So here’s Danny take on the AT.

They Stink
I hiked a section of the A.T. with Renea in North Carolina, a section with her in Pennsylvania and a few miles in Maine so I’m certainly not an expert on the Appalachian Trail. Combined I’ve probably traveled less than 100 miles on the trail. So any insight I have is based on the few people I’ve met, the few miles I’ve traveled and the countless stories I’ve heard Renea tell.

While driving to Portland yesterday I asked what she had learned on the trail. She said she didn’t do it to learn anything. I asked her what she thought about on the trail and she couldn’t remember. So why would anyone do this and what did I learn from my limited experience? Here are a couple of observations.

What do hikers do in the summer? They stink. Their clothes stink, their backpack stinks, their shoes stink and they stink. Trail folk come form all walks of life. Short, tall, rich, poor they are all different. The only thing they all have in common is that they all stink. You don’t always hear them walking down the trail, but you always smell them. Yesterday we met a man on Katahdin who said that he had just found a noodle in his long red beard. He said that he hadn’t eaten noodles in two days.

The trail in 2,189.2 miles. Most people take 2,000 steps in a mile. That would indicate that the average hiker takes around 4,378,400 steps in their journey. That’s a lot of exercise. So do people do it for their health. I met a fellow yesterday who was over 70. He had just finished the entire trail. He said he had two broken toes and a triple hernia. When I asked him what his next adventure was, he said “surgery, I guess.” There is no doubt that these folks are in unbelievable condition. While hiking in Pennsylvania for two days, my blisters started to develop their own blisters. Between the aching knees and blisters on their feet I have to believe there are easier ways to get in shape.

Are A. T. hikers searching for something? I met a man in Pennsylvania from North Carolina, who had just lost his wife to leukemia. I met a man in Maine from New Hampshire a couple of days ago who had just lost his wife to pancreatic cancer and I met a fellow in North Carolina from Ohio who had just lost his wife to a used car salesman from Cleveland. We all live two lives, the one we learn with and the one we live with after that. Clearly, there are some people out there who just need to work some things out before moving on with their life.

Do they do it to be at one with nature? I see more wildlife in my yard on a given day than most people see on the trail. Most days, I see deer, rabbits, squirrel and a flock of buzzards circling over my patio. The buzzards only circle when Renea is “airing out” her shoes and backpack after a hike. Renea has seen a couple of moose, some rattlesnakes but not a single bear. Did you know there has never been a case of an A.T. hiker being attacked by a bear. That’s because they stink. The hikers… not the bear. They say that it’s wise to keep bear repellant on you at all times. Most hikers prefer to use a natural repellant, their own B. O. The average hiker could take down a grizzly by just removing one of his shoes.

After thinking about it, Renea said the reason that she did the trail was that after starting it, she didn’t want to be a quitter. I was expecting something more profound.

After we got close to Portland, Renea said that the most impressive thing she had seen along the trail was that kind gestures seem to come from complete strangers. Maybe the only real lesson from the 2,189 miles is that deep down, most people are pretty good folks.

Danny

Taking Danny back to the airport today (if I’d known he was going to talk about how bad I smell, I’d have taken him back sooner) and will head back to Millinocket to finish my 46.1 miles. Will keep you posted.