North Country Trail

Open Roads, Open Doors

Posted by

1

As the trail began to stretch out unto road I began to experience a great deal of chairity. Many times I would stop into a little café or diner, strike up a quick conversation, and find that some unknown benefactor had bought my meal. I’d heard that these kinds of interactions are somewhat common on the AT during its regular season, but seldom experienced it. I must’ve been quite novel to them, as the NCT is so much less travelled. On occasion I was offered motel rooms, attics, or the bed of a camper van parked on a nearby lawn. It was very striking for me, exiting the woods and receiving such a reception in civilization. At first it made me uncomfortable, and I turned a couple such offers down, feeling that I was undeserving of such chairity when I had chosen and prepared for this lifestyle. In part I still feel that way, but I also no longer reject kindness when offered. One such time I was approached, sitting on the grass median of a big box store, polishing off my second pint of Ice Cream, (gotta jump when they’re BOGO) and was given two $20 notes. I returned them, and the man who had offered seemed taken aback, saying something to the effect of “I dunno what you’re doin’ but buy yourself another meal or two.” His kindness towards me was less predicated on a perception of my destitution, and more upon his ability to see himself in me. When younger he could’ve been me, I see this interaction repeated, and no longer reject such connections. The NCT has its share of dedicated Trail Angels, and while I was not yet dialed into their networks, I crossed paths with them aswell. Staying at Lake Piedmont Inn, and eating with the caretakers and their dogs. (the first of many domestic animal encounters South and East OH, would provide.) Or Shew’s Orchard, drinking cider and camping behind the barn, while very thankful for my tent as the wind howled, funneling between the rolling hills, tossing sheets of corrugated roofing about, yet not quite collapsing my tent with each burst.

Once joined to the Buckeye Trail (BET) the days began to blend together, and I spent many nights bivvied in a roadside thicket. That isn’t to say they were without wonder, and with Autumn’s slow arrival there was yet greenery on the branches. The veil between the natural world and civilization wore ever thinner. Punctuated by nights spent in cool tunnels running beneath the interstate, or following a river to a dammed reservoir, where the waters are still couched in forest. It had its moments however, there is some rugged country in the southeast of OH, and the Hocking Hills area in southern OH is particularly beautiful, with many embankments built into the stone, bridges that span the chasm at various heights, each adding to a confluence of nature and architecture, setting it apart as a major highlight of the eastern half of the NCT. It is capped westbound by Ash Cave, a massive undercut cavern with a tiny dripping waterfall at the center. The day I spend there was overcast, almost foggy, and added a distinct ethereal feeling, but detracted equally from the lighting conditions…

Advertisement

Turkey, Train Tunnels, and Ghost Towns

Posted by

0

Whilst in NY I had made ready for that year’s total lunar eclipse, looking far forward and anticipating camping on the northwestern side of a lake. Over whose clearing I would have a wide viewing angle for the eclipse set to begin shortly after moonrise. This plan however could not go smoothly, as the lake it centered around, did not seem to exist. After exhausing efforts to find it, I gave up, setting camp in a rough parking lot which would provide a smaller yet adequate clearing. Having planned to camp near a lake I hadn’t carried in enough water for dinner and the next morning, luckily this lot had a large puddle, which even though fully opaque, would suffice for my immediate needs. The third and final misfortune of the night, wherein I was practicing sword drills and cracked the wood of the grip, the leather binding had deteriorated and finally came fully off, leaving it vulnerable to exactly this kind of failure. It did not crack into pieces, but I would need to be more careful with it going forwards. Even accounting for these I had a nice night, watching Princess Mononoke on my new (at the time) tablet before staying up for the complete cycle of the Blood Moon.

Coming into PA, the early snowfall was fortunate, as the bugs wouldn’t recover for the season and thus abought me 7 months to hike without being pestered by insects, an ongoing trend of good luck with the climate. I was worried that the frost would wilt all the plantlife and leave me to hike through miles of barren brown dead forest. While the colors had already peaked, much of the greenery bounced back as the thaw came quick and frost did not return until long into OH. With the change of the season I found myself sporting a blaze orange scarf on my pack, as the occasional company I would find turned from hikers to hunters. As designated camping areas became more sparse; waking up while stealth camping, to the blast of nearby gunfire of indeterminate origin became quite common. Most encounters with hunters started coldly, but I would get a warmer reception as I explained my story and their recognition of me changed from that of a vagrant, squatting in their haunts, to a fellow, and I would trade talk for advice on places to pitch my tent. To their disappointment it seemed that their hunting grounds were filled with far more hunters than game, I don’t think I saw a single one carry out a bird. After the opening weekend these meetings too seemed to taper off precipitously and I was once again, alone.

I had two rations sent to PA, although I comically misjudged the distance between them, as I shifted to the 4th (of 9…) kind of map I would use for the NCT, and once again readjusting. Carrying six days of food I found myself taking ten days between maildrops, and easily using grocery stores to bridge the gaps as I spent more time on roads. Stopping nightly in the woods, beside ghost towns, abandoned train tunnels, and the occasional derrick standing still over the original US oil patch. The fewer hunters I saw, the more I noticed the turkeys, and it came to where I would flush a half dozen groups of them each day, one such group must’ve had more than eighteen birds in its number.

Alley cats and Finger Lakes

Posted by

0

Having come out from ADK the reality of the North Country Trail truly began to set in, finding myself totally solitary save for the occasional interaction with post officers, grocers, librarian, or restaurant attendant. Newly armed with a tablet I had acquired while in home I began making great use of it as an e-reader almost immediately, reading Osamu Tezuka’s Buddha, Katsuhiro Otomo’s Akira, and J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion, by the time I had made it out of NY. (As a side note: this was when I began working to make this blog more than just a twinkle in my eye.) I had long since abandoned the pretense of having medium-term plans, and picking up a tablet was a great way to keep my short term logistics somewhat in order.

wp-1473481862834.jpg

The downside of course is that now I was reasonably exposed to the internet once again, and found myself loitering about libraries, or listening to podcasts and music while hiking. This seemed to make time pass quicker through the endless pastoral Americana of the NCT and Finger Lakes Trail, at least at first. Quickly music and podcasts became a crutch and actually make days seem to drag on longer than when I had been losing myself in the landscapes. Though some of this could be attributed to the paradigm shift and the new proximity to roads, some serenity is surely lost as a semi speeds past only slightly to your side. Overall they’ve made a welcome addition to the kit.

The conclusion to my air mattress troubles came in the mail, as the replacement by warranty arrived, and as a side sleeper I can say the simple folding foam pad I had picked up to use as a stop gap was not ideal. While this is a weakness in that I seem to require a more specialized piece of gear, maybe in a warmer climate I’ll try to get in the habit of sleeping pad-less. With the mattress the rest of my mail carried poor tidings as another bout of ration troubles had begun, this being the one that would ultimately cause the switch from Nemo covering my rations. Once again with these troubles I feel the need to point out how much of a help it was to have someone running ration support, and that these troubles rather serve to highlight how much easier it made things, as I make poor food buying decisions when I am hungry, and I am always hungry.

The FLT itself has many shelters, they were a welcome and familiar place to stay, a reminder of sorts that the land itself was not uninviting, though if the signs on the trees were their thought bubbles it would’ve seemed much more hostile. I became quite accustomed to stealth camping along the road sections, to the point where I ceased planning my days so tightly around the shelters, and frequently made my resupplies into town from a nearby stealth camp, as keeping to the shoestring budget would keep me hiking longer, and if I must spend money I prefer ice cream to lodging. Upstate NY is filled with rolling hills, and given decent weather provided a fine vantage point from which to watch the season shift across the forest, replacing emerald with a cornucopia of warm reds, and yellows to contrast with the cooling temps. NY ended with a surprise early snow, and while it had begun to melt by the time I made PA it signaled what would be a trend, snow would follow me throughout the trail, and I would find snow in every state of the NCT save for ND.

20160909_215709.jpg

Bridging the Gaps

Posted by

0

My first week on the NCT was bookended by bridges, the first crossing from VT to Crown Point NY. I spent a little time talking to the people manning the historical site hoping to find some info regarding the terminus, and maybe a trail register. I had missed office hours for the NCTA, so without inquiring of them I departed for the Adirondacks without much fanfare. Into the Dix mountain wilderness via an ill-advised bushwhack up the east side of Macomb Mountain, through pine thicket for about 5 miles, ended up taking some 13 hours of hard trekking. (Put some of the most significant damge on shirt No.2 that it would see, aswell) Moving quickly into and thru the high peaks wilderness, with nought but a short side jaunt up Mt. Marcy to check cell reception (no dice, but got service at a random shelter a few hours later…) and for a state high point. Caught the beautiful Northville to Lake Placid Trail (NPT) outta the high peaks, with a little extra time for some swimming in the river. Shortly after hitting the road I got the payoff of a minor logistical miracle, in which four of my friends, including Nemo, had managed to road trip out to meet me. The purpose of the trip, Mighty Mac, the bridge between the two Michigans is only open for pedestrians one day of the year, Labor Day, and was at the time part of the “official” NCT thru route. (I have since heard that a couple weeks later they pulled it, C’est la vie.) Between the ADK and Mac we spent some time at Niagra falls in the middle of the night, and burned an afternoon with a little swordplay at the beach. 

Crossing the Mackinac Bridge was in itself a bit sof a shocking experience, having mostly been alone or within a small group of mostly known individuals, to suddenly find myself amongst a huge crowd at a well choreographed event was jarring to say the least. Of course security wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about my carrying a sword, or large bags so I crossed with neither my pack nor my sword. (The only notable distance walked without the sword.) The rest of the way back to Minneapolis was mostly sleepy for me, as being freshly overstimulated by the sudden reintroduction of friends to my life. Staying home was odd, but mostly productive, and I was able to pack in a few medical appointments while I was still covered by my parent’s insurance, attend a regular HEMA session, acquiring a tablet to help manage logistics. My father had a minor health complication just before I was set to return to trail, so I was a bit delayed in returning, resulting in about two weeks of downtime.

Returning to the NCT just before the exit of the ADK put me on a track following a loose connection of trails, roads, and rails. Stealth camping by night in the ditches and thickets beside the road, beneath bridges and within a couple abandoned mills located alongside some of the area’s more significant rivers. Catching the established NCT at the old Erie Canal near Rome, NY. During this bit of road problems with my air mattress came to a head and it delaminated to the point which it no longer held air. While this was covered by warranty, it still left me without a sleeping pad, so I took the canalway trail significantly farther than the NCT’s turnoff point, into Syracuse where I could find an outfitter to hopefully help with the warranty process, and at least get me a pad to use in the interim. In a way ot sort of worked out, on the drive back out to the ADK I had dropped a Ration box with the Syracuse Eastern Mtn Sports, not realizing how far off route it would be. 

NCT Down

Posted by

2

image

Finished up the NCT on tuesday (June21) at about 8pm. Met my father at Lake Sakakawea State Park in ND just in time to dodge the big storm that came through that night! We’ll be hanging out together for a little while so I can slack pack a bit, get some logistics work done, and maybe not even have to slow my pace.