For a good time call.. 32ozgatorade

“haha”

“Hey 32, we met a couple of west bound MST thru hikers on the Neusiok trail. We all camped at the same shelter. I gave them my number and offered support once they got to the Raleigh area. Anyway, one of them called and he ended up staying with us one night. I think he was glad for a warm bed and hot meal. He told me lots of stories of his journey so far. Sounds like he is having a good time so far, but getting permission to camp on private property has been a bit of an issue.”

“Thanks CD.. Gem and I will be down your way Feb 4th for the FMST meeting.. I'm hoping to get more info then...

If it goes to according to plan, I will be doing from Nags Head thru the end of the Neusiek Trail in April, and picking up from there in june...

I will be averaging a little over 21 miles per day... 37 days, hitting Clingman's Dome on a Sunday.... :)

There will e several nights of 'stealth camping/late night hiking' I can see that already...

'32oz”

“Sounds like a good plan. You should be able to avoid some of the Neusiok swamp creatures if you go in April. The thru-hikers were using bivys, which I assume was because they are more stealthy for those errr..not always legal campsites. I have his number if you want to talk to him.”

“thanks.. how many were there?

'32oz”

“Honestly, I don't know how many. But he was using Taba's guide and I think they are listed in there. Is that the guidebook you are using?

He also had a few problems with police showing up at his campsite to ask him what he was doing. Fortunately, he had permission from the landowner. The way he handled these inquiries was to show the police his MST guide, explain the idea of a thru hike, and tell them who gave him permission. Unlike the AT, not all of the local people know about the MST. They basically think thru-hikers are homeless. Which they are...kinda...voluntarily homeless.”

“I'm sure they get mistaken for an 'occuppy Anytown USA' person.. Of course the differense is that the occupy people are never prepared for the cold..

'32oz”

“Theres a couple here in Banner Elk that did the MST and they had there gps with them as well as a phone journal to explane to the police.”

“Oh, and this thru hike guy said that explaining what he was doing by using the term "pilgrimage" or "spiritual journey" was better understood by people unfamiliar with the idea of thru hikes. I suppose it sounds a little less crazy.
last edited: 1/23/12 4:30:05 PM”