Penmar to Deer Lick Shelter

Feb 17 2017 - Penmar to Deer Lick Shelter - 4.9 Miles in the Dark

  - I've been a bit busy for the past few months, so I'm catching up on past Section Hikes. For the next few days I will be posting for a hike that we did in Feb with some friends who joined us.

On this section hike, we were joined by David and Eve, father and daughter and friends of ours. We drove two vehicles so we could put one at our destination, and then drive to the starting point. We dropped my car just outside Caledonia State Park in Pennsylvania on US30 (there is a parking lot right by the stoplight). Then we drove down to Penmar Park in Maryland, where Sage and I started our last section hike.

   We started at 7:15, well after dark. The view from Penmar Park is rather impressive at night. There is an overlook  of the valley to the west and the lights from the houses below make an interesting sight.

    We hiked down to the Mason-Dixon line and let Sage and Eve pose for pictures as we entered the North. 

The wind and cold were very brisk at Penmar park, but by this point in the hike we were no longer exposed. It was a cold, clear night, and after a short downhill, we arrived at our first option to camp for the night. It was a pretty spot next to a stream, but since we had hiked only .8 miles, we decided to hike to the next shelter, a bit over 4 miles away.

   The trail on this section is smooth, not many rocks. The climbs were modest and had a gentle grade which allowed us to climb without many breaks. Even though Eve was new to backpacking...she knocked out the 5 miles in the dark no problem. Any further might have been a problem, but 5 miles was about right given our late start.

    After a final climb that seemed a bit longer than expected, we ran into Deer Lick Shelters. They are less than 20 yards off the trail. I dropped my pack, and began to search for Hammockable trees. We chose a tent pad right next to the AT and set up 3 hammocks and one Tarp Tent.

   It was a bit colder than expected, it got down to mid to high 20s. Sage the Blue Caterpillar had no problem staying warm in her hammock. 

 

     Deer Lick Shelter consists of two small shelters next to each other, with a privy right next to the trail and a spring not too far away. I didn't see a bear pole anywhere, but other than that, it was a good stop. I managed to find a decent tree to hang our food, so it was a good stop, and the right distance from the starting point given that we started after dark.  4.9 miles go go...13.6 till we make it to the car. 

MD Section Hike Rocky Run Shelter to Weaverton Clliffs Parking Lot- Dec 29-31- Day 3

Miles Hiked Today 13
Total Miles Hiked on this Section: 39
Total AT Miles Hiked
Dan: 508
Sage: ~500

Note: Once Sage and I hike from the north side of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center south of Harpers Ferry we'll have the same total AT miles and will be completely synced up on our section hike.

    Today's hike completed a continous AT segment for Sage from Penmar Park (near the Pennsylvania border) to Blackburn Trail Center, south of Harpers Ferry.  Once we connect the top of SNP to Blackburn Trail Center ( which will take a few days, not a bad section hike), we will both have from the bottom of SNP to the Pennsylvania border complete.

    The night ended up not being as cold as I expected, and I slept reasonably well. We went to sleep around 8pm and didn't wake up until about 7 am today. I'm always amazed at how early we go to bed and how many hours of sleep we can get on the trail. Nothing like walking all day to help you get a good rest.

We were moving slowly...ate some breakfast and strolled away from the shelter around 8:20am.



      Heading south out of Rocky Run, we were greeted with a nice long climb. When done as the 16-18 mile point of the 20 mile "insane hike" schedule, the guys in Batallion refer this as "The Hill that Never Ends." When hiked at the start of the day, it is not very difficult, and just helps to warm you up.

     We make it to White Rock Trail by 11:20, and began the long decent down to Crampton Gap Shelter. At Crampton Gap, Sage insisted that we eat a warm meal. I didn't want to take the time, but I've found that it is usually "faster" to take a break, eat a warm meal, and resume hiking refreshed and with food in my stomach. So I went digging in the foot bag to see the options.

    Not much to choose from...last day of hiking, so there was almost nothing left. I found half a summer sausage, and some mashed potatoes. Ahh...just what I need for one of our favorite trail recipes:



    Dan & Sage's Greasy Potatoes:

     Ingredients:
      1) Cheap Summer Sausage from Aldi
      2) Instant Mashed Potatoes

      Steps:
      Measure enough water for the quantity of Mashed potato flakes used
      Cut Summer Sausage into little chunks, or large chunks if lazy
      Bring Water AND Sausage to a boil. Watch as the grease and flavor cause the water to get shiny with yummy flavor
      When water hits a good boil (or earlier if really hungry), mix in potato flakes. Stir.
       Eat

        Once we had woofed down our potatoes and summer sausage, we hit the trail. The remainder of the hike is a ridge walk, and i was expecting an easy walk to the car. It wasn't difficult, but the hike dragged on a bit. After passing Garvey Shelter, we saw multiple groups hiking up to celebrate New Years at the shelter. Not a bad plan, our family celebrated 2015 Thanksgiving at that shelter, It has a nice view, a good table and is a nice place to spend the night.  But Sage and I had one goal in mind...get the car and call this hike done.



  I was moving pretty slow since my foot was hurting a bit. Sage got plenty of "waiting for Dad" time...but she doesn't seem to mind.  We made it to the car by 3:30pm. This allowed us to make it home before 5pm. Oh...the joy of a nice long shower after a few days in the woods.

   And by 7pm...we were heading out the door to attend a New Years Party with some friends. A very long day, but no regrets.

 

MD Section Hike-Penmar to Cowell Shelter Dec 29-31 Day 1

 Day 1-Dec 29  Penmar Park to Cowell Shelter -10 miles in the dark.

  Once again, I'm on a Section Hike of the AT with Sage. This time it is only for 3 days / 2 nights. Today we did 10 miles in the dark to set up 2 more days of hiking. (20 and 12 planned). We are doing the "Insane Hike" route/schedule, which our Battalion does every January. It knocks out the 42 miles of MD AT in about 40 hours. Our car is waiting at the end...so unlike the Insane Hike, where you have the option of dropping out... we have to finish to go home. We've already done the last 3 miles, so we have the option of only doing 39 miles.

     We are now snug and warm for the night in an AT shelter....first day done. We started around 5:30pm and finshed in about 5  1/2 hours. Not a rapid pace, but I've gone slower.

 The arch of my left foot is hurting...i think it hasnt fully recovered from last May.  Not good. It isnt hurting bad...yet...im going to keep going.

As for Sage...she remains...a hiking machine.  Im confident Sage could have done this hike in under 4 hours without my slowing her down.



 At one point she commented "it would be fun to hike all night until daylight...just to see how far you could go.

Eh..yeah. Sounds like a great time. Too much fun for me in fact.

It is good to be back on the trail with Sage....chipping away at our Section Hike of the AT.

What to bring on a winter weekend hike

  Recommended gear for a short winter weekend hike-  two nights in the woods.

Shelter:  If going with a group, consider sharing a shelter to save weight. A tarp makes a great, light winter shelter for hammock or ground. If going to the ground, bring a sheet of plastic, or even better tyvex, to lay on the ground under your tarp.

Bring cord and stakes for your tarp.

If you must bring a tent...go with a small/ light one if you plan to do much hiking...every pound of junk must be carried.

Snakeskins coupled with a pre-rigged Ridgeline allows you to deploy your tarp in seconds. When a sudden storm blows in..this can be the difference between comfort and being wet and cold. See the green tube in the picture above? Thats a tarp snakeskin, the tarp is inside. I can string my tarp ridgeline in seconds, and slide the snakeskin off to open up the tarp.

Hammock:  I'm using a Yukon Outfitters Freedom v1 hammock. Wide, long enough, comfortable and cheap  (when on sale). It weighs 10 Oz. There are lots of other good options. Aim for over 10ft long and 60 inches wide for a comfy nights sleep. 

 

For straps, there are of good options...use something with whoopie slings for adjustability. I'm currently using AHE's suspension. I've also used Hummingbird Hammock straps...which only weigh 2oz, but I've had a couple fail on me, so I'm now using something heavier.

Backpack:  I recommend an internal frame pack. Size will depend on your gear...a big cheap synthetic bag can take up a huge amount of space. I carry a 48 L pack with lots of room to spare on weekend hikes. Pay attention to the weight of the pack...my Osprey Exos 48 weighs about 3 pounds...1/2 the weight of some packs. 3 pounds of weight savings is huge.  Decent packs aren't cheap...borrow a pack for your first few trips if you can. This is much better than buying the wrong pack.

Keeping your Backpack contents  dry:

    Put a trash compactor bag inside your pack. Put all dry items inside, fold the top over a few times, and place remaining gear on top. If really wet, for extra assurance, use dry bags for items inside the compactor bag. 

Base Clothing: No cotton. Anywhere. Not even your underwear.  For a weekend...wear the same pants, the same shirt  (synthetic or merino wool) the whole time. If you are obsessed with changing clothes...bring a spare shirt if you must. Bring One spare pair of socks. That's it. The clothing on your back plus a pair of extra socks and layers to add/remove.

Layers to stay warm/dry:  a down puffy jacket or vest is hard to beat. I carry a down puffy jacket and a thin raincoat to go over the top for extra warmth and to keep it dry.  If extra cold, consider adding a long sleeve base layer for added warmth or a warmer down Jacket.

   On colder trips in particular, I am very fond of adding a soft shell rain jacket. This is a synthetic rain resistant stretchy layer that feels a bit like a wetsuit. I will often sleep in it for added warmth.

So: warmer trip- Down puffy for around camp plus thin rain jacket.

    Colder trip- same plus softshell.

     Super cold- same as Colder plus a super warm down puffy.

    Warning: the coldest possible trip is mid to low 30s...freezing rain and a stiff wind. Go for layers...synthetic insulated base...softshell...rain coat...synthetic insulated bottom.

Gloves/Mittens-  I use a superlight pair of rain Mittens from Borah gear and some thin synthetic gloves underneath. For super cold trips...go with warm insulated mittens. Wearing a thin pair of gloves under the Mittens can help when it is super cold..it allows you to use your fingers to set up camp without having them fully exposed.

Hat: You need a warm hat for sleeping. Get something that covers your ears. Keeping your head warm helps to keep your feet warm. If you need a hat for use while hiking (good idea), bring a separate hat...your sleeping hat will be too warm.

Footwear: Resist the temptation to use heavy boots. A good fit is critical. For a weekend trip, waterproof footwear may work. For longer trips..go with non waterproof. The issue is that once waterproof shoes are soaked through...they take a long time to dry. Lightweight hikers are a good choice. Do not assume you must have ankle support, many experienced hikers prefer low top shoes.  Tennis shoes can even work....they are certain a better choice than big heavy boots. Remember, if you are hiking...you have to lift your footwear with every step...lighter is good, and will make you less likely to stumble.

If weather includes wet...you might want to bring an extra pair of dry socks for sleeping. Don't get too worried about your boots/shoes wet...it is hard to avoid on some trips. As long as you keep moving, and you have good synthetic or wool socks, your feet will stay warm enough.

Water system:  Nalgenes are absurdly heavy. Use a cheap disposable water bottle instead. The 1.5 L SmartWater brand bottles are a nice shape and very durable. They fit nicely in the side pockets of many packs.  Camelbacks also work fine...but on the coldest trips the hose may freeze. If it is getting down to 20 or below...leave the camelback at home.

Water- Avoid carrying water for the whole weekend if possible. Confirm if the hiking route has water..and plan accordingly.

Water Filter- the Sawyer Squeeze or Sawyer Mini are under $30 and are widely available. (Including most Wal-marts). The mini is my choice...but it is only an ounce or two lighter...the squeeze is a bit faster filtering. 

Trekking poles: Highly recommended. If you have some old ski poles in the garage.....they work great. I used a $7 pair from Goodwill as my first set......and I still periodically loan them to new hikers.

Cooking: I like to cook...but if the goal is hiking and covering miles...keep it simple. A pop tart or prepackaged donut can make a quick breakfast. I like hot coffee in the morning...Starbucks via if you want awesome and $1 a cup. Individually packaged Tasters Choice if you want so-so coffee at a fraction of the cost. I go cheap. Add a packet of hot chocolate for a mocha. Use your cook pot as a mug.

Lunch and dinner- a 750-850 ml ti pot weighs about 4-5 oz and can cook a whole meal. A Lipton Rice or Pasta Side plus some meat is easy to cook, salty and yummy. Ramen is also quick and tasty.  Google "Freezer bag cooking" for a simple approach that will keep your pot clean.

    A premade sandwich or items that require refrigeration also work great on winter trips.

Peanut M&Ms are hard to beat as a snack on the trail. Gummy Bears are also a calorie dense snack. There are limitless yummy snack items...bring your favorites.

Cooking and Eating on the Trail

  One of the greatest  concerns for any hiker is food. Planning what to bring, how to resupply and an overall food and cooking strategy  is quite challenging. Here are a few things  we learned based on our 22 day, 274 mile section hike.

1) You will not know what and how much you will need to eat before the hike. Give it up, you cannot comprehensively plan your daily menu ahead of time. I had to stifle a laugh every time I saw OCD backpackers pull out zip lock bags with the day's food written on a zip lock bag. They seemed to always have too much (initially) or not enough if they had been on the trail for a while.

2) What looks good from home may not be what you want to eat during the hike

3) From Georgia to Damascus (and probably beyond) it is silly to ship food boxes. Fontana Dam is often listed as a tough resupply. Not when we were there, the general store had a good selection. I am glad we didn't send food, I preferred hunting and gathering with my credit card over receiving trail mix I was tired of in the mail. Note: During the Thru hiker bubble this may not be true, they may run out of food. But in May there was a great selection.

4) I like to cook. I like to eat. I thought I would do so on this trip. But when  you spend 10+ hours hiking, spending the last hour of daylight to make an elaborate meal is very unappealing. I'm use to short, winter trips where tasty, hot food really goes down well. With long days and hot  weather...I could have almost skipped the stove..and I certainly  didn't feel like doing more than heating water.

5) Early in the hike, we did not have much appetite. Sage and I could share a meal. And we typically ate only one hot meal a day.  By the end, we were cooking 2 or more meals for Dinner (One 2.5 serving Mountain  House each), and one or two more hot meals at other times during the day. Our food consumption  more than doubled for the last 7-10 days when compared against the first week.

6) The last week of our hike, when I was hungry my stomach would get unsettled and would hurt. Hiking  was very difficult  without eating something. I REALLY needed to eat when I was hungry. Didn't matter what, but it was critical to put something in my stomach. It would have been very uncomfortable to run out of food. It's been a few days since I got off the trail and I'm still dealing with this painful hunger.

7) Fast, easy to cook (or no cook), high calorie  and low weight was the goal for meals. The first day out of town I might carry something special, like some frozen sausage that would defrost prior to dinner. Ramen, instant mashed potatoes, rice sides...quick, easy and cheap. I brought red pepper flakes as a light hot sauce

8) You can eat a snickers bar or a honey bun for a meal, but it is hard to eat a rice side as a snack. When in doubt on how much you need, bring extra snacks. We never had enough Honey Buns, for example.

9) Healthy Eating? Good for you. That will last for a few days if you are really determined. Good luck eating enough calories eating healthy. You need energy...you will starve if you fill your bag with kale chips. Eating a few snickers bars a day may kill you in daily life. On the trail...it will keep you going.

10) You are not going into the wilderness for weeks. Instead, you are walking from town to town, with a resupply every 2-5 days. This also provides a chance to fend off scurvy with a trip to a Salad Bar. As much as we enjoyed the trail, we also really enjoyed the town stops and associated  showers and meals.

11) Cooking gear: A pot. One. Big enough to cook a single meal with add ins.  (Tuna for example). I found my Toaks 850ml pot to be a great size, definitely large enough for one, and even sufficient  for Sage and I. If you want to bring a separate mug for hot drinks, go ahead, but I would recommend using your pot as your coffee mug as well.

12) Amazon prime was great for resupply. Just  ship your food or gear ahead to a hostel and it will be waiting on you. Why bother  packing your own box..let Amazon do it.

13) Some of my personal favorite trail foods: Ramen, Peanut Butter M&Ms, Any other kind of M&Ms,  Gummy Bears, Snickers, Summer Sausage, Pre-cooked Bacon, Bacon Bits, Cashews, Macadamia Nuts, Mountain House Lasagna, Pepperoni, Cheese, Mrs. Freshly's Iced Honey Buns, Anything  made by Little Debbie, Tasty Cake or Krispy Kreme.

This is the entire cookset Sage and I settled on:

850 ml Toaks pot with lid and handles  4 Oz
Light Ti Cup- 1.6 Oz
Ti Plate/ frypan/ pot lid (minus pot)  1.4 Oz

Plus two ti Sporks: 1.2 Oz for both

Total Weight: 8.2 Oz

Canister Stove: 1 Oz

Day 22- Roaring Fork Shelter to Hot Springs, NC

Appalachian Trail Total Length: 2189
Total Miles Hiked on this trip:   274
Miles Hiked Today: 18.3
Section Hike Complete- Springer to Hot Springs
Sage Lifetime Total AT Miles: 465.4
Sage Percentage of AT Hiked: 21%
Dan Lifetime Total AT Miles: 508.4
Dan Percentage of AT Hiked: 23%

At about 615, I got up and started to make espresso and pack. We hit the trail at 0730, with visions of a fast hike and an early arrival in Hot Springs. The initial few miles were downhill,  and we knocked out about 3 miles in the first hour.  Then we started to climb.

Once again our ambition exceeded our energy.  Neither of us had as much energy as the day before.  On a good day, we have been powering up the climbs with almost no breaks.  We took lots of breaks today.

Walnut Mountain Shelter was located just after the first climb of the day. The description of this shelter  on my AT android app, Guthook, made it sound like a dump. It was a dump, but the location looke like an excellent place to spend the night, great campsites nearby.

    Sage plopped down in the shelter and sprawled out on her foam pad.

  After adding a bit of water to our camelbacks,  we continued. Slightly rested,  but still down on energy. We cruised downhill to the start of Bluff Mountain and began our weary climb to the top. After a long, slow plod to the top, our labors were rewarded with no view.  The theme for today was PUDS, Pointless Ups And Downs. A big climb needs an overlook, not just a continuation of the green tunnel. At least we were done climbing. ...we thought. 

About the time we finished the initial decent of Bluff Mountain, it started to rain.  Fairly heavy. We went from drenched in sweat to drenched in rain.  This was an improvement in some respects,  it improved our smell a bit, and helped to cool us off. 

I have no pictures of this stretch because my Android was tucked away to stay dry. 

Completely exhausted, soaked and with sore feet, we walked into Deer Park Mountain Shelter, only 2.8 miles short of town. And the shelter was packed full of 30 to 40 year old women. Piles of them. Easily over 20. While not an unknown demographic on the trail, it still rather odd to see such a large, homogeneous group overflowing  the shelter.  I sat down in the lessening  rain, and kicked off my shoes to "dry" my feet in the pouring rain. As the rain let up, a few of the women ventured out to set up tents and hammocks,  making room for Sage to get out of the rain. 

After our final break of the day, we started our final descent to town. This rock and plaque marked the end of the trail before entering Hot Springs.

After checking into the Laughing Heart Hostel, a few steps away from the trail, we followed the AT into town and had a large meal to celebrate our 274 mile hike.

The climb from Hot Springs back to the Hostel was brutal, involving dozens of steps and tens of feet in elevation gain. But we hauled our tired bodies back and crashed in our bunks.

While our hiking is done, I will do a few more posts.  I plan to do the traditional Pre-Hike "What's in My Pack" review...post hike. Frankly, that's much more useful, as I have a much more accurate view of what works and doesn't after the hike. Overall our gear worked well, but there are a few changes I would make before a similar hike. 

It has been a great hike, it isn't hard to imagine hiking North out of Hot Springs today.  But it is also rewarding to know that we made it, on schedule and mostly intact. 

I encourage the reader to get out and do some day hikes, or even overnight backpacking trips. While I have met multiple folks on the trail whose first backpacking experience started at Springer,  I think the previous hikes Sage and I have done in preparation have made this trip more enjoyable,  rewarding and safe. So if you have enjoyed this blog, go do likewise...go enjoy the outdoors in some form.  

Day 21- Davenport Gap to Roaring Fork Shelter

Thursday May 26
Total Miles Hiked: 255.7
Miles Hiked Today: 17.5

We started the day at the hotel, taking full advantage of the breakfast options. After a couple plates of sausage gravy, I moved to the fruit loops and donuts to ensure a well rounded breakfast.

We went back to Davenport Gap and Nanna joined us for the first two miles of the hike. 

Shortly after we began, Nanna called out " Bear!  Bear!"  Sage and Nanna saw a bear up ahead on the trail.  

Nanna enjoyed a nice downhill section before we started the work of the day, Climbing for miles, dropping back down, and doing it again.

Our first climb of the day was long, very long. Every time you descend to a gap so you can go into town, the AT rewards you with a big climb the next day.

The first climb had a VHF Antenna or something along those lines, I read it is used by aircraft.  I'm not sure the brutal climb was worth it to see a small govt building. 

Notice there is a rattlesnake half way between Sage and I. Once again, Sage keeps trying to step on the poisonous snakes.

Sage and I still do not have trail names. Based on the rattlesnakes she has seen on the trail,  we discussed "Venom" as a possible trail name for Sage. 

Later in the day, Sage saw a second bear. 2 Bears and a rattlesnake in the same day, quite a day for dangerous critters.

By the time we reached Max Patch, I believe we had climbed more than any previous day on the trip. To survive the day's climbs, I did something I haven't done for the whole trip, I put in ear buds and listened to music. It really seemed to help distract me from the absurd physical exertion. It is great fun to have the stamina, strength and lungs to spend the whole day climbing.  The trail is a great way to get in shape for hiking the trail. Or put differently,  after a week or two if suffering...anyone can be a hiking machine.

Max Patch is probably my favorite location yet on the trail. Pictures simply cannot capture the beauty of this spot. I could definitely see bringing the family back here to camp and enjoy a sunset and sunrise.

Tomorrow we have another long day to Hot Springs.  From Max Patch you can see the next mountain to climb. 

A shower and dinner will be our reward, so we plan to hike hard on our last trail day and rocket up that mountain.

We hiked down from Max Patch,  once again, Sage was leading the way.

  We rolled into the shelter around 6 45pm.  At this point, Sage and I had our first significant disagreement of the trip. Up to this point we have been more like hiking buddies than Father/ Daughter. She wanted to press on and do a 21 mile day to the next shelter. Part of me wanted to do that too, but I knew it was unwise to hike a few miles in the dark after such a long day. I had to play the Daddy is in charge card.  To which she responded "Can I just go on without you?"  At these moments i have to remind myself that i was 14 once. At least I don't have to beg her to hike. I opted for roasting polish sausages over the fire and eating a large, delicious dinner to help fuel the next day's hike.

  After hanging our hammocks and dozing off for about an hour. WHAM! I hit the ground. For the second time on this trip, one of our Hummingbird Hammock straps failed, sending me abruptly to the ground. Time to change my Hammock suspension.  I apologize to anyone who has bought those straps based on my recommendation, they have worked fine for the past couple years. I'm assuming I got a pair with some kind of defect,  but 2 different failures in one trip is absurd.

    Hard to believe tomorrow is our last day. I feel like we are just hitting our stride. It's a great life on the trail, we will miss the daily challenges and scenery,  meeting new people and satisfaction of pushing yourself hard...and making it. 

Sage almost always beats me to the top of a climb.