TroyG - Long Trail Journal - 2016
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Hobble Bush
City: Belknap County
State: New Hampshire
Country: USA
Begins: Jun 17, 2016
Direction: Northbound
Daily Summary
Date: Tue, Jun 14th, 2016
Start: Home
Journal Stats
Entry Visits: 1,168
Journal Visits: 5,922
Guestbook Views: 77
Guestbook Entrys: 3
Preparation
It's the time of year again, to stack planning for another long distance hike on top of numerous exams and essays and presentations and fundraising and sports and, well you name it. I have had this idea of taking on the Long Trail alone for just less than a year now. Last summer in Montana was eye opening. If and when I get the money, I'll rethink spending my golden years on the property near my ancestors in Ireland. Voyageur and I "were lost" in the wilderness of the divide, and although the heat, unmerciful bugs, and an earlier than I was used to, "hey, get up" put me into discomfort, I found that those discomforts only trained myself to become strong and hardworking, and I have Voyageur to thank for that.
Once I got home from Montana I took time to let my knees rest, the next step was healing. Yes the pain did go away and I was pretty much fine during soccer and hockey season, but once track came around (which involves running, of course) they flared up again as well as my ankles. I have had these issues for years and I have gone through numerous chiropractical appointments, exercise routines, even some bloodwork to test if I had Lyme Disease. I couldn't run at practice anymore, so my mother and I searched for solutions to these problems. We looked at orthotics as our next decion. We went to a physical therapist who knew her stuff when it came to alignment with legs. She discovered that I was "bow-legged" and had to straighten out. She gave me A-Line insoles for my feet which cost $ 80 per pair, compared to custom orthotics which can cost at least around $ 200. My legs have felt amazing, no pain, for the past 2.5 months. If you have any of these issues, I would get in touch with someone that sells A-lines, BECAUSE THEY WORK!!!
Since the fall I have been hiking most of the NH 4,000 footers and recently I have been trying to hike all of the trails in the Belknap Mountain Range (also known as redlining). Some of these hikes have involved solo overnights. My first one in the Belknaps, my second on a three day trek through the Whites and my third on a two day trek through the Whites. After all of these weekends I have devoted to hiking I feel that I am ready for the LT. I will stay in touch.