Quote :

"Retardedly silly question but where do you get fresh water while hiking? "

you get water along the trail, the guidebook lists water sources so you know how far the next source is and whether it's a stream, pond, etc. Most people treat their water, although I met a few who drank it straight (I don't recommend this).

The most common treatments are chemicals (I used chlorine) and pump style filters. The advantage of a filter is you can treat dirtier water and drink it right away. Disadvantage, the pumping is a pain in the ass and the filter clogs easily. Chemicals don't require any elbow grease but you have to wait up to 45 minutes before the water is safe to drink.

Also just use your judgment. Some water is so gross it's better to just skip it, even if you have treatment. Beaver ponds in particular should be avoided.

9/13/2008 9:04:15 PM

The reason I ask is because I remember the last time I was up at Chimney Rock they advised against drinking out of the streams because there were cow farms just on the other side of the hill. I know this is probably vastly different than the hiking trails but it made me aware that if someone can set up a nasty cow farm or a factory anywhere then they will.

9/13/2008 9:11:25 PM

it's different in the plains, the AT is mostly higher elevation than the farms around it. They probably tell people not to drink the water at Chimney Rock because tourists wouldn't treat it.

9/13/2008 9:17:02 PM

I'd love to go hiking but I would get so focused on trying to catalog every tree and bird that I wouldn't make it out of the state.

9/13/2008 9:26:12 PM

do it!! who cares if you don't go far, it's not a race daggummit

9/13/2008 9:31:56 PM

9/13/2008 9:44:38 PM

Great! Then I get to be chastised about the weight of my national audubon society books on trees and birds.

9/13/2008 9:50:12 PM

H8R is back???

^ ha ha naw, I try not to chastise people. Hike your own hike and all! but just to let you know, the people that bring nature books usually get rid of them

9/13/2008 9:50:20 PM

O YOU!

9/13/2008 10:03:49 PM

TheBullDoza has now passed the halfway point of the Trail!

he has now gone over 1,050 miles I'm visiting him in Harper's Ferry, WV

9/29/2008 1:22:48 PM

In Harpers Ferry. Nerdchick picked me up in waynesboro about 40 miles north of HFand we rode on down here. Plan on taking the train into DC (DCDCDCDCDC) and skirtin around.

So i'm at mile 1123.1 of my hike and .2 miles away from the mason dixon line. About to be back in the south...where i fuckin belong!!!! The trail has been awesome!!!!! I've been having the time of my life. I'll post pictures when i get a chance. Been meeting all sorts of cool people and seen all sorts of good scenery and wildlife including timber rattlers and porcupines.

At the half way mark, which was at mile 1088, i participated in the half gallon challange tradition. I ate a half gallon of Hershys peanut butter twist. It was either that or cherry jubilee . It was so cold i had to put all the clothes i was carrying with me, on.

PA was full of rocks, but was a lot of ridge walking, so that was nice. I'm bout to get back into the up and down mountains though, so i'm ready to get back into that. The leaves are starting to change and i am too pumped about hiking in em.

[Edited on September 29, 2008 at 1:31 PM. Reason : a]

9/29/2008 1:30:32 PM

reading this thread makes me want to go hiking

9/29/2008 1:52:12 PM

I also purchased a tree identification field guide and have been loving it. My proudest tree i found was the great american chesnut...it was bareing the fruit and i got two chesnuts. Hopefully i can plant them. I hear they cross polinate so i needed two.

Now Forestry majors. since i got these chesnuts from a tree that was not affected by the blight, does that mean that its seeds will also be unaffected?

9/29/2008 1:52:14 PM

I also made a new sleeping bag for TheBullDoza. It's bright yellow and everyone is jealous of how snazzy it is

9/29/2008 1:58:11 PM

yeah, it's the loudest bag on the trail...It rocks pretty hard

9/29/2008 2:07:12 PM

Rattler



fuckin wierd caterpillar



PA farmland



PA farmland at sunrise



The Bus Driver

10/1/2008 11:42:28 AM

Quote :

"I also made a new sleeping bag for TheBullDoza. It's bright yellow and everyone is jealous of how snazzy it is "

pics or it didn't happen.

this is one of my favorite threads.....EVAR!!!!

10/1/2008 11:45:05 AM

half gallon challenge



acceptance of half gallon challenge member spoon



This shelter is by far one of the nicest on the trail...we were able to order pizza to it....lrg pizza a piece



Trail bombs....This guy named Patio was doing trail magic which included: brats and trail bombs (irish car bombs)

left to right is: Captain ozzie, the red fox, smokey, raleigh, me and creature

[Edited on October 1, 2008 at 11:58 AM. Reason : d]

10/1/2008 11:51:09 AM

about time you posted some new pictures
im jealous by the way

10/1/2008 11:53:18 AM

I'm so proud of TheBullDoza for completing the Half Gallon Challenge ... eat an entire half gallon of ice cream to celebrate reaching the halfway point of the Trail. He got there on a Friday so they only had peanut butter twist and cherry jubilee - the most difficult flavors to complete! what a brave hiker he is

10/1/2008 11:56:04 AM

Glad you like em! Yeah, a lot of these small towns have dial up internet which make it hard to upload pictures. Got a few more i think ill post.

^...weeeelllll shucks

[Edited on October 1, 2008 at 11:57 AM. Reason : d]

10/1/2008 11:56:41 AM

Haha awesome
Erik, you look like a mountain man. Time to return to the family farm in KY

So glad you're having a good time; tell britta to call me plz

10/1/2008 12:07:42 PM

Thank you thank you!!!



Nerdchick at the museum of natural history in DC...LOOK OUT!!!!




Bagels and nature valley bars....fuck with me now, hunger!



Mr. Nice Guy, Juicebox (he forded the Kenebec river in maine which is stupid, dangerous, and fucking baller. He did it at 12 am and drunk as fuck. Pretty much had to swim it), The Baby, and Swing (swing is Ben mccauley's brother)





TRIPPY MAN



largest white oak on the trail...they say it's around 300 yrs old and ~20 ft in circumfrence



[Edited on October 1, 2008 at 12:16 PM. Reason : d]

10/1/2008 12:13:25 PM

that caterpillar is SCARING ME!!!

10/1/2008 12:25:01 PM

just giving himself some head i guess...

10/1/2008 12:26:21 PM

Why am I just now discovering this thread?

10/1/2008 1:32:07 PM

REAL NAMES AND RAZORS ARE NOT TO BE USED WHILE HIKING

10/1/2008 1:41:39 PM

Erik, have you begun using your beard for storage space yet?

[Edited on October 1, 2008 at 3:11 PM. Reason : dljf]

10/1/2008 3:11:19 PM

^^ LOL, it's true!

it's like high school, you have to look like all the other hikers or you're not COOL. and for guys that means having a beard. otherwise people will think you're a "day hiker"

10/2/2008 11:58:24 PM

More?

10/13/2008 5:32:20 PM

TheBullDoza just left Waynesboro, VA. He broke his camera so he hasn't taken pics in a while, but he just bought a new one so hopefully we'll have some updates for you guys!

10/13/2008 6:51:00 PM

Mile 1381 and in lexington, VA. Nice little town. The hiking has been great. shenandoah was a piece of cake. The leaves are starting to get stellar, but still too early for the good . I've seen about 5 more bears and deer a' plenty that dont run from you...that was odd to encounter.

Been hiking by myself, which gets a little lonely, but i've been running into day hikers and what have you, so that's been alright. Weather is good. Warm during the day and cool at night, but i'd like it to get a little cooler. Let's see....nothing really worth telling yall about. oh, i did see this guy though...unfortunatly.

I was hiking towards my lean to destination and coming down the hill was this guy in his 50s with his junk all bouncing around and he only had his shorts, which he carried in his hand. He was startled to see me and tried to cover up. Not many words were passed, but i did laugh a good bit.

And, Nerdchick was right. I did break my camera, but got a new one...it's ing pink, but i got it at wal=-mart on special so ...whatev...i'll have pictures next time i hit town and get to the internet. Prollly some 250 miles of some boring hiking before i start hitting some interesting stuff again...sorry for the many words.

10/16/2008 7:13:23 PM

Went to Lee's Chapel today and saw his and travlers tombs. That was pretty cool. Running up on these historic towns has really gotten me interested in american history...when i get back to society i think i'll have some reading to do.

10/16/2008 7:15:14 PM

Well, i'm now in Pearisburg, VA (mile 1552). Forgot to bring my sd card, so no new pictures. Sorry. Not too much new has happened on the trail. Still meeting awsome people and having a great time though. The most interesting and has to be the biggest legend on the trail is this guy, One Gallon (at the half way point he ate one gallon of ice cream instead of the usual half gallon). His resume reads, as i can remember:

AT - hiking his 3rd
PCT - hiked 3 times
CDT - hiked 3 times
Canoed the mississippi...said you can walk across it at its northern terminus
biked across and all over north america
Canoed the lewis and clark route
Canoed and hiked across europe
Hiked across Australia
Hiked across new zealand
....that's about all i can remember, but i'm sure just a small fraction of what he's done. Says he enjoys the rythym of walked and paddling...Also said he had problems with commiting to women cause he loves traveling the way he does so much...man is 49

This area of the VA mountains has been drought stricken for some time now and so the leaves are just kinda turning brown and falling off...not all, but most. It's cold and drizzling outside as of now. Supposed to continue into tomorrow and some parts of the mountains are calling for snow...sheesh. Sorry for not having pictures, but ill try to remember next time...i know all this is pretty boring without them.

at mile ~1780 i'm going to stop by boone and hang out with some of my buds including adam8778 or whatever his numbers are...cant wait

10/24/2008 4:48:16 PM

Alright, here goes some pictures



The priest



lexington, VA



Tinker cliffs, VA



Sunrise at Mcafee's knob



Mcafee's knob - right across from the tinker cliffs, the mountain in the right of the picture

10/25/2008 10:07:27 AM

color me jealous. I love the Shenandoah valley. I really miss living there. Hell, I miss mountains in general.

People used to put sugar cubes on Traveller's grave but I haven't seen that in years. Never understood putting pennies on the grave of Robert E. Lee's horse. Seems to me there is something wrong with that.

GG sir, keep it up and I'll continue to live vicariously through you.

10/25/2008 10:12:16 AM

Well thanks much...yeah, i guess the penny thing is for good luck, which i don't believe in, but it was also wierd how all the pennies were with lincoln's head facing down...sour grapes, now that i think about it

The SNP was great...saw so many bears, but my camera had broke, so it just left me loathing myself for a little bit.

Sitting next to one gallon as i type...he types using his pointer fingers. Says the internets boggles his mind


[Edited on October 25, 2008 at 10:19 AM. Reason : d]

10/25/2008 10:16:40 AM

ETA for Boone? Matt and I might come see you.

10/25/2008 10:18:33 AM

Tell One Gallon I aim to follow him when I get out of the Navy - hike the AT and canoe the Mississippi at the very least.

10/25/2008 10:19:12 AM

XXX-tiiiine...ummm i think the 6th which is a thursday! If you do decide to, be sure to give me a call. I'll be around kings street hanging out with joshua..haha. I'm so excited...gonna drink heavily and play foosball hopefully...I hope all is well back in raleigh

haha...he said that'd be just fine..who knows where he'll be. He plans on trips years in advance sometimes. Next big thing he plans to do is the inside passage from seatle, WA to scagway, AK...daaaamn



This man has truly inspired me....not to do exactly what he does, but just to live life to its full potential

[Edited on October 25, 2008 at 10:28 AM. Reason : d]

10/25/2008 10:27:51 AM

ttt

11/1/2008 10:15:06 AM

DAMASCUS!!!!!!!!!(mile 1715)

everything has been going great...had a few inches of snow a few days ago which was nice, but made it a bit slippery. Camped up on top of Mt. Rogers the other night and the next day ran into the ponies they have up at the top...yeah, i rode one of those little pugie bastards...got a video, but ill post it later

11/1/2008 11:49:10 AM

Me, chevrolegs and captain ozzie just stared into North Carolina forever while the sun was setting...one of the best feelings ev4r...been waiting to get back to the home state for some time now. Had a cheerwine this morning with breakfast...life's good.

Ya'll have a good one...sorry no pictures. I'll put some up in a week...hopefully the video of me riding the pony...the mother fucker bucked me off...think ya'll will enjoy.

11/1/2008 12:31:59 PM

In boone to hang with friends...enjoy video

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=605278030929

ferril ponies on Mt. Rogers, VA

[Edited on November 7, 2008 at 5:14 PM. Reason : d]

11/7/2008 5:14:18 PM

haha, that video was awesome

11/7/2008 5:21:31 PM

while I'm happy for you guys, and it looks like you had a great time...

it looks like you all smell very badly

11/7/2008 5:36:44 PM

LOLOLOL @ pony riding video

you started out being nice ha ha ha

11/8/2008 2:46:06 PM

11/8/2008 2:56:37 PM

11/8/2008 6:06:34 PM

mmmmmm...steaaaaakkk.....mmmmmm dog driving caaaaaar

Hung out with my buddies in Boone and just gorged, drank and ran shit on the foosball table. Walked all over boone, forded some stream up to the waste to get to huddle house (which blows...portions are not american)...great few days off the trail. here got a few pictures, nothing too exciting.



shelter w/ fireplace in Mt. Rogers State park....there goes my gear and the awaited pictures of the sleeping bag which has been warm



woke up to this at 4400 feet somewhere in southern virginia...nice shelter and thankfully dry snow




Grayson highlands, VA



TN



left to right - Captain oz, juicebox (he forded the kenebeck and did the CT challenge...~50 miles in one day) and Chevrolegs. Hung out with these guys for about a week and had a blast. It was good to finally hike with some sobos for a little bit.

11/9/2008 9:44:14 AM