Over the last 150 miles, Megan and I have been coming across all sorts of things that indicate that moose are on the move. We've noticed "moose" literature posted in the shelters and other helpful sites. We've spotted moose tracks/prints in the thick black mud of Massachusetts and Vermont. And we've even stepped over and around numerous piles of moose scat (poo). This being the case, I came across a poem written by a previous thru-hiker in one of the shelter journals the other day. I thought I might share it with you since it tickled me to death!
Trail Haiku
Considerate Moose,
You poop on the side of the trail
Not in the middle.
Author: Rock Chalk
I can hear you laughing. Isn't that great! I wish I remembered the rules of Haiku Poetry, because I believe I might be able to whip up some poetry myself if only I could recall how Haiku is written.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Saturday, August 12, 2006
Vermonty Python
Have any of you ever had the Vermonty Python flavor of Ben and Jerry's ice cream? I had the joy of finding a pint of this spectacular ice cream in Dalton, Massachusetts earlier this week. Megan and I have been anticipating our crossover into Vermont for quite some time, so it was only fitting that I buy and eat all of the Vermonty Python in one sitting! Delicious. I highly recommend it for any of you Ben and Jerry lovers out there.
And here I am today in Manchester, Vermont enjoying the much cooler temperatures of this glorious state! Here is something crazy -- we have hiked over 1600 miles, and only have just over 500 miles to go before reaching our destination! Chew on that a moment. Isn't that insane, I really can't even comprehend it all. Sometimes I stop mid-stride and look at Megan and say, "who does this?" "Who walks through 14 states, 2100 miles?" Thats just a bunch of foolery if you ask me. But here we are taking one step at a time...sometimes two steps at a time when I trip on a root or a rock.
A few days ago Megan and I enjoyed an insatiable sunset atop Mt. Greylock (highest point in Massachusetts). We also, simultaneously, watched the full moon rise. I can't really put it in words, I couldn't then, and I can't now. But it was like nothing I've ever experienced in my life. What a moment in life. I could go for a few more of those, please! I would have to vote that one of my favorite memories on the trail so far.
We are planning to retire Vermont by Friday (August 18). Take a zero day in Hannover, NH. And begin mentally preparing ourselves for the beloved "white mountains" of New Hampshire. Of course when I say, mentally prepare, I totally mean pig out at a buffet or two, sleep in real beds, and eat lots of ice cream and candy. We've been hearing about the "Presidentials", since Springer Mountain and are getting stoked about the treachery of it all! Vermont is doing a good little number on us to prepare our climbing legs for those hairy "Whites" (and no, Lana, I'm not talking about my legs as being hairy whites, although they are).
And here I am today in Manchester, Vermont enjoying the much cooler temperatures of this glorious state! Here is something crazy -- we have hiked over 1600 miles, and only have just over 500 miles to go before reaching our destination! Chew on that a moment. Isn't that insane, I really can't even comprehend it all. Sometimes I stop mid-stride and look at Megan and say, "who does this?" "Who walks through 14 states, 2100 miles?" Thats just a bunch of foolery if you ask me. But here we are taking one step at a time...sometimes two steps at a time when I trip on a root or a rock.
A few days ago Megan and I enjoyed an insatiable sunset atop Mt. Greylock (highest point in Massachusetts). We also, simultaneously, watched the full moon rise. I can't really put it in words, I couldn't then, and I can't now. But it was like nothing I've ever experienced in my life. What a moment in life. I could go for a few more of those, please! I would have to vote that one of my favorite memories on the trail so far.
We are planning to retire Vermont by Friday (August 18). Take a zero day in Hannover, NH. And begin mentally preparing ourselves for the beloved "white mountains" of New Hampshire. Of course when I say, mentally prepare, I totally mean pig out at a buffet or two, sleep in real beds, and eat lots of ice cream and candy. We've been hearing about the "Presidentials", since Springer Mountain and are getting stoked about the treachery of it all! Vermont is doing a good little number on us to prepare our climbing legs for those hairy "Whites" (and no, Lana, I'm not talking about my legs as being hairy whites, although they are).
Tuesday, August 01, 2006
It is HOT out here!
Wow, it seems forever since I've been able to post an update. This is the first official update since Megan and I returned to the trail on July 12th. Life has been tough getting reacquainted with the Appalachian Trail. Megan's heels have been hurting, my boots literally fell apart, and the temperature has been steadily climbing for the last three weeks.
It is August now, I suppose we will have no reprieve from the heat until we climb to higher altitudes, therefore, we are busting tail to get to Vermont, where the "real mountains" begin once again.
The northeastern towns are not quite as "hiker friendly" as many of their southern counterparts. Hiker amenities (laundry, public internet access, hostels) are few and far between. Today we hitched a ride into Kent, CT just to use the internet at their library. We did manage to find an ice cream shop open and willing to serve two dirty, smelly hikers. Quite a treat. We are not looking forward to walking out of this air conditioned haven into the 100 degree heat outdoors. But alas, we still have five more miles to hike today.
We have been capitalizing on any type of "swimming hole" that we come across. Rivers, streams, ponds, lakes. Any of those will do, when you are running from the heat. No more beautiful wildflowers now. The trail consists of trees, mushrooms, insects, and snakes. That is the sum of it. Although we did run across a mink the other day in New Jersey, and a baby turtle in the river yesterday. Every now and again we see some unusual little organism.
We've caught up with some of our former hiking buddies, from early on (April/May). It has been fun surprising them and catching up a bit. We are slowly passing some hikers and making our way toward Katahdin.
It is August now, I suppose we will have no reprieve from the heat until we climb to higher altitudes, therefore, we are busting tail to get to Vermont, where the "real mountains" begin once again.
The northeastern towns are not quite as "hiker friendly" as many of their southern counterparts. Hiker amenities (laundry, public internet access, hostels) are few and far between. Today we hitched a ride into Kent, CT just to use the internet at their library. We did manage to find an ice cream shop open and willing to serve two dirty, smelly hikers. Quite a treat. We are not looking forward to walking out of this air conditioned haven into the 100 degree heat outdoors. But alas, we still have five more miles to hike today.
We have been capitalizing on any type of "swimming hole" that we come across. Rivers, streams, ponds, lakes. Any of those will do, when you are running from the heat. No more beautiful wildflowers now. The trail consists of trees, mushrooms, insects, and snakes. That is the sum of it. Although we did run across a mink the other day in New Jersey, and a baby turtle in the river yesterday. Every now and again we see some unusual little organism.
We've caught up with some of our former hiking buddies, from early on (April/May). It has been fun surprising them and catching up a bit. We are slowly passing some hikers and making our way toward Katahdin.
Monday, July 10, 2006
New Itinerary - The Journey Continues
Many folks have been inquiring about when our next itinerary would be posted. I've been busy enjoying my break from the trail with my family and friends. I did find, however, a few moments here and there to put together an itinerary for the next portion of our hike. Remember: if you want to send mail you must send it at least a week in advance to ensure that it gets to the post office in time. Also, please put my name on it, the expected arrival date, and a note that says "hold for A.T. hiker". Megan and I have loved all the letters, cards, and packages that you sent previously. We are humbled by your generosity and love. Thank you for keeping us in your thoughts and prayers.
All mail must be addressed as General Delivery.
Port Clinton, PA 19549 (July 15)
Unionville, NY 10988 (July 22)
Pawling, NY 12564 (July 27)
Williamstown, MA 01267 (August 4)
Hannover, NH 03755 (August 13)
Glencliff, NH 03238 (August 16)
Gorham, NH 03581 (August 25)
Friday, July 07, 2006
Epiphany Brought on By a Butterfly
No matter what situation I have found myself in, in life I have found that there are always numerous changes that accompany new experiences. Hiking for three months in the Appalachian Mountains has brought forth many changes in my life. And I can describe them as increases and decreases. Here’s what I’ve noticed:
Increase – appetite
Decrease – weight
Increase – physical endurance
Decrease – health of feet
Increase – metabolism
Decrease – variety of available and tasty food
Increase – girth of my calves
Decrease – avg. # of showers/wk
Increase – thoughts of my family
Decrease – normal everyday life stressors
I could go on for quite some time, but one of the most meaningful and noticeable changes in my life has been an increase in my faith in God. I want to share a story with you about one particular issue that I ran into – which brought forth a growth in my overall faith in God.
To tell this story I’m going to start near the beginning: Megan (my hiking partner) and I, began our Appalachian Trail hike on a beautiful, sunny day – April 4th of this year. We had mixed emotions about the hike, but overall we were excited and committed to the challenge before us. For the next couple of days we had perfect weather for hiking – 60 degree days, blue sky, nice breeze, cool nights to sleep. The beginning was good.
But day four was the day I noticed a short sharp pain in my R Achilles tendon as I hiked up the mountains. Downhill the pain was not noticeable, uphill the pain exploded. It wasn’t long before I noticed my R Achilles had swollen to twice the size of my L one. Days passed, miles disappeared - I soon began limping on the down slopes, as well as, the ascensions. So bad was my pain, that at every stream and spring location along the trail, I stopped, took off my sock and boot, and soaked my R foot for twenty minutes or so to ease the swelling.
Upon the good advice from some fellow hikers, we decided to take a day off of the trail to rest, ice, elevate. Knowing that an Achilles problem could result in the end of my dream to finish the A.T. I fervently iced every hour for twenty minutes, all day.
It was Easter Sunday when we got back on the trail. As soon as we set foot on the trail my heart sank, the pain was still there, as bad as it was before. Megan hiked on ahead to our evening destination since I was gimping along. I immediately sank into self-pity as I trudged along at a snails pace. I was angry, I was worried, I was hurting. I was completely self-absorbed with my injury.
As I hiked, I noticed a butterfly flutter through my field of view. I remember thinking “how beautiful”. Just for an instant I left those selfish thoughts of myself, but quickly returned to my uncomfortable situation. Then a shadow swooped over me and glided past. I looked up and noticed a hawk gliding on the thermals. “Wow!” I thought “Wouldn’t it be nice to be a bird. I bet birds don’t have Achilles problems”. I look back down to the trail in front of me and the butterfly was still there. Which instantly brought forth a memory from college.
I was sitting in my entomology class with my classmates and my professor. My professor, Dr. Goff was getting ready to explain metamorphosis. Right in the middle of his explanation of how a caterpillar turns into a butterfly, he stopped and looked at us and said, “Not one scientist past or present has figured out what exactly happens inside of that chrysalis when that caterpillar changes into the butterfly. All we know is that the protein structure and physiology is completely different between the two organisms.” I was amazed that science has not revealed this secret, but I remember also feeling comfort in knowing that there is a greater power than humanity. And that I serve that greater power.
The butterfly on the trail brought back that memory and all of a sudden it was like a key had unlocked my self-centered tunnel vision and I could see beyond my pain. God was much bigger than my problem. He had cleared everything from my calendar months before so that I could hike the Appalachian Trail, and I knew he wasn’t going to throw something into the mix that would hinder this trip. All I needed to do was put forth a little trust in the maker of the Heavens and the Earth. A verse came to me ( I Peter 2:24) “By His stripes, you are healed”. I said it aloud over and over, I claimed that promise and reminded God of all the little things he had done to prepare me for the Appalachian Trail and I continued to limp along the path in pain.
Later, Megan expresses her concern about the condition of my Achilles. Maybe you need to take a week off, or a couple days. You can catch up later. I considered it, yet at the same time, I believed God would heal me. He promised to.
I didn’t heal immediately, in fact, I had to endure another week of pain, but I talked to God daily, claiming his promise and reminding him of the miracles that got me where I was that very day. And believe it or not, my R Achilles tendon slowly began to heal as I hiked. The terrain was not getting easier, the miles weren’t being shaved off of our days to accommodate the injury, my Lord was healing me. Mid-stride, about a week after my butterfly epiphany, my Achilles tendon was completely healed. And there is no other explanation except that God chose to take away my pain. What a miracle!
I grew a lot from that experience – God has proven over and over through other similar experiences that he is our sustainer. There are many things I can not control out there in the mountains, but I’m relieved that I serve a God who is my dry spot when I am wet, my food when I am hungry, and my healer when I am in pain.
Increase – appetite
Decrease – weight
Increase – physical endurance
Decrease – health of feet
Increase – metabolism
Decrease – variety of available and tasty food
Increase – girth of my calves
Decrease – avg. # of showers/wk
Increase – thoughts of my family
Decrease – normal everyday life stressors
I could go on for quite some time, but one of the most meaningful and noticeable changes in my life has been an increase in my faith in God. I want to share a story with you about one particular issue that I ran into – which brought forth a growth in my overall faith in God.
To tell this story I’m going to start near the beginning: Megan (my hiking partner) and I, began our Appalachian Trail hike on a beautiful, sunny day – April 4th of this year. We had mixed emotions about the hike, but overall we were excited and committed to the challenge before us. For the next couple of days we had perfect weather for hiking – 60 degree days, blue sky, nice breeze, cool nights to sleep. The beginning was good.
But day four was the day I noticed a short sharp pain in my R Achilles tendon as I hiked up the mountains. Downhill the pain was not noticeable, uphill the pain exploded. It wasn’t long before I noticed my R Achilles had swollen to twice the size of my L one. Days passed, miles disappeared - I soon began limping on the down slopes, as well as, the ascensions. So bad was my pain, that at every stream and spring location along the trail, I stopped, took off my sock and boot, and soaked my R foot for twenty minutes or so to ease the swelling.
Upon the good advice from some fellow hikers, we decided to take a day off of the trail to rest, ice, elevate. Knowing that an Achilles problem could result in the end of my dream to finish the A.T. I fervently iced every hour for twenty minutes, all day.
It was Easter Sunday when we got back on the trail. As soon as we set foot on the trail my heart sank, the pain was still there, as bad as it was before. Megan hiked on ahead to our evening destination since I was gimping along. I immediately sank into self-pity as I trudged along at a snails pace. I was angry, I was worried, I was hurting. I was completely self-absorbed with my injury.
As I hiked, I noticed a butterfly flutter through my field of view. I remember thinking “how beautiful”. Just for an instant I left those selfish thoughts of myself, but quickly returned to my uncomfortable situation. Then a shadow swooped over me and glided past. I looked up and noticed a hawk gliding on the thermals. “Wow!” I thought “Wouldn’t it be nice to be a bird. I bet birds don’t have Achilles problems”. I look back down to the trail in front of me and the butterfly was still there. Which instantly brought forth a memory from college.
I was sitting in my entomology class with my classmates and my professor. My professor, Dr. Goff was getting ready to explain metamorphosis. Right in the middle of his explanation of how a caterpillar turns into a butterfly, he stopped and looked at us and said, “Not one scientist past or present has figured out what exactly happens inside of that chrysalis when that caterpillar changes into the butterfly. All we know is that the protein structure and physiology is completely different between the two organisms.” I was amazed that science has not revealed this secret, but I remember also feeling comfort in knowing that there is a greater power than humanity. And that I serve that greater power.
The butterfly on the trail brought back that memory and all of a sudden it was like a key had unlocked my self-centered tunnel vision and I could see beyond my pain. God was much bigger than my problem. He had cleared everything from my calendar months before so that I could hike the Appalachian Trail, and I knew he wasn’t going to throw something into the mix that would hinder this trip. All I needed to do was put forth a little trust in the maker of the Heavens and the Earth. A verse came to me ( I Peter 2:24) “By His stripes, you are healed”. I said it aloud over and over, I claimed that promise and reminded God of all the little things he had done to prepare me for the Appalachian Trail and I continued to limp along the path in pain.
Later, Megan expresses her concern about the condition of my Achilles. Maybe you need to take a week off, or a couple days. You can catch up later. I considered it, yet at the same time, I believed God would heal me. He promised to.
I didn’t heal immediately, in fact, I had to endure another week of pain, but I talked to God daily, claiming his promise and reminding him of the miracles that got me where I was that very day. And believe it or not, my R Achilles tendon slowly began to heal as I hiked. The terrain was not getting easier, the miles weren’t being shaved off of our days to accommodate the injury, my Lord was healing me. Mid-stride, about a week after my butterfly epiphany, my Achilles tendon was completely healed. And there is no other explanation except that God chose to take away my pain. What a miracle!
I grew a lot from that experience – God has proven over and over through other similar experiences that he is our sustainer. There are many things I can not control out there in the mountains, but I’m relieved that I serve a God who is my dry spot when I am wet, my food when I am hungry, and my healer when I am in pain.
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Living Life One Step at a Time: Most Recent Musings
McAfee Knob: I am small, aren't I? Maybe the world doesn't really revolve around me. A little dose of humility never hurts anyone. 
Washing my hair in the river. Quite limber, aren't I?
Maybe I should join the circus.
Eastern Box Turtles are still exciting discoveries even at my "old" age.Monthly Musings:
I've learned so much about myself on this journey. I have a hard time putting words to many of the ways that I am changing and growing. Before I started the A.T. I wouldn't have considered myself an emotional person. I've always had a good handle on my emotional expression. I'm a logical thinker. A realist. Someone who doesn't get overly excited about much and never overly upset about anything. However, recently I am discovering part of me that I have never known existed. The constant struggle of everyday life mixed with the awe and beauty of my surroundings make for a confusing array of emotions that I am having a hard time dealing with at times. I am frequently experiencing feelings of elation (mostly dealing with food, shelter, and vistas), and feelings of self-pity and sorrow (most commonly brought on by physical pain).
It is when I strip away all of the "extras", the materialism, in my life that I can begin to know and acknowledge my true self. I'm beginning to realize that the "stuff" in our world, the materialism that we surround ourselves with, has a way of hiding who we really are. We become trapped in society's ever changing standards, seeking to be accepted by the mainstream, as if that is our one life goal. But it is a futile attempt, we will never make it because the standard is continually moving farther and farther down the road, down the road we generally choose to follow.
I'm fortunate to have an opportunity to escape the stressors of normal life and dive head first into an environment of "simplistic living". I knew coming into this experience I would change. I am changing in ways I never thought possible. My hope is that I continue to become more and more aware of who I am as a person, in order to rid my life of the worldly clutter that ceaselessly works to corrode my mind and soul. Sometimes it is scary taking the road less traveled, but I believe the benefits will far outway any negative aspects of this six month journey.
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