Date: 2006-12-27
From: Catawba, Va

To: Post Hike Entry
Miles today: 0.0

This year's walk had a few more obstacles than I've had to face before, but the saddest and most difficult was the passing of my Mother while I was on the Trail. The other things were just a part of the walk, so I'll just get to my post hike journal entry now. I set up my Nomad 242 tent before my walk and sprayed the silnylon with a silicone spray from Wal-Mart because the silnylon in my tent was getting so old that it was actually starting to absorb water. That worked great because the tent repelled water just like when it was new. The altimeter watch I bought for the walk didn't work out too well. I don't like messing around with gadgets too much and the altimeter needed to be re-set constantly. It would be great if there was a watch with an altimeter that allowed for changing barometric pressure and didn't have to be reset. I will buy one if they ever make one like that. I kept the watch only because it had a night light that I used to see if it was morning yet. I switched back to road running shoes near the end of my walk. I think the extra stiffness of the trail runners that I had been using actually helped cause the plantar fasciitis that I battled all year. I started wearing my softer, more comfortable road running shoes for the last 450 miles of the walk and I started noticing a difference in about three days. It actually got easy to walk 20 miles again. I looked at a 16 mile day as a long, hard day most of the year because my heel hurt with every footstep. I did mail my laptop a few times to friend's homes along the Trail and it was great to have that. I loaded all my photos into it and was able to upload them to my journal fairly often. If I had that to do over, I think I would purchase a much smaller and cheaper laptop so I didn't worry about it so much. Mine weighs about 9 pounds and I kept insuring it for $1600.00. That was OK, but I won't do it again...at least not with that laptop. I would more likely just mail my photo memory card to a very understanding transcriber and have them upload a few photos, but they would have to be VERY understanding because it takes a lot of time. My old Pentax Optio S4I camera still worked all year although I did start having trouble with the contact button that turns it on. I would have to push on it a few times before the camera would come to life, but in all fairness to Pentax, I have carried that same camera in all the weather that Mother Nature could throw at me for about 8,000 trail miles. I have gotten my money's worth out of that camera and will probably purchase a new, updated model for my next adventure. I will NEVER go back to a film camera!! I took over 2,000 photos of this year's walk. I love the Pentax because it takes good pictures and fits in an Altoids tin. That seems to protect it nicely. I also get a lot of comments from anyone who hasn't seen a camera that fits in an Altoids tin. :-))) I changed from eating those fried fruit pies to eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast. Peanut butter and jelly is easier to find in the smaller stores and it just seems to be a more natural, healthier choice. I would buy the best grain bread I could find. The biggy for me this year's walk was giving up my stove. I walked the last 1000 miles stoveless and didn't miss it once. I was very worried when I stopped carrying it because of my Starbuck's addiction. I figured I had about a .000001% chance of making this stoveless thing work for me, but I found I liked not having the chore of brewing my coffee every morning before I started walking and since I stealth tent most of the time, I don't like eating in my tent at night...you know, the food odor drawing the unwanted bear sighting thing. I didn't have to stop earlier and cook my dinner either. I ate cold meals on the Trail and saved the GOOD food for Trail towns.. I used Jolt Caffeine Gum or chocolate covered expresso beans to suppliment the caffeine, then I would drink lots of coffee when I got to town. :-))) I changed from aluminum tent stakes to titatium tent stakes that I bought at Trail Days and am very glad I did. They weigh less, are stronger, go into the ground much easier and hold better. My old aluminum tent stakes were always having to be straightened out because they bent so easily. I carried the Titanium tent stakes for about 1500 miles and never even bent one of them. I'm going to make a list of the friends that helped make this walk a success. My memory isn't that good, so I'm going back through my journal and I'm going to list people in the order that they helped me. Some of my friends helped a lot and at many times at many different places during my walk. I may and probably will fail to mention a few friends....again, it's the memory thing....sorry if I overlooked you. :-))) Here goes; Chief and Carlene, Amoeba, Xmas, Many Sleeps, Alpine, Winton, Heald, Short Cut, Cedar Tree, Hammock Hanger, Wild Hare, ZigZag, Fred, Bone Pac, Mother Nature and Smokestack, Moosie, Mrs Moosie and Goldilocks, TJ aka Teej, Pike and Jenny, John Galt, Jewels, Apple, Circuit Rider and Sherlock, Hercules and Fall, Handlebar, Miss Janet, The Singing Sisters, Bob and Pat Peoples, Seiko, Jeff, Sunny and Queen Diva, George and Ginny Fisher, Hokey Pokey, Tilley and Neville Woods, Goosebump The Snow Princess, Rainbow Slick, Baby Bump, Little Jack Spencer, Frogcaller, Lew, Zulu, Maggie, Mrs Cynthia Yolanda Vega Taylor-Miller Gorp, Bill, Ben and Linda Ware, Caratunk Carl, Mailar, Don and Susan, Steve Longley, Rambunny, Aqua, Bear and Honey, Rock Dancer, Boulder, Mara, Phat Chap, Jim, Greylock, Leif and Zipdrive, The Cookie Lady and Roy, Blip '03, Palmerton Duane, Bag O Tricks, Rambler, Honey Boy and Honey Girl, Vikki and Pat, Jan Litehoe and LWOP, Clyde, Gourmet Dave, Rosie Suit, Marsha, Dick and Laurie Potteiger, Mathewski, Krispy, Tom Brown and Lone Wolf. Some helped in little ways and some helped me in a big way and multiple times and kept me going when things got tough, but I couldn't and wouldn't have wanted to do it without all of you. You all are my Trail family!! I also have to thank everyone who read about all the crap I talked about all year long and then signed my guestbook. You have no idea how much that means to me and how much that helped to keep me walking. Going back through my journal and reading about the places I've been this year is making me homesick for the Trail and my friends, but I have ordered a touring bicycle for a new adventure in '07. It's being built now and when I get it, I will practice riding some shorter two to five day rides in preparation for a cross country ride in the coming spring or summer. I am very excited about that because I've had it in my thoughts for a few years now to do a cross country bike ride. I've been thinking that I could still walk from Maine to Georgia in '07 when I get done with the bike ride. :-))) It would be a fall and winter walk and that might be fun....just thinking out loud. Ha!!! The hardest part about finally finishing up this year's walk was having to face the fact that Mom is in a different place now. I miss you, Mom.