People We Meet Along the Trail

  I Know You                                              

                                                 

One of the highlights of doing a thru hike of the AT is meeting other hikers.  They are a varied lot.  However there are some characteristics common to all.  Those generally come out when you ask them the inevitable question "so what prompted you to set aside up to 6 months of your life to do a thru hike?"

The answers, of course, always involve individual, unique elements, but here are some common themes:
   * I was tired of my job so I decided to quit and renew myself on the trail
   * I am in between jobs just now so thought this would be a great way to prepare myself for the next stage of my life
   * I just retired a few months ago and have been planning this hike for a few years
   * I just finished college/high school and am hiking to help me figure things out

Early on we met some of the thru hikers who started at Springer Mountain in either January or February.  Their trail names include: Tenacious D; Hawk, Fjord; Carpenter, Fresh Ground, Teflon;  etc.  As you can tell, each has either chosen for himself, or been given by someone else, a trail name that accentuates some personal trait.  We do not get a lot of time with those guys because they are moving fast, but we've enjoyed the short visits we've had with them.

Other hikers we meet on the trail are referred to as "section hikers."  This lot is generally moving slower and spending more time at the shelters.  So we have the opportunity to engage them in more conversation.  Plus they're not worn out by doing 25 miles plus per day like the others.

The picture attached to this blog entry is of a fellow from Indiana named Jeff.  He was hiking with his old home town friend, Dennis.  They were both pretty hefty guys.  Neither has every typed the words "former ballet star" in their resume.  As Dennis told me the morning we parted company, "you may meet nicer people along the trail in the days ahead, but you won't meet any heavier."  I like people who can laugh at themselves without shame.  We really enjoyed those two guys.

I made Jeff's picture because he reminded me so much of a younger version of a former E. Africa colleague of mine, Rusty Pugh.  Rusty and his lovely wife, Debbie, retired from our organization a few years back, after she received a positive diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease.  They retired to their home in the Decatur, GA area.  Every time I hear from Rusty, he says that Deb is doing well and from time to time still clogs.  Wow, could Debbie every clog! And I never saw anyone smile more than she did when clogging.  Their daughter, Courtney, and her husband and 2 kids were living with them the last time I checked.  Their son, Clayton, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro with Zeb and myself in 2002. 

Rusty was great with kids.  I know he reached out to mine on several occasions when they ran into various struggles at RVA.  We became fast friends through the years, as God's Providence put us together in a number of ventures. 

So Rusty, know that I was thinking about, and praying for you and Deb the other day.  Whether you or anyone else agrees that Jeff from Indiana is truly your Doppelganger or not, he at least served to remind me to meditate on some of the good and hard times we shared.

David Crane