Friday, May 3, 2013
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Saying Goodbye To A Friend
5/2/2013
Saying Goodbye To A Friend
I had stopped to gab away with someone on the trail last week......as usual. Yes, I would rather chat than hike. When movement above us, on the hill, caught my eye.
It was "JP" coming downhill. It was "JP" going the wrong way. "JP" was Southbound! I knew something was wrong immediately. "JP" was Southbound!
I shouted out a cheerful greeting..... and waited for some kind of bad news, as "JP" made his way down to us.
The person that I had been gabbing with accepted the dropped conversation with grace, and continued his climb, passing by "JP".
"JP" was hatless...... and his face was tan....... and I realized that I had not seen "JP" for a long time.......not since we shuttled out of Gatlinburg, Tn, in the NOC Van, back up to Newfound Gap........ to finish our hike in the Smokies.
I asked "JP" directly why he was going backwards.... as cheerfully
as I could. I could see in his sad face that the news was bad. "JP" is not a talker, so his response was short. He was going back to Marion....there was Greyhound Bus Service there.....he had checked the night before......... from up on the mountain.
"JP" was going home.
I was shocked. "JP" is the first person..... for me personally.... to say directly, that his hike was over.....that he was done.... that he was going home.
I know people quit the trail. Usually people just disappear. Then one of the better informed hikers..... people who follow Trail Journals.com, or White Blaze. com, or simply who know the latest trail word of mouth .....tell you so and so got off the trail. Had foot problems......Got a rash.....ran out of money....missed his girlfriend, or boyfriend.....lost too much weight....are reasons that I have heard. When I do not see someone for a while, I always figure that they are hiking faster....or even slower (fell and separated his shoulder, so they're going slower for awhile.("Dumptruck" and "Clever Girl", for example.)
"JP" is a quiet man.....very quiet. I got to know him a bit because
I pushed my friendship onto him and he accepted it. "JP" is a good sized guy........with a real pair of legs on him. He is built for hauling a pack up a mountain. I first realized that his pack was filled with lead, when I tried to move it out of my way, one day.......after the blizzard...... in the Smokies. I could not lift his pack with one arm. That pack was an immoveable object! That was before "JP" resupplied for the first time in Gatlinburg. Yes, resupplied for the very first time. "JP" hiked all the way to Gatlinburg before resuppling! He got on the trail to hike, he explained to me, not to spend time in town. There are a very small number of hikers, who hike the AT this way. They all have legs of steel. "JP" had those legs. The day we came out of Gatlinburg.....the last time I saw "JP", before today...... he was hiking uphill, directly in front of me. He sort of rocked from side to side, with each short step he took up that steep, slippery, snow covered, slope. "JP"did not use hiking poles. He was 47 or 48 years old.....not a kid. But his legs were strong, and his knees good. He had no use for poles. In spite of a pack..... just resupplied.... a lack of poles..... and his short rocking steps, "JP" pulled away from me going up that mountain. I assumed that I would see him at the shelter, where the rest of us who had shuttled in the van together from Gatlinburg up to Newfound Gap, spent that night. But I did not. "JP" had hiked on.....
"JP" told me why he was going home. I did not disagree. He needed to be home, more than he needed to be on the AT. I know that he did not share his reason with the people on the trail behind me. He is a private man.
He told me, because I am his friend. "JP" did not quit the AT....."JP" simply had to be home.
I reached out my hand and shook the hand of my friend, for the first....... and the last time.
"I made it 500 miles." He sadly stated. And we both knew that he could have hiked..... all the way.
For a moment, I watched "JP" ease his way down the hill.....in familiar short steps..... rocking back and forth...side to side.
Then I planted a pole, and stepped up that hill.... with tears in my eyes....heading North.
Saying Goodbye To A Friend
I had stopped to gab away with someone on the trail last week......as usual. Yes, I would rather chat than hike. When movement above us, on the hill, caught my eye.
It was "JP" coming downhill. It was "JP" going the wrong way. "JP" was Southbound! I knew something was wrong immediately. "JP" was Southbound!
I shouted out a cheerful greeting..... and waited for some kind of bad news, as "JP" made his way down to us.
The person that I had been gabbing with accepted the dropped conversation with grace, and continued his climb, passing by "JP".
"JP" was hatless...... and his face was tan....... and I realized that I had not seen "JP" for a long time.......not since we shuttled out of Gatlinburg, Tn, in the NOC Van, back up to Newfound Gap........ to finish our hike in the Smokies.
I asked "JP" directly why he was going backwards.... as cheerfully
as I could. I could see in his sad face that the news was bad. "JP" is not a talker, so his response was short. He was going back to Marion....there was Greyhound Bus Service there.....he had checked the night before......... from up on the mountain.
"JP" was going home.
I was shocked. "JP" is the first person..... for me personally.... to say directly, that his hike was over.....that he was done.... that he was going home.
I know people quit the trail. Usually people just disappear. Then one of the better informed hikers..... people who follow Trail Journals.com, or White Blaze. com, or simply who know the latest trail word of mouth .....tell you so and so got off the trail. Had foot problems......Got a rash.....ran out of money....missed his girlfriend, or boyfriend.....lost too much weight....are reasons that I have heard. When I do not see someone for a while, I always figure that they are hiking faster....or even slower (fell and separated his shoulder, so they're going slower for awhile.("Dumptruck" and "Clever Girl", for example.)
"JP" is a quiet man.....very quiet. I got to know him a bit because
I pushed my friendship onto him and he accepted it. "JP" is a good sized guy........with a real pair of legs on him. He is built for hauling a pack up a mountain. I first realized that his pack was filled with lead, when I tried to move it out of my way, one day.......after the blizzard...... in the Smokies. I could not lift his pack with one arm. That pack was an immoveable object! That was before "JP" resupplied for the first time in Gatlinburg. Yes, resupplied for the very first time. "JP" hiked all the way to Gatlinburg before resuppling! He got on the trail to hike, he explained to me, not to spend time in town. There are a very small number of hikers, who hike the AT this way. They all have legs of steel. "JP" had those legs. The day we came out of Gatlinburg.....the last time I saw "JP", before today...... he was hiking uphill, directly in front of me. He sort of rocked from side to side, with each short step he took up that steep, slippery, snow covered, slope. "JP"did not use hiking poles. He was 47 or 48 years old.....not a kid. But his legs were strong, and his knees good. He had no use for poles. In spite of a pack..... just resupplied.... a lack of poles..... and his short rocking steps, "JP" pulled away from me going up that mountain. I assumed that I would see him at the shelter, where the rest of us who had shuttled in the van together from Gatlinburg up to Newfound Gap, spent that night. But I did not. "JP" had hiked on.....
"JP" told me why he was going home. I did not disagree. He needed to be home, more than he needed to be on the AT. I know that he did not share his reason with the people on the trail behind me. He is a private man.
He told me, because I am his friend. "JP" did not quit the AT....."JP" simply had to be home.
I reached out my hand and shook the hand of my friend, for the first....... and the last time.
"I made it 500 miles." He sadly stated. And we both knew that he could have hiked..... all the way.
For a moment, I watched "JP" ease his way down the hill.....in familiar short steps..... rocking back and forth...side to side.
Then I planted a pole, and stepped up that hill.... with tears in my eyes....heading North.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Memories......of the way we were
4/27/2013
Memories of The Way We Were
This is Lindamood School 1894-1937
Several of us in my family attended a one room school....one teacher... grades one to eight..... near Liberty Pole Wisconsin....which is just South of Viroqua
Wisconsin, in 1957. The name of the school was "Hinkst School". We lived on a Turkey Farm. It was a very happy time in my life. My love for the outdoors grew strong there. I will write about it after I complete this hike.
Not only was the school similar, but there was a stream nearby , and a large apple orchard that the AT wandered through. We had a trout stream and orchard, in Viroqua. It was an enjoyable, nostalgic afternoon.
Memories of The Way We Were
This is Lindamood School 1894-1937
Several of us in my family attended a one room school....one teacher... grades one to eight..... near Liberty Pole Wisconsin....which is just South of Viroqua
Wisconsin, in 1957. The name of the school was "Hinkst School". We lived on a Turkey Farm. It was a very happy time in my life. My love for the outdoors grew strong there. I will write about it after I complete this hike.
Not only was the school similar, but there was a stream nearby , and a large apple orchard that the AT wandered through. We had a trout stream and orchard, in Viroqua. It was an enjoyable, nostalgic afternoon.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Trail Purists
4/26/2013
Trail Purist
I am faced with decisions on a daily basis, and the choices that I make have consequences. Let's say that I am hiking up the trail, and I see that there is a wet spot up ahead. It's wet and it's muddy too. It's wet and muddy...... and too wide to step or hop over. I can see that there is a path around the wet spot. It will take me 20 yards off the AT, but it will keep my feet,my socks, and my shoes dry. Dry is good. I am down to my last pair of socks......socks that are clean.....dry.....and don't stink.
Socks that have been worn smell. Socks that have been worn and gotten wet, stink. The truth is that my shoes.....my second pair....already stink. But the smell radiates several feet farther, and is more repugnant......oh all right......the smell is God awful, when these shoes are wet. The point I am making, is that it's better when you stay dry.
The dilemma is that in order to stay dry, one has to step off trail.
Yes. I am a bit of a purist. As much as is possible, I am trying to stay on the trail....trying to hike the whole trail. That said, this particular wet spot is deep. It certainly will get my socks wet. And my shoes, muddy and wet. I just started hiking less than an hour ago..... this morning. So it is still cold, and I have a long day of hiking ahead. All of us hikers know by now, that wet socks means that your feet slide more in the shoe...... and sliding leads to blisters....and blisters are not fun. We all learned that way back in Georgia.
Ok.....okay, the truth is that blisters, at this point in the hike, are no longer an issue. My feet are so calloused now, that you would have a hard time driving a nail into the bottom of them.
It is not the blisters....it is the stink. My shoes stink so bad already, that in this warmer weather, they are starting to draw flies. Really.
So I decide....... as I approach the wet,muddy, spot, that just this once, I am gonna go around. Looks like that is what everybody else did anyway. And I am gonna stay dry. Maybe I can stay dry all day for once. Maybe for just one day, I can stay dry..... all day.
There it is dead ahead of me. And it's fresh too....really fresh.
Right straight ahead of me is a fresh footprint.....a fresh print that sank deep.....way down deep.... into the muck.... right in the middle of the AT. And I can see another print beyond that....a print covered by water.....a print in the muck, a full three inches under the surface. Some hardcore fool who got here shortly before me, on this early, cold, morning, has walked right up the middle.....right straight through the muck. It's a big print.... probably some macho man....... but maybe a woman. There are a lot of women on this trail, and some of them are large women, with large feet. Some of these women are carrying 50 pound packs. I am not kidding.
Who did it? I don't know. But I do know that some damn, hardcore, purist .......up early and ahead of me......... has squished his way right down the middle of the AT..... muddy, wet, smelly, shoes be dammed! My fantasy of dry shoes is crushed. He did it.....or she did it. Okay. Now I gotta do it too. I step quickly......... as if to beat the cold muddy muck that is oozing into my shoes. My foot slides a bit, and I plant a pole to remain upright. It's cold muck.....but it's not so bad...... not as cold as the Great Smokey Mountains' Muck. Spring must be coming. The water is not as cold. I note.
Yes. My shoes stink something awful.....of course they do......I am an AT thru-hiker!!!
Trail Purist
I am faced with decisions on a daily basis, and the choices that I make have consequences. Let's say that I am hiking up the trail, and I see that there is a wet spot up ahead. It's wet and it's muddy too. It's wet and muddy...... and too wide to step or hop over. I can see that there is a path around the wet spot. It will take me 20 yards off the AT, but it will keep my feet,my socks, and my shoes dry. Dry is good. I am down to my last pair of socks......socks that are clean.....dry.....and don't stink.
Socks that have been worn smell. Socks that have been worn and gotten wet, stink. The truth is that my shoes.....my second pair....already stink. But the smell radiates several feet farther, and is more repugnant......oh all right......the smell is God awful, when these shoes are wet. The point I am making, is that it's better when you stay dry.
The dilemma is that in order to stay dry, one has to step off trail.
Yes. I am a bit of a purist. As much as is possible, I am trying to stay on the trail....trying to hike the whole trail. That said, this particular wet spot is deep. It certainly will get my socks wet. And my shoes, muddy and wet. I just started hiking less than an hour ago..... this morning. So it is still cold, and I have a long day of hiking ahead. All of us hikers know by now, that wet socks means that your feet slide more in the shoe...... and sliding leads to blisters....and blisters are not fun. We all learned that way back in Georgia.
Ok.....okay, the truth is that blisters, at this point in the hike, are no longer an issue. My feet are so calloused now, that you would have a hard time driving a nail into the bottom of them.
It is not the blisters....it is the stink. My shoes stink so bad already, that in this warmer weather, they are starting to draw flies. Really.
So I decide....... as I approach the wet,muddy, spot, that just this once, I am gonna go around. Looks like that is what everybody else did anyway. And I am gonna stay dry. Maybe I can stay dry all day for once. Maybe for just one day, I can stay dry..... all day.
There it is dead ahead of me. And it's fresh too....really fresh.
Right straight ahead of me is a fresh footprint.....a fresh print that sank deep.....way down deep.... into the muck.... right in the middle of the AT. And I can see another print beyond that....a print covered by water.....a print in the muck, a full three inches under the surface. Some hardcore fool who got here shortly before me, on this early, cold, morning, has walked right up the middle.....right straight through the muck. It's a big print.... probably some macho man....... but maybe a woman. There are a lot of women on this trail, and some of them are large women, with large feet. Some of these women are carrying 50 pound packs. I am not kidding.
Who did it? I don't know. But I do know that some damn, hardcore, purist .......up early and ahead of me......... has squished his way right down the middle of the AT..... muddy, wet, smelly, shoes be dammed! My fantasy of dry shoes is crushed. He did it.....or she did it. Okay. Now I gotta do it too. I step quickly......... as if to beat the cold muddy muck that is oozing into my shoes. My foot slides a bit, and I plant a pole to remain upright. It's cold muck.....but it's not so bad...... not as cold as the Great Smokey Mountains' Muck. Spring must be coming. The water is not as cold. I note.
Yes. My shoes stink something awful.....of course they do......I am an AT thru-hiker!!!
trail Improvement
4/26/2013
Hiking the AT is a glorious experience......it truly is .......but I think it would be even better if they could get somebody to move the rocks.
Hiking the AT is a glorious experience......it truly is .......but I think it would be even better if they could get somebody to move the rocks.
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