Thursday, July 13, 2006

Virginia is Hard!


Hey Y'all!!

Where to start? First of all, we are still on the trail and doing well. We entered Virginia, the longest state on the trail at over 500 miles, a little over a month ago. It is the state in which the second large batch of hikers drop out, the first being about a week into the trail in Georgia. The reason being that it's hot and long and looks like a green tunnel.

Don't get me wrong, Virginia definitely has it's high points. The Greyson highlands are beautiful with the rocky balds where you can see for miles and it's wild ponies running free. Trail towns are also very friendly there. I guess, for us, it got hard because nothing seemed to be new. We felt like we were seeing the same shelters and parts of the trail over and over again and being out here just became a daily mental battle. We had to do an attitude check every morning and try self talk methods on wanting to be out here.

Why was it so hard? Bugs constantly getting in our eyes and ears and bit ting us to the point of itching uncontrollably, climbing up mountains in dead summer heat with no breeze, sweating to the point of wearing soaking wet clothes, no rain creating very dusty trails causing the sweat on our bodies to turn into mud, and when it did finally rain we got a whole new set of problems.

Jimmy and I have been wearing sandles since we entered Virginia. Jimmy wore socks with his but mine were Chaco's with the toe strap so I didn't. The rain caused the straps to rub open sores on the tops of my feet so we had to take a couple of zero days for those to heal. (during which we rented a car) Then when we got back on the trail and after about 5 miles we were forced to get off again because my dried out calluses started to crack open on the bottom of my feet. As bad as that sounds, all of that stuff is what we bargained for so we could deal with it. However, there was something else that was creating strife for us.

When we set out on our journey in April, we were aware of the deadline that awaited us. Mt. Katahdin, ME is in Baxter State Park which closes on October 15 or sometimes earlier based on weather. We realized about a week into Virginia that we were running a bit behind schedule so we've decided to "flip flop". That decision alieviated much pressure because we weren't stressing about doing 20+ mile days. We have been able to enjoy having more ownership over our decisions regarding the miles that we will hike each day.

The more typical way to "flip flop" is to hike to the mid point of the trail, catch a ride up to Maine and hike south back to the mid point. We thought about doing that but changed our plans when "Backseat Hollywood" aka Momma Charlotte & Aunt Sue offered us a ride up the trail when they came for they're visit in Waynesboro, VA. Waynesboro is about 850 miles from the start in GA.

So the next thing we know, we are on our way to North Adams, MASS, a town about 5 miles from the MA/VT border. We are going to be doing the last almost 600 miles of the trail, coming back to North Adams and hiking south to Waynesboro, VA. Finishing our journey just outside of the Shenandoah National Park!!

On our way up here, we stopped in Washington, DC and played tourists for a couple of days. Mom, Aunt Sue, Jimmy and I went to a Washington Nationals baseball game where I was on the "jumbotron" for 'shakin' it'!! Haha ;) The next day, we all went on a trolley tour around the Capitol and all of the historic monuments. Our unanimous favorite was probably the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier where they have the changing of the guards every 30 minutes. It was really beautiful.

On the way to the trolley tour, we spotted the "Question Mark Man" from the commercial where he talks about getting free money from the gov't and Jimmy got his picture taken with him. That'll be on the next update!

After a very long, fun road trip we are here in North Adams and trail ready!
We think of you all often and hope all is well!
Take care and much love!

Jimmy and Jen aka "Big and Bedbug"

Monday, June 05, 2006

The Folks They've Met Along the Way...and more


We've got another round of pics and experiences from the trail...follow the links below and enjoy!



Life on the Trail
Big, BedBug, and the folks they've met along the way.

Mountain Harbor B&B/Hiker Hostel, Tennessee
Terry and Mary were all booked up in the hostel when we arrived but they were kind enough to put us up in their RV parked out in front of their beautiful farm home. We were grateful to be in just for a night out of the rain. For only $5 extra from their nightly fee, we were able to enjoy a wonderful breakfast to fill our tummies before getting back on the trail.

Kincora Hiker Hostel
Kincora = Kinship of the Heart
Bob and Pat Peoples welcome tired and weary hikers into the back of their home where they have a rustic bunkhouse with a kitchen, one shower, and laundry facilities. Bedbug caught a cold forcing the hiking couple to take a zero day so she could recuperate. We met lots of really interesting, diverse, and very kind folks there. We know everyone is probably getting tired of seeing so many pics of us so we are taking more pics of the people we meet out here.

BedBug Gets Wet on Camera!
BedBug cleans off her face in a crisp, cool stream . . . on a former Superfund site that used to produce liquid asbestos.

Thursday, May 25, 2006

The Mother of all Trail Updates


Big and Bedbug dropped a load of photos and a few videos on me this week, so I've been ever so slowly posting them to the Flickr site and YouTube. In my brief messenger-based conversation with them, I devised that they are still enjoying the trail, still enjoying each other, and smell like Big's dorm room in college (some of you know what I'm talkin' 'bout). Follow the links below and enjoy!

Great Smoky Mountain National Park
Shelters with bear cages, Clingman's Dome, Icewater Shelter
Flickr Section

Max Patch, NC
A great big grassy bald that everyone sights as beings one of their favorite spots on the trail. Also, Bedbug finds some trail magic ... a bucket of PBR!
Flickr Section

Hot Springs, NC
Backseat Hollywood comes to visit and we stayed at Elmer’s Sunnybank Inn……notorious spot for hikers to rest their weary feet and souls. Hot Springs is the first town that the AT crosses through
Flickr Section

Miss Janet's House
Miss Janet's House is a crazy, fun hiker hostel right in the middle of the friendly Tennessee town of Erwin. Miss Janet has turned her wonderful home into a bunk house for hikers. She shuttles, cooks, cleans, welcomes, and anything else a hiker may need her to do. Southern hospitality personified! We hiked into here Wednesday and she shuttled us up to the TRAIL DAYS festival
Flickr Section

TrailDays
Trail Days is a festival held annually in the town of Damascus, VA for hikers, locals, families, and mostly people wanting to gather together and celebrate their love for the Appalachian Mountains and the great outdoors. It is a great chance for thru hikers past, present, and future to share stories, meals, and memories. We enjoyed it very much because it really gave us a chance to relax and get out of what we call “trail mode” where it is easy to focus on pumping out miles daily and forget about enjoying the experience. Now that we are back, we are ready to get back on the trail and ENJOY!!
Flickr Section

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

Big & BedBug in on the Small Screen



Big & BedBug have delivered a few videos so you can watch them in live action. Thankfully, they are not scratch n' sniff...

Follow the links to YouTube and take a look:

Checking Out a "Bald"
Big and BedBug come across a "Bald" in Great Smoky Mountain National Park. Apparently, the wise, bearded Big thinks this is a big deal.
YouTube Link

How to Hike Lesson
Big and BedBug teach us a lesson in hiking technique while on the "Bald." Lesson #1: Don't hike like Jimmy.
YouTube Link

BedBug Finds a Newt
BedBug finds a cute little orange newt. She proceeds to pet it, hug it, love it and then kills it.
YouTube Link

Food Rush at Trail Days
Not since the Katrina Disaster have there been this many starving, unshowered, tired people clamoring for food in a mad rush...until TrailDays in Tennessee. The only difference? These people CHOSE to be here!
YouTube Link

Monday, May 08, 2006

18.9 Miles in a Day!


Hey Everyone!

We made it through the Great Smoky Mountains safe and sound..........no bear attacks or unfortunately even sightings. But we did see lots of amazing views, meet really interesting folks, and hike lots and lots of miles.

The weather was great until Friday, cinco de mayo (no margaritas for us), when it began to rain about half way through our day. Everything (boots, hair, clothes, EVERYTHING!!) was soaking wet. Exhausted and relieved to be at the shelter on Friday around 4 pm, we laid our things out to dry. With the weather as cold and damp as it was outside all night long, our clothes came no where close to being dry. So we were stuck with damp, cold, dirty clothes to hike in on Saturday morning. After about an hour and a half of hiking in fog, the sun came out! Feeling in much better spirits, we decided to press on to the nearest hostel (Standing Bear) which pushed us to do our longest day yet ... 18.9 miles!

We are getting up and out early tomorrow morning and hitting the trail for another three or four day stretch until we get to Hot Springs, NC, where we will meet up with Momma Charlotte aka "Backseat Hollywood" for the weekend. We are staying at a hiker hostel/B&B called "Elmer's". It's legendary among thru-hikers and we've been really looking forward to checking it out.

So I guess that's about it for updates on our part. We think of all of you very often and hope this email finds you well. We have lots and lots of time on our hands to think about things and some of the most consistently thought of and talked about things are the people for whom we love and care!

Thanks so much for taking time to look at the updates on our website. It means a lot to us! Please leave comments and let us know what is going on in your lives.

Take care,
Big and Bedbug
www.ourathike.com

Thursday, May 04, 2006

Big & BedBug In Live Action



Big & BedBug have now graced us with live action movies created from their camera. None of the clips are in HD, but believe me, you don't want to see this stuff in High Definition. Fuzzy is better when people haven't taken showers for weeks on end...

The best way to view these clips are by saving the files to your computer BEFORE you watch them (Do a Right-Click and Save As on each link to do this). Also, you need to have Apple's QuickTime view to watch these clips. You can download the free QuickTime viewer here, if necessary: http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/win.html

Note: I just opened an account for JimmyJen at YouTube, which hosts movie files in various formats. I am going to attempt to post movies on the blog via this method so you don't need QuickTime to watch them. So click on the movies and enjoy!

Big Talks About Appalachain Trail Traffic: At the beginning of this clip, you expect to hear a profound commentary about the difference between life in the modern urban environment and surviving the untouched natural landscape. Um, think again...

BedBug Rides the Batmobile: This has little to do with thru-hiking other than revealing that most thru-hikers are on the verge of insanity.

BedBug Under Attack/Big is a Sweaty Beast: Apparently, BedBug was assaulted by a ferocious insect and explains it in great detail. Big, as most of us know already, is just plain gross.

BedBug Crosses the GA/NC Border: In an effort to protest the strongest issues facing our capitalist society today, BedBug crosses the Georgia/North Carolina state lines in clear violation of Federal immigration law. She is promptly arrested by the border patrol.

Visiting Blood Mountain


New photos from JimmyJen's visit to Blood Mountain are now on the Flickr site!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jimmyjen/sets/72057594124984357/

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Backseat What?!?

As I go through more of the photos and info, I find great little nuggets of info like this. Remember, I'm just a messenger, here. -- rb

We presented Momma Charlotte (trailname "Backseat Hollywood") with an AT sticker since she is now an official AT section hiker after hiking one mile up and back down Springer Mtn.

Saturday, April 22, 2006

JimmyJen checks in and talks about hiking!

I know that you hear more about resting from us and it's probably because we are so excited to rest after hiking everyday. Rest time is also when we are able to communicate with anyone. So enough about resting, here is a bit about hiking...

Our shortest day was 4 miles, longest day 15.9 miles. No sign of bears yet but we have seen a white tail deer, two snakes, and lots of worms and nasty bugs. A white butterfly flew directly into my face and I thought I was under attack. I inevitably began crying and got a big hug from Jimmy.

Albert Mountain was our hardest summit yet with an elevation of 5,220 ft. It had huge rocks with not many footholds and an old fire tower at the top. Magnificant views!! Standing Indian Mtn. was the highest elevation at 5,498 ft. but the trail took us up a bit slower than Albert so it wasn't as hard.

Setting up camp at night and breaking it down in the morning has given us a chance to work together and figure out each of our contributing roles. For example, Jimmy is good with the stove so he cooks. I am scared it is going to explode so I set up the tent. He usually washes out the pot but I will do it sometimes.....makes me feel like my hands are a little cleaner than usual. While Jimmy is cooking, I lay out our thermarests and sleeping bags. We bathe using wet wipes.

For breakfast we eat pop tarts, oatmeal, or grits. Lately, we've been mixing in instant mashed potatoes with grits if they are too runny. Lunch is small snacks throughout the day. Luna/Clif bars, slimjim, little debbies, sardines, chex mix, cheese its, you name it. Dinner is Ramen Noodles, Pasta Sides (Alfredo or Chicken flavor), or two boxes of kraft mac & cheese. From that, it varies very little. Needless to say, when we arrive to a town/hostel, eating at restaurants is our favorite thing to do. After a shower of course!!

So far, the weather has been great! It has only rained two of 13 days. But we are realizing exactly what "the grass is greener" really means. If it is sunny, it is dusty and hot and people say they wish it would rain. If it is raining, people say they can't wait to see the sun again to warm up. For me, sunny all the time is fine. Thunder and lightning is scary, hail hurts, and rain is very cold. Raingear is not that comfortable. But we will just take what we can get.

We have met some very nice people out here. Among them are Mountain Squid, Pacer, Johny Cash, Old Grey Mare, Jellybean, Low Gear, Green Bow, Crutch, Granny Frannie, Rayway, Big Toe and his wife Mrs. Toe, a girl who is hiking for Katrina relief, moonbeam, Si, Alex, and probably our favorite trail character....John Peterson who is a 70 year old photographer and second time thru hiker. He has lots of funny and interesting stories.

Other than that, hiking is hiking. Uphill, downhill, straight stretches, rocks, dirt, mud, clay, trees, flowers, it's all day everyday. Lots of time to talk or think. Our knees and feet hurt at the end of the day but our spirits are still very high. We talk to each other a lot about our state of mind. I am a bit slower than Jimmy so he walks behind me. We enjoy staying close so we can talk.

Jen a.k.a. "Bed Bug"

Friday, April 21, 2006

Trail Names Revealed

Via postcard from Neels Gap, GA, I have been informed that Jimmy's and Jen's trail names are respectively "Big" and "Bed Bug."

One of these days we are sure to hear about hiking or something...

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

Relaxing in Hiawassee, GA


Our friends Trip and Tiffany of Asheville, NC, drove JimmyJen to the Hiawassee Inn in Hiswassee, GA for some rest & relaxation.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Arriving at Neels Gap, GA

JimmyJen checked-in on Wednesday for the first time since leaving on the trail about a week ago. They delayed their departure by one evening due to the rough weather that hit the area and arrived at Neels Gap (Georgia, about 40 miles from the Springer Mountain launch point) on Wednesday, April 12.

Thursday, April 13, is supposed to be a "day off" since they are a bit tired after the 40 straight miles they've already gone.

Jimmy stated that the hiking is "pretty hard" but was not tougher than what they expected.

At Neels Gap is the Walasi-Yi Center (pictured above, taken from WhiteBlaze.net), where workers at the center help novice hikers go through their heavy packs and unload some weight where necessary. Both Jimmy and Jen dropped about seven to eight pounds from each pack. Jimmy's notable item dropped was the water filter, which became a nightly chore to use, clean, and store. Switching full-time to iodine tablets and using fresh water found along the way is the easier alternative.

Jen, however, held tight to her IPod Nano despite a worker's suggestion she send the "luxury" item back. As we all know, Jen can't stand to be separated from her Britney Spear's Greatest Hits playlist.

JimmyJen stayed at a nearby hostel the first evening, which was filled to capacity and had about five people who managed to snore out loud in unison. The second evening was less crowded and both of our hikers were looking for a better night of rest.

In the coming days, Jimmy promises to send more pictures from the trail and a list of four or five locations where friends can send messages, care packages, or rental car vouchers (kidding).

Who we are, What we are doing

We are a couple who grew up together on St. Simons Island, GA. After years of going to seperate colleges and living seperate lives while keeping in touch, we finally got together.

Living in Midtown, Atlanta across from Piedmont Park has been fun but more so has served the purpose of getting us ready for our next step together: We are leaving on April 8th 2006 to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. Jen has been working at REI and has bought all kinds of fun stuff that we'll need.........sleeping bags, boots, camp stoves, you name it!

On the weekends, we have been hiking all over the Atlanta area from strolling the city streets with our back packs on to hiking the approach trail to Springer Mountain which is where we are starting our journey.

As we hit the trail, we'll be sending ya'll updates in three places: A JimmyJen Blog, our MySpace Account, and the JimmyJen Flickr Photo Site. Use the links above or send us an email to get notified of our updates.