Every now and then it is a good idea to search on your own name on the Internet, you never know what you will find. Since many of us have “pen” names or other monikers, don’t forget to use those as well. I recently looked on Youtube.com and found a film of me being interviewed at Traildays in Damascus, VA last year. Hennessy Hammock did the interview. It was a Hennessy that I used on the hike, and I was thrilled with it.

K1YPP Hennessy Hammock interview on Youtube .

Traildays is a ball. Thousands of hikers gather there for a weekend of fun. Lectures, food and a little beer make for a great time with old friends and new ones. Check it out if you get the chance.

I hate to spoil it for Santa, but judging by the number of people ordering Three Hundred Zeroes on amazon.com, there are going to be more than a few people doing some reading next year! Great! Sit down with a good book and a hot drink in January, what could be finer? My latest list includes two by Susan Alcorn, CAMINO CHORONICLE and WE’RE IN THE MOUNTAINS, NOT OVER THE HILL . I’m also reading SOUTHBOUND , by the Letcher sisters, Lucy and Susan, and FOOTPATH MY ASS , by Terry Croteau ‘Bluebird’. These books should keep me busy for a while.

Dennis “K1” Blanchard

One question I often get asked about my hike on the Appalachian Trail is, “How much did your pack weigh?” The best answer is, “That depends.”

First of all, in the cold weather, hikers carry more heavy clothing. Additionally, if it is very cold, there will also be the extra sleeping materials to stay warm at night. I was fortunate, since I started out in May, the weather was somewhat warmer; I didn’t have any snow and some of the nights were near freezing, but not too many times.

Cold weather usually means additional food in the pack. The body wants to keep warm and uses calories to keep that heat going. Although it is not necessary, hot food can add to the comfort level when the weather is cold, but that means additional fuel to heat it, or stopping more often to find fuel.

In the warmer weather the pack can get much lighter, as much as fifteen pounds or more. Extra fuel, hats, gloves, heavy clothes, extra socks and so on can be shipped home. Ultimately, in the cooler weather my pack was up around 40-42 pounds (including water and food) and in the warmer times it was usually around 35 pounds, full.

As I progressed up the trail I ended up eating cold breakfasts, even in the cold Maine weather. Whereas down south I was eating oatmeal and hot chocolate for breakfast, in the north I was into mini-bagels and cream cheese. With the cooler weather the cheese would keep well in my pack for many days and the bagels were a welcome change from energy bars and their ilk. Although bulky, the bagels did not weigh that much and oft times I would also have them at lunch with peanut butter.

Additionally, I was carrying two ham radios. One was similar to a cell phone; it operated on VHF. I didn’t use it often, but it was comforting to know I could communicate with it from almost everywhere; that was not the case with the cell phone, which I also carried.

The other radio was a short-wave affair. It used the Morse code with a key. It actually fit inside an Altoids mint tin and weighed a massive 7 ounces. With external batteries and an antenna my amateur radio (ham)gear added maybe two pounds to my overall pack weight. I didn’t carry any books to read; many do, so it was probably a trade off when compared to what other hikers were carrying.

A good rule of thumb for figuring pack weight is it should weigh, at a maximum, about 20% of your body weight. I usually met that requirement. Hiking gear is like a women’s bikini, the less of it there is, the more it costs, so everything is a trade-off.

When I titled the book , Three Hundred Zeroes, I was worried people would think it was my high school test scores and not a book about hiking. Apparently, that is not the case. I’ve been getting tons of mail lately from readers and am a bit overwhelmed at the response. I’m also having trouble keeping up with answering the mails, so if you’ve written, my apologies. Here are two from today. The first was posted on the Whiteblaze.com web site and the second came from a doctor working at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Bradenton, FL via US Post Office. It is comforting to know that my veteran peers are reading it as well:

K1,

I saw this post last week, followed your link to Amazon and ordered the book.

I read it this weekend and really enjoyed it. You are a funny
some-beach! Once started, I hated to put the book down. My wife came
in the room several times, to ask what was so funny.

Congratulations on your perseverance, the successful completion of your hike, as well as the release of your book.

Three Hundred Zeroes cost far less than $49.95, so I didn’t have high expectations. It turned-out to be the most entertaining AT book I’ve read in a long time. Well done!
__________________
Roland

Dear Mr. Blanchard,                                                                              December 1, 2010

I read your book Three Hundred Zeroes and enjoyed it very much. I’m passing it around at the Bradenton, VA Center where I currently work. I also bought a copy for my son, a section hiker.

Sincerely
C*******e

With the holiday season upon us it is a great time to think about books as gifts. When I was a youngster there was one Christmas where my parents gave me a set of classics, Moby Dick, Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Treasure Island and so on. To this day I still think it was the best gift I have ever received. I think they got the collection at a book-a-week special a local supermarket sponsored. 

This was my first venture into the world of recording an audio advertisement. Based on my harmonica playing, I had better stick to writing. It was fun doing the recording, even though it all had to be done in one minute, with little chance to do a re-take. It was recorded in the Borders Book Store in Sarasota, Florida during normal business hours, so you can hear the store traffic in the background.

Writing a book is such an adventure. I’m learning all sorts of new things and meeting a ton of people. Who says retirement is sitting on the porch watching the grass grow? I’ve never been busier!
 
 It airs at least once a day on the Radio Ear Network .The network has a very eclectic mix of topics and music 24/7. There is a little bit of everything for everyone.

Dennis “K1” Blanchard

I’ve been thrilled to get so many letters and emails about Three Hundred Zeroes, but this one really jumped out at me today. Radio amateurs have proven to be seriously interested in reading:
Hi Dennis,

Frankly, I thought I was throwing money away when I ordered your book, especially since I had read a couple of other books describing the authors’ AT hikes. But the ham radio connection and curiosity got the better of me.

Best money I ever spent on a book! I never dreamed that it would become a true couldn’t-put-it-down book, but that’s exactly what it was. And for me, this doesn’t happen very often.

Your inclusion of ham radio as a passing interest, a secondary goal, was the right choice; too much proselytizing tends to turn off non-tech readers. Although ham radio was my initial interest, the authentic adventure of your hike soon became the real fascination. So authentic, in fact, that I’d recommend the book to anybody considering hiking the AT. It reads like an unvarnished how-to manual, complete with essential “ground rules” and trail descriptions that I’ve never read anywhere else.

The real charm of Three Hundred Zeroes, however, is your obvious delight at the continuing discovery, good and not-so-good, that is the AT.

73,

  –Jim Perry, KJ3P

Thanks for the nice comments Jim. Hikers and ham radio operators have discovered this book. I’d love to hear from those that have either undergone heart surgery, or from friends and family members of patients that have. My goal with Three Hundred Zeroes was to bring hope to that audience as well. I’d love to hear from you as well.

Dennis “K1” Blanchard

Here is a short review of Three Hundred Zeroes that appeared in the Amateur Radio Journal, QST , by Steve Ewald, WV1X:

How would you like to go on a hike? How about a real long hike that is 2176 miles long and covers 14 state in the eastern United States?

Three Hundred Zeroes by Dennis Blanchard, K1YPP, captures the adventure of hiking the Appalachian Trail (AT) all the way from Springer Mountain Georgia to Mt Katahdin in Maine. Because of heart surgery, Blanchard’s excursion took place over a two-year period, even thogh he had first set out to hike the AT in one extended hiking season.

What challenges and difficulties did he face along the way? What personal goals kept him going forward when circumstances beyond his control seemed to dictate otherwise? These questions about life on (and off) the Appalachian Trail are answered in a very interesting, informative and enteraining manner. Dennis’ writing style takes the reader right along for the hike. One begins to understand the joys and rigors of living in the wilderness, facing the elements and meeting fellow hikers. The book’s subtitle, “Lessons of the Heart on the Appalachian Trail,” is most appropriate.

 In addition to his hiking equipment, K1YPP carried and operated his hombrew low power CW transceiver with a wire antenna. The book provides a good general explanation of Amateur Radio for newcomers, and it  and gives references for further information.(See his “An Appalachian Journey” in the March 2010 issue of QST, pp 67-69 for details about his on-the-trail radio operations.) After reading this enjoyable book you just might be inspired to “hit the trail” in your own personal way.

Reviewed by Steve Ewald, WV1X

Thank you Steve, and the ARRL for such a fine review.

Tomorrow, Saturday, 6 November, join me and a few other authors at a book fair at the Sarasota Farmers Market. The event is part of the weekly Farmers Market on Main St. We’ll of course have our books available for signing and I have plenty of copies of Three Hundred Zeroes. Books make great holiday gifts, and a signed copy is all that much better. I’ll even be wearing my hiking gear and have my pack with me, should you have questions about a long distance hike.

The weather is cooler and it should be a great day to be out in the autumn. If you’re in the Sarasota, Florida area, do stop by and say hello. We’ll be there from 7:00 am until 1:00 pm.

Dennis “K1” Blanchard

I happened to look at the page for Three Hundred Zeroes tonight and was pleasantly surprised to see that it is ranked #2 in Walking and Camping books on Amazon.com and #3 in Excursion Guides today. The Kindle versions are ahead of the print versions at this moment. I thought perhaps last month the Kindle version would win out, but it lost by only two copies. Maybe this will be the month!

• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #19,879 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  
  • #2 in  Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Sports > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Walking
  • #2 in  Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Sports > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Camping
  • #3 in  Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Sports > Outdoors & Nature > Hiking & Camping > Excursion Guides

The above rankings change by the hour based on sales and sales related to all books on amazon.com, so they’re only relative numbers, but great to see nonetheless.

Thanks to all for reading Three Hundred Zeroes. I hope it inspires you to do something just as crazy, or convinces you that maybe you really don’t want to.

Dennis “K1” Blanchard

The following is another reader’s comments. Don did my heart so much good with his enthusiasm and compliments. Since many of my readers are not ham radio operators, I’ll offer some “translation” of what he says. A “QRP CW operator” is a radio amateur that uses very low power (QRP is usually 5 watts or less) and CW is more commonly known as the Morse code. The “rig” he mentions, the KX-1 is a very nice radio that a number of hiking hams like to use. It is light, small and very gently on the batteries. It sounds like Don is having a different type of hiking fun, hiking to fire towers.
Thanks Don!

I’m still anxious to hear from heart surgery patients. The book deals with that topic as well and I’d be curious to hear about what they think of Three Hundred Zeroes ?

Dennis “K1” Blanchard