Are You Unbreakable?

“North Fork Trail Trip Report

Me and Tom & Buddur met up at 6:00 am and headed out of Akron to WV. We had a good 6 hours of conversation about gear, beer and girls (and some geology too) before pulling into the trail head at 12:15 where I met Gonzo for the first time. The three of us waited for Skully for about 1/2 hour and then heaed to the trail.

We started hiking at about 3:30, knowing that WV's deer seaon was to begin on Monday, so we felt pretty safe. AFter about 4 miles of hiking, and finding no good campsites, we decided to set up camp at the intersection of two trails, in the dark. That's when all hell broke loose. First the dogs (buddur-boy, Scooby-girl) started humping, right in front of everybody. Ole' gonzo tried sooing them away, and then Buddur nearly humped him, whadda sight! Then a bow hunter showed up on an ATV, with a 6 pack (and no deer) He talked with us for a bit and said he'd be back at 5:30. After he left, Gonzo started telling us about himself (hence the title) The guy is amazing -
He's been run over by a truck, check that , run over and then peeled out on by a truck.... and was OK.

He's nearly been killed by falling trees when he worked in the tree industry, not a scratch.

The guy is unbreakable.

We woke up at 5:30 to the combination of Scooby barking at something and out hunter buddy riding up the trail in his ATV at 5:30. Hit the trail at 8:30. It was foggy that morning, so the views were limited. I managed to see a deer (who probably won't be around much longer), and signs of hunters everywhere. By 1:00, the clouds has dispersed, and our views were back. The trail was a nice hike, challanging, yet rewarding. We passed a section of road where there were deer hunters everywhere. Note to TTr's, when a deer hunter packs light, he just brings his pick-up. When he packs heavy, he brings pick-up and trailer with coolers, generators 50 ft. long tents, etc.

By the end of the day, SKully had some nasty blisters to contend with and we were all exhausted. We found a nice site right on the ridge, with a great view of the southern sky for the evenings shooting start display. I saw my first shooting star that night, and made a wish that Spock would go away forever.

The next moring, the groupo got up at 5:00 and watched the peak of the Leoniod showers. IT WAS AMAZING! At one point, I faced South, Unbreakable faced East and Tom faced North and for 1 minute we counted the shooting stars. We have 54 combined in one minute! Amazing!

We hit the trail at about 7:00 and were ready to complete the last 10 miles. The weather was PERFECT. It must have been in the high 60's and sunny! The only thing disrupting the beautiful day was the sounds of distant gunshots (I guess the hunters were practicing). After about 3 miles into the hike, Gonzo (Unbreakable) and I came across this guy on the trail. he said his name was Hoy, and that he just bushwacked his way to the trail. Gonzo and I thought he was some local, and we went our seperate ways (Gonzo needed to get back ASAP because he works 3rd shift. After about an hour, we waited for Buddur and Skully to catch up, and here comes this Hoy guy with Tom & Buddur. Turns out, it's Hog On Ice! I couldn't believe it! It was certainly a pleasant surprise! Two other hikers heard us talking, and showed us an absoulutely beautiful view from a rocky ledge. It was the best reward of the trip!

We hiked out the last 5 miles to graet views and a nice hike, got a group photo and HOI and Scully were nice enough to drive us back to Tom & Buddur's van.

It was a great trip, and I feel fortune to have been there with some great TTr's. Thanks for coordinating the trip Tom!

BTW-Skully is Skulkatz (SP)”

“Cool! And why, oh why, can't you guys plan a trip for MT? I'm missing all the fun.”

“Oh, I almost forgot - Skully gets the "Tough Guy Award" Not only did she hike with two nasty blisters on both feet - she slept topless, errrrr, I mean tentless.

lol!”

“Great trip report there Buddha Bear!

It sounds like you all had a lot of fun!”

“lol.. skully is a tough chick.. glad to hear you guys had a good time tho..

:)”

“Oh,.. and yes, pretty much, isn`t everyone?

I`ve been shot a few times, beat up left for dead twice, had the tree falling on me thing happen a few times, (most of `em my own fault), did the rodeo thing for a long spell, fell from crazy heights, (feel out of trees, off cliffs, fell down a well, fell off structure), got hit by lightining three times, been knifed, got run over by a tractor, (not a truck) and had a wreck that almost got me, but I`m not done for yet!LOL

Oh,..so far the divorce hasn`t killed me either!”

“unbreakable man is pretty damn sore and tired right now, for sure....

it was a pleasure meeting buddha bear, skully, hog on ice, and hiking again with buddur and buddur the dog....

plus, we may have recruited a couple of newbies....chaos and his trail hiking buddy (marathon man??)....thanks again to you for showing us the most outstanding views imaginable....

and thanks again to buddur for setting up another outstanding hike!!”

“It was good to meet y'all. Too bad I was not able to catch you to camp together Sat. evening - oh well - that ascent wiped me out and I couldn't make the miles. The meteor shower was great from up on the rocks.”

“Wow sounds like you all had a great trip.”

“How cool, meeting a TTer you weren't expecting!

Sounds like Budder had a good time too!”

“Sounds like you all had a great trip. Looking forward to the group pic and any other photos that get posted.”

“This is a fantastic trail and I would love to hike it again. The views were spectacular, I only wish it had been clearer Saturday. I'm sure we could have seen Seneca Rocks from there. It was great meeting you guys, HOI you're just gonna have to make it a full weekend next time! Oh, and thanks for the new handle. I have one question, for unbreakable gonzo. Is this what it feels like to be run over and pealed out on by a truck? An expert opinion, please ¦ )”

“Buddur - I meant to ask you yesterday about the rocks in the ridge - the white sandstone on top and the dark brown rock (sandstone also ???) toward the bottom. What was that rock toward the bottom called? Is it just iron stained sandstone?”

“The white ridge-forming rocks uptop is the Lower Silurian (~440 milion years old) Tuscarora Formation consisting of milky quarts sandstone and conglomerate. The red rocks at the bottom were not insitu and had to have been placed on the trail as they were most likely from the red-colored Upper Ordovician (>440 million years old) Juniata Formation that underlies the Tuscarora Fm. The guys (Chaos?) that showed us the rock vista mentioned the red outcropping rocks cross the valley...that was/is the underlying Juniata Formation.

Both Formations are widespread and can be found in the surrounding states. And yes the red color is from iron (hematite) staining of the rocks.”

“Wow - sounds like fun. Thanks for the report, BB.”

“had an accident at work....fell down on my back and cracked a couple of ribs....i'm sitting here all doped up on pain killers and hoping for a miracle cure so i can still go to mt. rogers next weekend....

it hurts to laugh....that's the worst part!!”

“oh man, sorry to hear that.

Proceed directly to the Injured Reserve List. Maybe Geobeet will split some of his rat poison with you.

Turn Off the Comedy Channel.”

“Sorry to hear that, Gonzo. I hope that you heal fast!”

“Again.... the Dark force at work here...... Stikmon..... we have another one! This is becoming dangerous! Perhaps we need to consult more powerful wizards..... any suggestions?

My dear Gonzo...... you have my deepest wishes for you to heal soon. Lie there and rest. Cracked ribs are nothing to laugh about! Hope you feel better soon!”

“WELLL...since you gotta stay home anyway...maybe Brandy should go out and play with some of the TTers.”

“Oh no gonzo, that's terrible! Not only have you broken your streak (yes, that's a pun. no, don't laugh if you think it's funny) but you won't be there next weekend.

Rest, take it easy, get better and we'll really look forward to seeing you next time. Oh yeah, and enjoy those meds!”

“Wanna hear a really funny joke???
j/k
Sorry dude, that's one of the nastiest things that can happen. Heal up fast and for God's sake, stay away from pepper!!!”

“Gonzo, sorry to hear that. I broke a rib once so I know how you feel. Keep a pillow handy and hug it real tight if you have to sneeze. I doubt you will be hiking for awhile. These things take time to heal. No miracle cure, just nature fixing things in her own time.”

“That sucks Gonzo!
Get well soon.”

“Go for it!”

“Gonzo, we know that you breaking something is not possible, so come clean...... what is the real reason you can't make it?

BB

j/k - hope you are better bro, so we can bag that peak!”