Date: 2013-02-28
To: One Week and Counting
Miles today: 0.0

"Throw a loaf of bread and a pound of tea in an old sack and jump over the back fence". This quote was made by John Muir (1838-1914), a naturalist and early advocate for wilderness preservation, in response to how he planned for an expedition. It occurs to me that his planning philosophy would be a heck of a lot easier to live by than the preparations I make. I mean really, I love tea and adore fresh bread, so what's not to like about this statement?! But, back to reality, the clock's ticking and I'm in my final stages of AT hike preparation. I decided to mail myself a few boxes for the earlier part of my hike and just mailed the first box this morning. I've seam sealed my waterproof overmitts, bought a couple of new dry sacks, and have organized food (still my biggest confusion). I want to keep my pack weight between 25-30 pounds when I start, so I'm analyzing and re-analyzing every single item I decide to take with me. While it seemed exceptionally weird to not return to school on Monday, I'm finding that by today (day 4), it's not seeming so strange anymore. Although part of me wants to be starting the trail RIGHT NOW, I'm appreciative of the time to decompress, organize, and focus on my upcoming adventure. I've also had the opportunity to downhill ski several times with friends, have some great potluck and dinner send-offs (thanks, everyone), walk my trusty canine buddy, Zorro, and just breathe. Always good.Two Saturdays ago John and I drove (actually, I drove since his leg is still broken and he can only drive with his left foot) to Randolph, VT, to meet two friends for dinner. Many of you who have hiked the AT through Vermont and into New Hampshire will know the couple we met. Betsy and Bill (a.k.a. "Short and Sweet" and "Grey Beard") are trail angels extraordinaire who happen to live right on the AT in Norwich, VT. I've hiked by their home twice and they usually leave trail magic near their mailbox, and they said that last summer they hosted somewhere in the neighborhood of 150 hikers. In 2007 their son, Karl, took a gap year between high school and college and thru-hiked. His trail name was "The Brain", and he started with a young woman who went by "Pinky" (any "Pinky and the Brain" fans out there?). Coincidentally, Karl was heading to Olin College in the fall of '07 and so was our son. Karl kept a trail journal that was linked to the Olin College admissions website and that's how I discovered TrailJournals.com. Little did I know at the time that Karl and Jake would end up being freshman year roommates! Betsy and Bill have been extremely helpful in my planning since they've now section hiked over 1,000 miles themselves. Last April they started at Springer Mountain and hiked to Fontana Dam, so I was really glad to hear their perspective on that part of the trail. I've only hiked in New England and New York, so hiking in all points south is a foreign concept to me. Thanks Betsy and Bill for your support and helpful tips! Two of our awesome 2012 Mt. Abe High School graduates, Casey and Megan Ogden, are also hiking the AT this year and they just started a few days ago. They're keeping a trail journal as well (www.trailjournals.com/theogdens). I'd like to think that I might run (or hike) into them, but given the fact that they're 18 and fit, the best I can hope for is that they'll leave me some notes in the shelter logs. In 2011 they hiked the whole Long Trail in 17 days, so they're fast. The more I get into this hiking adventure, the more small world stories I start to experience...All right, enough procrastinating and back to my list. For those of you interested in seeing a few pictures of Vermont in the winter, there are some additional photos in the photo section.