John Morton's notes.

Hello.  While Roy is traveling the "AT", I'll be trying to update this web site with his progress.  I've been a little behind lately.  I became a grandpa and those duties preempted my duties to these pages. (See http://themortons.org/emma)

Roy was wanting to interface his PDA to his phone but it just didn't work out.  Both have USB interfaces but they both expect to connect to a computer, not to each other.  Roy thought he would be able to obtain an interface to connect them but so far, that device is "vaporware."  In the mean time, Roy is sending files home on a couple of Secure Data memory card.  Those files are uploaded to the website.  His family sends the card back to a mail pickup location.  When Roy receives it he swaps it with the one in his PDA and then sends the other one back home.

Watch the maps in the next few days.  I'll be updating one of them with Roy's progress.

April 19, 2005
Talked to Roy today.  He and Mary Rose were at a resupply stop at Fontana Dam, near the southwest end of the Smokies..  Roy took a cell phone along with him this year.  He doesn't have service very often.  Today he said he could talk in front of the building but not inside.  He's done 170 miles so far, usually doing 8 to 12 miles a day.  He was preparing to enter the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.   The NPS will only issue permits for 7 consecutive days in the park so Roy is going to have to hike the approximately 100 miles and be out of the park in 1 week.  He said the first day has a 4000 ft hill to climb, about 8 "map miles."  After that first day he expects to do about 14 miles a day and he should be able to complete the trail through the park before his permit runs out.

I ask Roy how his knees were holding out.  He said they were a little sore but most everyone on the trail complains about that.  He said his back is getting sore.  Said he lost about 6 inches of "counterweight" and is using muscles in ways he hasn't used them in years.