Date: 2018-06-21
To: A life well spent
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: clear sky

Buffalo and I finished 165 miles in a little more than two weeks. Some of these miles we had done before but in order to tie it all together we just did it again so that's why the counter is off some. Because the ATC had told us to go on around the fires in 2016 they went ahead and gave us our Certificates long ago. But we never felt completed until we finished every step. Now it finally feels we can take the credit for finishing even though it took us almost two years.When we got off the Trail for Thanksgiving 2016 we thought we'd come back right away. Honestly with my body weight so low I was having trouble keeping warm. There was an excellent job opportunity I wanted to apply for as well. Buffalo was concerned about his Mom. She was battling cancer along with other problems in what turned out to be her last fight. The fires of 2016 made the final decision for us. We got back on the trail but could only finish those sections that were left open. On December 2, 2016 140 miles were closed in the South. But we still managed to come back December 2nd to Dicks Creek and hike to Springer.Buffalo stayed in Ohio for a year until his Mom passed away and he finished dealing with the final closing of her estate. I made an attempt in June 2017 but broke my ankle on the second day. It took me another 6 months to be able to hike again. We knew the risk of never really finishing when we left in 2016. There is a lesson there for those who might get off the Trail, you may or may not get the chance to get back on. Its easy to get back on the conveyor belt of a normal life but its hard to get back off.Many things changed since 2016. Both Buffalo and I put on about 30 pounds since we left in 2016. We expected to eat like we had in our 2000+ mile journey in 2016. We did not need the food. We never got that hungry. I think I put on weight this time. It was summer and we probably brought too much clothing. I constantly hit "the wall" on long climbs. Our mileage was pretty good for a couple of old guys but I never felt I had the stamina I did when I was a Thru. One of the days we hiked I tried to keep up with 2017 Flip Flopper, Bangles. Also as a senior hiker, she had already hiked some of the Maryland and West Virginia sections with friends this spring too. She still had her Trail Legs. I was working on getting mine back and it just about killed me. Don't know if it was the time off or the fact that I'm two years older that made the difference. I'll continue hiking to find out.Hiking North this time we got to be a NOBO if only for a very short time. I couldn't believe the NOBOs leaving so late. Many were kids just out of school. By the time we got out of the Smokies I think many had been culled out. I believe I saw one of the AT tags on the NOBOs to be over 2700. That's 2700 people heading North. I also met several LASH hikers who were taking summers during graduate school over a period of three years to complete the Trail. I really appreciated getting a new prospective on these groups. They never took the Trail too seriously. Either they made it or not. It was refreshing from the driven SOBO I was in 2016. We had lots of fun together. I hope they make it.Thanks to Tony Nussman who started off with us this year and helped me train for it. You are a great hiking partner.Thank you to GSMNP volunteer Tom Harrington who walked me out of the Park when I broke my ankle.Thanks to my former daughter in law LB for keeping up my journals in 2016. You did a great job of it. I hope you find what you are looking for out there.Thanks again to Eric Mendoza (Godzilla 2008) and my son Kurtis (Almost Eagle 2012) for giving me the inspiration to even start on this thing. And especially Kurtis for providing support and advice through the entire hike. You can leave the Trail but it never leaves you.Thanks to all the Trail Angels who were there for us (And there aren't many for SOBOs!), my dad for driving me back to the Trail plus staying healthy for six months, my brother Bill who picked me up twice (once for risking his life on the Palisades Parkway) and for marrying a great lady then inviting me to the wedding (It drove me hard through New England to make the wedding on time), and of course to my lovely wife who said, "Yes" three times as I started on this journey each time. Most especially thanks to my trail brother Buffalo. Who put up with me for 2200 miles. It just wouldn't have been as much fun without you my friend. So? Am I now a Thru hiker, LASH, or Section hiker? In the end it doesn't matter I guess. Its the journey that counts.