Hiking the Appalachian Trail
South to North - Georgia to Maine

Hello from Fontana Dam, North Carolina. I am 161 miles into my hike and I can tell you that I have learned a few things along the way.

I have learned that an ounce of prevention can cure a ton of pain. Before I started my hike, everyone talked about moleskin to help prevent blisters. Well, I agree with the moleskin but I think it a good idea to put it on right from the start. Even before the hot spots. I was either to stubborn or to tired to take my pack off especially when I only had a mile or two to go before I reached the shelter or campground. Because of that I ended up with blisters the size of silver dollars. People in the campgrounds and shelters are even taking pictures of them. Today somebody who saw them thought… WOW what if we could have seen what the trail could do to your feet before hiking? Would we still hike? They were all laughing that they should put pictures of my blisters in the Appalachian Trail Data Book. The book every hiker uses for their journey.

I have learned that it is not necessarily the boots that you choose that make a difference. I have Gortex Sundowners, a very good boot! I hiked in the rain for 10 miles one day and the 6 the next and my feet were saturated. Not puddles of water but my feet did get wet. They are good boots, I have seen a couple of people with them, and they don’t seem to have the trouble with blisters that I have had. I think it is all in getting the boot to fit you right and the right combination of socks. From the people I have talked with you should probably get the boots a least ½ to a whole size bigger than what you would normally wear. That way you can wear the liner socks and another pair without the boots being too tight. Some people only wear one pair of socks and them do not seem to have any trouble. Who knows? Everyone is unique. One thing I can say is that no one thing works for everyone. 

I started to do push-ups in the morning, which I have found gets the blood going, and gets my muscles warmed up. I seem to have started a trend. Others that I have been hiking with these last few days have also started doing push-ups in the morning. 

When you are walking the trail alone, as I am, you get a lot of time to reflect on what you have done, and what you plan on doing after the trail. I think if you can make it the first 6 days, blisters or no blisters, you will know what you need and what you do not need. Although GA and NC have mountains that seem to go straight up and straight down, I personally have begun to enjoy my time in the woods. Of course, when I get out of the woods and have an opportunity to get a hotel room, I will realize the small things in life like running water! I am sure there will we many other lessons that I am going to learn along the way. At night when I sleep outside, under the stars, I rake all the leaves together and put my tarp down and have the most comfortable bed you could imagine.

When I speak with some of my friends at home, I feel like I am the most fortunate person to be on vacation as a full time thru hiker. I think it is all about getting into a zone. When you get there nothing else seems to matter. I bust my butt during the week, but when I do get the opportunity to come into a town, I enjoy it. It is very pleasant. 

Like I said, I am in Fontana Dam, NC and getting ready to enter the Great Smoky Mountains. There are about 75 miles of the Smokies then about another 30 miles to Hot Springs, NC where I will call again.

You know…about that question, “would we still hike if we knew what the trail could do to our feet?” I know I would! 

Reports from Perry Trip Photo Gallery   Report # 1 - Mar. 20 Report # 8 - Jul. 6 Report # 2 - Apr. 11 Report # 9 - Jul. 17 Report # 3 - Apr. 29 Report # 10 - Aug. 7 Report # 4 - May 2 Report # 11 - Sep. 3 Report # 5 - Jun. 13 Report # 12 - Sep. 27 Report # 6 - Jun. 21   Report # 7 - Jun. 26

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