The only time I’ve been to New Hampshire was filled with rain. It rained and rained and rained. Not at all fun to hike or camp in, but I tried anywhere. Originally I planned on hiking up Mt. Washington, but due to the rain I didnt think it was worth the effort. So instead I hiked along some creeks that were transformed into small rivers thanks to the rain. I found a small town named Bartlett, NH which I enjoyed very much. The town wasnt big and didnt really have anything that made it special, but the name alone was enough to give me joy. Continue reading “Throwback Thursday: New Hampshire”
Tag: camping
The Great Smoky Mountains (part 2)
Rock Top is the summit of a mountain in the Smokies. It sits just below it’s big brother, Thunderhead Mountain. The views from Rock Top are worth the grueling hike to get there. At 5,440 feet, Rocky Top isn’t the highest mountain on the Appalachian Trail, but it emerges from the woods allowing you to see just how spectacular the mountain range is and will give you a better appreciation of just how steep a climb you just made. So after taking in the sites and eating a quick lunch, I snapped a few photos and prepared to head back.
The decent down from Rocky Top was both satisfying and tiring. I really didn’t realize how much I had pushed myself until I started to walk downhill. When you switch from going uphill to walking downhill something major happens to your feet. You’re no longer walking on the balls of your feet, instead all your weight is now hitting on your heel. You really need to make sure you step with purpose or your feet will pay the price. On the way down I ran into people, unlike on the way up. One of the great things about hiking is when you run into other hikers, everyone is friendly. They will all give you advise if you ask for it and do so in glee. Unlike the rest of the world, when you run into a hiker and ask a question, you usually get an answer with a smile. It’s one of the things I really love about hiking and backpacking. I chatted with a doctor who went to Duke, a woman from Wisconsin, two college age boys who were trying to make it to where I had just gone (one of which looked like he’d rather be anywhere else but where he was), and two older women taking a lunch break. All of them were friendly and stopped to chat briefly before I or they continued on. Continue reading “The Great Smoky Mountains (part 2)”
The Badlands – Day 2
After making it through the night I ate a quick breakfast and decided to check in with the world. I packed up my gear, discovered that the storm had bent both of my main poles to the tent, and headed up to the top of a large hill. I assumed that would be the best place to turn my phone on a search for service. I was right. I got two bars of 3G on the top of the hill. I sent a quick “I’m alive” text and checked the weather. More severe storms were predicted for the afternoon and evening. So I had a choice: Continue on, deeper into the “Wilderness” area of The Badlands or head back to my car.
I’d be lying if I didn’t say the storm had rattled me a little. My poles were bent and another severe storm could easily destroy my tent at this point. So I chose the safe route. I decided to head north towards my car. I was disappointed during the entire hike, so to make it a little more interesting I headed towards the large butte that had been my landmark during the hike into the area the day before. Getting up it was easier than I expected. One side looked very steep, but the other was gentle enough to let me up it. The view was amazing so I sat up there for a bit before heading off. The area on top of the butte had very little grass, I’m assuming because of common high winds. I snapped a few photos, then headed back to my car. In total it was probably a 18-20 mile hike with the detour so it took me the majority of the morning and into the afternoon to make it back. Continue reading “The Badlands – Day 2”
The Badlands – The Storm
Quick back story: I’m backpacking in the Badlands National Park and I spent the entire afternoon hiking to a spot about 15 miles away from a dirt road that I parked on. As I went to sleep the rain and gentle rolling thunder started up.
I remember having some dream that I was extremely upset about waking up from. So much so that it took me awhile to realize what was happening. The tent would occasionally light up as though some one was turning the lights of a room on, then off again. I don’t know why I didn’t hear the thunder right away, because I’m pretty sure there wasn’t much of a delay from lightening to thunder. All at once everything clicked. I was camping. I was in a tent. That sound is rain hitting my tent. That light was lightening. That sound was thunder. There was a storm. Continue reading “The Badlands – The Storm”
The Badlands – Day 1
I arrived at The Badlands National Park first thing in the morning and stopped by the Visitor’s Center to pick up a topographical map, fill up on water, and check in with the park rangers. The first ranger I spoke to recommended I started by hiking some of the more established trails on the east side of the park. As I got to the end of the first short trail (2 miles round trip) I was glad I listened to her. It was an amazing view looking south across the grasslands. The hike was an easy one so I decided to do another established trail before heading over to my real destination. The second trail allowed for a lot of deviations, which made me happy. You could wonder off of it to climb up one of the rock formations, then easily find it again. It was a 10 mile loop, but since this was an established trail, the hike was easy.
The Badlands are essentially huge rock formations that are eroding. They jump out of the otherwise grassy South Dakota plains in random formations. Sometimes it looks like one rock just popped up in the middle of no where. Other times they looked like mountain ranges, cutting the mix of grasslands and desert in two. This trail was busy, I passed a few families and couples all taking in the awesome view. For lunch, I climbed to the top of one rock formation (about 50 vertical feet), found a shady overhang and took out my per-prepared PBJs. In front of me was the trail, which cut through the tall grass in this particular spot. In other places it was a dried up riverbed that more resembled a desert than the grassy plains. Still, other parts of the trail were through rocky ravines that looked like they zigzagged for no rhyme or reason. Continue reading “The Badlands – Day 1”
Bivy Life 