[at-l] 2003 in Review

[AThiker at smithville.net (Felix)]

My hiking in 2003 went something like this:

Had a great hike in March with lister Amy. We started at Fox Creek north 
of Old Orchard and hiked the AT to the point where the Creeper Trail 
cuts off and then we took the Creeper in to Damascus. (Lovely trail, 
that creeper is.) Had a blast with Amy. Pix of the hike SHOULD be at 
http://felixhikes.tripod.com/AT/MtRogersTrip.html  

Then, in June, Pilot and I hiked the Art Loeb Trail. A very nice 
microcosm-of-the-AT trail. It's kinda like the whole AT shrinked into a 
30 mile trail. Well, there aren't any state lines to cross...so, that's 
at least one difference. After the hike we got to drink coffee with 
Waterfall and listen to her play piano in a coffeehaus in Brevard. That 
was nice. After that we got to do dinner with Pog in Asheville. After 
which Pilot and I went to see James McMurtry at a place called...help me 
here...The Orange Peel? Orange Jam? Somesuch. The next day, we headed up 
the Blue Ridge Parkway...and, at some point, ended up at Fox Hill Inn 
and had a very nice visit/stay with Mark and Janet. Pilot and I spent a 
couple of days/nights at the Fox Hill Inn when we met on our thruhikes 
in '98. so, there was a nice little nostalgia feel. The next day we went 
to Grayson Highlands and then into Damascus. We ate at the little ice 
cream shop the AT runs next to just as a southbounder is getting to 
town. It is the one on the left (trail east) for southbounders...not the 
one across 58. We had a nice little experience with a little girl there. 
Remind me sometime to tell you about it. (There should have been a real 
trip report [as real as one of my trip reports can be] written about 
this trip at the thyme. There wasn't)

Nextly, sometime in September I hiked from Wallingford, VT to N. Adams, 
MA. Had a nice hike...perhaps I shall still write a what-I-remember trip 
report about this one...

And, lastly but not leastly...Pilot and I hiked the Knobstone Trail this 
week. The trail is very nice. Some of the views (winter views) in the 
southern 1/3 were very nice. Reminiscent of many places on the trail in 
VA and TN and GA, in fact. There are some spectacular ravines 
('hollers') and lots of woods, if you're into that kind of thing. Four 
thumbs up from Pilot and me. It was pretty amazing to be hiking on New 
Year's Eve and NOT wear a jacket. We wore shorts the whole hike. I tried 
to spy Saturn New Year's Eve night (it was supposed to be it's brightest 
at midnight, by irony's sake) but couldn't. It's hard to get out of that 
sleeping bag once you're in it...ain't it? I woke up yesterday with a 
near migraine. I COULDN'T get up until nearly 11. Makes for a painful 
day of hiking when it hurst to open your eyes. I'm pretty certain that 
was the most 'sick' I've ever been while hiking. I think I've been 
pretty lucky in those regards over the years.

I'm ramblin'...I do ramble. As far as hike plans for this year...I ain't 
got none. I almost never know 'til about then when and where I'm gonna 
be hiking. I'll let you know if I am. Amy, you wanna go?

Happy New Year to ya...

-- 
Felix Navidad
ME-->GA '98
"Your Move"
http://Felixhikes.tripod.com/