AT 2023
Day 53: Zero Day and 40 Years
We’ll be back on the trail to start on the Virginia Triple Crown tomorrow. And I’ve got something special planned for the 700-mile mark.
Day 52: Not Raining But Still Wet
Northstar was waiting for me at Trout Creek. She’d booked a stay in Roanoke for our 40th anniversary tomorrow, when we’ll take a zero. I’ve logged 141 miles and about...
Day 51: More Rain
In Arizona we celebrate the rain. It’s an event. Parents will call their children outside to look at it. People take pictures of it and post them online. People have...
Day 50: Rain
We stopped and chatted about the forecast, noting the number of tents we’d seen with people sitting out the weather. When someone asked why we were out here, one of...
Day 49: Even Brambles Have Blossoms
Not only do those nasty thornbushes I’ve been seeing along the trail have wonderful flower blossoms, they produce a delicious fruit I spent hundreds of hours gathering as a child....
Day 46: New Kicks and Second Lunch
I passed the 566-mile mark yesterday. That means it’s been 400 miles since I broke out a new pair of shoes. So, today I pulled on a brand-new pair of...
Day 45: Meadows in the Woods
Somehow, walking through these pastures gives me more of sense of being on a journey. I’m no longer alone in a vast, uniform, deep woods with a few hikers. Seeing...
Day 43: Mama Said There’d Be Days Like This
This trail. Some days it leaves me grinning ear to ear. Other days it sees me grinning and kicks me in the teeth. Today, I’ve got a bloody grin, my...