Hey everyone!!
So sorry i have taken so terribly long to write. i will try right now, i think it might be hard because i am in a room with 7 other people talking and it's super hard to concentrate....i might have to re update tomorrow morning... ahhhh
.....i've been sitting here for 15 minutes and keep erasing what i'm writing..too much distraction, i will do it tomorrow
~Many Names~
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Sunday, July 26, 2009
इ ऍम अ बिग टाइम स्लाक्कर , येः बित्चेस!!
Aloha Everyone...
How is Many Names at a computer, yet again, you ask??? I am a big time slacker!! I don't know what happened to me recently, maybe the heat, humidity, mosquitos, blah blah whatever......but here i am taking another break after staying at a hostel (the famous 'Mayor's House' former mayor of unionville, NY now takes in hikers at his home......treats us like gold and gives us much inspiration to keep on keepin on. Amazing, really) just a couple days ago.
I don't know..i keep rolling in and out of this funk, not that i'm deppressed, perhaps maybe bored?? i mean, the trail is the trail is the trail. i get up and walk..the state, the terrain, the weather changes but i'm still just walking, taking a stroll of various levels of difficulty. It's really the people and my experiences with them that are meaning anything right now. So, i'm finding that without the peeps around, i lose my motivation and have to start thinking about what could possibly inspire me...to give me some energy.
Today, i slept in...i had been really super tired yesterday, only did 12 miles, took a nap under a pine tree and camped early. There were also some minor inconviniences experienced today that sort of set the dark cloud over my head. I had only gone about 4 miles this morning when i came across a bunch of gallon jugs of spring water left there by a couple of 'trail angels'.The water sources were not going to be entirely reliable today, so that was great. They had left some business cards with their # and if anyone needed a break to call. I thought about it and was just like, 'screw it. i don't care if this is lazy. i just don't want to do this today' So i called, John, the husband, picked me up with their two awsome dogs. I am the only hiker here. It's really peaceful. We'll have dinner together later. It's really just what i needed...a break without the high energy of a busy hostel. Hopefully, my vibe will be elevated tomorrow and i can rock the trail and love it. I've already hiked 1,370 miles, and have 807 miles to go......and miles to go before i sleep
I can do that. I'm not far from Conn. and then it's just a skip into Mass......
I don't think i have anything else to say. I'm going to have a glass of wine and sit outside and play my guitar.
Peace and Love Ya'll
~MANY NAMES~
How is Many Names at a computer, yet again, you ask??? I am a big time slacker!! I don't know what happened to me recently, maybe the heat, humidity, mosquitos, blah blah whatever......but here i am taking another break after staying at a hostel (the famous 'Mayor's House' former mayor of unionville, NY now takes in hikers at his home......treats us like gold and gives us much inspiration to keep on keepin on. Amazing, really) just a couple days ago.
I don't know..i keep rolling in and out of this funk, not that i'm deppressed, perhaps maybe bored?? i mean, the trail is the trail is the trail. i get up and walk..the state, the terrain, the weather changes but i'm still just walking, taking a stroll of various levels of difficulty. It's really the people and my experiences with them that are meaning anything right now. So, i'm finding that without the peeps around, i lose my motivation and have to start thinking about what could possibly inspire me...to give me some energy.
Today, i slept in...i had been really super tired yesterday, only did 12 miles, took a nap under a pine tree and camped early. There were also some minor inconviniences experienced today that sort of set the dark cloud over my head. I had only gone about 4 miles this morning when i came across a bunch of gallon jugs of spring water left there by a couple of 'trail angels'.The water sources were not going to be entirely reliable today, so that was great. They had left some business cards with their # and if anyone needed a break to call. I thought about it and was just like, 'screw it. i don't care if this is lazy. i just don't want to do this today' So i called, John, the husband, picked me up with their two awsome dogs. I am the only hiker here. It's really peaceful. We'll have dinner together later. It's really just what i needed...a break without the high energy of a busy hostel. Hopefully, my vibe will be elevated tomorrow and i can rock the trail and love it. I've already hiked 1,370 miles, and have 807 miles to go......and miles to go before i sleep
I can do that. I'm not far from Conn. and then it's just a skip into Mass......
I don't think i have anything else to say. I'm going to have a glass of wine and sit outside and play my guitar.
Peace and Love Ya'll
~MANY NAMES~
Monday, July 20, 2009
थे जौर्नी ऑफ़ मानी नमस कांतिनुएस
Greetings my lovely ones
I am a hare's breath away from New Jersey. I got into Delaware Water Gap, PA this afternoon and am staying the night at my friend wild bill's parents house, Yaay! Thank you jane and john...shower, laundry, company..sweet. So that makes 1,286.3 miles so far and only 895 to go, pretty cool. PA just flew by, it was totally rocky, kind of an ankle turner, but fun. Yesterday we did some real climbing,and it was so fun to something different, i kind of felt like i was out west..Hmmm..
I spent the last few days hiking with ProffMark(who just finished his PA section hike today,Hooray!!)and Nattie. We camped out last night on this high clearing to watch the sunset and this morning i got them both up at dawn, made some coffee and we chilled while the sun came up, and all the mist and clouds in the valley looked so amazing.
I couldn't possibly go on any further without mention of 'The Doyle', short for the old Doyle Hotel in Duncannon, PA. This place has been in operation for over 100 years, and i don't think they've done any repairs in that long. I can't believe the place isn't condemned, but I, for one am so glad it's not. There's the bar and pool room on the 1st floor, the balcony, the old locked up ballroom and lobby with the red and white checkered linoliem floor on the second, and rising up two more floors around the lobby off a big rickety spiral staircases are the rooms.Mine was great, it didn't have mold on the walls, i especially loved the extension cord running up from the floor to the naked light bulb in the middle of the cieling. Enough description. That night so many hikers came in to stay at the doyle, it just kept filling up,the bar got packed, people everywhere playing guitars, singing, freestyling...a creative mystical vibe seemed to filled this creepy old place. Some of us were playing music in the 2nd floor lobby and looked up to see two floors of people just hangin' over the railings, i guess the music had traveled up through the hallways into the rooms and eveyone just came out. Someone on the 3rd floor found a bible and was reading a sermon, wearing a top hat...i just remember hearing his finishing words "And it was good!" over the music. Ah, the Doyle. I turned in early, but that party rocked till the wee hours. Oh, Yeah.
And how could i foget to mention that i also got new sneakers! Fascinating to all i'm sure......but i had hiked the 21 miiles into Duncannon in my crocs, cuz the boots were not rockin' my world and i was in agony!!! (I actually just met a guy named CrocStar, but he was wearing sneakers..so....)New sneakers...Great!! I am flying..it feels so good to have light feet. Of course, i am, as i write, nursing a new blister. That will pass, hopefully by tomorrow.
Well after Duncannon i was off solo style again for a bit. I was thinking that i wanted to be alone, and it was great for camping, privacy...but i was really starting to go a little crazy in my head. Too much alone can be tricky. It's hard to know when to stop. It wasn't until i ran into my old friend Jim Dandy, who i hadn't seen in months, at a shelter the other day. It was so good to catch up, find out about certain people. He was so suprised to see me! I met the guys he was hiking with,Amero, Nattie and Bee Man. They were heading to a B&B right on the trail about 4 miles away, for a meal. I ended up going too, then it started pouring and the owner suggested we camp out in the backyard under the pavillion....That was awsome. There was a good band, good company, beautiful morning the next day, refreshed after the rain. It felt like crispy fall before it got hot. And all of a sudden i felt like a normal person again.
Life is good. I still love this friggin' trail. There were so many blueberries the other day, i filled a ziplock bag...ate all the berries in it, filled it again, ate it again and filled again for later. They were so good and beautiful!
How can i forget the completion of the Many Names Missing Glasses story. Long story short...I lost my glasses on the trail, near a place called 'Lost Spectacles Gap' thought they were gone forever, but someone (mommallama, who i ended up meeting later) found them and through the magical workings of the trail, got them back to me. We met weeks later and became friends.She insisted that her textiles-major daughter would fashion me a glasses case to attach to my pack so i would never lose the specs again.Well, i just picked up the case at the outfitter in Port Clinton where she left it (she is way ahead)and it is so amazing! Way more than i expected. It's organic hemp or cotton, lined with silk with a little bell on it, and on the outside it says my name, Many Names..and on the back it says, if lost please return to.........all that info. She even put her tag on it..it was so proffessional. All week i was like, 'don't lose the glasses, don't lose em', you're almost in port clinton, almost there!!'
I met a hiker yesterday who actually made the mistake of wiping with poison ivy.Hmmm. I felt bad about that.
Anyway...off to bed.Pleasant dreams.
Peace
~Many Names~
I am a hare's breath away from New Jersey. I got into Delaware Water Gap, PA this afternoon and am staying the night at my friend wild bill's parents house, Yaay! Thank you jane and john...shower, laundry, company..sweet. So that makes 1,286.3 miles so far and only 895 to go, pretty cool. PA just flew by, it was totally rocky, kind of an ankle turner, but fun. Yesterday we did some real climbing,and it was so fun to something different, i kind of felt like i was out west..Hmmm..
I spent the last few days hiking with ProffMark(who just finished his PA section hike today,Hooray!!)and Nattie. We camped out last night on this high clearing to watch the sunset and this morning i got them both up at dawn, made some coffee and we chilled while the sun came up, and all the mist and clouds in the valley looked so amazing.
I couldn't possibly go on any further without mention of 'The Doyle', short for the old Doyle Hotel in Duncannon, PA. This place has been in operation for over 100 years, and i don't think they've done any repairs in that long. I can't believe the place isn't condemned, but I, for one am so glad it's not. There's the bar and pool room on the 1st floor, the balcony, the old locked up ballroom and lobby with the red and white checkered linoliem floor on the second, and rising up two more floors around the lobby off a big rickety spiral staircases are the rooms.Mine was great, it didn't have mold on the walls, i especially loved the extension cord running up from the floor to the naked light bulb in the middle of the cieling. Enough description. That night so many hikers came in to stay at the doyle, it just kept filling up,the bar got packed, people everywhere playing guitars, singing, freestyling...a creative mystical vibe seemed to filled this creepy old place. Some of us were playing music in the 2nd floor lobby and looked up to see two floors of people just hangin' over the railings, i guess the music had traveled up through the hallways into the rooms and eveyone just came out. Someone on the 3rd floor found a bible and was reading a sermon, wearing a top hat...i just remember hearing his finishing words "And it was good!" over the music. Ah, the Doyle. I turned in early, but that party rocked till the wee hours. Oh, Yeah.
And how could i foget to mention that i also got new sneakers! Fascinating to all i'm sure......but i had hiked the 21 miiles into Duncannon in my crocs, cuz the boots were not rockin' my world and i was in agony!!! (I actually just met a guy named CrocStar, but he was wearing sneakers..so....)New sneakers...Great!! I am flying..it feels so good to have light feet. Of course, i am, as i write, nursing a new blister. That will pass, hopefully by tomorrow.
Well after Duncannon i was off solo style again for a bit. I was thinking that i wanted to be alone, and it was great for camping, privacy...but i was really starting to go a little crazy in my head. Too much alone can be tricky. It's hard to know when to stop. It wasn't until i ran into my old friend Jim Dandy, who i hadn't seen in months, at a shelter the other day. It was so good to catch up, find out about certain people. He was so suprised to see me! I met the guys he was hiking with,Amero, Nattie and Bee Man. They were heading to a B&B right on the trail about 4 miles away, for a meal. I ended up going too, then it started pouring and the owner suggested we camp out in the backyard under the pavillion....That was awsome. There was a good band, good company, beautiful morning the next day, refreshed after the rain. It felt like crispy fall before it got hot. And all of a sudden i felt like a normal person again.
Life is good. I still love this friggin' trail. There were so many blueberries the other day, i filled a ziplock bag...ate all the berries in it, filled it again, ate it again and filled again for later. They were so good and beautiful!
How can i forget the completion of the Many Names Missing Glasses story. Long story short...I lost my glasses on the trail, near a place called 'Lost Spectacles Gap' thought they were gone forever, but someone (mommallama, who i ended up meeting later) found them and through the magical workings of the trail, got them back to me. We met weeks later and became friends.She insisted that her textiles-major daughter would fashion me a glasses case to attach to my pack so i would never lose the specs again.Well, i just picked up the case at the outfitter in Port Clinton where she left it (she is way ahead)and it is so amazing! Way more than i expected. It's organic hemp or cotton, lined with silk with a little bell on it, and on the outside it says my name, Many Names..and on the back it says, if lost please return to.........all that info. She even put her tag on it..it was so proffessional. All week i was like, 'don't lose the glasses, don't lose em', you're almost in port clinton, almost there!!'
I met a hiker yesterday who actually made the mistake of wiping with poison ivy.Hmmm. I felt bad about that.
Anyway...off to bed.Pleasant dreams.
Peace
~Many Names~
Friday, July 10, 2009
हाफ गल्लों चैलेन्ज इस दिस्गुस्तिंग एंड ग्रेट एंड तोताल्ली नेसस्सरी !!!
Greetings Friends nad Neighbors !!
It's blueberry season in Pennsylvania!!! Hooray! They just appeared the other day, a glowing blue out of the corner of my eye. I was needing some blue in my life. I am a believer in the 'rainbow diet'...eat all your colors and your will be healthy and vibrant! Sometimes blue is hard to come by. But i got plenty of green the other day with my 1/2 gallon of mint choc chip ice cream!
It has been a long time tradition for thru hikers when they reach the halfway piont on the trail they stop at the Pine Grove Furnace general store, get a 1/2 gallon of their desired flavor and eat it in record time...i don't know why, possibly a marketing scheme that i, and thousands of other thru hikers fall victim to. so, to celebrate i got my ice cream..took a painful 1HR 10 min to 'finish'..i left a 1/2 pint of ice cream soup, so technically i did not conquer the '1/2 Gallon Challenge' as it's called. It's distgusting. And yet, I still feel victorious! Why? Cuz I'm a BADASS!!!Period.
So getting back onto the trail after my 2 weeks off has been awsome, but did not start off so sweet. I always write about these amazing and magical things that happen. Well sometimes things just suck...and when they do, it spirals into something almost unmanageable..not physically, but just mentally being able to deal. So 4th July i roll back into Harper's Ferry, WV amidst the throngs of tourists asking me one stupid question after another becuase i seem to be the only backpacker around. (Where is everyone?) I am the last hiker on the planet. Got my semi new boots..hope they work out, my pack is once again ridiculously heavy becuase i want to be healthier out here so i've got avocados, a couple tomatoes, extra nutritional backup stuff.....=extra weight.I was just feeling wierd and detatched from everything and everyone in the world. So i only hiked 4 miles and wanted to stop to camp by these sweet cliffs over looking the potomac river and the vally. Good views for fires works too. Got my tent pitched, took my food bag out and realized my bottle of 'louisianna perfect' hot sauce had broken, slicing thru it's protective ziplock bag, spilling over everything, and pooling in the bottom of my food bag. Great. Awsome. I only have a liter and a half of water and that's for tonight and to get me to the next water source tomorrow(there was no water at the cliffs, but i wanted to be there) Huge meess, spent an hour and 1/2 getting everything separated, organized, into different bags, trying to keep the smell contained to not attract animals. So then i had about 2 LBS of disgusting trash to pack out. So that's all set. I went to hang my bear bag over a tree branch and the line (that has been fine for 3 months) broke, snapped back and hit me in the forehead. No big deal, didn't hurt, i fixed it easily, but, i mean, Come on!! It was seeming like too much, maybe just because i was deppressed. So i went to sleep, and by the providence of the divine spirits, i slept like a baby, and woke up the next morning to the most spectacular sunrise i have seen on this entire journey.
Things have a way of balancing themselves out, don't they. I got everything cleaned up the next day at a restroom not to far off the trail, and once again, things were returning to a familiar rythm.
The next night i camped out another set of beautiful cliffs, the Annapolis Cliffs. I met 2 super cool guys, Manimal and Ananook. They camped there too. We all cooked dinner together and watched the sunset, played music(manimal has a guitar as well) and watched the full moon rise. I woke in the morning to a person walking along the cliffs shouting happily, "Victory! Victory!", then he said 'oops' and i heard nothing. I asked the boys if it was them, no it wasn't. Hmmm, i wonder who my victorious friend was. ?
It's definately been a different trip this time around, all my friends being so far north now. I am essentially alone, meeting a few people here and there, but i am really diggin' it. I have camped by myself everynight, not at shelters, but at perfect intuitivly found campsites wherever i feel like stopping. The other morning i just made coffee and played guitar for 3 hours before heading out.That was just over the Maryland/Pennsylvania border. It took 2 days to cross MD. some people do the '4 State Challenge..they camp just on the VA/WV border and begin there hike VA -WV - MD - PA in under 24 hours....my friend hobbit did it in 20...aw, she's so cool!
I heard a noise in the woods the other night that made my blood freeze in my veins. I was in my tent, maybe midnight and i heard this sound from way down that sounded like a thousand voices of the dead combined into one, spouting out something in a wierd language. Was it a feline creature? Was it someone on a megaphone from the town/ camp below? I heard it again and it was so bizarre, almost like words...must've been an animal...or??? But i will say that it made me think of things i'd see in a movie that i would watch with my sister Kathy or Elise Ulrich. That's when i just visualize my third eye and chant myself to sleep. Sorry if i've creeped ya'll out...i'm still here so.........
Anyway, i am writing from boiling spring, PA, an awsome town. I stopped to visit my childhood friend of the family (Ned, Boots) , his wife Wendy and their new daughter Melody(she's gonna be a little rock star so she's cool in my book, and soo cute)...and Wendy's parents Buck and Diane. I'm staying at B + D's house right on this beautiful creek that ned and i went tubing down today....awsome! Took a zero day here today tryng to mend my poor feet. I've got some blisters from my boots that i have stopped wearing. I 've just been hiking in my crocs...liberating, yet not sustainable. I'll be heading out tomorrow, hopefully get some hiking sneakers in Duncannon on sunday. It has been so nice staying here, the hospitality is amazing.
Alright, it's late, must sleep.......peace and many blessings to all....don't be freaked out by my story of the strange sound in the woods(mom, sisters)...
All is well.....and i may catch up to some friends after all...everyone seems to be seriously chillin' here and there and i'm on-na move!!!
Oh Yeah! Many Names got her Mojo back brothers and sistas !
Peace Out Ya'll !!
It's blueberry season in Pennsylvania!!! Hooray! They just appeared the other day, a glowing blue out of the corner of my eye. I was needing some blue in my life. I am a believer in the 'rainbow diet'...eat all your colors and your will be healthy and vibrant! Sometimes blue is hard to come by. But i got plenty of green the other day with my 1/2 gallon of mint choc chip ice cream!
It has been a long time tradition for thru hikers when they reach the halfway piont on the trail they stop at the Pine Grove Furnace general store, get a 1/2 gallon of their desired flavor and eat it in record time...i don't know why, possibly a marketing scheme that i, and thousands of other thru hikers fall victim to. so, to celebrate i got my ice cream..took a painful 1HR 10 min to 'finish'..i left a 1/2 pint of ice cream soup, so technically i did not conquer the '1/2 Gallon Challenge' as it's called. It's distgusting. And yet, I still feel victorious! Why? Cuz I'm a BADASS!!!Period.
So getting back onto the trail after my 2 weeks off has been awsome, but did not start off so sweet. I always write about these amazing and magical things that happen. Well sometimes things just suck...and when they do, it spirals into something almost unmanageable..not physically, but just mentally being able to deal. So 4th July i roll back into Harper's Ferry, WV amidst the throngs of tourists asking me one stupid question after another becuase i seem to be the only backpacker around. (Where is everyone?) I am the last hiker on the planet. Got my semi new boots..hope they work out, my pack is once again ridiculously heavy becuase i want to be healthier out here so i've got avocados, a couple tomatoes, extra nutritional backup stuff.....=extra weight.I was just feeling wierd and detatched from everything and everyone in the world. So i only hiked 4 miles and wanted to stop to camp by these sweet cliffs over looking the potomac river and the vally. Good views for fires works too. Got my tent pitched, took my food bag out and realized my bottle of 'louisianna perfect' hot sauce had broken, slicing thru it's protective ziplock bag, spilling over everything, and pooling in the bottom of my food bag. Great. Awsome. I only have a liter and a half of water and that's for tonight and to get me to the next water source tomorrow(there was no water at the cliffs, but i wanted to be there) Huge meess, spent an hour and 1/2 getting everything separated, organized, into different bags, trying to keep the smell contained to not attract animals. So then i had about 2 LBS of disgusting trash to pack out. So that's all set. I went to hang my bear bag over a tree branch and the line (that has been fine for 3 months) broke, snapped back and hit me in the forehead. No big deal, didn't hurt, i fixed it easily, but, i mean, Come on!! It was seeming like too much, maybe just because i was deppressed. So i went to sleep, and by the providence of the divine spirits, i slept like a baby, and woke up the next morning to the most spectacular sunrise i have seen on this entire journey.
Things have a way of balancing themselves out, don't they. I got everything cleaned up the next day at a restroom not to far off the trail, and once again, things were returning to a familiar rythm.
The next night i camped out another set of beautiful cliffs, the Annapolis Cliffs. I met 2 super cool guys, Manimal and Ananook. They camped there too. We all cooked dinner together and watched the sunset, played music(manimal has a guitar as well) and watched the full moon rise. I woke in the morning to a person walking along the cliffs shouting happily, "Victory! Victory!", then he said 'oops' and i heard nothing. I asked the boys if it was them, no it wasn't. Hmmm, i wonder who my victorious friend was. ?
It's definately been a different trip this time around, all my friends being so far north now. I am essentially alone, meeting a few people here and there, but i am really diggin' it. I have camped by myself everynight, not at shelters, but at perfect intuitivly found campsites wherever i feel like stopping. The other morning i just made coffee and played guitar for 3 hours before heading out.That was just over the Maryland/Pennsylvania border. It took 2 days to cross MD. some people do the '4 State Challenge..they camp just on the VA/WV border and begin there hike VA -WV - MD - PA in under 24 hours....my friend hobbit did it in 20...aw, she's so cool!
I heard a noise in the woods the other night that made my blood freeze in my veins. I was in my tent, maybe midnight and i heard this sound from way down that sounded like a thousand voices of the dead combined into one, spouting out something in a wierd language. Was it a feline creature? Was it someone on a megaphone from the town/ camp below? I heard it again and it was so bizarre, almost like words...must've been an animal...or??? But i will say that it made me think of things i'd see in a movie that i would watch with my sister Kathy or Elise Ulrich. That's when i just visualize my third eye and chant myself to sleep. Sorry if i've creeped ya'll out...i'm still here so.........
Anyway, i am writing from boiling spring, PA, an awsome town. I stopped to visit my childhood friend of the family (Ned, Boots) , his wife Wendy and their new daughter Melody(she's gonna be a little rock star so she's cool in my book, and soo cute)...and Wendy's parents Buck and Diane. I'm staying at B + D's house right on this beautiful creek that ned and i went tubing down today....awsome! Took a zero day here today tryng to mend my poor feet. I've got some blisters from my boots that i have stopped wearing. I 've just been hiking in my crocs...liberating, yet not sustainable. I'll be heading out tomorrow, hopefully get some hiking sneakers in Duncannon on sunday. It has been so nice staying here, the hospitality is amazing.
Alright, it's late, must sleep.......peace and many blessings to all....don't be freaked out by my story of the strange sound in the woods(mom, sisters)...
All is well.....and i may catch up to some friends after all...everyone seems to be seriously chillin' here and there and i'm on-na move!!!
Oh Yeah! Many Names got her Mojo back brothers and sistas !
Peace Out Ya'll !!
Friday, June 26, 2009
थिस रिवर विल रोल, रोल, रोल
Wow! I haven't updated in so long....i don't even know where to begin.
I had to take a break from the trail for Dave's brother's wedding, wicked good time! Then had to go to the island to take care of some boat issues. Not as big of a deal as i had feared and dreaded! So i am on Block Island, takin care of business and having a great time in the process.....don't worry, even if i wanted to stay, my friends would kick me off the island and personally drag me back to the trail! Got some sweet surfing in, sushi, wine, great friends who i hope know how valuable they are~ Big changes, some good evolution to work with for the second half of this AT Hiking Adventure. I feel like the REAL work is ahead. This journey is only half, probably less, physical. The rest, that's all spirit, man. Where your mental mind goes during a long day, just essentially walking on a path. You have time to explore every minute thought or feeling. Examining your emotions. Really digging deep into you dreams. Daydreaming. And a beautiful amount of time just admiring natures handy work. Watching how the leaves turn up their silvery sides in a thunderstorm. Checking out passing clouds. Just sitting and listening to the sounds of the birds and the breeze. It's sweet, and it reminds how simple peace can be. It begins inside yourself. It makes me dream of a peaceful world.
Anyway, i think i am running out of time at the library, so i need to post this. I don't really feel like i'm done writing...maybe more later.
But for a physical update...I have gone as far as Harper's Ferry, just outside of D.C. So that's 1013 miles, just under halfway there!! Pretty sweet.
Peace Ya'll
Melinda ~Many Names~
I had to take a break from the trail for Dave's brother's wedding, wicked good time! Then had to go to the island to take care of some boat issues. Not as big of a deal as i had feared and dreaded! So i am on Block Island, takin care of business and having a great time in the process.....don't worry, even if i wanted to stay, my friends would kick me off the island and personally drag me back to the trail! Got some sweet surfing in, sushi, wine, great friends who i hope know how valuable they are~ Big changes, some good evolution to work with for the second half of this AT Hiking Adventure. I feel like the REAL work is ahead. This journey is only half, probably less, physical. The rest, that's all spirit, man. Where your mental mind goes during a long day, just essentially walking on a path. You have time to explore every minute thought or feeling. Examining your emotions. Really digging deep into you dreams. Daydreaming. And a beautiful amount of time just admiring natures handy work. Watching how the leaves turn up their silvery sides in a thunderstorm. Checking out passing clouds. Just sitting and listening to the sounds of the birds and the breeze. It's sweet, and it reminds how simple peace can be. It begins inside yourself. It makes me dream of a peaceful world.
Anyway, i think i am running out of time at the library, so i need to post this. I don't really feel like i'm done writing...maybe more later.
But for a physical update...I have gone as far as Harper's Ferry, just outside of D.C. So that's 1013 miles, just under halfway there!! Pretty sweet.
Peace Ya'll
Melinda ~Many Names~
Monday, May 25, 2009
ट्रेल मैजिक मैजिक ट्रेल मानी नमस अत
Hello my friends ~*~
~Many Names here, hangin' with my mom and dad in a hotel in, uh, catawba? or Salem? Anyway, just ate a nice big meal, took a fantastic shower, am going to sleep in a bed tonight, Hooray! These things in life are just too grand for words ~#*#~!!!
M & D came down for a visit after my cousin's west point graduation (Yeah ,Mike!! you rock!) it's so sweet to see them.
It's been amazin' dayz out on the trail. Where to begin. I feel like evrything is magical but to write about it, hmmmmmm......it's not even about the specifics of what happens but more so the choices and avenues leading up to moments unforgettable. But they all really simple things, like i set off alone just after sunrise the other morning, hiked a couple of miles and stopped in a small meadow because i saw some wild greens to harvest for a salad (i was really craving fresh saled). While picking red clover, chickweed, wood sorrel, violets, ect. i saw a bunch of milkweed shoots. Yay! bay green veggies. i started cutting the little stalks. my new friend Spoonman showed up, wondered what i was doing and wanted to learn all about the wild edibles. Then Huck Finn showed up, and Blessed, Startreck rolled on through....quite a trailside meeting of the minds! Blessed is also really into wild harvesting, he knows things i don't know and vice versa..he really wanted to know how to cook the milkweed. Anyway, the day went by and a whole group of us decided to camp together by a lovely creek, spoonman built a fire so we could boil all the water for the milkweed, i fixed up wild salad and spread it out on a (clean) bandana so peeps could help themselves. Startreck donated some fresh garlic and onions (yum) and we all had a mini sample feast...everyone was suprised at how good it all was. I was so happy, such a sweet crew. Also there was Soundtrack, K-Bar, Schooner, and Ferdie. Music was played late (late for us) into the night, and all was right with the world.
The next day Spoon and i were the last ones out of camp feeling highly Unmotivated. We ended up hitching a ride to a hole in the wall restaraunt for burgers, sweet tea, and ice cream. There were deer heads all over the wall,but where we were sitting was just a deer butt. Just the ol' rump. Hmm... we got a ride..witht the same guy back to the creek, still feeling lazy, swamm in the creek, spoon lost his sunglasses once, i found...twice for good...sunbathed and finally hiked to a sweet clifftop lookout, chilled, watched the sunset....nighthiked five more miles in the dark, cowboy camped by another little creek. Listened to the CRUNCH, crunch of the gyspy moth caterpillars out in full force!!! gross! They fell on me from the trees all throughout the next day. I had one hanging from the tip of my nose, by a thread. Distusting..i am sort of tough...but i don't dig those guys, or the flies, coming on strong! oh! i am covered in bites (natural bug spray sucks, don't let anyone fool you!!)
Trail Days was awsome!! There was so much going on at all times, it was overwhelming. I got to march in the parade wearing my sequence evening gown found on the side of the road (perfect fit!), we all swam in the river after and sang songs, then watched the "Talented Hiker Contest" hiker talent show.....from banjo playing, playing drums on an overturned kayak, Ahab did beatbox (awsome, he won!!!), juggling fire, spoken word, reggea(yeah,Crazy Horse!!one mile an hour) and other stuff. Participated in some contra dancing...that was fun! and back at tent city was just a huge party, lots of music playing and singing, a huge bonfire, drum circle, dancing around the fire, hula hoops, spinning poi(yeah firecracker!i love you mamacita, and, yes, we can be friends forever). Laaaaaate night. so fun, so worth it...and soooooo ready to get back into the woods!!!
Last night, that same group of folks from the wildfood night and i camped out up at this place called the 'Dragon's Tooth'. These spiky unbelievable rock formations sticking up all jagged and ever-so-climbable. We were all hanging out up there for the sunset, Soundtrack (who truly lives up to his names) takes out his flute and plays such an amazing tune, tunes for the moment, just perched up there on the highest peak. I just look around, feelin' so fine. Man, life is good. as it should be. i didn't think i could get any happier this morning as i was hiking down the mountain toward the town where i would meet my parents.....and then i turned a corner and saw a cooler sitting there on the side of the trail with a note that said, "Hey hikers!...i can't remember what it said now, but it was full with cold sodas on ice, i gabbed a coca cola (something i have never drank in my life! I love it now) said thank you to the spirits, and strolled on down the trail.
~Many Names here, hangin' with my mom and dad in a hotel in, uh, catawba? or Salem? Anyway, just ate a nice big meal, took a fantastic shower, am going to sleep in a bed tonight, Hooray! These things in life are just too grand for words ~#*#~!!!
M & D came down for a visit after my cousin's west point graduation (Yeah ,Mike!! you rock!) it's so sweet to see them.
It's been amazin' dayz out on the trail. Where to begin. I feel like evrything is magical but to write about it, hmmmmmm......it's not even about the specifics of what happens but more so the choices and avenues leading up to moments unforgettable. But they all really simple things, like i set off alone just after sunrise the other morning, hiked a couple of miles and stopped in a small meadow because i saw some wild greens to harvest for a salad (i was really craving fresh saled). While picking red clover, chickweed, wood sorrel, violets, ect. i saw a bunch of milkweed shoots. Yay! bay green veggies. i started cutting the little stalks. my new friend Spoonman showed up, wondered what i was doing and wanted to learn all about the wild edibles. Then Huck Finn showed up, and Blessed, Startreck rolled on through....quite a trailside meeting of the minds! Blessed is also really into wild harvesting, he knows things i don't know and vice versa..he really wanted to know how to cook the milkweed. Anyway, the day went by and a whole group of us decided to camp together by a lovely creek, spoonman built a fire so we could boil all the water for the milkweed, i fixed up wild salad and spread it out on a (clean) bandana so peeps could help themselves. Startreck donated some fresh garlic and onions (yum) and we all had a mini sample feast...everyone was suprised at how good it all was. I was so happy, such a sweet crew. Also there was Soundtrack, K-Bar, Schooner, and Ferdie. Music was played late (late for us) into the night, and all was right with the world.
The next day Spoon and i were the last ones out of camp feeling highly Unmotivated. We ended up hitching a ride to a hole in the wall restaraunt for burgers, sweet tea, and ice cream. There were deer heads all over the wall,but where we were sitting was just a deer butt. Just the ol' rump. Hmm... we got a ride..witht the same guy back to the creek, still feeling lazy, swamm in the creek, spoon lost his sunglasses once, i found...twice for good...sunbathed and finally hiked to a sweet clifftop lookout, chilled, watched the sunset....nighthiked five more miles in the dark, cowboy camped by another little creek. Listened to the CRUNCH, crunch of the gyspy moth caterpillars out in full force!!! gross! They fell on me from the trees all throughout the next day. I had one hanging from the tip of my nose, by a thread. Distusting..i am sort of tough...but i don't dig those guys, or the flies, coming on strong! oh! i am covered in bites (natural bug spray sucks, don't let anyone fool you!!)
Trail Days was awsome!! There was so much going on at all times, it was overwhelming. I got to march in the parade wearing my sequence evening gown found on the side of the road (perfect fit!), we all swam in the river after and sang songs, then watched the "Talented Hiker Contest" hiker talent show.....from banjo playing, playing drums on an overturned kayak, Ahab did beatbox (awsome, he won!!!), juggling fire, spoken word, reggea(yeah,Crazy Horse!!one mile an hour) and other stuff. Participated in some contra dancing...that was fun! and back at tent city was just a huge party, lots of music playing and singing, a huge bonfire, drum circle, dancing around the fire, hula hoops, spinning poi(yeah firecracker!i love you mamacita, and, yes, we can be friends forever). Laaaaaate night. so fun, so worth it...and soooooo ready to get back into the woods!!!
Last night, that same group of folks from the wildfood night and i camped out up at this place called the 'Dragon's Tooth'. These spiky unbelievable rock formations sticking up all jagged and ever-so-climbable. We were all hanging out up there for the sunset, Soundtrack (who truly lives up to his names) takes out his flute and plays such an amazing tune, tunes for the moment, just perched up there on the highest peak. I just look around, feelin' so fine. Man, life is good. as it should be. i didn't think i could get any happier this morning as i was hiking down the mountain toward the town where i would meet my parents.....and then i turned a corner and saw a cooler sitting there on the side of the trail with a note that said, "Hey hikers!...i can't remember what it said now, but it was full with cold sodas on ice, i gabbed a coca cola (something i have never drank in my life! I love it now) said thank you to the spirits, and strolled on down the trail.
Monday, May 4, 2009
इ कैन'टी वेट तो हिके इन माय एवेनिंग गोवन
Hey Everybody!!
So i decided to spend another night in Damascus, VA....we were going to leave this afternoon, but it's raining, i hadn't updated or called anyone and a couple of friends are getting off the trail due to foot pain, blues, missing loved ones, and a couple others set out today but turned back, also because of foot pain and are back in town trying to find a solution. So, it feels right to stay. I'm not punching any time clock, so it really deosn't matter.
It's been a really nice week. A couple of Huck Finn's friends from college came out for a week to hike. John and Ben....had a wicked good time with some kindred folks. The weather was near perfect for some of the most spectacular hikes so far. We traveled through/over the Roan Highlands. They are these beautiful open, bald top mountains. Grassy and windy. One sunny day after sharing 3 beers (that were given to us by some folks at a road crossing) between five people, we were sufficiently buzzed (hiker tolerance!! Fun!) hike a short distance to the grassy summit and sunbathed for a delicious two hours. I managed a couple of cartwheels and handstands, i am finally not too sore to do that. Although i would not be able to do it first thing in the morning. It still takes me a few minutes to get upright and able to walk, but once i get moving, i am fine. One night we slept in this big old barn converted into a shelter, open to east and quite a few people got up for the sunrise, it was mellow and sweet. That next was my favorite hike over little abd big hump (i think) mountains. Highlands grassy tops with grazing cattle and a couple of huge longhorn bulls with some serious horns....i tried to not make eye contact. I didn't even take their picture, i was intimidated. After that i came to a psture of grazing horses, all on the mountain top...they're all fenced in and hikers have to go through this akward fence/gate contraption..it's good fun.
Another sweet time was a few nights ago we (huck finn, john, ben, and nightfight) camped out in a grassy meadow on a riverside, made a fire, stargazed, passed around the guitar and played music all night. It was perfect, lots of Grateful Dead and Bob Dylan flyin' around, learned soome new tunes. My friends, Bonnie and Teigan just got their backpacker guitar the other day...so now we can jam!!
The hostels are usually memorable because they're most often run by the coolest cats you'll ever come across. I got early one morning, packed up and took off like a rocket because i was anxious to get to Kincora hostel, for a much needed shower....it was time. I practically ran the 6 miles, got there in record time...my friends arrived later. Kincora is run by this amazing fellow, Bob Peoples..i don't know how to describe the warmth and coziness of the place. There's a small kitchen and living room w/ a couch a couple of armchairs, pillows and blankets, but you feel at ease, and at home. There's a big picnic table out on the front porch, where i ended up giving a couple of massages. The hostel runs on a $4 donation..for a bed and shower, laundry, sometimes a meal. Noone's making any money off this...it's a labor of love. So I did some massages for hikers for donations of any amount and whatever that was, i donated it to the hostel. So that felt really good to me. So many good things happen, it's nice to do something good.
There was another really cool bald mountain called Beauty Spot...when we got up there, it was like a miny tent city....a beautiful evening. There's a road that leads up there so quite a few people (former thru hikers, etc.) were there. A group of lovely wild ones brought up some trail magic for us....rotisseree chicken, cheesecake, baked beans, apples, soda, and best of all..Bubbles!!! It was a bubble fest!! Sunset bubbly!! Good fun, good fun. The sweetness of life is always exaggerated when there are bubbles.
I met Dave's cousin/2nd cousin here yesterday..Gypsy and Lone wolf. It's always great to be far and find a connection. It turns out that she is an avid hula hooper as well (Hoooray!! There's another one!) and will supply some hula hoops for some fellow hoopers for the Trails Days Fest which is coming right up in 2 weeks...a big hiker fest here in Damascus!! I will hike ahaed and then come back...there will be a hiker parade(i have plans for that one!!) music all sorts of fun things for little freaks like myself!!!
I must go...library closing!!!!!! Pecae, Love to all!!!!
MANY NAMES Melinda
So i decided to spend another night in Damascus, VA....we were going to leave this afternoon, but it's raining, i hadn't updated or called anyone and a couple of friends are getting off the trail due to foot pain, blues, missing loved ones, and a couple others set out today but turned back, also because of foot pain and are back in town trying to find a solution. So, it feels right to stay. I'm not punching any time clock, so it really deosn't matter.
It's been a really nice week. A couple of Huck Finn's friends from college came out for a week to hike. John and Ben....had a wicked good time with some kindred folks. The weather was near perfect for some of the most spectacular hikes so far. We traveled through/over the Roan Highlands. They are these beautiful open, bald top mountains. Grassy and windy. One sunny day after sharing 3 beers (that were given to us by some folks at a road crossing) between five people, we were sufficiently buzzed (hiker tolerance!! Fun!) hike a short distance to the grassy summit and sunbathed for a delicious two hours. I managed a couple of cartwheels and handstands, i am finally not too sore to do that. Although i would not be able to do it first thing in the morning. It still takes me a few minutes to get upright and able to walk, but once i get moving, i am fine. One night we slept in this big old barn converted into a shelter, open to east and quite a few people got up for the sunrise, it was mellow and sweet. That next was my favorite hike over little abd big hump (i think) mountains. Highlands grassy tops with grazing cattle and a couple of huge longhorn bulls with some serious horns....i tried to not make eye contact. I didn't even take their picture, i was intimidated. After that i came to a psture of grazing horses, all on the mountain top...they're all fenced in and hikers have to go through this akward fence/gate contraption..it's good fun.
Another sweet time was a few nights ago we (huck finn, john, ben, and nightfight) camped out in a grassy meadow on a riverside, made a fire, stargazed, passed around the guitar and played music all night. It was perfect, lots of Grateful Dead and Bob Dylan flyin' around, learned soome new tunes. My friends, Bonnie and Teigan just got their backpacker guitar the other day...so now we can jam!!
The hostels are usually memorable because they're most often run by the coolest cats you'll ever come across. I got early one morning, packed up and took off like a rocket because i was anxious to get to Kincora hostel, for a much needed shower....it was time. I practically ran the 6 miles, got there in record time...my friends arrived later. Kincora is run by this amazing fellow, Bob Peoples..i don't know how to describe the warmth and coziness of the place. There's a small kitchen and living room w/ a couch a couple of armchairs, pillows and blankets, but you feel at ease, and at home. There's a big picnic table out on the front porch, where i ended up giving a couple of massages. The hostel runs on a $4 donation..for a bed and shower, laundry, sometimes a meal. Noone's making any money off this...it's a labor of love. So I did some massages for hikers for donations of any amount and whatever that was, i donated it to the hostel. So that felt really good to me. So many good things happen, it's nice to do something good.
There was another really cool bald mountain called Beauty Spot...when we got up there, it was like a miny tent city....a beautiful evening. There's a road that leads up there so quite a few people (former thru hikers, etc.) were there. A group of lovely wild ones brought up some trail magic for us....rotisseree chicken, cheesecake, baked beans, apples, soda, and best of all..Bubbles!!! It was a bubble fest!! Sunset bubbly!! Good fun, good fun. The sweetness of life is always exaggerated when there are bubbles.
I met Dave's cousin/2nd cousin here yesterday..Gypsy and Lone wolf. It's always great to be far and find a connection. It turns out that she is an avid hula hooper as well (Hoooray!! There's another one!) and will supply some hula hoops for some fellow hoopers for the Trails Days Fest which is coming right up in 2 weeks...a big hiker fest here in Damascus!! I will hike ahaed and then come back...there will be a hiker parade(i have plans for that one!!) music all sorts of fun things for little freaks like myself!!!
I must go...library closing!!!!!! Pecae, Love to all!!!!
MANY NAMES Melinda
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