Appalachian Trail Jul/Aug 12

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The Men that Don’t Fit in by Robert service

There's A race of men that don't fit in,
A race that can't stay still;
So they break the hearts of kith and kin,
And they roam the world at will.
They range the field and they rove the flood,
And they climb the mountain's crest;
Theirs is the curse of the gypsy blood,
And they don't know how to rest.
If they just went straight they might go far,
They are strong and brave and true;
But they're always tired of the things that are,
And they want the strange and new.
They say: "Could I find my proper groove,
What a deep mark I would make!"
So they chop and change, and each fresh move
Is only a fresh mistake.
And each forgets, as he strips and runs
With a brilliant, fitful pace,
It's the steady, quiet, plodding ones
Who win in the lifelong race.
And each forgets that his youth has fled,
Forgets that his prime is past,
Till he stands one day, with a hope that's dead,
In the glare of the truth at last.
He has failed, he has failed; he has missed his chance;
He has just done things by half.
Life's been a jolly good joke on him,
And now is the time to laugh. Ha, ha!
He is one of the Legion Lost;
He was never meant to win;
He's a rolling stone, and it's bred in the bone;
He's a man who won't fit in.





“Adventure - an undertaking or enterprise of a hazardous nature; an
unusual or exciting experience; participation in hazardous or exciting
experiences."

Adventure is to me like crack cocaine is to drug addicts. I am
positively hooked. I took some wise words of wisdom recently,
instructing me to not take life too seriously, laugh at yourself and
do what you love. I took these words to heart, and apply them to
everyday life. I frequently dress up, most recently as a banana, laugh
at my own flatulence and regularly go on spontaneous and exciting
adventures, which I love with a passion. Above is the dictionary
definition for ‘adventure.’ To me adventure is something new,
something that makes my heart race and really opens my eyes to new
exciting things.
Old enough to know better, but young enough not to care, I took to
the Appalachian at the age of 20 after being made redundant from the
Au Pair job I had in London, UK. The family that I was caring for had
to move back to the US, so it was a huge wake up call for me, as I was
being left jobless and homeless. Huge wake up calls can do strange
things to people. I’m quite a spontaneous person anyway, but this
turned me straight up rash. I decided to pack a hiking pack, strap on
my boots and walk. My preparation was minimal, my training was zilch.
My enthusiasm and determination overcame this however. My years in the
Scouts probably helped me a bit as well.

”Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you
didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail
away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails.
Explore. Dream. Discover.”
-Mark Twain-(American Humorist, Writer and Lecturer. 1835-1910)

The Appalachian Trail, which is a hiking track across 14 states on
the east coast of America, generally attracts recent divorcees, recent
graduates and people who have recently been made redundant.
Effectively, the Trail is not only a wilderness pathway from Springer
Mountain to Mount Katahdin, but a pathway to self-discovery and inner
balance. During my planned 1,000 mile trek, that is exactly what I
wanted to do. I wanted to find myself, balance myself out and figure
out what I wanted to do with my life.
Thousands of people annually attempt the whole estimated 2,180 mile
trek, and many succeed, and this is something that I would eventually
like to achieve. You can either do the whole trail in one go and do a
‘thru hike’ or complete the whole trail in bits over a period of time
and do it as a ‘section hike’. Section hiking is an alternative that a
lot of people choose due to time constraints and budgeting; myself
included.
I grew up in Wellington, New Zealand and I see myself to be the
typical adventurous Kiwi. I still have the teenage sense that I’m
bulletproof, so while my decision to go hiking in America alone, as a
young female didn’t faze me, a lot of people were wary. Several people
raised their eyebrows with the not so subtle message of ‘good luck
buddy, you’ll need it.’ Others insisted that I carry sufficient
protection like knives and mace.
What these people weren’t aware is that when someone tells me not
to do something, or says that they don’t think I can do it, it makes
me want to do it so much more. In fact, I HAVE to do it. My parents
have firsthand experience with this – they specifically said a big fat
no to tattoos, piercings and hitchhiking. 15 piercings, 4 tattoos and
many thumbed miles later.. I was online booking flights straight away.
I’m a strong believer of doing what you really love, really feel
strongly about, and what makes you happy. For me, everything else
trails behind. Now this can be quite a dangerous way to live a life at
times, but my pursuit of happiness has given me some incredible
memories, valuable life experiences and a fun outlook on life.
My initial plan was to fly into Toronto, spend a few days there,
then catch a Greyhound bus down to Dahlonega, Georgia and then start
my hike from the southern terminus at Springer Mountain. I was then
banking on a straightforward hike, averaging about 20 miles a day to
reach Harpers Ferry in Virginia, roughly 2 months later. At that point
I would catch a train from Harpers Ferry to Washington, DC and spend a
few days there recuperating and then fly out of Dulles Airport.
Of course this didn’t happen. If you’re like me, and you’re an avid
procrastinator, and an absolute challenger of structure then you’ll
understand. Plan A for you for today was to clean your room, do the
laundry – all sorts of mundane yet necessary chores. Plan B (a much
better plan in my opinion) is to urgently find something to do that is
suddenly so important that you couldn’t possibly complete these tasks.
Like read this book for example. A wise decision on your part. I’m all
too familiar with this turn of events, and I found myself finding
things that were all at once much more important than continuing on
hiking.
Three weeks later and I was in Toronto, Canada starting the first of
many letters to my best friend Mahana, another Kiwi living in London.


“A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step”-Lao Tzu-Lao Tzu-

30 June 2012
Detroit Bus Station, Michigan
Dear Mahana,

Canada was awesome. Toronto was a pretty sweet city, and Niagara
Falls was massive. Nothing much else to report on that, apart from the
enchanting accents, but the 3 days I spent there were quite
uneventful. Things did start getting interesting however at the border
when we crossed over into Detroit. I had an absolute nightmare at
customs; as did an Australian girl who was on my bus. We were held up
for a good hour and a half together, for what I imagine the American
Border Security call questioning, but what I would call harassment.
Because I was hiking, and Skippy (our aptly nicknamed Australian
friend) was travelling around for a few months, neither of us had
permanent addresses. This caused an absolute riot among our American
Border Controllers as they couldn’t quite fathom our intentions of
‘gallivanting freely’ around their country. When I said that I
intended to hike part of the Appalachian Trail by myself, judging by
the amount of disbelief on his face I may as well have said that I was
planning on having a sex change, and what was his opinion on the
matter? Believe it or not, this man actually tried to convince me that
I wasn’t actually doing it. It wasn’t a case of the incredulous, ‘Oh
no way, there’s no way you’re doing that by yourself?!’ It was more a
case of, ‘Ma’am, with all due respect, how do you expect me to believe
you? I’m fairly certain that that’s not what you’re actually doing.’
I bit my tongue and refrained from saying, ‘Well Sir, with all due
respect, I pity you for being so narrow minded, and I’m fairly sure,
that you are an idiot.’
But I quite fancied the idea of being allowed into the states,
however hostile their welcoming committee was. So I smiled sweetly and
innocently.
Eventually they left me alone, and like birds of prey, scoped out
their next victim. Our Skippy had just been to South East Asia and
hence had stamps all over her passport. Now I am struggling to
comprehend why someone would be so ignorant, but I can assure you that
his exact words were, ‘Are you sure that I should be touching this
passport of yours? It might have Malaria. Or even AIDS!’ I wish I
could tell you that he was joking. Wow. Just wow. I was speechless.
Skippy laughed awkwardly and quickly snatched her ‘disease ridden’
passport back.
Lastly they did a ‘full’ search of our bags but failed to find my
Bear Mace and my knife, despite large signage stating in big block
letter, ‘NO FIREARMS. NO WEAPONS.’
America. Fuck Yeah.


”It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly
secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is
no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and
exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is
power.” -Alan Cohen


1st July 2012
Nashville Bus Station, Tennessee

Dear Mahana,

More hilarity ensues. Honestly, if you are ever looking to become a
comedian you could get ALL of your material just from riding the
Greyhound bus. At the start of our trip in Michigan our driver did the
usual announcements and introductions and then he went on to say,
‘Absolutely NO smoking on this bus. Y’all think you can just go on
back there and have a few puffs? OH. NO. Brown. Cow. I WILL find you!’
Also, 10x funnier because it was said in an American southern drawl.
Also, a lady asked me if I had bussed all the way from New Zealand to
Tennessee. Always nice to have a genuine mental to brighten up your
day. Now I don’t say genuine mental because of her lack of geography
knowledge. After all, NZ is teeny tiny, and very far away, I can’t
blame her too much. No, the reason I say genuine mental is because she
talked to herself, quite loudly I might add, throughout the whole
journey, and then was met by an ambulance, a fire truck and a police
car at the other end. Why all three emergency services, you may ask?
Well I have no answer for you, apart from this is America, and in
America, anything goes.
Thankfully my Greyhound experience is almost over, after a full day
and a full night of travelling. I tell you, it does not make for easy
sleeping when the bus pulls into stations every hour or so, makes you
get off the bus, wait for 15 minutes, then re-board the bus. I suppose
it would be alright if this was during the day. But no. All through
the night. I am not a happy camper right now. In fact I am a very
tired camper.

2nd July 2012
Horses Gap, Appalachian Trail
Dear Mahana,

Well, I’m finally here! I read something recently. It said; ‘You
know you’re on a real adventure when...’ First criteria was that you
abandon ‘Plan A’ on the first day. I’ll tell you what Mahana. I am
officially on a real adventure! I’ll tell you why. Remember how I told
you that my plan was to hike from Springer Mountain to Harpers Ferry,
which was roughly 1,000? You must remember that, because you sang
Vanessa Carlton’s ‘1,000 miles’ as well as The Proclaimers ‘500
miles.’ This by the way was comedy gold. Anyway, I digress. So
essentially to achieve this, I would have to average 20 miles a day.
Today, I covered 10 miles. In all fairness though, I did set out quite
late, and the guy at the hostel did say to ease into it, AND the
terrain is super uneven and there are lots of roots and stones on the
path. But that’s enough of listening to me wah. Last night I stayed at
the Hikers Hostel in Dahlonega which was stunning, and I tried grits
which is like a corn oatmeal, and very common to this region. Quite
tasty. I met all sorts of cool people on my travels today and the
scenery is lovely and green. Saw some awesome waterfalls as well just
off the path.
So right now, I am tucked up in my tent at a ‘gap’ which is like
where the trail crosses a road, or stream etc. In this case it’s a
road which I’m suddenly apprehensive about camping next to by myself
.. Oh well. The wind is picking up and the forest around me is making
all sorts of strange cracking and snuffly noises. Fantastic. Praying
for sleep!

4th July 2012
Whitley Gap Shelter, Appalachian Trail

Dear Mahana,

I have evaded death. Narrowly. Both in my dreams and in reality. So
on that first night at Horses Gap, I had a super bad dream that a bad
man came and unzipped my tent and tried to pull me out of it. I woke
up, quite terrified, to hear loud snuffling noises. Like a good camper
in bear country, I had hung my food bag in the trees, and my hiking
pack was a decent distance away from my tent. Something however was
snuffling around my camping area. Big somethings. Many big somethings.
Probably a bear. Or three. I concluded it was a bear, and in one
terrifying moment realised that my bear mace was in my hiking pack.
Rookie mistake. All I had in my tent was my knife. And when I say
knife, I really mean multi-tool. Still, I clutched it, lying there
deadly still. Ironic . .
Now, this may have very well been my imagination but I SWEAR I saw a
snout poke under the fly of my tent. Unfortunately my natural reaction
was to lash out, and in doing so I ended up slashing a hole in my tent
.. Oops.
Suddenly, in a flash of brilliance, all my reading up on black bears
came flooding back to me. Black bears tend to be more scared of you,
than you of them. Make lots of noise and throw stuff. I started
thrashing around in my tent, yelling and hollering. Sudden silence,
then sudden scampering. I had defeated the ‘bears.’ In hindsight, I
may have had my ‘adrenaline goggles’ on, and mistaken a raccoon, mole,
or a mouse for a bear. But a bear makes for a more interesting story.
And try telling someone that you slashed a hole in your tent because
of a mouse. It would not go down well.
After the bear debacle, I was determined not to spend another night
by myself in that tent. It’s amazing what you can accomplish when
you’re driven and determined. I hiked a tough 17 miles yesterday to
reach the next shelter. At this point ‘Plan A’ was properly out the
window, as 17 miles was an absolute killer.
I did start to really get a feel for the trail spirit though, and
the sheer diversity of the hikers that it attracts. There are
certainly a few people that I feel need a mention, as they stuck so
vividly in my head.
Hans and Esther were the first couple of people I came across and
Hans became my little trail guru, as he was hiking different sections
each day with his mum (Esther), so we ended up crossing paths several
times over the course of a few days. He gave me useful little tips
about what was coming up, and the little side trails I could take to
see stunning waterfalls and incredible views. He also gave me a heads
up on the people that were hiking up ahead of me, so by the time I
actually met these people; I already knew most of their life story.
Al and Lisa were the next couple I stumbled upon. They were two of
the coolest people I’ve met. They were taking a good portion of time
to hike the trail to Harpers Ferry, averaging about 3 or 4 miles a day
– so about 2 or 3 hours max of actual hiking. They were taking their
time through the wilderness, taking everything in and really
appreciating it all. This was something that really inspired me and
made me rethink my plans a bit.
The next notable group of hikers was a trio from Knoxville. These
three boys were hiking barefoot in their underwear and living of the
highly healthy and nutritious diet of chocolate biscuits dipped in
peanut butter. Tarzan sprung to mind.
So today I have found myself down a gruelling 1.2 mile detour to a
mouse infested shelter, and I’m here sharing it with James and Steve
from Florida. I didn’t actually intend on getting this far along, as a
few miles back we crossed Neels Gap, which is a small hiking village
that the trail runs right through. I only stopped here briefly as my
adrenaline was pumping and I was desperate to cover some more ground.
Shortly after leaving Neels Gap, I had what can only be described
as the most macho moment of my life. I was looking down, headphones
in, focussing on the ground and trying not to total myself on the
stones and tree roots. Suddenly a noise caused me to look up, and I
found myself face to face with a bear. A black bear was so close to
me, I could have reached out and stroked it. We locked eyes, and it
must have decided I was terrifying, so it scampered off. I stood in
shock for a moment, then shrugged my shoulders and carried on. Just up
the path was a couple out for a day hike, that had been waiting,
terrified, for this bear to move off the path. I gallantly explained
to them that the bear was more afraid of them, than they were of it. I
felt like a proper hero, I feel that I essentially saved that scared
couples lives. They carried on down the track shell-shocked at their
‘near death’ experience.

”Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor
do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no
safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring
adventure or nothing.”
-Helen Keller-(American Author and Educator who was blind and deaf. 1880-1968)

5th July 2012
Low Gap Shelter

Dear Mahana,

I recruited James and Steve as my posse and we all hiked just 5 miles
to Low Gap Shelter, which was a serene shelter with a small creek
bubbling across the entrance, and foliage surrounding it. It felt like
we were so isolated and closed off from the world. It was surreal, and
amazing.
I added to my posse once we reached the shelter, as two other
hikers had set up camp at the shelter too. Ryan and Adam, who were
referring to themselves as ‘Fox’ and ‘Squirrel,’ were hiking together
until Ryan went back to teaching towards the end of July, at which
point Adam was ‘flip flopping.’ ‘Flip flopping’ is hiking the trail
in its entirety, but starting at Georgia and hiking to a certain
point, then going up to Maine and hiking back down to where you left
off. The benefit of this is to avoid running from bad weather. I’ll
also explain to you now as well, the concept of ‘trail names.’ Each
hiker gets given a special nickname for while they’re hiking, and it’s
usually given by another hiker. Seeing as Adam and Ryan had decided
their own names, I decided that this wasn’t on, and changed them. Adam
became ‘Burnt Toe Guy,’ as he had left his five finger shoes by the
fire one night and had burnt a toe slot off of them. Ryan became
‘Mountain Man,’ because he was big and protective and had excellent
hunter/gatherer skills. Adam then decided in retaliation that I
should be ‘Junior Mint,’ as I was so young and so white. In addition,
he was craving Junior Mints at the time.
During our little camp together, the five of us became fast friends
almost instantly (one of the best things about trail life,
age/race/background didn’t play a single part in friendships) and we
named ourselves ‘The Low Gap Five.’
Sitting around in the shelter with these men, I had an epiphany. I
saw a sign yesterday at Neels Gap that read, “It ain’t about the
miles, it’s all about the smiles.” This really rung true as I sat and
look at my new found friends’ smiling faces. I had a revelation that I
had come halfway around the world for this, I was living my dream. I’d
rather take my time, take a page out of Al and Lisa’s book, and really
take it all in and appreciate it, rather than push myself to my
limits, which I am quickly discovering. From then on I vowed to take
my time, bask in good company, and be thankful for what and who I am
surrounded by. Slow and steady wins the race aye.

6th July 2012
Blue Mountain Shelter

Dear Mahana,

A massive storm ripped through our neck of the woods last night, and
it was absolutely epic. We all just sat there in the shelter watching
this storm whip the trees around and throw leaves and twigs into the
air. It was more mesmerizing than anything I’ve ever seen on TV, I
could have watched the show that Mother Nature put on for us, for
ages.
The Low Gap Five struggled through 7 miles today, a lot of hill
walking involved. Another storm threatened, but held off from becoming
too intense. It was, however, wet enough to prevent us from having our
campfire which was upsetting. While I was hiking today, I saw another
bear. I’m slowly becoming less and less fearful of them.
9th July 2012
Plumorchard Gap Shelter



Dear Mahana,

Today, Ryan, Adam and I stopped here for lunch. A few days ago we
left James and Steve and a place called Unicoi Gap, as they needed to
get back to the real world and back to their real person jobs. It was
strange seeing them go, as I had become so accustomed to their faces
over the past few days. Adam’s sister picked us up at Unicoi Gap and
we went and spent the day in Helen, GA which was a small Germanic
village. All the road signs were in German, it was so bizarre. I can
see why a lot of Americans never leave the states; every city and
every state is so diverse, it’s like 50 countries rolled into one.
We had proper food in Helen which was an absolute God send. I
demolished a man sized portion of Philly Cheese Steak.
We only spent a short while in Helen then continued on up to Tray
Mountain Shelter which was only a few miles on. There were quite a few
other people at the shelter there so we had a massive campfire. Ryan,
as my mountain man did as standard, collected a whole load of fire
wood. He had us in absolute stitches as he Tarzaned up and down trees,
swinging off loose branches so that they (and himself) would come
crashing to the ground.
We roasted smores on the campfire, which probably relieved Ryan and
Adam to no end, as I had been jabbering on about having smores from
day one, so I could finally shut up about it. Hiking gives you quite a
mans appetite. And not just a normal man. I’m talking obese man here.
I polished off two full packets of graham crackers, a bag of
marshmallows and 2 blocks of Hersheys. I still could have eaten more.
After this mammoth smoresathon, we definitely needed a lie down. We
all lay on this rock face overlooking a valley, where you could see
all the city lights shining below, and the stars twinkling above. I
felt well and truly disconnected from life out of the woods and it was
one of the moments that I love most in life, but also find the hardest
to explain. It’s a feeling of euphoria of the highest level. In my
head I see an image of the globe, and then I kind of zoom in to where
I am in the world, and it gives me such a buzz. Looking out at the
view of all the lights, it knocked the breath out of me, and I just
wanted to cry due to all the emotion bubbling up inside me.
The next day we left Tray Mountain shelter, and in stark contrast
to the night before, the next day was pure torture. At that point, I
figured if I could conquer what I did that day, I could take on the
world. I could take whatever came at me from that point on.
We had an epically tough climb up a steep mountain which never
seemed to end. When I reached the top I just collapsed on the ground
beside Ryan and we lay there for a good hour, recollecting ourselves.
I ended up pulling something in my left leg on the way down, and
walking was pure agony. I got to a gap where Ryan was waiting for me
and I just broke down. All the pain, raw emotion from the night
before, and homesickness all combined together and just came spilling
out. Poor Ryan had no idea what to do with me. When Adam arrived a wee
while later, we made the executive decision to stay in Hiawassee, GA
that night. Proper food, a real bed, a hot shower and a Skype call to
my parents made all the difference in the world. This morning when we
left to keep hiking, I was rearing to go, completely refreshed and
recovered from my slight breakdown.

10th July 2012
Standing Indian Shelter

Dear Mahana,

Lunchtime at the Standing Indian! We are halfway up our highest peak
yet, but it’s a nice gentle incline, thank God – we certainly needed
it after yesterday. We crossed over from Georgia to North Carolina
which was super exciting in itself, there was even a wee sign on a
tree saying GA/NC. We had completed the Georgia section! Success! Our
excitement, however was short lived. As soon as we walked on into
North Carolina, we were confronted by the hills from hell. As I was
struggling up the path that was naturally made into steps by erosion
and trees roots I heard Ryan yell up ahead; “North Carolina, you are
literally the stairs of FUCK YOU!!”
I want to yell back, ‘My sentiments exactly!’ But I couldn’t, as I
was doubled over laughing at Ryan’s genuine and sincere disgust at
what North Carolina had presented him with.

11th July 2012
Big Spring Shelter

Dear Mahana,

It is wet. Cold and wet. So not even the good kind of wet. We
stayed at Carter Gap Shelter last night after a very dreary, miserable
day of hiking in the rain. It was actually a fairly dreary and
miserable atmosphere as well, as we had arranged to meet at the peak
of Standing Indian Mountain which was our highest peak so far. I
legitimately thought something had happened to Ryan when he wasn’t
there. I’ll just point out now, that up until this point Ryan usually
soldiers ahead, waits somewhere for me to catch up, then I join him
and we wait for Adam to catch up. There’s usually about 20-30 minutes
between each of us. I quite liked the idea of having someone in front
of me, and someone behind me; it made me feel really safe. So when
Ryan wasn’t anywhere to be seen, I freaked. I shouldn’t have, but I
was so wet and cold and tired that my brain automatically went into
panic mode. I decided just to keep hiking until I got to the shelter
we had planned on staying at. It was a good 4 or 5 miles on, which
gave me plenty of time to conjure up some worst case scenarios in my
head. It was still bucketing down with rain, so my logical mind should
have told me that Ryan had probably just continued on to get out of
the rain. My logical mind also should have told me to wait for Adam to
save him from the exact same fate. Screw Adam, my logical mind was too
frazzled. I powered on and eventually crossed paths with Ryan who had
dumped his pack and was coming back to meet us. I could have cried. I
almost did. By this point I had come to terms with his death and was
already planning on how to tell his friends and family.
We eventually all gathered at the shelter and dried off, laughing
at my ridiculousness. Another storm was in full force now, it was like
natures tv for us, we sat in the shelter, bundled up, mesmerized by
the storm. We were all woken up at 3am by torrential rain, so that and
the hike we did today had me absolutely knackered. Apparently
according to Americans, when I say knackered, it sounds like I’m
saying naked, so laughs all around. I had to point out multiple times
that, no, I am fully clothed, I’m just very tired. We hit the 100 mile
mark today WOOP and trudged up an almost vertical incline up Albert
Mountain, to what we thought was going to be a spectacular view, but
instead the grey cloud cover dominated the view. I was very
disappointed.

13th July 2012
Franklin, North Carolina

Dear Mahana,

Friday 13th today! Didn’t see any black cats, walk under any
ladders, or break any mirrors so I think I should be ok. Yesterday was
a bit of a struggle. We only did 7 miles, and we were all quite testy
and irritable but Ryan and I absolutely charged through about 6 miles,
so we got a good rest while waiting for Adam to catch up. Then we
ambled the rest of the way with Adam. We ended up hitching a lift from
Wallace Gap after calling it a day, as we were all shattered. We all
climbed on the back of a ute, slinging our packs in beside us. It was
a bit drizzly and blustery, and in conjunction with being on a flat
deck going 50 miles an hour, we very quickly came to look like drowned
rats.
I had an almost out of body experience while sitting on that flat
bed, trying to steady myself and not be thrown off the back. We had
been picked up by this lovely Southern couple with an adorable accent,
and an equally adorable dog sitting in between them. The dog was
looking at us with a mixed doggy expression of wariness and interest
from beside his master’s lap. The woman, who wasn’t driving, was
making strained conversation with Adam over the rush of wind across
the truck. Ryan and I were sitting on crates, both fighting a losing
battle against the wind, as it whipped through our hair and threatened
to throw us clean off the back of the moving vehicle. We were hurtling
down a highway that was encased by rich, green mountains that were
blanketed by a thin layer of mist. At this point, all my senses were
alert and I had the amazing realisation, ‘I’m in America. I am living
a dream that I have had since I was a young girl scout. And look how
it’s worked out. I’m flying down a highway with my two new friends. On
a pick up truck.
Ryan gave me a weird look, as I sat there, being pounded by the
rain and wind, with a huge beaming grin on my face.
“I’m in America.” I said simply
“I know.” Was his reply. I think he understood though.
We spent that night at a Budget Inn, and Adam and I went on an
adventure to Walmart while Ryan stayed back to make some phone calls.
It was my first time in a Walmart, and I was WAY too excited. I think
I scared Adam a bit. I brought some more supplies and then got myself
a treat. Now, you know how much of a HUGE fan I am of Ben and Jerry’s.
Back in England we have about 10 flavours maximum. In America they
have THOUSANDS. Sorry for the irrational capitalisation, but I was
irrationally excited. I have only been told that I was irrationally
excited. Personally I thought my excitement was quite rational indeed.
Smores. Tiramisu. Peach Cobbler. New York Fudge. Midnight Feast.
Peanut Butter Cups. I could go on, and on, but I think I would drown
in a sea of my own drool. To treat myself I eventually settled on a
Red Velvet Cake Ben and Jerry’s tub, which was Vanilla Ice Cream with
Red Velvet cake crumbs and a cream cheese icing swirl. TO DIE FOR. I
ate the whole tub. I also polished off a couple of rib sandwiches as
Adam just sat there, dumbstruck at the sheer amount of food going into
my gob. Didn’t even care.
When we got back to the hotel Ryan was on the phone and it
eventuated that he was going to have to bail on us early due to
personal problems back at home. I never told Ryan this, but he has
become one of my heroes. He was such a masculine male, naturally
protective and strong. He took care of me in an older brother type way
on more than one occasion and I was quite heart-rending to see him go.
It was going to be so bizarre not having him waiting on a tree stump,
and a rock face with a faraway look on his face, blatantly having been
waiting for a good half an hour for us to catch up.

14th July 2012
Cold Spring Shelter

Dear Mahana,


No rest for the wicked. Adam and I hiked on yesterday afternoon,
leaving Ryan in Franklin, as he had to go home to sort out some
personal problems. He sure picked the optimum time to opt out, Adam
and I had to hike in the absolutely pouring rain for about 7 miles
that afternoon. We were so drenched.
We eventually got to Siler Bald Shelter where we were joined by 4
American Boy Scout leaders. I was in my element, as I used to do
scouts and also became a scout leader. All along the way we had met a
whole bunch of people that Ryan and Adam could natter on to for ages
about history, pop culture and politics, all of which bore me to
tears. Apart from pop culture, I can deal with that. The leaders and I
talked scouts, swapped outdoors tips and compared NZ scouts to USA
scouts. One gave me a lecture on light equipment, as when I prepared,
my budget was more important than weight and unfortunately the lighter
the equipment gets, the heavier the price tag gets.
He ended up swapping a few things with me like rope etc to lighten
my load. The guys said it was incredible that I had hiked for so long
with such a heavy pack, but it didn’t bother me at all. Macho moment
number two.
Today we hiked 12 miles with the Scout leaders and arrived at the
most dingy yet quaintest shelter I had ever seen. It was like a little
cave. This shelter had a stunning cliff face that rivalled with the
one we previously laid on and contemplated life at Tray mountain. Not
much contemplating was done on this rock ledge though, as soon as we
got up there the leaders pulled out their cocktail collection. I swear
to God, these men were carrying more alcohol than anything else.
Vermouth, vodka, gin - the works. After a few shots and a cocktail –
served in a cocktail glass (classy), I suddenly remembered the
drinking age.. Woops. Ah well, what happens on the trail, stays on the
trail. Or gets published in a book available to the public . .

15th July 2012
Rufus Morgan Shelter

Dear Mahana,

We had a mouse adventure at about 2am this morning. I had constantly
been told that the shelters were completely rodent infested but this
was the first time that we’d actually seen one funnily enough. It
amused us to no end, as it kept us awake for a good hour or so,
‘stealthily’ stealing Adam’s trail mix.
It would scuttle from around the corner of the shelter, look at us
and creep up to the bag of mix, dive into the little hole that it had
chewed out and come out with a treat (usually an M&M) and would dart
back behind the corner, shooting us suspicious looks as it ran. Adam
had me in hysterics as he tried to catch and kill the little critter,
but it was too sneaky. He was pretty upset that his mix had been
tainted though.
The next day was probably one of the toughest days so far. We hiked
about 10 miles and had some really stunning views but my god it was
tough. I was exhausted due to the mouse debacle the night before, and
in addition by water bottle ending up getting smashed so I was without
water for a while. I met some nice men along the way that lent me some
of theirs thankfully. The last few miles felt like FOREVER and it was
all really steep downhill. I had little bugs flitting around my face,
and they just loved zapping into my eyes and nose. The mosquitoes
loved me as well, and had made a fun little game of dive bombing into
my ears. I threw on sunglasses and put in my headphones but I could
still hear the buzzing. I nearly had a nervous breakdown, I kid you
not.
I was absolutely exhausted when I got to the shelter, but so
relieved. I just lay there and watched Adam make a fire. It was Adam
and I’s last night hiking together, as he was ‘flip flopping’ and his
parents were picking him up from Nantahala the next day to drive up to
Maine so he could start working his way back down from Mt Katadhin to
Nantahala again. We had a sobering evening, talking about life goals
and future plans. I was really sad to be spending my last night with
him, as I was now going to be officially on my own for the rest of the
trip. Unless I picked up another unwitting victim.

16th July 2012
Fontana Dam Shelter

I cheated a little .. After ditching Adam at Natahala Outdoor
Centre, I decided I was not really in the mood to take on a 5 mile
climb, which was what was ahead of me. So I stuck my thumb out. It’s
what we trail bunnies call ‘yellow blazing.’ It’s quite addictive.
A lovely young couple who were out mountain biking took me all the
way to Fontana Dam so I saved myself a 30 mile or so walk. Excellent.
Now, you have to PROMISE not to tell my parents. When I told them that
I was going to America, they were pretty cool with it. I’ve always
been really independent and I quite often do crazy things like this.
But one thing they made me absolutely promise was not to hitchhike.
I’m pretty sure one of the threats that they made was to disown me. In
my defence, I know hitchhiking in America is considered extremely
stupid and dangerous (hence the attraction for me), so I carried a
pocket knife and I had my canister of extra strong pepper spray (for
bears).
So I made it to the ‘Fontana Hilton’ nicknamed for it’s amazing
views and working shower!! Heaven for hikers. The Fontana Village was
close by which was a small resort town but managed to keep me
entertained for a few hours as I did some laundry and stocked up.
I thought that I’d be myself for the night, but luckily a woman
named Julia Song came in just after I had had dinner. Funnily enough I
had actually spent my second night with Julia but we didn’t talk very
much. She was making excellent time, and she had actually reached her
halfway point and was going to start heading back to Springer Mountain
in the morning. This woman was actually incredible, and I wish I had
expressed my admiration of her more at the time. Her husband had died
recently, and he had always wanted her to join him in hiking the
Appalachian trail. This woman however absolutely detested hiking, I
swear to god I have never met anyone that disliked it more. Her heavy
dislike was so evident, but her love and passion for her husband had
overcome this. She was doing this hike in his memory. She also had no
camera with her, and was drawing the things that were most memorable
for her, and these drawings were absolutely stunning. I was almost
reduced to tears when at the end she said, 'and you know what the
funniest part is? I still HATE hiking!" This woman had been hiking for
almost 2 weeks straight now, at 20 miles a day, and had another 2
weeks of the same intensity in front of her. Not to mention that she
was backtracking and doing what she had just hiked backwards, which
for me seems like one of the hardest things to do in hiking - because
you know exactly what to expect. Honestly my heart went out to her,
and I admired her so much for her strength and determination.

17th July 2012
Russell Field Shelter

Dear Mahana,

First day in the Great Smokey Mountains, a mere 13.8 miles today,
all done and dusted by 5pm. I was feeling particularly proud of
myself, especially as within minutes of arriving at the shelter, a
horrendous storm kicked in. I wasn’t even sore or tired. I was
particularly impressed with myself. A quote from my favourite movie,
‘Into the Wild’ popped into my head. Happiness is better shared. My
god that is true. Before this trip I definitely considered myself
quite an introvert. At this point I was positively craving human
attention. Anyone would do. A serial killer could walk into the
shelter right now, and I’d probably frighten him off with my eagerness
to chat. I want to tell the world at that very moment about how I was
feeling, and what I had done that day, and about all the amazing
people I had met so far. I didn’t quite go as far as talking to myself
about it, but I put pen to paper and that seemed to do the trick.

18th July 2012
Double Spring Shelter

Dear Mahana,

16.4 miles today. I’m on fire!
The day started off as one of the most enjoyable so far. I was
passing through lush fields of green and gold, the terrain was easy to
walk on and the weather was fantastic. Halfway through the day, the
whole trek took a turn for the worst. I hit the peaks ‘Rocky Top’ and
‘Thunder Head,’ and that’s exactly what I got. Rocks and thunder. The
two peaks were practically vertical, and a storm hit so I was
drenched.
At this point, I was at an all time low, trudging along,
desperately wanting to reach the shelter so I could strip down and get
into my sleeping bag. As I plodded up what I greatly hoped was the
last hill, I looked up to the horizon and saw the most breathtaking
view. Valleys upon valleys stretched out below me, the rain had
stopped and small trails of mist were rising off the mountains. Apart
from the mist it was crystal clear and I could see for miles. I was in
awe. I stood there for what felt like hours, completely forgetting the
nearby shelter. I feel like that view just took the wind out of me.
Suddenly I heard people coming up the path behind me. Other
hikers?! Finally! I wiped the tears of astonishment from my eyes and
greeted Steven and Lauren as they walked up.
Steven and Lauren were country singers from Alabama and were a
performing duo. When they weren’t on tour they escaped to the
wilderness and went hiking and camping. These guys were living my
dream! Travelling and exploring together. They were the loveliest
couple as well.
The next morning, as we were all sitting around having breakfast, a
bear ambled across our campsite – paused to glance at us then ambled
on by. It was quite surreal, it felt like we were watching a movie. I
packed up quickly and said my farewells to the other two and then
carried on towards Clingmans Dome.

20th July 2012
Sevierville, TN

Dear Mahana,

In the most absurd turn of events, I found myself in a woman’s home
who claimed that ‘God spoke to her heart’ about me. I’ll back track –
let me explain.
I hit “The Wall,” which in hikers’ terms is when your body and mind
simultaneously decide that they simply cannot, and will not go any
further. I did not just bump lightly into it and rebound off which I
felt that I had probably done a number of times so far, but no, I ran
full on head first into it and felt the full effect of it's wrath. I
took several breathers, numerous long stops until I NEEDED to get off
the trail. I had had it. Enough. It is quite a common thing to happen
to long distance hikers’ and it’s how you handle it that really
defines you in my opinion. I would define myself as quite a
spontaneous yet rash person, and this was demonstrated as I just
packed a sad and walked off onto the next road I could find. I had
just passed Clingmans Dome, which is the highest point on the trail.
It’s a monstrous concrete structure that spirals up above the ground
and on a clear day you can see mountain ranges as far as the eye can
see. That particular day however was not clear. It was grey and
miserable. This really set the mood.
Shortly after I ‘admired’ this hideous grey structure I just jumped
off the trail onto the nearest road and thumbed a lift to Gatlinburg,
Tennessee. At this point I wasn’t quite sure where it was that I
wanted to go, I just wanted to get away. As soon as I was dropped off
in Gatlinburg, I knew instantly that this wasn’t where I wanted to be.
Forget mountains as far as the eye could see, here it was American
tourists as far as the eye could see. Easy mistake though, they were
roughly the same size. Cheeky.
I stuck my thumb out again and a young couple picked me up but they
had NO clue where they were going. At this point, after consulting my
trail guide, I had decided that I would try and make it to Erwin, TN
where I knew there were a few hikers hostels. The couple dropped me at
the Dolly Parton Interstate and told me that I could easily hitch a
ride from there. Turns out all I could get easily from there was a
fiver from a lady who thought I was homeless, and a visit from a state
trooper.
Apparently, according to this certain state trooper, hitch hiking
is illegal in all 50 states.
“Are you hitchhiking madam?”
“No sir, I’m hiking.”
“Ma’am, hitchhiking is illegal, but what is not illegal is going
to a petrol station and asking people nicely for rides.”
Drat. Why didn’t this pig believe me?
I took his advice though and went over to the petrol station where
Kathy and Dereck intercepted me. They had seen me on the interstate
and were worried about me. This is also the point where Kathy gave me
the God talk. She seemed nice, if a little Godly, and I figured, worst
case scenario, I have my bear spray. She offered for me to come back
to her place and have a shower, some food and get a plan together. I
gratefully took her up on this offer and felt so much better for it.
Dereck who was 14, was a pretty good kid and had all sorts of
questions about NZ, but I had the distinct feeling that he was still
more interested in his x-box. He reminded me a little bit of my own
brothers. Kathy was AMAZING and even though this woman did not have a
lot, she gave so much. She was in a wheelchair and had a carer for
Christs sake and she did so much more for me than I think I have ever
done for a stranger. She made me feel guilty yet inspired at the same
time.
Kathy rustled up her neighbour to drive me to Erwin the next day
via Knoxville which was so amazing of him, especially considering this
man was lacking a leg and was just about to undergo major heart
surgery. Who were these people?! I couldn’t comprehend how their
outlook on life could be so positive and giving considering their
situations but I was absolutely awestruck by them. From that point on
I vowed to help anyone that I saw in need. Paying it forward.



20th July 2012

Erwin, TN


Kathy’s neighbour Nic, and his buddy Greg gave me a lift to this
adventure rafting centre today and after about an hour I had secured a
free white water rafting trip for the next day. And by free, I mean in
return I was cleaning the boss lady’s car, and helping the raft guide
with the customers. Also, I had planted the seeds for staying there for a while
.. Damn my getting bored easily mentality. I had already had enough of
hiking for a while and wanted a new adventure. I was so grateful for
my Kiwi roots though, as everyone seemed to be absolutely enchanted by
my accent and I could wrap most people around my little finger.


“Look, I really don’t want to wax philosophic, but I will say that if
you’re alive, you’ve got to flap your arms and legs, you’ve got to
jump around a lot, you’ve got to make a lot of noise, because life is
the very opposite of death.”-Mel Brooks-(American Actor, Writer,
Producer and Film Director. b.1926 )




22nd July 2012


Erwin, TN

Looks like I might be staying here for a while. The big boss lady has said I can raft around for a while.
I went out paddling yesterday with John – one of the more
experienced guides, and helped him out with a group of 9 people in
funyaks. Funyaks. Such a funny word. A giant happy Yak suddenly
springs to mind. In reality all they are, are inflatable kayaks.
Definitely not as cool.
The River and the area is steeped in history, and is
absolutely stunning. Being a river rat is fantastic, such a cruisey
pace of life, and such a simple existence. We live in little shacks
raised above the ground. They’re very primitive, but to me that’s all
part of the attraction. We wake up by the river, hit the river, get
off the river, talk about the river, go to sleep by the river. A
“river rat” existence was suiting me just fine for the time being. John’s been showing me the
ropes, which I’ve been struggling to concentrate on due to the fact
that this guys is drop dead gorgeous and walks around with his top off
99% of the time.


24th July 2012
Erwin, TN


So I traded hiking for rafting, and began doing some runs
with John, a local river rat, who I immediately developed a massive
crush on because he was tall, lean, blonde and gorgeous. He took me
down the lowerRiver and fascinated me by his knowledge of
the river, and water mechanics. I became familiar with phrases like
eddys, foot entrapment, and undercurrent. Because I had previous
experience with paddle sports, I picked it all up pretty quickly.
The river and route I took down it were stunning. Calm in some places,
and then rough enough to get the adrenaline pumping. At the put in, we
passed 'Devils Looking Glass,' which is a spectacular rock face, that
literally looks like a face, and we'd always tell the rafters the
story that back in the days of the Indians, they used to drive cattle
of the edge of the cliff, and there are caves up there that still may
be in use. Another story we always used to incorporate on the slower
patches was the history of Erwin. Now I got sick of this story pretty
quickly, but the fist time I heard it, I was taken in.

On September 13, 1916 in Erwin, Tennessee, an event took place that
would forever leave a black mark against the town.
The Sparks Circus were a well known circus company in the area, and
they purchased its first elephant in 1896. Her name Mary. She was
four years old and four feet high. At that time the show was a horse
and wagon show. By 1905, they had grown to railroad transportation
with one railroad car. By 1906, they had three rail cars; by 1916,
the show had expanded to fifteen rail cars and five elephants.
The Spark's show played all over Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee.
Late in the summer, Louis Reed, the regular elephant trainer, had to
leave. Paul Jacoby, who had previously been the elephant trainer, took
over the job.
"Red" Eldridge was hired as a helper. “Red” had no background, no
documents, nothing. He was presumed to be homeless.
The circus travelled around and between shows the elephants were
driven to a watering hole. On the way back to the tent one night, Mary
went for a piece of watermelon beside the road. Red prodded her
sensitive ear with a bull hook and she became enraged. She grabbed
Red with her trunk and threw against a drink stand. Then she stepped
on his head until it was flat.
The people were terrified. They began screaming, "Kill the elephant!"
A blacksmith tried, but the guns that day were not powerful enough.
That night, Charlie and Addie Sparks had to make the most difficult
decision of their circus careers. After all those years with Mary they
had become so attached to her, but they couldn't take a chance that
she might harm a circus patron. They decided to have her destroyed.
But how were they to destroy a 7500 pound elephant? Shooting her in
four soft spots on her head might have worked but was too risky with
the crowd of curiosity seekers that the story attracted. She was too
smart to eat food laced with cyanide.
Before midnight on September 12th Charlie Sparks made the decision to
take Mary to Erwin to be hanged. That decision would also hang on
Erwin the fame of elephant killer for the next 80 years.
It was about 5 PM on the 13th of September. Mary was hung from a
crane in the railroad yard, and from that day on Erwin became the town
who hung an elephant.

It was a bit of a depressing story, but we tried to make it
interesting and put our own twists on it. It always got hilarious
whenever one of us was telling the story and then realised young
children were in the boat. We had many inventive ways of making the
story have a happy ending.

9th August 2012
Johnson City, TN

Well John went and got a tattoo the other day – the Chinese symbol for
water on his wrist. Not to be beaten, I went in today and got a tattoo
of the outline of the world map. I love it! It’s quite big; it spans
the width of my shoulders. Greenland and South Africa hurt like a
bitch, so I’m not impressed with them right now. Matt, my main man at
the river at the moment, came with me to hold my hand. I think my Kiwi
charm worked on these guys as well, as I got the whole thing done for
only $100! I even got New Zealand coloured in green.


11th August 2012
Erwin, TN

Tonight there was a meteor shower over the Northern hemisphere. John, a
couple of other guides and I drove up to a place called the ‘Beauty
Spot’ which was a flat topped hill out near the AT. We had a 360
degree, unobstructed view of the sky, and views of the city lights of
Johnson City and the mountain ranges. We lay down on the ground on
mats for hours just staring up at the sky, arms folded behind our
heads. It was absolutely surreal. Every few minutes or so someone
would cry - 'saw one!' And the others would grumble because they were
looking at a different patch of sky and missed it. I distinctly
remember a stunning streak that seemed to cross the entire sky, and it
left a blaze of purple smoke that we all witnessed. We all just gasped
in awe, and it was something that words simply could not describe.
Breath-taking, and dreamlike would be just the tip of the iceberg to
understanding that view.




14th August 2012

Kincora Hiking hostel,
Hampton, TN

Well. I’m back on the trail. Almost. After 3 weeks of being a river
rat, I think I’m ready to go back to being a trekking Tui .. Hiking
hamster? No, hiking human? Trekking tortoise? Ah dilemmas. One will
stick eventually. Walking whale? Walking wombat? These are just
getting better and better .. ANYWAYS. I’ve got about another 150 miles
to go until I hit Christianberg, VA where I have booked a bus to
Washington, D.C. It’s not quite Harpers Ferry, but it’ll do. I’m on a
proper adventure!
I’m the only person at the hostel right now, which I dislike
intensely already after being surrounded by people for the last 3
weeks. The hostel is highly iconic on the trail, and during peak
hiking season is filled to the brim with eager hikers, stopping for a
rest and a well needed socialise. Unfortunately I was the only one
there at this point apart from the owner, Bob Peoples. Type this mans
name into google and you will be overwhelmed with positive response
and reviews. People often compare him to Chuck Norris and you will
find graffiti on many of the shelters about how awesome he is. I met
him firsthand, and he was just a genuine nice guy, something that is
hard to come by these days.
15th August 2012
Watuaga Lake Shelter

Dear Mahana,

I hiked 10.5 miles today and I felt every one of them! I can’t believe
how little time it took for me to get completely out of shape. Just a
short message today, and also it looks like I will be all on my
lonesome for the next while, as hiking season is pretty much over.

16th August 2012
Middle of nowhere, TN(?)

I hike about 16 miles today, even though I only intended to do 14.
After 14, I reached Iron Mountain Shelter, saw that no one was there,
and it was unlikely that anyone would turn up, so I just carried on. I
ended up hanging my hammock between two branches by a large rock face.
So here I am, smack bang in the middle of nowhere, hoping to sweet
baby jesus that it doesn’t rain on me tonight. Today was much easier
than yesterday. I met 2 people along the trail today, Tom and his
buddy who I stopped to have a chat to. They were out fishing at the
lake together, but there was about 30 minutes distance between them.
Largely due to the fact the Tom had a haze of hash floating around
him, so that may very well have been slowing him down a tad.

17th August 2012
The Place, Damascus
Dear Mahana,

I made it to Virginia! I may have cheated a little bit again .. I
literally did not sleep a wink last night, and I got going at first
light – about 7am. I hiked 3 miles or so before I came across a road
and I hitched a lift into Shady Valley, TN with someone who was
actually on their way to do some trail work up the track a bit. I was
hoping to find another adventure, as I had heard that there was a
place called ‘The Appalachian Folk School’ in the vicinity which
offered free accommodation in exchange for work. Alas, I couldn’t get
a hold of the man running it.
I sat on the porch of the general store for a while, people
watching. The general store was the only civilised thing to see for
miles. It was situated at a crossroads, where two long roads met. I
imagined that both these roads would take you a long way nowhere. We
were surrounded by hills and farmland. It was actually quite nice, it
was very peaceful and slow paced. I sat on a rocking chair on the
patio with my coffee and felt like I should have been wearing
dungarees, holding a bottle of moonshine in one hand, a blade of straw
poking out of my mouth and intermittently spitting chewing tobacco on
the ground. Instead I rocked there in my hikers’ best, looking like a
lost soul – a look that I have mastered.
Eventually I decided to move on, and hitched a ride with a proper
American hillbilly in a pick up truck, playing Toby Keith on the
radio. We chatted about guns and the prospect of him joining the
American guards. I felt like I was in some strange movie, or a
hillbilly-themed dream.
The guy dropped me off in Damascus and I found a church run hostel
there that put me up for the night for free. My best mates Ben and
Jerry sorted me out fine in the ice cream department and I wolfed down
a well deserved steak as well. With a full belly, I settled down for a
proper sleep.

18th August 2012
Troutdale Baptist Church Hostel, VA
Dear Mahana,

Another church hostel tonight! These things are God sent, I swear,
they are such life savers. They would be so much better though if
there were other hikers here. I’m here alone again apart from the guy
who runs the place, who is around somewhere. God damn I miss the ‘Low
Gap Five’ so much. I can’t believe how much I miss 4 other people,
having only known them for such a short time. They really did set the
bar high for hiking the AT though. Hiking alone sucks balls. At first
it’s great, the sense of freedom is incredible, like I swear to God
that I felt my soul just soar when I set off at first on my own, with
the whole trail laid out in front of me like a rocky, uneven red
carpet. But for the past few nights it’s just been boring and lonely.
I left Damascus at about 7am this morning and hiked along the
Virginia Creeper Trail, which was a flat bicycle path for about 10
miles, instead of following the AT which went up and over a mountain.
Lazy I know, but hey! I’m entitled to be a bit lazy sometimes. It
being a cycle trail, I came across a whole bunch of cyclist, one of
which yelled,
“Hey dude, you lost your bike!”
Thank you sir, I hadn’t realised.
I joined back up with the AT and arrived at what was meant to be my
shelter for the night – Lost Mountain Shelter. However, I got there at
3pm. Too early, too bored. Unfortunately, this is always the be all
and end all of my problems. Boredom. I get bored way too easily and I
get myself in bizarre situations. I hitched another lift into
Troutdale which consists of 3 churches and an equal amount of people.
I went for a walk around the area which took about 5 minutes, 4 of
which was spent chatting to the pastor of the Baptist church. He
invited me along to church tomorrow, and a picnic after. ‘Free food?’
I thought. I’m so there. Although I consider myself an agnostic, I
tend to have a very open mind, so I thought why not?
I got back to the hostel and read through a few of the man heavily
religious pamphlets that they had on display.
Be saved. Give your soul to Christ. Open your heart to Christ.
Confess your sins.
Well Jesus Christ, I imagine if I confessed my sins, you might die
a second time.
The pamphlets made me raise my eyebrows in disbelief several times,
mainly due to the constant, severe threat of hell, but a lot of it did
make a bit of sense. I looked forward to experiencing my second ever
day at mass, and my first time ever in an American mass.

19th August 2012
Trimpi Shelter
Dear Mahana,

Just hiked 4 miles. Nothing could prepare me for how alone I am
feeling right now. And nothing can compare to that sinking feeling
that I am becoming all too accustomed to, when you see an empty
shelter. That dejected feeling at the pit of your stomach as the
realization sinks in that you’re spending yet another night alone in
the wilderness. At first it was so thrilling, so free. But now it’s
just hollow, and I’m almost reduced to tears. Time seems to freeze, as
you’re forced to entertain yourself with whatever you can find on the
forest floor. It’s truly amazing the amount of things that you can do
with sticks and stones. To tell you the truth, I’m not even scared at
all anymore. I’m just fed up, and craving companionship. If a bear or
a coyote came near the shelter right now, I’d probably invite it in
for a hot drink and a chat.
Despite the desperate loneliness right now, I had a really good
day. Admittedly, the church service was actually really incredible.
The pastor, Ken, must have taken everything in that I said to him in
the short time that we spoke last night, because his sermon properly
spoke to my heart. Gross I know, but hear me out.
So he preached about those who like to travel, and explore and how
they essentially spend their lives looking for something. He spoke of
an eternal search. He spoke of travellers that seem to be endlessly
searching, unsure of what they are looking for, and that they have a
permanent longing, or void to fill. He said that sometimes we have a
constant unsettledness, and lingering discontentment. I was a bit
shocked, as I felt like he had seen right into my soul and just
spilled it to everyone in the church. But then he ruined it for me by
saying that what I was missing in my life was Jesus, and his
forgiveness. This man would have made a killer salesman. Pitching all
the benefits then slipping in at the end the extortionate price. He
did however have me thinking about Jesus. Was I ready to give Jesus my
soul, and open my heart to him? I really did think hard about this,
and I did try but I just couldn’t. I felt a bit defeated, as it seemed
like a solution to my emptiness and void was so close; within reach,
yet so far away.
I did have a lot of time to think while walking though, and I figured
that what this void was an incredible thirst, and a longing hunger for
knowledge and experiences. I wanted to see absolutely everything, take
everything in, see it all with my own eyes and make sense of it all
I felt something shift inside of me when he spoke those words in his
clear, compelling voice.
Religion is something that I’ve almost scoffed at most of my life,
in fact anything even remotely religious usually prompts an automatic
sneer, and I’m not sure if I’m ready to ‘open my heart to Christ’ just
yet, but Ken has certainly given me a lot to mull over. I felt like
someone had just completely ripped open my soul and taken to it with a
magnifying glass.
I stayed at many Chruch run hostels, and by extension was exposed to
many devout Christians, eager to convert me to their faith. I was an
easy target, as I looked like a proper lost soul. Yet surprisingly, my
eyes were opened to the Christian ways of the Americans I met. In no
way am I going to run to Chruch and beg Jesus for forgiveness, because
God knows, I am beyond saving at this point, but I felt extremely
enlightened during my travels.
We had a picnic by a lakeside afterwards with all the church folk.
I stuffed my face full with honest, home-made, fattening Southern
food. The people were so nice and genuine, and I felt horrible when I
had to say goodbye to them. I had pretty much wandered in to their
church, dominated the sermon, and eaten all their food, said cheers
and wandered back out, never to be seen again!

”It is only in adventure that some people succeed in knowing
themselves – in finding themselves.”
-Andre Gide-(French writer, humanist and moralist, 1947 Nobel prize
for literature, 1869-1951)


20th Aug 2012
Partnership Shelter
Dear Mahana,

I arrived here just after lunchtime today after an easy 10.6 miles
with tonnes of breaks. THIS SHELTER HAS A SHOWER IT’S FANTASTIC. You
have no idea how exciting it is to have a proper shower right on the
trail. I enjoyed it tremendously. There is a visitor centre nearby as
well, as apparently I’m near Mt Rogers’ recreation area. I collected
some information about the local bus routes, and the nice lady at
reception even gave me some activity and colouring in books which kept
me entertained for a good few hours. I left my works of art in the
shelter so other hikers could appreciate them.
I think I’m going to make the most of the free accommodation here
and stay for a few nights, and then who knows? I’m loving the
spontaneity of this trip.

21st August 2012
Still at Partnership
Dear Mahana,

Ventured into the bustling metropolis of Marion, VA today and
stocked up on books to keep me entertained. I also had a KFC buffet
for lunch – yes they exist over here! On first thought – AMAZING idea.
Afterwards, not so much. In fact terrible idea. I have never felt more
ill in my life.
I feel like a bit of an empty shell right now, I feel like I am
completely wasting my time here right now, but I don’t know what else
to do. Another night alone again, and then I’m out of here tomorrow
morning, as soon as I can convince a passing motorist to give me a
lift.

25th August 2012
Rockville, Maryland
Dear Mahana,

Well after all that boredom, I think a bit of crazy was on the
menu. And crazy, I did get.
From Marion, I hitched to Wythvill, VA where I stumbled across a
vanload of hippies heading up to New York for a festival. So of course
I just jumped in the van with them. They seemed like nice enough
people, especially with a van emblazoned with ‘St Petersburg Baptist
Church’ across the side. What wasn’t to trust?
I rode with them all the way up to Eire (didn’t even get to see the
lake unfortunately) and joined in with them in their hippy
activities. I helped them ‘jug’ gas which was asking motorists at gas
stations to spare us some gas in our red fuel canister. I’m fairly
sure this was illegal, and we got removed from the forecourts on
multiple occasion, but turns out that I am fantastically good at
deceiving people, as I got us enough gas to get halfway up to NY.
We also ‘flew’ signs, which was standing in a certain spot, usually
by a traffic light, or shop, with a make-shift cardboard sign saying
something like ‘homeless and hungry, anything helps,’ or ‘Ninjas
killed my family, need money for karate lessons.’
Again, I was a natural. I gave all my money to the guys in the van
obviously, because I didn’t need it.
We were stopped at a gas station one night when a pastor came over
to us and offered to fill our gas tank right up. He thought that we
were actually a missionary group, but we explained to him who we were,
and even then he filled it up for us. One of the hippies spoke up, and
explained most of our situations. I didn’t even realise but most of
these people had come from severely broken homes, been mistreated and
generally just thrown around. He then wanted us to join hands in a
circle so he could pray for us. He said a helping prayer for us
‘castaway kids’ and he was almost in tears, because he was so moved by
our decisions to pull the middle finger at society and go in our own
direction, and battle against the norm.
We carried on up to Pennsylvania, and I loved travelling with these
guys, it was so different to what I’m used to. We stopped sporadically
and abruptly to appreciate and really take in some of the scenery. We
stopped in opportune places to get pity money. And then at the end of
my trip with them we pitched a tent in someone’s backyard of their
trailer park and had a massive deep and meaningful conversation. It
was amazing, an experience that I know will never be repeated.
I left the hippies, and hitched a ride back to Wythville, with the
aim of getting to Christiansburg where I could get a bus to DC.
Cliff took me the majority of the way, and this man was an AT
fanatic. We talked each others ears off about all things hiking.
Equipment, timing, fitness, people, shelters, everything was covered!
He was a genuinely nice guy, and he paid for my dinner that night and
put me up in a hotel.
When I left him in Wythville however, I had the only bad experience
hitchhiking. My parents will be sitting there ready this, probably
having a minor heart attack – and I’m sorry!
This absolute creep picked me up and straight away started touching
my hair, sholder and legs as he talked to me, not at all focussing on
the road. I made him pull over straight away which unfortunately left
me on a dangerous part of highway, where an off ramp just becomes and
on ramp to another highway.
Luckily I didn’t have to wait too long before a truckie rescued me.
Him and his friend were moving a woman’s furniture from Florida to
Maryland. They again were super nice, and shouted me lunch and put me
up in a hotel room near DC. I helped them move the womans furniture
and even got tipped for it. It was a winning day.

26th August 2012
Columbia Heights, Washington DC
Dear Mahana,

Well.I made it. I made it to my final destination alive and in one
piece. I may not have made it the whole way here by foot, I had a wee
bit of help from my opposable appendage but I got here in the end. I
have had a much needed manicure and pedicure and a bit of retail
shopping. I’ve exhausted all the sights to see – Lincoln Memorial,
Washington Monument, the White House, the National Mall. I went to a
few museums and I took a super long walk down Rock Creek Park, which
did not feel like I was in a city at all, it was stunning.

28th August 2012
Dulles Airport
Dear Mahana,

I’ve reached the end of my journey. I believe that you’re definitely
having a real adventure when you don’t want it to end. But I know that
this adventure is never going to end. I’ve just finished a chapter.
And when I go back to Europe, I’ll be starting another chapter in my
exciting adventure. I’m sitting here at the airport, thinking back a
year from now, when I left New Zealand. I have done such an incredible
amount in that time. I really hope I can look back in a years time and
have the same sentiments

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.
Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other
people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out
your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow
your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly
want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
-Steve Jobs-(American Entrepreneur Apple co-Founder, 1955-2011)

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