Melbourne

My new haircut

Melbourne was a big and very positive surprise - especially after coming from the states. There are various reasons:

1. There is an Aldi right in downtown Melbourne. It is fucking hot outside, but inside Aldi you can buy Stollen and Lebkuchen for Christmas. I immediately felt at home - and for sure half of the people in that Aldi spoke German, probably all backpackers from Germany.

2. I got a new haircut for just 14 AUS$ which is about 7 EUR. This was the cheapest and fastest haircut I ever got. My hairdresser was from Mauritius by the way. Which leads to...

3. Melbourne is a truly cosmopolitan place. You see schoolgirls in old-fashioned British school uniforms next to dolled-up Japanese girls next to Indians next to Fijians next to Good knows what. The very positive consequence of all this is that the food is incredible. Melbourne has a plethora of excellent Asian restaurants and in fact the local equivilant to a Berlin Doener Kebab is sushi. Everybody is eating sushi rolls as a snack - and they are incredibly cheap: About 1 to 1,50 EUR per roll. It actually is the perfect snack food and you see people everywhere snacking on a sushi roll in a paper bag. I do hope that I am not overeating on all that sushi before I go to Japan.

4. There is an incredible street market everyday with wonderful fruit. Mangos sell for 0,50 EUR and they are better than anything you have ever bought in a German Aldi: juicy and sweet. Right now apricots, peaches and nectarines are in season, too and they are really tasty - not like the bland stuff you get in American supermarkets.

5. Cultural life is good, too: There are some interesting museums and an awesome theatre building. I decided to get a little culture and even saw a theatre play.

I will come back twice to Melbourne and I am really looking forward to it. But right now I have just arrived in Perth, where I will start to hike the Bibbulmun Track tomorrow. I have no clue how the internet access situation is along the trail so don't worry if I am not posting for the next 5 weeks.

Australia

Welcome to Australia

A new continent - hurray!!!! I left Los Angeles being very nervous. Luckily Anita was there "to hold my hand" or I would have probably puked all over the Air Newzealand check in counter - so nervous was I. The big problem was of course the damn bicycle that had to be disassembled and packed and transported... But - oh miracle: Both me and the bicycle survived the trip more or less unharmed. I actually had a wonderful flight with the best inflight programme ever (saw "Mamma Mia" and "Juno") and could even sort of sleep. The bicycle looks like it made it too, but I haven't assembled it yet. Well, the bell broke, but this can be neglected.

I spontaneaously liked Australia. Immigration was easy - no fingerprinting, no stupid questions like "Do you want to marry an American?" - just a stamp in the passport. Awesome. Even in customs they did not bitch about German chocolate or dirty bike tires. Everything worked out great.

Melbourne is a great city - much more atmosphere than comparable American cities, probably due to the British influence. And the food is so good: Lots of Japanese, Thai, Malaysian, Italian and whatever you want. But what irony: I expected incredibly dry heat and when I arrived it started to rain....

My last days in the US

Flat Feet, his wife and I

I did a lot of travelling after finishing the AT - almost too much civilisation after being on the trail for so long. First I stayed another night with Flat Feet and his wife who took me to the old gold mines in Dahlonaga - where the first American gold rush hat taken place. They had also agreed to take me to Atlanta - but it being a Sunday they insisted on taking me to church first. I must admit that I first felt a bit blackmailed by this itinerary because I did not have much choice and am not much of a church goer. But to my big surprise this service turned out to be a very interesting event - and German priests and ministers could learn a lot from it. First of all we did not go to a church, but to an airfield hangar that was used as the churches meeting place on Sundays. The whole congregation take a huge interest in my adventures and even prayed for me - something that I can definitely need. Even the sermon was interesting - and in the end I was very glad that I had come and participate in this very American experience. On top of all that I was even treated to an enormous AYCE buffet - and that of course pleases every thruhiker. 

Martin and Larea

Flat Feet and his wife delivered me safely into the hands of trail angel friends in Atlanta- and of course there is an interesting story behind that. When I had hiked the CDT the year before I and my hiking partner were stuck in a small place in the middle of nowhere called Leodore, Idaho where we were resupplying. It had already taken us 3 hours to hitch into town because there just wasn't any traffic on the dirt road into. The first car in 2 hours had even stopped for us.... So when we were in Leodore's small library we tried to chat up people and ask them to give us a ride back - and this is when we met Martin and Larea who lived in Atlanta but had come back to Lareas old hometown Leodore for a summer vacation. They had never heard of the CDT but volunteered to give us a ride back to the trail - and the rest is history. We had recruited new trail angels and they ended up shuttling a lot of other hikers that year. Now I had come to visit them in Atlanta and they really pampered me. Larea even cooked Sauerkraut and pork for dinner for me, in case I was homesick. And the Sauerkraut was good, actually better than most of the stuff in Germany. It was great to see them again and do a bit of sightseeing in Atlanta, like the overpriced aquarium and the even more overpriced CNN headquarters. Stone Mountain which is the American Ayers Rock was very nice. And it looks like a miniature version of Ayers Rock indeed. I regarded that as preperation for Australia.

Washington, DC

After two days in Atlanta I took Amtrak to Washington. Believe it or not: I arrived one hour early in Washington, which is an incredible surprise as Amtrak is chronically hours late. I met my German friend Maik in Washington and we spent 3 short and packed days with sightseeing and updating each other on our last half year. Meeting Maik was like a short holiday in Germany. To my great surprise I could still speak fluent German... 3 days is way too short for Washington because there is so much to see. Despite being really efficient we managed maybe half of the museums. Washington is great - everything is located in the center, so it is actually a walkable city. And the museums are definitely world class. Washington was a very positive big surprise, but alas, 3 days were way too short.

Maik left for Germany and I left for Los Angeles where Anita was being my angel again picking me up at the airport at night. Luckily I did not have a bicycle that time. I have to admit that I did not do much sightseeing in LA - I am just taking it easy.

Too Obtuse

But another suprise was waiting for me in LA: Too Obtuse is an old PCT friend living in New Hampshire. Because he was hiking the PCT this year he was the only PCT friend I did not see while hiking the AT. So you can imagine my surprise when he mentioned in an email that he is temporarily working in LA. Well, we met yesterday in Hollywood and talked for 5 hours straight. I was having a great time and felt great about missing out on sightseeing .

In 12 hours I will be leaving for Australia - I am horribly nervous. I had to dissassemble my bike for transport and now I am having nightmares about not being able to assemble it again. At the end of this trip I will probably be a very able bike mechanic - hopefully.

Well, that is all for today - next post will be from Australia.

What is next?

Washington, DC

Right now I am staying with Flat Feet in Suches, GA. Tomorrow I will visit trail angels in Atlanta, collect about 10 packages I have sent them during my thruhike and continue on to Washington, DC. There I will meet my German friend Maik - this will be the first opportunity to speak German again for me after 6 months. I also want to tank up on cultural stuff and visit all the museums there before I go on to Australia.

On November 22nd Maik flies back to Germany and I fly on to Los Angeles to be happily reunited with my bicycle. I will spend three days there and then eventually leave for Australia. I depart on November 25th and will arrive in Melbourne on November 27th. Luckily this is due to the international date line and not to long flight times.

I will stay 3 days in Melbourne and then fly on to Perth where I will start to hike the Bibbulmun Track on December 1st. So I will not be hiking for 2 weeks now! Lots of travelling and flying around for 2 weeks. I will be glad to be back on the trail again.

Australia - here I come!

AT: How do I feel now as a Triple Crowner?

I am a very happy hiker! I met so many people who are not living their dream - because of family, lack of money, alcohol or whatever reason. I do live my dream now and I feel very fortunate to be able to do so. I feel like Alice in Wonderland. Life is like a colourful picture-book catalogue full of adventures in front of me. And I just have to point at one I like and do it! It feels great! Completing the triple crown does not feel like the end of something, it is just like one step of a big trip. There are so many more things I want to do! Life is good!

AT: Tipps and Tricks

There are loads of websites and internet forums about hiking the Appalachian Trail and therefore I do not want to go into many details here. Just some advice that might differ from what you generally hear about how to hike the AT. 

Harper's Ferry

Resupply: I found tons of info on where to send resupply boxes and hikers with elaborate resupply plans. You don't really need all that on the AT (if you are not on a specific diet for whatever reason). I hiked the AT without a single re-supply maildrop and did not have the slightest problem with it. You are always so close to towns that "buy as you go" is easy - I find it way more complicated to coordinate your town visits with post office opening times. You don't even need a bounce box. I hiked with the same equipment all the time except for my tent (that had to be sent away for warranty repair) and my sleeping bag (I changed into a warmer sleeping bag towards the end of my hike.

Shelters: Much of the AT image is based around its shelter and the romantic notion of the life in it. I did not like the shelters at all for various reasons: First of all there were the mice - and believe me they are a real nuisance. But by just sleeping 100 meters away from the shelter I did not have a single mouse in my tent or food on the whole trip. And by camping close to the shelter you can still take advantage of its water sources and rain protection for cooking. Also I did not only experience comraderie in the shelters - very often getting a place in the shelter resembled more of a fierce competition and occupants would not budge a millimeter to make space for newcomers. Not to mention snorers, farters, early risers and other troublemakers. Try to mentally free yourself from depending on the shelter and hiking will be a lot more stress free.

Camping: The AT was the first and only trail were I seriously considered a hammock - and if I were to hike it again I would definitely invest in one for the New England States. I have never hiked in an environment where free camping with a tent was so difficult. Either the terrain was too rocky or too steep or too forested for camping - very often I did not have a choice but to camp next to the shelter were space for tent camping had been cleared. A hammock would give you much more freedom as there are trees everywhere.

Maps and guidebooks: I did carry maps and guidebooks for the whole trail - the only reason for that being that an old hiker friend of mine had to cancel his planned thruhike due to health reasons and donated his whole map and guidebook set to me. They were nice to have, but I could have managed without them. The only essential book for the AT is a data book and town guide like the AT companion. If I was to hike the AT again I would probably just carry the AT companion and as a back up have a GPS with the AT as a track. This would just be a substitute for maps in emergencies - otherwise you really do not need a GPS for the AT.

AT: Conclusion

The long green tunnel in summer

What do I think of the AT now? In the end it was a good hike, although I almost hated it in the beginning. But that was mostly my own fault. I was worried about my low mileage in the New England States and did not realise that the terrain and hiking would gradually get easier. And when that happened (roughly after Mount Moosilauke)  I started having a good time and really enjoyed the AT in the end. But still: I will probably not rehike it in the near future, although I would definitely rehike the PCT or especially the CDT. If I had to do it again, I would go northbound starting very late, like in early May.

The AT was a pleasant hike, but it is not as spectacular as the PCT or CDT. It isn't called "long green tunnel" for nothing. You have more spectacular views in a week on the PCT or CDT than in a 5 month long thruhike of the AT. And if there is a view it something so special that it even gets a signpost... It did not really bother me because I just want to be outside and I don't mind seeing forest all the time. The logistics are easy, so all you have to do is walk. There is not much real danger: You are always in tree cover, so exposure and thunderstorms are not an issue. I did not even get much of a sun tan.

... in fall

The biggest disappointment were probably my fellow hikers. On both PCT and CDT I had met so many interesting people - I can hardly think of any hiker I disliked. On the AT I spent a lot of time trying to avoid other hikers. There were too many college kids out there who just wanted to party. I saw hikers puking into shelters and getting arrested by the police because they were too drunk. I saw ridiculously big backpacks because the hikers had no clue what they were doing. But I also met some interesting people on the AT and I do hope to stay in contact with them. The nicest thing on the AT for me though was visiting old hiker friends and trail angels. I met so many PCT and CDT friends again it is unbelievable. And I stayed with some very kind and interesting trail angels.

It was a good hike after all...

and in winter.

So would I recommend the AT to a friend? That really depends. If you know that this is the only time in your life when you get half a year off and you already have some backpacking experience I would rather hike the PCT which is much more dramatic and scenic and logistically equally easy. If you are rather inexperienced and appreciate a more social experience then go for the AT where loads of other hikers provide more safety in emergencies and company. Choose your start date very carefully though: If you start in the main season you might be just overwhelmed by the masses of hikers - who luckily thin out after a while.

Now the statistics:

Hours I hiked with other people: 8 (Half a day with Timber who had to be protected from the bears and two hours with Silver Potato and Cracker) - that was it - I had a very lonely hike on the most populated National Scenic Trail
Times I stayed in a shelter: 3 (I hate mice and snorers)
Amount of zero days: 6 (including 2 days at the Gathering), but I had a lot of nero days.
Times I was sick: 1 (I had to see a doctor because of my infected finger)
Times I used sun tan lotion: 0 (you are always under tree cover)
Times I used DEET: Several times a day through all of New England - the mosquitoes just did not want to die

Most favourite Lipton side dish: Thai Sesame Noodles and Tomato Parmesan
Most favourite Idahoan Mashed Potatoes: Baby Reds Roasted Garlic
Most favourite Ben & Jerry's ice cream: Cherry Garcia
Most favourite American Snack: Peanut Butter M&M's, Milky Way Midnight, Pringles Sour Cream & Onion
Most favourite maildrop chocolate: Milka Creme de Caramel and Creme de Chocolate (thank you Toek and Wolfgang)

Most exotic wildlife: Turtles on the trail
Most exotic flora: Peach trees on the trail
Most exotic trail angel: Mayor Dick in New York - chain smoking and cursing the hikers he loves so much
Most exotic town food: Gourmet vegetarian meal at Elmer's (a Buddhist running a retreat center and hiker hostel) - even I ate salad with dressing
Most exotic trail food: Toek's wonderful 12 pound chocolate mail drop

Best off-trail event: Unexpected visit of Gettysburg and attending the Gathering
Best on-trail event: The many nights when I went to sleep thinking "This has been a good day!"