Final sketches, sigh

Best Of List

• Best hike: Segment 4 along Harper’s Creek
• Best bike ride: Stone Mountain to Elkin, NC
• Best paddle: Neuse River through Wayne County to Seven Springs
• Best campsite: Day 4 in the Smokies next to Raven Creek
• Best accommodations: Balsam Mountain Inn
• Best camp meal: very difficult to choose since everything tastes great in the woods
• Best restaurant meal: COBO in Boone, NC
• Best beer: Southern Tier Imperial Pumpking
• Best commercial brewery: Sierra Nevada, Asheville
• Best (or at least favorite) craft brewery: Frog Level Brewing, Waynesville
• Best luxury item: Fleece pants (from Sherpa - do yourself a favor and get some; they will change your life)
• Best views: Linville Gorge
• Best hiking partner: This girl.

I could not have done this with anyone else in the world. Debra had such an amazing ability to handle and overcome adversity, adjust and change plans on the fly, keep me grounded and upbeat on even the toughest days, and maintain a constant, 77 day stream of trail chatter to keep the bears away (mostly, we saw 4). I am lucky to have shared this journey and life with someone so strong.

Final Support

A special thanks to our longtime friends Trey Tyler and Melissa Loughridge Savenko for providing support during the final days of our adventure with a warm home, transportation, photo documentation, and celebratory champagne. It was such a great feeling running to the top of Jockey’s Ridge with them last night to beat the sunset!

Segment 18. Done.

With a final 60-mile bike ride and 6+ miles of hiking, we reached the end of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail today at the top of Jockey’s Ridge – perfectly timed at sunset! This concludes our adventure for now until Segment 17 reopens. 

From the Mountains to the Sea – Literally

Tomorrow we will be transitioning to the Outer Banks to complete Segment 18 of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. We seized on this portion of the official trail guide and will be opting for the alternative bike route:

"Because most of the trail in this segment is on loose, sandy beaches, it is not recommended for bicycles; however, North Carolina Highway 12 parallels the trail almost its entire length and is a good alternative for cyclists."

Since Segment 17 was badly damaged by Hurricane Florence, it will be some time though before we can truly finish our adventure. A bittersweet end coming soon...

Progress Report

Progress as of 10/17/2018: 917 miles completed, 129 to go

Segment 4. Done.

We survived two days in Linville Gorge to complete Segment 4 of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. This is the only segment we’ve had a constant companion throughout. And it was a great way to end our journey in the mountains with a campfire finally! 

It was equally remote and spectacular. And because nothing comes easy on the trail, coincidentally, yesterday was the first day of bear hunting season - hence the orange beanie. Nothing like sharing the woods with a bunch of agitated bears!

Last day in the mountains

Today is a bittersweet last day in the mountains. Yesterday was a difficult rim to rim hike across the Linville River Gorge and today we hike to Table Rock and complete our time in the mountains. We were treated to an amazing starry night and colorful sunrise to see us off.

Mountains. Nearly Done.

We are soooo close to being done with the mountains portion of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. Wish us luck as we head into Linville Gorge for the next couple days! The far side of this photo is Table Rock, our destination.

Segment 3. Done.

Today we officially finished Segment 3 of the Mountains-to-Sea Trail after summiting Mount Mitchell. It was a rare clear day on top but still quite chilly. 

Highs and lows (literally)

If all goes well, we have 4 days of hiking left in the mountains before heading to the coast. In those 4 remaining days we will climb to the top of Mount Mitchell and the bottom of Linville Gorge, the highest peak and deepest river gorge east of the Mississippi respectively (we think - feel free to look it up).

Just a happy coincidence of how this has all played out.

Buck Creek Gap

Little did we know when I took this photo today that our 13-mile hike would take us over all these ridges and down into the valley beyond. 

Another Hurricane

Not sure what’s worse about hiking immediately after a hurricane, the raging water crossings or the howling wind? But it’s all worth it when you get an occasional view like this. 

Unplanned Zero

Due to flooding in the Linville Gorge area where we are scheduled to be for the next few days, we are safely off the Mountains-to-Sea Trail for now. Hoping to return to a better location and conditions tomorrow.

Segment 5. Done.

With a final push of 15 miles through wind and rain, we completed the longest foot section for us on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail today. Segment 5 was 91 amazing miles along the Blue Ridge Parkway over 8 days with great weather until the last day. 

Throughout this journey, we’ve experienced numerous bouts of “trail magic.” And this segment happened to be full of it – from a random delivery of special salve for pain by Nancy in a pickup truck to befriending Tony, the manager of Park Vista Inn who treated us to breakfast while shuttling to a trailhead. 

We also had great campsites at Miller’s Campground and the Haislip’s property. And Theresa Haislip offered delicious homemade rolls. We are also grateful for the newly established backcountry sites since campsites are few and far between here. 

And through the morning mist and rain, we were delighted to find biscuits and coffee at the Trading Post, which made the final day much more tolerable. 

Boone area sketches

The last week has included waterfalls, fields, pastures, and views of and from the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Cone Manor

Hunt Fish Falls

Harper Creek Falls

Lynn Cove Viaduct

Pasture Fence

Stile under Blue Ridge Parkway

Jesse Brown cabin

Stiles and Pastures

For the past three days, we’ve been closely paralleling the Blue Ridge Parkway near Blowing Rock and Boone on the Mountains-to-Sea Trail. I’ve lost count of how many stiles and pastures we’ve crossed so far. (We were even chased by cows in one!) But there’s something very comforting about staying in a “backcountry campsite” while still hearing cars driving the parkway. 

Gear Junkies

A few folks have expressed some interest in our gear, so here is a list of the major pieces with just a bit of editorial:

• Backpacks: Gregory Baltoro 75 w/ integrated Goal Zero solar panel (Jeff); Gregory Deva 70 (Debra)
• Footwear: Merrell Unifly boots or Solomon Speedcross trail running shoes (Jeff); Altra Lone Peak 3.5 trail shoes (Debra)
• Trekking Poles: REI Flash Carbon (Jeff); Leki Makalu Titanium (Debra)
• Sleeping bags: REI Sub-Kilo (+20 Jeff) (+15 Debra)
• Bedrolls: Nemo Tensor R20 (small, light, and super comfy)
• Tent: MSR Hubba Hubba 2
• Water filter: MSR MiniWorks w/ viral stop drops (heavy, but field cleanable with no failures in 15 years)
• Stove: MSR Pocket Rocket (uses isobutane canisters)
• Pot: GSI Outdoors Halulite Boiler 1.1L
• Headlamps: Black Diamond
• Lantern: Luci (solar)

Debra uses a titanium spork and for sentimental reasons I carry a pocket knife my grandfather used during WWII that has a fork and spoon built in.

For day hikes and biking we use our adventure race packs: Out There USA MS-1 (Jeff) MS-2 (Debra)