Update 3/28/11

As I'm sure you've heard, Ben is now in Virginia and moving along at a much faster pace than he had originally intended. Ever since the Smokies, he has been hiking with his three companions Three Stoves, Bundy, and Gadget. However, Three Stoves has since had to leave the trail with "digestive problems." Ben didn't specify what these "digestive problems" were, but I'm assuming he acquired said problems from a tainted water source. Also, on the subject of water, Ben's filter has broken and my mom is on her way down to REI to express mail him a new water treatment system tomorrow morning. He's also requested that his old bag, rated at 30 Fº be sent to him as well. To be honest, I kind of question his judgement on this one given that it snowed 2-3" on him today. I'll try to post an update soon.

Made it to Virginia!!!

    We made it to Damascus, Virginia and we are fueling up to get over Mount Rogers tomorrow.  The guys I'm with have been going pretty fast and I've luckily been able to keep up with them.  For the past 8 days we averaged a little over 24 miles per day from Hot Springs to here so its nice to take a break for the day. 
     A little recap of the past weekish, we (3 stoves, Bundy, Gadget, and I) did something really dumb by leaving Hot Springs with a 10 day supplies of food.  All of our packs weighed 50+ pounds which made our days of hiking extremely strenuous.  When we got to a road crossing near Erwin, TN a few days later we decided to hitch into town which completely defeated the purpose of leaving Hot Springs with such heavy packs.  This upset me a little bit until I was able to scarf down a huge Mcdonalds meal and I forgot that lugging such a heavy pack for the first few days was completely useless. It was also nice to be able to make some phone calls on my own cell phone because I had service for the first time since before the Smokies.  AT&T stinks.  We hitched a ride back to the trail and were going to embark on what we called the Super Moon Super Saturday hike because the moon was supposed to be really close that night, but it ended up being cloudy and we slept in until 6:30.  Fail lol.
     The next day or so, we hiked to a shelter only to find that a crazy homeless man had made it his home so we decided to hike a little further to stay at a hostel that night for the safety of our belongings.  From that hostel, we hiked to another hostel named Kinkora Hostel that is a famous hostel on the trail because of a man named Bob Peoples.  This guy had some has been running the hostel for 17 years and had housed over 17,000 hikers over the years.  He has dedicated over 6000 hours of service to the trail and has some great stories about people he has met, his military service, and his own adventures that he has taken over the years.  I was so glad to meet such a legendary person of the AT and enjoyed reading some comments on shelters nearby like, "Bob Peoples gives his boots blisters" and "the mice bring Bob Peoples food at night".
     The next few days involved heavy mileage and interesting weather.  Two days ago was quite an epic day as we walked through a short but intense storm.  The weather had been threatening rain all day and around 5:00 it got really dark and started lightening.  The rain began and then we started noticing the rain began bouncing off of our jackets.  It was definitely hailing.  In about 60 seconds the small hail turned into large nickel sized hail that was pelting us and felt like a bunch paintballs hitting you all over your body.  We were all laughing at first at how crazy the situation was until the hail kept pouring down and it really started to hurt to get hit in the head and the hands.  Bundy attempted jumping into a mountain laurel for shelter and I would have followed him but the tree provided him no shelter from the hail whatsoever.  We didn't really know what to do so we just continued hiking.  If it had gotten any worse, 3 stoves would have pulled out his ultralight tarp and we could have taken shelter (hopefully that would have worked).  About 10 minutes after the onslaught of hail began, it ceased and we couldn't help but be amazed at what just happened lol.  It was exciting and miserable at the same time.  When we made it to the shelter that night after walking through a mix of rain and sleet, I couldn't have been happier.  We had a great story to tell and now we were a day away from the TN/VA state line and Damascus.  The hail came again later that night while we were sleeping in the tin roofed shelter and was so loud that it hurt my ears when i didn't have the sleeping bag over my head.  I couldn't have been more thankful for shelters on the trail.  The next day involved more rain and small dip n dots sized hail, but nothing could stop us from getting to Damascus by the end of the day.  We made it by 4:30 and took shelter/dried our stuff at a hostel last night.
     I still don't have cell service in Damascus but at least I have access to a computer for a while.  I have had some great adventures once again and I look forward to more along the way.  I can't upload pictures here, but hopefully I can in the next town I come too with Internet access.  I really can't believe I have come 460 miles, but it's exciting and I can't wait for the next week of travels.  I get to go to Grayson Highlands State Park where there are miniature ponies roaming around and I get to climb up and over Mt. Rogers.  I plan to teach one of the ponies to carry my pack to make the next few days a little easier in case anyone was wondering haha.  I hope you guys are doing well back home, thanks for the continued support and I will hopefully talk to ya soon!

White Fang aproaching the TN/VA border

Check out Ben's latest SPOT check-in! He has been hiking with Gadget, Three Stoves, and Nicholas at an incredibly fast pace ever since he got out of the Smokies. His biggest day was a whopping 26 miles. I spoke to him while he was eating at a McDonald's in Erwin, TN. It was difficult to understand him, as his mouth was filled with cheeseburgers. While I was on the phone with him, he ate three cheeseburgers, a large fries, and a yogurt parfait, and was going back for more. I guess you can't blame him, though. Burning 9,000 calories a day is bound to make one pretty hungry. To make up for lost time spent eating at McDonald's, Ben and his buds got up and hiked at 2:00 AM underneath the light of the "super moon." No bears have been seen. He said he did see a few turkeys, though.

Picture Update

Hot Springs!

     Hey everybody!  I have to extend a special thanks to my brother for keeping my blog updated seeing how I hardly ever have access to a computer along the trail (go figure).  But my spirits are high and I am excited to sleep in a heated cabin tonight in Hot Springs!  I have kept up with the 3 hikers I met at the Fontana Hilton Shelter right before the Smokies and I aim to try to push on with them as long as possible.  All have very ambitious finishing dates (the beginning of June to mid-June averaging 22 to 25 miles a day) so we will see how long I feel like sticking with them.
     I've experienced about every emotion there is to experience on the trail due to crazy weather and steep climbs, but I finally feel my body is getting into "trail shape".  The Smokies were incredibly difficult to get through and I will never forget how miserable it was hiking in the snow for 4 days straight.  Getting out of your sleeping bag in the morning to put on wet clothes was not exactly very fun.  I had to put my clothes in ziplock bags and sleep on top of them so my body heat would keep them from freezing.  Our efforts were made with little reward seeing how we could hardly see a thing being in the middle of a snow cloud for the first 2 days, but luckily it was clear the last 2 days and we got to see some amazing views.  The smokies have a reputation for being the right of passage for thru hikers and I've made it trough so I feel extremely relieved to be done with them.  I'm happy I had the challenging experience of the Smokies, I'll never forget the experience, and I never want to go through it again lol.
     My spot device has not been working correctly for what reason I do not know so I will try to solve that dilemma over the next day that I am in town while enjoying some good homecooking at the Smoky Mountain Diner.  I definitely think good cooking is the big thing that I miss on the trail, but I'm trying to invent some interesting trail recipes.  For those of you who know me well know I eat a lot in general, but the amount of food that I can go through now is pretty amazing.  I have started to develop what they call "hiker hunger" where you can basically eat as much as possible and still it seems like it is not enough.  Food is always a good topic of conversation with any thru hiker.
     The plan is I will continue to hike with Three Stoves, Gadget, and Nicholas to Damascus, Virginia which we will try to reach in about 10 days.  To everyone I want to thank you for you continued support.  I'll try to update this as much as possible and I love you all!  I'm having the time of my life and it's been an amazing adventure so far.  I've only got a little over 1900 miles to go and I can't wait to experience everything that lies ahead.  I thank God for the strength he gives me every day and I pray for you all while I'm hiking!

White Fang lives!

Ben has a trail name.  Drum roll . . .  It is, "White Fang."  While on Springer Mountain, the southern terminus of the AT, Ben was bitten by a small white dog.  Thus, White Fang stuck.

In other news, Ben has passed through the Smokies.  While hiking in the Smokies, Ben, at times, waded through waste deep through snow.  He said that his new sleeping bag kept him warm and cozy during the frigid nights.  One morning when he awoke, it was 10ºF.  He said that he had to use his camp stove, the one and only "pocket rocket," to thaw out his shoes.  Ben is now hiking with three other hikers, namely, Nicholas, Three Stoves, and Gadget.  Nicholas will begin med school in the fall and ambitiously hopes to be finished with the trail by mid-June.  All I know about Three Stoves is that he carries three stoves.  Gadget is a chef near Muscle Beach in California.  Ben said that at the next hostel that has a kitchen, Gadget will prepare a gourmet meal for the hungry hikers.  Gadget is called gadget because he carries with him two portable solar panels and a massager (among other things).  Tonight Ben will sleep in the bunk house of Standing Bear Farm, a small hostel just 30 miles south of Hot Springs, NC, with his three new hiking friends.

While on the trail, Ben has met many interesting people.  One of the most memorable was "U-haul."  U-haul began the trail with a 150 lb. pack.  To put this in perspective, Ben's pack weighs about 35.  Ben said he shared a shelter with him one night.  U-haul carried with him a 4 man family-sized tent, a queen-sized sleeping bag, a lap top computer (which he sold at Neels Gap) and a spice rack.  While he was at the shelter, U-haul prepared for himself a steak.  Another interesting fellow is "Jackrabbit."  Jackrabbit wears a t-shirt, jean shorts, and carries his gear in a fanny pack.  "Dust" seems to be the most interesting through-hiker and is quickly earning a reputation on the trail.  Dust hikes for thirty hours at a time, sleeps for six, and then repeats.

If you haven't noticed, Ben's SPOT device has stopped working.  He will call the manufacturer in Hot Springs in two days from now.  Hopefully, the problem will be resolved and we will be able to more easily keep track of White Fang's progress.

The Smokies

Ben finally arrived at Fontana Dam, the gateway to the Smokies, this Wednesday.  He stayed at a nice shelter overlooking the beautiful Fontana Lake called the Fontana Hilton.  He received the new sleeping bag, a Marmot Sawtooth, that my mom shipped him at the Fontana Village Post Office.  It is rated at 15+F º and should keep him substantially warmer than his other bag which was rated at 30+ F º.  A couple of days before arriving at Fontana Dam, Ben stayed at a hostel at the Nantahala Outdoor Center.  While there, he hitchhiked into Bryson City with a few friends he met out on the trail to get some necessary supplies (i.e.  Fat Tire, Dogfish Head, and food).  While he was at the hostel, he was also able to bathe for the first time on his trek.  He said he was having a great time.  Yesterday, he was to attempt a 22 mile day, the longest thus far, but I haven't heard if he made it.  Next time I speak with him, I'll try to remember to get his SPOT user info so that the blog might be automatically updated with his check-ins!

N.C. and beyond

Ben has left the great state of Georgia for the mountains of North Carolina.  Yesterday evening my mom and dad met Ben at Dick's Creek Gap near the GA/N.C. border to camp and to take Ben some supplies and food.  According to my parents, Ben was really tired for his first few days of hiking.  The big storm on Monday followed by a cold, wet, windy, sleepless night in a shelter full of mice really took it out of him.  However, he's quite quickly getting used to life on the trail.  Although Ben may be holding up well, his sleeping bag isn't.  His current bag is rated at 30 degrees and just isn't making the cut.  My mom and I are trying to get him a bag rated between 0 & 20 before he hits the Smokeys and it gets really cold.  I've attached some pictures of my parents' trek with him. 

Ben ate two cheeseburgers and a Blizzard.

The Easter Bunny came early!

Bly Gap is right on the GA/N.C. border.

On he goes!

Day Four

Well, it is day four of Ben's trek.  He has traveled 57.5 miles and averaging just under 15 miles a day.  He braved some intense thunderstorms last night at Whitley Gap Shelter.

Ben has been checking in frequently using a really cool device called a SPOT.  When Ben presses "OK" on the SPOT,  it automatically sends an email to subscribed individuals containing a map with his exact latitude and longitude.  Additionally, his location is also automatically updated to his facebook wall.  Not only will this device allow him to check in, it will also allow him to get emergency assistance, should the need arise.  I've attached a screenshot below of Ben's location this morning. 

Ben's location this morning.