death march, 2008

so the Big Walk is done. finito. and i kind of miss its presence in my mind and in my life. the dread/excitement/planning/training. i suppose i need to do some internettin' to see if i can find another tortuously long hike to rule my life for the next couple of months...

thoughts from the road (in no particular order):

1) it takes a long time to walk 31 miles. a really, reeeeally long time.

we kept about a 3.26 mile/hour pace, on average. and that includes the times we stopped to stretch, eat, go to the bathroom, etc. that means it took us NINE AND A HALF HOURS. you'd best be in good company on a walk like this, or you might really regret it. the walk itself is one big mental challenge to begin with, and if you toss is a high-maintenance, extra-annoying friend or two - you can forget it. if you find yourself saddled with a tag-a-long that you picked up along the trail, just fake a leg cramp and let him get ahead... or just suck it up and jog for a while to ditch her. it's worth it in the long run. but a walking partner is pretty key on a long trek. there were times on saturday of extreme boredom mixed with stabbing pain in my ass-cheek that, if i had been alone, might have led to a slowing pace or a short break or two. but just having someone else there really kept my pace up and helped to lessen that evil voice in my head saying "oh, don't be silly - just take a quick 5-minute break... who'll know the difference? who?"

2) the sierra club does a swell job with pit stops and porta-potties.

there was a breakfast break, a snack break, a lunch, and then a final snack break along the trail - all about 7 miles apart. usually, just when fearful boredom was setting in... or thirst... or shrinking tendons... or all of those things, a cheerful volunteer would come whizzing up on a bike saying "Just 2 more miles until the next stop, folks! anyone need some water?" really, it was great. we only stopped for a few minutes each time, but it was enough to stretch for a minute and break up the monotony.

3) late april is a perfect time for a walk in the woods.

except for the threat of torential rain or late freak snowstorm, late april is a beautiful time of year. the trees are a lush and damp, throbbing green. pale leaves and dark tree trunks, flowers masking the poison ivy. plump turtles in the canal. even the snakes looked friendly. it wasn't too hot for most of the walk, and we crossed the finish line just before the rain started. it really could not have been better. and no bugs!

4) harpers ferry is FAR too hilly.

just to keep things interesting, the sierra club plans the hike to end on a high note - and by high, i am referring to elevation. the last mile or so is basically straight up hill. ! whose bright idea was that? "gee, after 30 miles of slogging through the woods, nothing sounds finer than a fierce one mile uphill climb on uneven cobblestone streets... let's do it!" and the volunteers are so sly about it, too, as if they are embarrassed about such a sadistic plan. you come off the trail at the end of mile 30, then climb a steep staircase up to the rail bridge over the potomac river. hey, nice view, nice breeze, hey we're almost done! then at the end of the bridge you run into a volunteer who says "congratulations! great job, guys! just head over to that volunteer over there by the road! have an oreo!" okay, so then you get to the next volunteer who won't look you in the eye, and just mumbles something about "go to that intersection over there and it's just straight ahead for another mile..." hey, that doesn't sound bad, right? until you get to that intersection and turn the corner - and you see nothing but steep steep cobblestone street. FAIL. but then you buckle down and walk, because that's what you do. but there aren't any signs or volunteers anywhere to be seen. you walk and walk and walk. then you think, "surely i've gone a mile by now?" but all the volunteers are hiding. they are avoiding you because they know this is a bad idea. and you begin to wonder if you are walking in the right direction. then you see the top of the hill. yay! top of the hill! we must be at the end! right? wrong! you keep walking, downhill now, fighting the panic that you've passed the finish line and now are walking for no reason... you ask folks sitting on porches and get cryptic replies such as "how far have you walked so far? 30 miles? well, you've got a ways to go yet..." then you spy another hill approaching. still, a suspicious lack of volunteers. so you suppress the tears, scrunch your toes, feel a blister pop, and then keep on trudging. because that's what you do. then! lo and behold! at the top of hill #2 you see a white volunteer t-shirt in the distance! without any fanfare, the volunteer says "you made it! just follow this street to the community center!" then she quickly looks away. you follow where she pointed, and see that it is ANOTHER DAMN HILL. a short one, yes, but still a hill.

like i said before, harpers ferry is just far too hilly.

5) moleskin is good. but arch supports might be better.

so a few weeks ago, i got some terrible blisters in a training hike. right on the heel. deep suckers, too. the newly hatched skin that was revealed by the healing blisters was very tender and pink, and i was afraid of getting more blisters in the same spot. so! i bought some moleskin and taped up the outsides of both heels, as well as the edges of my outter toes. man o man, is that stuff great. it felt like i was walking on pillows for about 20 miles. then my arches started falling and that hurt pretty goshdarned bad.

6) the Harpers Ferry G.A.S.

so as i was getting ready for the hike, i stumbled into some blogs written by veterans of the hike. one guy mentioned the Harpers Ferry G.A.S. - the Grimace and Shuffle - as a trademark of the community center where the hike finishes. and i couldn't have said it better. that's what everyone was doing. baring their clenched teeth in a snarl, while shuffling along with bowed legs and a bent back. usually accompanies by bursts of sounds like "oooch! eeeech! urg." the 100K folks were rolling into the finish line as well, and those dudes were in rough shape. dead eyes, slack mouths. some of them were laying around on the linoleum tile wrapped in blankets muttering "i can't walk, i can't walk" or just pretending to sleep until their rides arrived. the community center also provided vegetarian chili, pizza, salad and all sorts of goodies for a post-hike feast. after eating a bowl of the veggie (with approx. 27 kinds of beans) chili, i can say that there is a whole 'nother meaning to the Harpers Ferry G.A.S.

all in all the walk/hike was a great experience, and it felt sooo good to finish. and i probably have much more to say, but i can't think of anything else right now. it is now the 2nd day after, and i feel almost back to normal!