Adventures of an AT Section hiker "Mapless"

Tag: travel

  • Weekend in Chicago – Bike the Drive

    Weekend in Chicago – Bike the Drive

    August 30 & 31 2025 – Days 18 and 19 on the road – Woke up early in the condo. Brenden slept in, which was fine. I hung out and updated my journal and blog

    In the afternoon we headed to a local tavern and watched the Buckeyes kick butt on Texas again. Discovered I do not have the bladder to drink and walk in a big city like Chicago, smiles. I was always a struggle to make it back to the condo.

    I was pleasantly surprised at the number of gluten free options at the restaurants near Brenden. For dinner I had a very good gluten free pizza and gluten free carrot cake for desert – yum

    Got my bike stuff ready for Bike the Drive in the morning… We are going to try to get out the door at 7 as they suggest to start before 8 am to be sure you complete you ride before the road is opened again.

    Sunday we were up early and rode to entrances to the northern most entrance to Lakeshore highway for the ride. There were a ton of riders already on the road. We headed south. The drive was relatively flat but each time there was a bridge over a side street you had to go up and over. The bridge over Chicago river was a bit steep but do able. The river was big stopping point for riders for pictures, a bit of a traffic jam there.

    We stopped at a rest stop for drinks and snacks and then we rode almost to the Field Museum and headed back. The entire loop of the ride was 15 miles we probably turned around at 8 or 9. We started way to early we were back to outr start by 10… we then rode to to breakfast. When we go to the restaurants we turned off our tracking and we had done 20 miles

    The rest of the day we did nothing…. just relaxed and recovered. Bailey returned from her trip late in the afternoon and we walked to dinner. Yet another restaurant with gluten free options… in fact they had a whole gluten free menu. I was in heaven.

    Back at the condo I retired early.

  • Prairie Duneland Rail Trail and Chicago

    Prairie Duneland Rail Trail and Chicago

    Friday August 29, 2025 – Day 17 of the road trip. I am almost caught up with posting…. now doing two a day !

    Woke up and found I rolled over on my glasses and popped a lens. So part of the day today will be searching for eyeglass repair… all part of the adventure I guess. Had breakfast, coffee and packed up the van to hit the road again… first a bike trail not far away and then the dreaded drive into Chicago.

    The Prairie Duneland Trail in Chesterton Indiana, a few miles south of Lake Michigan is a nice suburban trail. It was a railway at one time. It was well shaded as is goes through different neighborhoods. I rode out 8.5 miles to a park that seemed like a good turn around and gave me a 17 mile ride.

    After the ride I was able to find a eye doctors office that would fix my glasses. I gave them some cash and said lunch was on me. They gave me a good suggestion for breakfast and it was nice to have my first hot breakfast for some time. So good

    I had some time to kill before heading into Chicago (Brenden had to work in the morning). I found a nice coffee shop in downtown Chesterton. I setup the computer and did some journaling and updates on the blog. Sat outside for some time… the coffee shop was very warm inside for some reason. There was a good amount of train traffic through the town and I can understand why I saw signs that said NO TRAIN HORN as I suspect their were trying to get the trains to not blow their horns as they went through town – they were load and frequent while I was there.

    Finally it was time to drive to Chicago and as expected it was a slow, lots of traffic and stressful…. not used to so much traffic coming from Franklin NC – smiles

    Met Brenden at his condo and was able to park in their parking lot spot after we got the bike off the top of the van – would not fit through the gate. Turns out this parking spot cost $20k when they bought the condo – yikes !

    I go a tour of the condo, and we were able to walk to dinner. He live in Edgewater / Andersonville neighborhood north of downtown. Very nice area with many options for restaurants. We ate on the patio of Hopleaf.

    It was nice to catch up with Brenden. I ended up crashing early when we got back from dinner. I real bed felt so good.

  • Day 2 at Indiana Dunes NP

    Day 2 at Indiana Dunes NP

    Thursday August 28, 2025 – Adventure Road Trip Day #16 – It rained overnight and woke up and it was still raining. The radar showed the rain would clear by mid morning. I had a bad sleep score and my Garmin showed I was in need of some recovery time. The plan was to take it easy today.

    Had to break out the citronella candle and incense to ward off the mosquitos.

    I was looking forward to seeing Brenden this weekend but was not looking forward to the drive into Chicago traffic.

    After I recharged my power station on the bathroom, I was bored and decided to head to the lake. I jumed on the bike, it was only 1 mile to the lake. I had a nice walk on the beach and bike ride to Mt Baldy. So much for taking it easy today. I saw the 1933 Wolds Fair historical houses, I rode the Calumet Trail and saw a turkey at the campground. Found there is train that you can ride from downtown Chicago to the park. Would make a great day trip for those living in the city .

    Back at camp I made dinner. I had to make a trip the the store outside the camp for propane for the camp store…. good thing the store was there… did not plan that correctly — opps

    I jumped in the van for the night and did way too much screen scrolling… this probably means the sleep score will not be great again…. maybe I can rest in Chicago when I have a real bed.

  • Pumpkinvine Trail / Indiana Dunes

    Pumpkinvine Trail / Indiana Dunes

    Wednesday August 27, 2025 – Road trip day #15 – Was up at 7 and on the road y 8 am. I think I have this down to a science now !

    Drove to Shipshewana Indiana to ride the Pumpkinvine Trail. This is a rail trial that runs about 18 miles to Goshen. I planned to go out 10 miles for about a 20 mile ride.

    This was a wonderful trail. Fully tree lined and shaded with views between the trees of Amish farms. Traveled though the town of Middlebury before the turn to head back.

    Both Shipshewanna and Middlebury seemed like very nice little towns. Lots of Amish in the area and even saw the Amish on the bike trail. Saw a restaurant called Blue Gate (or Bluegate ??) that was huge and had a ton of people going in… must be the local tourist attractions… I did not try

    Drove about 2 hours to Indiana Dunes. I was happy that google took me on US20 instead of 80/90. I was a nice snice drive for the most part.

    Since I had not missed my first night reservation I was a little concerned I would not have a site. When I checked all was good and the gentleman working for the park was very nice and was sure to provide all the information needed for my stay. I think my camp site was the only site that was had sun. This made things a bitt warm when I was setting up, but the shade should cover the site in the afternoon. Park was very nice, bathrooms and showers were very clean.

    Once set up I jumped on the bile to explore the area. The lake was only a mile or so up the the road with very little traffic. The lake views were beattifull

    Dinner and early to bed in the evening… tired… lots of miles today on the bike

  • Shenandoah Section Hike Day 5/6

    Sunday 5/11/2025 – Day 5 of my Shenandoah section hike. I was so anxious and worried about this day. The schedule called for a 13 mile day ! Most of my hikes are in the 8 to 9 mil range max so this was going to be a test not only for distance but also total ascent. I was able to modify the plan to 12 miles and avoid a big climb at the end the day. I had my son create a pace chart so I could be sure I would stay in track and finish before 6 pm. The worst part was going to be water. There were no water sources over the 12/13 miles

    The day started out well, making good time with each mile. The sun was out and after noon it bergan to get warm. I was consuming lots of water and I was worried I would run out. I asked a few folks along the way for some extra water. A passing car on the skyline stopped and gave me a Gatorade. I was felling so thirsty like I could drinks everything I had.

    I reported each mile to family and friends via text to give myself some confidence on what I was doing. The last few miles were teeming with Mountain Laurel in bloom. I made to the spring and camp site in the late afternoon feeling very spent but recovered well with lots of water, electrolytes and dinner.

    Stats for day: 12.12 miles, total ascent 2350, 7 hours 55 minutes , average speed 1.5mph

  • Shenandoah Section Hike Day 4/6

    Saturday 5/10/25 Day 4 of my Shenandoah section hike. Plan for day was 7.3 miles to Blackrock Mountain Hut including a 600 ft climb to Blackrock Mountain.

    It got cold and windy overnight. I did not get a good rest because I was worried about hiking in the cold and wind the next day. I was not really prepared for cold weather. When I left Loft campground at 7 am the winds had died. I forgot to set my watch at the start of my hike, so my stats do not include the whole hike.

    The trail seemed easier today. Not sure I it was the terrain or I was getting some “hiking legs”. I was surprised on how fast the miles went today. Even the climb up Blackrock was not that bad…. day would have been perfect if I did not take the wrong trail off the top of the mountain and had to climb back up to get back on the AT.

    Blackrock is a popular day hike and it was Saturday so there were many people on the trail. The rocks that make up the mountain were crazy… I would be interested in knowing how these were formed.

    Got into the Shelter / Hut fairly early and was lucking to have only one other hiker staying overnight. I was able to snag the one prime spot for the tent behind the shelter. You can see in the photo I do carry a 18 ounce chair. This may be a luxury item but I find it much better than sitting on log.

    Recorded stats for day: 6.96 miles, 1042 total ascent, 4hr 03 min, 1.7mph

  • Shenandoah Section Hike Day 1/6

    May 7, 2025 – First day of a 6 day / 45 mile section hike on the Appalachian Trail in the Shenandoah National Park SOBO from Swift Run to Rockfish Gap.

    Left my car near the Rockfish Gap entrance to SNP. My shuttle driver Mary drove me the 1.5 hours to the Swift Run Gap, We traded lots of hiking stories as she has completed most of the trail as a section hiker.

    Had some breakfast at the side of the road on the rock fence and stated out of the the trail. The plan for the day was short on miles but with a significant climb (significant for me) up Hightop Mountain. Spent a good amount of time at the overlook before heading into the Hightop Hut (Shelter).

    The weather was sunny and warm…. too warm for a nap in the tent… smiles. Had the whole shelter area to myself no other hikers stayed the night but did see a number stop for a water fill up.

    Stats for the day: 3.66 miles, 1298 ft elevation, 3 hours 30 Min, ave speed 1.0 mph,

  • A Magical Place – Woods Hole Hostel

    4/28 – 5/3 – Planned a work / stay at Woods Hole hostel for the week. I have been a guest a number of times during hiking trips since 2020 and wanted to spend some extended time here. What better way to do this than with a ‘work stay”

    I arrived on Monday 4/28 after my weekend with “the crud”. I had not eaten before my arrival so I thought I was better but could not be 100% sure. The owner Neville was a bit concerned about my my condition and wanted to be sure I was in the clear. She asked me to come back the next day, Tuesday 4/29. I left disappointed but understood. I went to breakfast and realized I was fine, but decided to wait the day before returning.

    I spent the day at various AT trailheads in the area looking for hikers to provide some “trail magic” as well as to find place to spend the night in the van. I never saw one hiker. At one trail point in the afternoon I met a gentleman from West Virginia doing trail magic that had been in the spot all day and only saw 5 hikers. I guess we were still ahead of the “bubble” of hikers doing their northbound thru hike (NOBO).

    I spent the night at the “Narrows” AT trailhead near Pearisburg. This was my second time here as I started a section hike from this same location a few years back.

    In the morning I headed back to Woods Hole for my week stay. Woods Hole is a refurbished log Chestnut cabin from 1880. Additional buildings for a bunk house and shower house have been added. They provide homemade breakfast and dinner each day. It is hard to describe but I consider this place magical and I just get very emotional each time I stay here. (and emotional writing this)

    I was able to park my van “up the hill” on the property and was able to have access to electricity from an extension cord form the pole barn… this was perfect.. Spent the week learning the process of working various jobs and assisting with meal prep and cleaning each day for the guests.

    Th real fun staying at a Woods Hole is meeting all the hikers coming through. Each day there was maybe 5 to 10 hikers. Some stay one night, some stay second night when they realize how nice this place can be. Hikers come from all over, I met someone from UK, Western North Carolina near me and all parts of the US. The hiking stories are endless form of entertainment.

    The days start early at 7am since hikers like to get early starts when leaving. I was usually in my van, done for the day by 7PM. The week went by very quickly A few days i had almost 15,000 steps!! The weather was prefect most days… sunny and highs in the 60’s most days. A big strom came trough during the middle of the night with lightning and hail… that was exciting

    The owner Neville Harris is such a wonderful person. I just love the energy she has with her place. She offers yoga, fresh organic vegetable for the garden with coffee and dinner served on her hand made poetry. There is so much history here. Her grandmother who created the hostel is in the Appalachian Trail Hall of Fame for her support of the trail.

    Welcome

    https://appalachiantrail.com/20150417/the-mystique-of-woods-hole-hostel-an-appalachian-trail-treasure/

  • Why “Mapless” ?

    I have been an Appalachian Trail Section hiker since 2017. I have accumulated 225 miles over numerous multi day hikes. For me, a section hike must be planned at least 3 days and 2 nights on the trail to “count” towards these miles. “Day hikes” do not count.

    On of my first hikes was in the Shenandoah National Park where the trail follows the Skyline drive. On the first day of hiking I had paper copies of the AT Guide in a zip lock in my pocket. The guide is more or less a map of the trail with details on mileages, elevations, shelters, place to camp, water sources as well as many other details of the trail.

    When I stopped for my first rest stop the zip lock was no where to be found!

    I must have dropped it somewhere on the trail.

    The backup to the paper maps was an app for the phone called GutHook (now called Far Out). I never wanted to use the app because I wanted to save the battery on my phone and this was why I chose to always carry the paper. But when I turned on my phone to use it, the app would not open, nada, zip!!

    For the rest of the day I followed the trail without my copies of the guide and no access to the Guthook app. It is very hard to get lost following the AT but I love the guide to tell me how far I have gone and how far I have left to go to my destination for the day.

    That evening I camped at a shelter (called huts in the SNP for some reason) with other hikers and told my story of my missing guide pages and the phone app that would not open… as a result, I was given the name of “mapless”

    Luckily another hiker arrived with my zip lock bag they had found and I was only mapless for a day, but now have the trail name forever… once you are given a trail name it is always your trail name per the trail rules…