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Southbound on the AT…the right way

July 9, 2021 kaulua26 Appalachian Trail

Everyone knows that a long-distance trail is one-directional, from north to south, right? WRONG! Where and when this concept took root, I can’t say. I also can’t tell you how many times I’ve been informed by well-meaning northbounders (NOBOs) that I was hiking the ‘wrong way’ or ‘backwards’. That’s all fine with me, as I’ve always had a penchant for being different and ‘going against the grain.’ Besides, southbounding the 3 Triple Crown trails has many advantages, namely fewer crowds and less competition for trail town resources. SOBOs also just rock. I didn’t start out going the wrong way on my first 2 trails, the Colorado Trail and Te Araroa. Both have some valid reasons for having a ‘more easier’[…]

The Backwards Triple Crown

First, let’s get the “What’s the Triple Crown of Hiking?” question out of the way. Borrowed from the horse racing world, this Triple Crown is an informal recognition of those that have hiked all 3 of the longest American trails end-to-end. The 3 trails are the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), and the Appalachian Trail (AT). According to the American Long Distance Hiking Association’s 2020 records (ALDHA-West), a total of 482 Triple Crown of Hiking Award recipients have so far been recognized. That means more people have been to space than have hiked all 3 of these trails! Chew on that Jeff Bezos! Money can buy just about anything but it takes[…]

My Genesis on the Appalachian Trail

July 6, 2021 kaulua26 Appalachian Trail

The Appalachian Trail. Well, plans are finally in place and I’m about 3 weeks from my start date…which is to say that I’m officially announcing my intent to hike the entire AT! I will begin at the top of Mt Katahdin in Maine, then work my way south to Georgia over the course of about 3-4 months. For those that are maybe not so familiar with the trail, here are a few ‘AT Fun Facts’ derived from the Appalachian Trail Conservancy webpage. The Appalachian Trail (AT) is one of the longest continuously marked footpaths in the world, measuring 2,193.1 miles in length. The AT passes through 14 states along the crests and valleys of the Appalachian mountain range from the[…]

2021 GET Summary and Stats

June 15, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

I thru-hiked the Grand Enchantment Trail, starting outside of Phoenix, Arizona on March 18th, 2021 and finishing atop Sandia Peak, perched above Albuquerque, New Mexico on April 29th, 2021. The route was pretty much what I expected it to be. There were days that involved some of the hardest/crappiest hiking I’d ever done and some days that were fantastic for their scenery and remoteness. This was not a hike for winging-it. There were no signs or markers except for a few old Forest Service blazes here and there. GPS was extremely useful and I would argue, almost essential. Overall I found the navigation well within my abilities…that is to say it was fairly straight forward since I had done my[…]

GET Day 40: The Finish on top the Sandias

June 8, 2021 kaulua26 Continental Divide Trail, Grand Enchantment Trail

Thursday Apr 29th, 2021, 1000-1600I 40/Tijeras to Sandia Peak Tram, Segment 38, mm 75715 miles I stuck this one out to the end and it was finally time to call it that…THE END. The past few weeks had certainly dragged on, first because of Norovirus and then so we could align our plans with good weather and a return ride. Jon, trail angel extraordinaire, was on his way from Phoenix to pick us up but wouldn’t be arriving until late afternoon. We had all day to walk the last 15 miles, which was a good thing since we had stayed up late with Blue and Twerk. We slept in a little, ate a small breakfast at Blue’s, then headed straight[…]

GET Day 39: Killing Time

May 18, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

Wednesday Apr 28th, 2021, 0730-1100Manzanita Mountains to I 40, Tijeras, Segment 37, mm 7427 miles I woke with another migraine, but at least this time I took the right medicine. When my alarm went off, the pain was mostly gone. I also woke to something else, something that had been missing for too long…hunger. First thing I did was eat all my granola. It was a nice morning and we weren’t in a hurry, so I made coffee then tea while eating all the chocolate I had, along with other snacks. We continued down more bike trails but didn’t see anyone else. The day before, we only encountered 2 bikers on the trails. There must have been over 100 miles[…]

GET Day 38: Disjointed Wanderings

May 2, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

Tuesday Apr 27th, 2021, 0600-1900Comanche Pass to Manzanita Mountains, Segment 37, mm 73523.5 miles I woke around 4 am with a pretty severe migraine. They hadn’t been too bad on this hike, so I wasn’t sure what triggered it. Perhaps too few calories and too much exertion. I took some of my medication but when my alarm went off, it felt like the migraine was worse. I realized that I must have taken a benadryl instead of the medicine I needed (both were mixed together in a small bag and oblong in shape, hard to differentiate in the dark). So not only was my head pounding, I felt groggy as well. I didn’t want to move but had no choice.[…]

GET Day 37: Manzano Mountains

May 2, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

Monday Apr 26th, 2021, 0630-1800Rattlesnake Spring to Comanche Pass, Segment 35, mm 690.523.5 miles It was another relatively warm and calm night. I heard some sort of nightjar calling but wasn’t sure what kind. While I was forcing my dinner down the night before, a single mosquito got a bite in before I could even recognize what it was. It was maybe the 4th I’d seen all trip. Flies and gnats were also a non-issue. I guess the struggle to find water all the time came with some benefits. To start the day, we walked some more ATV roads to a graded forest service road, then up 4 miles to a somewhat abused and neglected campground. It had a great[…]

GET Day 36: UFO’s or weather balloons?

April 28, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

Sunday Apr 25th, 2021, 0630-1930Grey Ridge cut to Rattlesnake Spring, Segment 34, mm 66825 miles The wind settled down nicely overnight but once again, my stomach did not. I woke around 1 am feeling the need to puke. I just couldn’t let that happen, so I tried some herbal remedies that helped settle my stomach and put me back to sleep. I still woke with a knot in my stomach and could only manage to choke down a banana for breakfast. I’d had no appetite whatsoever for days and my stomach was visibly distended, even though there was nothing in there. I just felt bloated. I couldn’t imagine how much longer this could last. I should have gotten better by[…]

GET Day 35: Sevilleta

April 28, 2021 kaulua26 Grand Enchantment Trail

Saturday Apr 24th, 2021, 1100-1900Johnson Hill (Socorro) to Grey Ridge cut, Segment 33, mm 64323.5 miles (plus 9 from Thursday’s attempt) I had never been so on the fence about finishing a hike before. I didn’t manage to hold dinner down overnight and the knot in my stomach felt the worst it had when I woke up. I fretted for hours overnight about what to do. I knew TS was ready to walk again, so at least that was settled. Sam was driving to Phoenix on this day, so I could have just gone back with him and given up on the rest of the hike. Or I could hang out for a few more days, meeting TS down the[…]

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