind of pissed because nobody mentioned “The Humps.” Little Hump Mountain and Hump Mountain NEARLY KILLED ME! Little Hump came first, I was bonking as I climbed the sunny slope and I knew I was getting low on water; then, I saw Hump Mountain and I was just not ready, not worthy. I was bolstered temporarily by the sight of Rolex and Cyclone climbing through the long, waving grasses of Hump Mountain, about a half of a mile ahead of me. I thought they might stop at the top and wait for me.

Hump and Little Hump are both balds, so there is no cover from the sun, no trees anywhere and on this day, lots of sun and wind. The wind kept knocking me off balance and the sun was beating down. It was some of the toughest hiking yet. I bonked near the top of Hump Mountain but kept pushing. As I crested the top, I saw to my horror that my brothers had kept going and were still out of vocal range. Discouraged, I had to collapse for a while. I took off all of my clothes except for my underwear and I just lay there at the top of the grassy peak. Some SoBo came cruising past in the skimpiest shorts I have ever seen a man wear. Through my delirium, I began to get uncomfortable that I was laying there in my underwear and I’m glad he didn’t stop to talk. Maybe he was feeling the same way about some guy lying spread-eagle with unfocused eyes, in his sweat-soaked undies.

I managed to get back up and continue on. Shortly thereafter, I completely ran out of water with no water sources for six miles. I tried everything, I blew into the Camelbak to try and get a few drops more. I didn’t have the SteriPen, so I couldn’t purify any ground water even if I had found a good source. It was looking bad. I knew that Cyclone and Rolex were getting further and further ahead of me and I had no way to communicate with them that I needed water. I was having visions of dying of thirst and passing out and rolling down some cliff to my final resting place.

In my daze, I missed a turn and went about a mile in the wrong direction down a steep trail. Finally realizing my mistake as there weren’t any blazes, I balked at having to climb back up the hill I had just come down. My throat was sandpaper and my stomach was quivering from exhaustion. I found where I had missed the turn and in retrospect it seemed so obvious. I was angry at myself for making such a stupid mistake at such a critical time.

I kept trudging along. I wanted to kill my brothers for not waiting. As I finally got down to the end of my endurance, there was a stream alongside the trail. It didn’t look very clean and I almost tripped over an unfamiliar nalgene bottle (it was Levi’s Bottle that Cyclone had found earlier) in the middle of the trail with a note on it. It was from my brothers and it was full of clean water that Cyclone and Rolex had left for me since they had the purification equipment. I gulped the whole liter of water down in about three seconds and then I almost threw it back up. The note said that they were going in to the hostel and I dragged my sorry, dehydrated ass down to the road. I wasn’t sure where to find the Mountain Harbor Bed & Breakfast and Hostel. I took a guess and went left down the road. It was there, about a half mile down the road and it was wonderful! I collapsed on the grass next to Rolex and he informed me I had to jump up and get a shower if I was going to make the shuttle for dinner.

There were a few other hikers there: “Never the Same”, “Always Changing” and “Haha” had come in with Cyclone and Rolex. I met Tyler, a young boy who is living there with his Aunt and Uncle who own the place. They took us to some restaurant for dinner and then we came back to the barn, played some guitar, had a meeting, pet the horses and I set up my hammock nearby. It’s a really cool place and I hear the breakfast is amazing. I can’t wait. I really needed that meeting too. We talked about page 86. I didn’t realize how much I had needed that! Life is good again!

My trail name has changed as well. It turns out there is already a Jukebox on the trail. Someone flamed me in an email that I have been confusing people by posting as Jukebox on Trailjournals.com so I mentioned that I would have to change my trail name. Later, I was discussing my negative demeanor toward my brothers on the trail and I said something like, “If I wasn’t in so much pain all the time, I’d be Mister F***ing Gentle Spirit!” Always Changing said, “that’s your new trail name, Mr. F***ing Gentle Spirit.” I think it’s going to stick. It describes me pretty well.

David AKA "Mister F. Gentle Spirit"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Roan Mountain Ramblin'

Cyclone overlooking the Fields


Fire road Campsite to Ash Gap Campsite 18 Miles

I stayed in the hammock and let the fellas leave early this morning, I’m sick of being rushed so I just suggested they take off without me. I have enough water so I’ll just meet them way up the road. We had a cool camp last night despite the imminent threat of thunderstorms and crazy winds and lightning, I lit a fire. It turned out to be a good idea. We had a nice fire.

Water sources haven’t been very good and I haven’t been able to wash the mud off of my legs. I hate sleeping in my bag with dirty legs. My feet have a wet dog smell after a while and I don’t like transferring it to my sleeping bag along with the dried dirt crumbs and possible varmints living in them. I got out of camp about 45 minutes after Cyclone and Rolex. I am starting to really like hiking alone. You wouldn’t believe the things that go through my mind as I hike, especially when I’m in pain. I have been writing a novel in my head as we walk. I also go through all of these fantastic scenarios.

We got in to Ash Gap campsite and the water was way down the hill and hard to fill up. We only stopped here so we wouldn’t have to hike all the way up Roan Mountain on a 23 Mile day. They say that it’s beautiful to stay at the top of Roan Mountain but I was chafing so badly when I got in to the campsite that I just couldn’t go anymore. The space between my leg and scrotum looks just like seared ahi. I know that sounds disgusting but it’s true. I’m not exactly bleeding but the skin is bright read and rubbed off. There’s a kind of foam of dead skin collected down there and not only does it smell awful but it looks really dangerous bacterially. I asked Cyclone if we had any Neosporin and he threw me the tube. I’m really worried it might get seriously infected since I can’t really clean it. I’m not about to try and wash it. It’s excruciating to touch. I’d hate to have to get off the trail from something as stupid as Jock Rot.

I’m definitely not looking forward to the climb up Roan Mountain tomorrow but as long as I just put one foot in front of the other I eventually get up the hills in time. Continuing up Roan Mountain at the end of this day would have been a bad idea. I went and got some wood and started a fire while my brothers were down trying to get some water from the trickling stream. I’m starting to dig these nightly campfires. I have an idea they scare the bears away. It’s probably not true but I like the idea of it and it helps me get to sleep. We filmed our setup of the tents and I want to do a time lapse thing with it. I’m too tired to continue typing and it’s really uncomfortable sitting on this log. Tomorrow...

David AKA "Jukebox"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Thunder, Lighting and Tripping on the trail

Grandma's Room


Uncle Johnny’s Hostel to Fire road Campsite 14 Miles

We left Erwin after breakfast and climbed pretty fast. My swollen legs were giving me trouble and I imagined I was a bloated slug trying to climb the trail. It felt like slow going but then I looked at the GPS and it said my average was over 3 miles an hour and that was mostly up hill. Cyclone and Rolex took off up the hills as usual and I ended up playing catch-up.

I got in to the Curley Maple Gap Shelter about 2PM and Cyclone and Rolex were sitting there waiting for me. It turns out, I got in just in time because about five minutes after I dropped my pack, the thunder started thunderin’ and the lightning started a-flashin’ and shortly thereafter, the rain and the hail and the cats and the dogs were all fallin’ all over the place. Cyclone prognosticated the thunder with a comment like, “Is that thunder?” just as it went BOOM! And Rolex laughed uncontrollably until the hail started playin’ “This Old Man” on the tin roof. In the plastic bag where the hiker log is, Cubit left me a tube of Icy Hot and I applied some to the backs of my legs. I recommend you don’t do this in the rain. It just kept getting hotter and hotter! It felt good though, my legs have been cramping up or something. It feels like a cramp but also like a strained tendon on the back of my legs. It’s weird though, because it’s intermittent. Lots of rest and thick, juicy steaks seem to help it though. There were some potassium pills in the bag that someone had left behind and I put some of them in with my vitamins. This is a weird coincidence since I’ve never seen potassium pills before and I was just thinking yesterday that lack of Potassium might be part of my leg problem.

The rain eventually let up and we donned some wet weather gear and took off. Within 100 yards all of us had taken off our rain gear while we were walking. Removing your raingear while you are walking with a pack on is an art form that is unfairly overlooked in Modern Civilization. It requires a mélange of skills, combined with the severe consequence of failure; a delicate balance of daring and dexterity where death or disfigurement can come as quickly as it takes to tangle rain pants and Leki pole. This is not an endeavor for the faint of heart or the uncoordinated to be sure. I was having a rough time of it and finally stopped moving so I could stuff my jacket under my pack cover. Rain loomed and threatened all day but held off until we found a place to hole up for the night. It was just a small campsite off the side of the US Forest Service Road that was near a weak water source. We lit a fire and ate. The wind was strong and it rained a little; the fire stayed lit and we slept. Paraphrasing Billy S: “To sleep, perchance to heal…”

David AKA "Jukebox"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Uncle Johnny's Hostel 4

Barbarossa Gongs at the All You Can Eat Chinese place

Monday, June 9, 2008
Uncle Johnny's Hostel 4

We got up and my feet are even more swollen. I can't figure it out. We went out to get Cyclone's tooth fixed at the dentist and I was definitely glad for another day's reprieve. I have to keep elevating my feet. I can't figure out why they are still swelling. I guess I'll just pack them in my boots tomorrow and start walking, we don’t have time to keep sitting at Uncle Johnny’s; not to mention, it’s costing us a ton of money to keep staying here. We keep going out to the buffets and Pizza Hut to eat. It costs a hell of a lot more to eat at places like that than it does to eat our trail provisions. It only costs us about $80 for four days of food for the three of us. We’ll have to stay on the trail just to stretch our budget out enough for us to survive financially! I hate being so budget-conscious but we really didn’t factor in the amount of money it was going to cost us to be out here. The websites say you can do it for about a dollar a mile but they must be talking about the people who never go off trail. It’s more like 2 or 3 dollars a mile. I thought we’d be getting more donations and that my company would be booking more gigs while I was away; but, Midnight Productions hasn’t been getting any future bookings and the donations have been slow. Staying at hostels and eating in cafes has been disastrous on our budget.

Around noon, we watched a wicked storm come up out of nowhere. We were riding the bikes when the wind came up and the sky got crazy dark. Lightning was blowin' up everywhere; it was sweet! We holed up in the Huddle House until the storm blew through and then all these cop cars started flyin' past. Later we learned that a church’s steeple got struck by lightning and there was a big accident on the interstate at the same time. Hell, I'll bet the newspaper will be twice as thick as normal tomorrow! Rolex rolled home on the bike while Cyclone and I went o go see the Kung-Fu Panda movie.

We got back to the hostel and read I “Catch 22”, elevated my feet, took vitamins and passed out. I think we're finally leaving Uncle Johnny's tomorrow. This “Catch 22” book is probably not the right book to be reading on the trail. You really have to concentrate on what’s going on because things don’t happen in chronological order. I like the book tremendously; but, it sure isn’t a casual read. I can identify with a lot of what is going on because of my time in the Marines. There is a lot of truth to the way it is written even though some of it is completely ridiculous. I’m sure it’s going to affect my dreams in ways I can’t even begin to imagine… I hope it helps with the swelling.

David AKA "Jukebox"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Uncle Johnny's Hostel 3

Ride To Dinner

Uncle Johnny's Hostel 3

I got up and my legs are killing me! Normally I feel stiff in the morning, but it goes away after I walk around for a little bit. Not today! I think it's been all of the bicycling on single-gear mountain bikes, stuck in either the highest gear or the lowest gear; or, slipping between two inappropriate gears every three or four strokes. If I ever get a chance to come back here, I’m bringing a bunch of tools and fixing all of his bikes! The backs of my legs are seizing up for no apparent reason and my ankles have turned into "cankles" which, for those of you who don't know, are the combination of a Calf and an Ankle. My ankles are very swollen and I generally feel like blah. I really didn’t feel like hiking out and I was getting worried when salvation came! Cyclone's tooth cracked and part of his filling came out! It looks like we need a dentist, so he's going to call one in Erwin tomorrow. I couldn't be more relieved that Cyclone's tooth was falling out.

I had picked up a copy of "Catch 22" from the library yesterday for 25 cents and I planned to read it but then Rolex finished his copy of "No Country For Old Men" so I sat around all day and read that book. I saw the movie when it came out and I’d have to say the book was better; especially how they explain that Moss is dead, oh sorry, I guess I just ruined it for ya :(). When I saw the movie I was wondering how it would go for the sequel but after reading the book, it’s pretty clear what's going to happen. Rolex has been reading this book for a while and he keeps asking me all these questions since I saw the move but I can’t remember all the details and it was getting annoying so now I read it and he’s not asking me any more questions.

I finished the book in one day and then started on Joseph Heller's "Catch 22." I've been meaning to read this book for a long, long time. I think I started it once but never finished it. If we keep staying at Uncle Johnny's I should be done by tomorrow. I took a bunch of Ibuprofen (Vitamin "I"), hoping to bring the swelling down and hopefully I'll get some sleep, I need to elevate my feet tonight to try to reduce some of the swelling. My ankles look like balloons. Sometime during the day just about everyone we know came in: Cubit, HaHa, Daniel (who may have just gotten the trail name Rasputin)and his sister Brittany, 3 others whose names escape me right now, the NC crew, and we met Hercules.

We moved into one of the cabins instead of the bunkhouse and it’s nice. It’s the place that Johnny’s Mom stays in when she’s here. It was comfortable and I’ll be bale to prop up my feet. Tomorrow, Cyclone should be getting his tooth fixed at the local dentist and then the next day we should be back on the trail. We’re losing a lot of ground by staying here so long but it’s probably a good thing for my legs as well. I can’t explain the pain that seizes up my legs at totally unpredictable times. I’ll be walking just fine and then all of a sudden BAM! They get like a cramp and it feels like my tendons are getting pulled behind my knee. Then, as soon as it hits, it’s gone and I’m limping gingerly, wondering if it will strike again. I wish I knew what was wrong. I’m thinking it’s a potassium deficiency or something like that. I looked it up on the Internet but I can’t find anything definitive; although, I have seen a bunch of other people’s complaints about the same condition. Maybe it will be gone in the morning…

David Patrone AKA "Jukebox"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Uncle Johnny's Hostel 2

Uncle Johnny's Porch

Uncle Johnny's Hostel 2

We had decided to take a "Zero day" on our way down the mountain but we ended up working harder on our zero day than we do hiking. We had to re-supply, we had to take a bunch of stuff back to the post office and of course we had to eat lunch. Seemingly normal tasks you might say; except, all we had were bicycles and town was none too close. We got some great footage of the landscape while riding and thankfully it was pretty flat all the way into town.

It was damn hot though; and as we got into town, the freight train almost messed everything up. They have a freight train that goes right through the middle of town here, and when I say Freight Train, I mean one of those two-mile long deals that has to back up every so often; which, usually happens when you're stuck on the wrong side of it, staring at the blinking red lights and you were on your way to a wedding or to pay your taxes (at 11:58 the night of April 15) or you ate some questionable Mexican dish at the lunch buffet at the Best Western and needed to get back RIGHT NOW MOTHER#$$%$!! Well, we had a bunch of stuff to mail back and the post office is on the other side of the railroad tracks. Cyclone and I came cruising up after the clackers had gone down and although the train was close, it was moving slowly; so we ran the clackers and rolled up on the Post Office. It was 11:30 or so and the post office would close at noon. Rolex was takin’ his sweet-ass time and he got caught since he was way behind us on a bike with only one gear (and the wrong "one gear" to have at that). What we didn't know was that he hadn't put his stuff to be mailed in Cyclone's Backpack. We figured it was OK, he could just sit there and wait, since he was being a slowpoke anyway. Then we got the call on our cell phone that he had stuff to mail out. DAMN! We got lucky though, he managed to get across the tracks at about 11:58 and came slidin' in sideways to the post office and we mailed out his stuff.

We took another loooong bike ride up to the supermarket, packed five days worth of food for three men in one school size backpack and hit every soft-serve ice cream shop on the way home! That's what 98 degree days are for!

Back at the ranch, we hung out and played guitar, read some books, ate some food and watched the guys get drunk again. More people we knew had rolled in and were staying at the Hostel so it was a fun time with old and new friends. Uncle Johnny is pretty cool, he has a ton of stories, as you might imagine a guy who has run a hostel like this for many years might have. I’m going to get in to bed and relax, my legs hurt and my ankles are swelling a little. They should be fine in the morning. I don’t think I’m going to feel like heading out tomorrow but we have to keep moving.

David AKA "Jukebox"


Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Uncle Johnny's Hostel

Road Calisthenics


Spivey Gap to Erwin TN (Uncle Johnny’s Hostel) 13 miles

As usual on a “getting into town day” I got up early; actually, Barbarossa bellowed out a wake up call at 6:15 to let us know we were over-sleeping. Nothing had tripped the raisin-baited deadfall in the night. The rock wasn’t heavy enough to really get anything but I didn’t tell Rolex that, well, maybe a mouse or something, but nothing bigger. I was hoping it would have at least been tripped; but alas, nada.

We got out and I really needed to use a privy. I did some pack calisthenics in the middle of the first road we crossed and Cyclone took some snapshots. I think they won’t be very flattering but what the hell, you can’t always look good right? We had a shelter coming up so I figured I’d have a place to drop my drawers; but of course, no Privy to be found. I got a little peeved at my brothers there and told them to go ahead, I’d catch up. I eventually caught up but the need for bathroom was becoming a major urge. I blasted past them to try and run down the trail in sufficient time so as to make a bathroom at the bottom but it was not to be. I had to do what the bears do and it was a close call to be sure. The hill into town was long and steep and there’s not much of a selection of defecation sites when you’re on a sleep slope. I didn’t want to go bushwacking up or down in this terrain. The foliage was thick and I was getting frustrated; not to mention the pain in my gut was mounting. The only sort of level part anywhere around is the actual trail and you can’t do it there; plus, it was Friday and there were a day hikers occasionally coming up the trail. I wasn’t about to be squatting just off trail when a couple of Girl Scouts came up (even if the thought of some Thin Mints was enticing) so I was going to have to get off trail some where. I’ll spare you the details except to say that it was rough. I found a spot that went off toward a cliff that overlooked the river about a thousand feet below. As soon as I got into place, Black ants were trying to eviscerate me and flies were not only precognizant but telepathic as well. I heard my brothers pass close by as I hadn’t realized how close the trail came to the site of my struggle. Soon I finished my business and got back on the trail a little lighter, hoping to catch them again.

I caught them as they were talking to a woman who was coming up the trail with her dog. We seem to be in better spirits today and we finally made it down together; although, I know the guys were confused when I came up from behind them after passing them earlier but I’m sure they got the picture quick. We got in to Uncle Johnny’s around 1PM and the hostel was right on the trial. He has his own outfitter and a cool porch that we hung out at until we got our accommodations. It has been really hot around here lately and refreshments were in order. We checked in, did laundry, got some bicycles and headed to the post office to get our brand new sunglasses from Native Eyewear http://www.nativeyewear.com (as well as a tent and some other things). We ate and went to the movies and saw both Zohan and Indiana Jones. We rode bikes back to the hostel in the dark with lightning about five miles out. It was a warm summer night and life was good. We stayed up telling stories and talking to the people we knew who had come in while we were in town. I played guitar while a bunch of people got drunk on the picnic tables. I don’t know how these guys can get drunk and then hike the next day. I couldn’t imagine trying to do these hills hung over. Oh well, I don’t ever have to worry about that again…

David AKA “Jukebox”

Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Keeping it together til town

Levi flying a kite while JB and Rolex look on

Hog Back Ridge Shelter to Spivey Gap campground 17 miles

I managed to get through another night without my hammock tent falling apart. Getting up this morning, I can feel the vibes from Cyclone and I think we're wearing each other thin. We took off this morning a little later than usual but we're trying to get to Spivey Gap so that we don’t have far the next day to get into Uncle Johnny's Hostel where we’ve decided to stay. We met “Rain Check” and “Wild Hair” last night and some other cat named “Lone Wolf;” only, Wild Hair was saying there's already a Lone Wolf who's been hiking the trail for a long time so I could feel the tension rising. Nothing came of it, “Lone Wolf “ seems like he might be one of those “Hiking Homeless” guys anyway.

After more breakfast bars, we started cruising along. From looking at the elevation profiles on the map, we knew we were going to have a few nice little climbs. There's been this bad vibe between me and Cyclone and it's starting to rub off on Rolex too. He really bugs me when he starts talking about time. It makes me feel like I'm going too slowly and it pisses me off. The fact that this bothers me is not what really bothers me. The fact that he knows this bothers me and still says it all the time is what really sets me off. I should try to stop talking about our spats on the blogs. Nobody benefits from it.

We stopped for a moment at one of the shelters before Spivey Gap and Cyclone commented on the time which led Rolex to say something about, “isn’t it nice to have gone 10 miles and it’s only noon?” or something like that. I got so pissed I told them to split. I don't even want to hike with them anymore. Cyclone says something that leads Rolex to say something and then I want to knock both of them out; however, I know if I got physical with either one of them, they'd both just go home. I think Cyclone's already half a step from leaving the trail anyway. His knees are in a lot of pain and his tooth is becoming a problem. All it would take is one thing to go wrong like me punching someone. I could be wrong; but, that's my impression right now. At some points in the day, I could care less whether they stay or get off. I'm going to go as far as I can on this trip and I may even stay on the trail after we reach our original time limit to try and finish if we don't make it.

On one of the balds I caught them again. They were watching Levi, who we’ve been running into since Fontana Dam, pull something out of his pack. He had a kite. It seems he’s been flying a kite on every bald he summits. It was cool watching him fly it. I filmed him as he crashed it into the ground once; but soon he was flying it in grand style, spinning and diving it like a pro. We were brothers again for a minute as we watched him play. We all like Levi, he’s a funny guy who wears a kilt when he hikes. I am thinking I would like to get a kilt too, I’ve been hiking in only my underwear for chafing reasons and I think a kilt would solve that. Not to mention, I wouldn’t have to worry about offending the Girl Scouts we pass on weekends.

We made the descent into Spivey Gap where we found a suitable campsite after the usual intellectualizing about location in the site selection process. We could argue about ANYTHING, I swear. I didn’t want to camp at the main campsites because they were very close to a stream and I thought that the Mosquitoes would eat us alive as soon as the sun went down. We moved uphill to another campsite but it was clear that they were just placating my “unjustified” concern. It felt to me like they thought I was just trying to be difficult.

We pitched the tents, I started a fire and Cyclone cooked. One of our recent trail buddies, Kevin (whom I like to call "Barbarossa" even though he hasn’t taken a shine to it) came rolling in while we were cooking and setting up. He decided to stay there with us. I showed Rolex how to make a figure 4 dead fall with sticks and some fishing line and it was pretty cool. We left it set up with some peanut butter to see if we might catch a mouse or something. We’re all edgy; one more anxious day until we get into a town and we can chill.

We've decided to take a "zero day" in Erwin so we can see Indiana Jones. The hammock is still holding up with my lashing but I asked my pops to send out one of the other ones. I'll pick it up in town tomorrow afternoon and mail the other one back. The fire was nice, we played some guitar and sang and made it to bed early. We want to get out early so we can get to town at a reasonable hour. Cyclone has a conference call to make by 2PM

David AKA "Jukebox"

Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com

Wait, no Weight...

Jerry’s Cabin to Hog Back Shelter GPS: 16 miles

The knot I tied in the ridgeline held up last night; but I’m really worried it won’t work and I’ll have to sleep in shelters with no pad or worse, have to sleep in the tent on the ground or something. I have an extra one at home so I’m going to ask dad to mail it to me when we get into the next town.

I dropped the bear bags and got out my breakfast: more breakfast bars; yuck! Cocoa Puffs and Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I got them because I thought I would like the sweetness and they have real milk in them; but I’m so sick of these things. We got off to another slow start; Brotherproof Crew didn’t get out of there until 10AM. We only had 13.9 miles to do today though. We’re trying to make it to Ewing TN by Friday afternoon. We really want to see Indiana Jones haha! We also need to re-supply by then. We’ve been carrying a lot of food and I can feel every ounce of it. I’ve been hiking in the back lately. The first couple of weeks I went out front but I think Cyclone was getting pissed at me and he wanted to hike faster up the hills than I did; so he started taking the lead. I like to take my time doing a hill and work up to a steady speed. He likes to charge the hills. I’m carrying too much weight for that. When we came out of Hot Springs I weighed myself with my pack and together I’m at 247 pounds. I have to drag all that weight up every hill and I just can’t charge up. Although our packs weight similar weights, he’s a lot lighter than I am. His is pack is a little lighter than mine but he’s only about 200lbs “on the hoof.” Rolex is in great shape and never complains when he’s hurting. He could do 30 mile days I think, if his head was in it; but, it’s not. We both go too slow for him I think. That’s why we call him Rolex.

We took a break at Flint Mountain Shelter and I was dying to hit the privy. A Marine came up and we talked a bit. “Superman” has been on the trail two weeks and he’s come 300 miles. He’s cruising faster than anyone I’ve seen yet. He was an enlisted Marine and he just got his commission. He’ll probably make it to the finish before he has to be at his next duty station. Semper Fi baby! I sure couldn’t keep up with him; although, he is carrying a 25 pound pack. Sometimes I wish I didn’t have this camera or guitar or all the other junk; but, it’s worth it to be able to document it and of course to be able to play tunes out here.

We took some breaks at some waterfalls and rinsed our faces. The hills were long today and we made it in early and ate twice our daily dinner ration. We’re thinking we’ll probably get in a day early so why carry all the food? Let’s eat it! We met some people, sat around the fire and then, as everyone was going to bed, I pulled out the computer to blog. We’ve got a long one tomorrow and I’m not looking forward to it. As I type, the bugs are trying to eat me alive. I’ll see you guys later. We have some YouTube stuff up so check it out!!

David AKA “Jukebox”

Website:
http://www.brotherproof.com
Blog:
http://brotherproof.blogspot.com
Pictures:
http://www.photobucket.com/brotherproof
Film:
http://www.youtube.com/wbaf1
Myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/brotherproof
David's Website:
http://www.davidpatrone.com