the weekend hit to finish the miles we had remaining to the James River bridge. As you will notice we finished here almost a month ago but pulled out a little early.

The first day we drove 4 and 1/2 hours up to Virginia and climbed 3,700 ft in 9 MI. When I say the weather was perfect I cannot emphasize enough how this temperature was right for the climbing. It may have been 60°.

the second day found us doing almost 12 miles. We followed the Blue ridge parkway for most of it.

we were just ahead of the bubble thank goodness.

The temperature dropped down into the 40s our first night and I’m glad I had my warmer bag. Martin and Frank did not.

the infamous guillotine

we were wary of bears in this spot. We hiked 12 miles and it was time to rest in the only place that had water. It was near here that this happened. https://thetrek.co/appalachian-trail/i-survived-a-bear-attack-on-the-appalachian-trail/

A big fire came through here a year ago and it was obvious the damage that occurred. Matts Creek.

an incredible 3-day weekend with 30 mi and lots of elevation. Great company and weather. Look at the size of this monster black snake I encountered. I would also like to make mention of the brand new helinox chair I got for my birthday from AJ. The week before we spent two nights out watching the lightning bugs in the smokies and it was glorious although we had some rain.

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTL3yvRSf

this section is considered the crown and glory of the Appalachian trail. And this is the iconic McAfee knob shot.

there was some hot hiking to get here. 88° was unexpected.

For the benefit of section hikers like ourselves there’s pretty much cell service from dragon’s tooth to troutville. Frank and I were doing this time by Martin, The Edge, Hunley.

Our miles were not that long due to the absence of water on the trail. That meant we had to carry most of what we drank for the day. So that kept us under the 12 mile per day mark.

the Appalachian trail bubble was a little bit behind us. But there were plenty of thru hikers on this section.

And an abundance of wildflowers.

They love the heat. Us, not so much.

Our second day was not much more mileage than the first.

The views on this section were incomparable.

Among our many wildlife encounters were snakes, deer, owls and ticks. Many, many, tics. We had deer in camp for our first two nights.

Do you know what kind this is?

our third day we drop down into troutville Virginia. Frank suggested that we stay at the bee cHill hostel and that was a good decision. It rained that night.

after a wonderful breakfast they prepared for us we pushed on. Coming up upon full hard knob shelter I was greeted by this site.

we had 10 miles to do this day and it was some of the best walking of the trip. We’re going to be joined by Toni, her plan was to drive from Memphis. But due to family issues at home she was forced to reconsider the decision and considering the long drive I understood. So you can imagine my surprise when she comes stumbling into camp that evening. Having driven all the way from Memphis and hiking 10 miles. She’s a beast on the trail. And I was glad to have her company.

she picked a big day of hiking.

probably the big character of our trip was a man named Homer. Homerun shuttles in this section and he picked us up at the river and took us back to our starting point. At 82 years old he is as spry as a teenager.

Homer ended up shuttling us twice but I ran into him on the trail three times. Once when we pulled into troutville he was mowing several acres of the Appalachian trail. And I do mean acres with a push mower. Then later I ran into him on the Blue ridge parkway when we popped out shuttling someone else

and of course at the end he was there to retrieve us. Such an interesting character he hiked the trail at age 62.

Frank and Martin were way ahead of us. So we enjoyed a leisurely stroll.

Our day’s hike paralleled the Blue ridge parkway for a significant amount of time.

we would have to make a dry camp, retrieving water from the bottom of the parkway and carrying at 7/10 of a mile to a knob.

our 6th days saw us doing less than 6 MI. Giving us an overall total of 55. The amount of elevation completed was11,089 feet climbing. We averaged 9.2 miles per day, and our daily elevation average was 1968.

Despite the heat I really enjoyed the section. It’s very dry though. We’re now officially one third of the way done with the Appalachian trail.

What do you think of Franks shorts?

one final note before concluding this epic journey. I did not get a single blister with all the heat and the 40 lbs we were carrying with extra water

what made the difference you may ask?

SmartWool hiking socks.

have used Darn tough before but these knock the socks off of them. @smartwool.

Cotocachi

Pasochoa

Ruccu Pichincha

Cotopaxi (16,200 feet of it)

San Juan Achontilado.

Base camp.

We set off at midnight for the summit of Chimborazo. Once again Strava was wrong here on this one. I turned around at over 19,000 ft.

Strava and garmin failed me bigly here. Along with my body. I have several theories about this. One is that I did not fully get acclimated on pasachoa due to having to descend with a client. The other is that I did not take any altitude medicine. Ordinarily I do not take altitude medicine. And I seemed to be acclimating really well. But as we slept in the high camp I woke up with a terrible headache. It was soon accompanied by nausea. This was classic a cute Mountain sickness. I still suited up and pressed for the summit, along with members of my team Richard Dan Emily and Chris. We all had private guides. My Guide from two years previous, Christian, took me on a sporting route up the via ferrata. The weather was fantastic and windless but that was soon to change. Snow moved in as we crested the peak of those metal ladders. And transitioned to the glacier. Here I caught up with the rest of the team. Richard was having trouble with his crampons. Cris was still struggling with a chest infection that dogged her throughout the journey. Emily and Dan were well ahead of us. As we slogged up in the middle of the night in the cold temperatures, wind increased. And snow peppered our faces. This was proving to be a tough endless slog. As I gained altitude my nausea took over. The dry heaving I had done in the morning after breakfast was now uncontrollable. This isn’t the first time I’ve experienced this. I’m usually able to push on through it. But here on the side of this mighty Mountain my guide gave me that look. The same one I have given other people that I’ve led up mountains. We still had a thousand vertical feet to go. And my body wasn’t having it. I descended and wished Chris and Richard the best of luck. They were in the hands of more than competent guides.

It took a couple of hours to get back to advanced base camp. There, I laid in a sleeping bag very altitude sick. I watched our team trickle back in. Dan Emily and Richard reached the first summit of Chimborazo. Although not the true summit of this peak it is over 20,000 ft. And that is quite an accomplishment. I’m proud of their determination.

we did so much more down in Ecuador though.

I’m so glad our entire team made it. Today we’re up for a rest day and then tomorrow we head over to the high mountains. This will include an acclimatization run on Cotopaxi or at least part of it some horseback riding at tambopaxi lodge, and then we move over to Chimborazo base camp.

Quito has been good and the weather so kind. Everyone is healthy and acclimating appropriately.

I will add some pictures from our venture.

I was so honored to be asked to present the keynote speech to the annual Morristown Chamber meeting. John McClellan, Natasha Morrison and my brother, Todd were integral to making this happen. I was honored to share this with my family and all the Morristown people that braved the elements to support my hometown. The message was bouncing back after failure. I’ve had plenty of those, as have we all. But we push on. Where does this motivation derive? It is different for everyone, mine is but one perspective. Mountains are great levelers of men and women. As they say in N.A. and A.A., you must live “life on life’s terms”. We can’t change reality, instead, we must adapt to it. The universe is always teaching us, and that is how God makes us better in hopes we can inherit eternity. I know the good people of my hometown are ambassadors for this sentiment. I appreciate their indulgence and support. I wouldn’t have wished to grow up anywhere else. I know my home people are good stewards and reminded them of the importance of keeping public lands in public hands. This is something we at the Southern Forest Watch have fought for and continue to fight. There are battles ongoing behind the scenes. Land grabs on the Smokies borders. Myers and I are digging in and challenging the NPS on their political fealty. We did it before with a “private resort”. We now are faced with having to do it with encroachers who have not abided the park boundaries and a superintendent who turns a blind eye.

Stay tuned.

This article could as well be about ole Ab. But it isn’t.

Looks like a lively crew is going to go back down to Quito with us this year. If you are interested, I would be glad to answer any questions. Below is the link to details about the trip. It is a great experience hiking and trekking with the option of climbing Chimborazo, the tallest point in Ecuador. This trip includes all boutique hotel lodging, guides and gear. Airfare is not included. There is a reason we have two return hikers on this one, Quito is magnificent. Hot springs, great restaurants and breathtaking scenery. I’m rather partial to Ecuador.

www.johnquillenadventures.com

Many years ago we constructed what came to be known as the most famous rock circle in the Smokies. And it was so dubbed, Sithenge. Here is a link to that trip from way back in the archives.

This year I was delighted to have Martin hunley at the helm, guiding the USS Steinhatchee to Port.

NPS Fudging Number again.