Walking with Freedom - Western edition

[Tin Man]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="97%"><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=bottom align=left>From PRWeb.com (http://www.prweb.com/releases/2006/5/prweb383432.htm)


Director Begins 2,667 Mile Walk from Mexico to Canada to Shoot Documentary on the Pacific Crest Trail
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Filmmaker Michael Daniel set out this morning to begin his hike across North America; a hike that will put him in three different countries and three U.S. states over the next six months. Daniel is shooting a follow up to his successful documentary about the Appalachian Trail. His second hiking doc, “Walking West with Freedom”, will take him along the Pacific Crest Trail. The trail starts in Mexico, just south of San Diego, California and ends near Vancouver, Canada where Daniel will arrive in early October.
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) May 10, 2006 -- Filmmaker Michael Daniel set out this morning to begin his hike across North America; a hike that will put him in three different countries and three U.S. states over the next six months. Daniel is shooting a follow up to his successful documentary about the Appalachian Trail. His second hiking doc, “Walking West with Freedom”, will take him along the Pacific Crest Trail. The trail starts in Mexico, just south of San Diego, California and ends near Vancouver, Canada where Daniel will arrive in early October.

Daniel hopes to not only share with people the diverse, beautiful scenery of America’s first hiking trail, but also how fragile the environment there is and how our modern lifestyles are impacting even remote areas of the trail. From hiking through the sweltering desert to below zero weather on glaciers, Daniel will take viewers along with him. “Hopefully I’ll learn something about why we have allowed so much damage to happen within our environment, why it starts and how we can begin to fix it.” Daniel said. “I hope to also share the importance of finding alternative means of energy for our homes and lives. Positive change starts with the individual and we all need to take a good hard look at our world, our environment and ourselves.”

He also wants to show how being alone with nature on such an expedition can have a positive impact on a person’s mind, body and soul. “On this journey I hope to recapture a little of my tarnished soul, my bruised physicality and my media-numbed brain.” He added. Daniel actually began his documentary in Dallas where Baylor Hospital’s Wellness Center gave him a complete physical. “Baylor has been extremely generous in donating services from their advanced medical center and staff to our project” said David Burrows, Daniel’s Executive Producer. When Daniel returns this fall, Baylor physicians will provide a follow up exam to chart how a 2,667-mile walk affects the human body. “I suspect I’ll lose a lot of weight,” he laughed.

When the shooting is complete, Daniel will return to New Hampshire to begin editing the hundred’s of hours of footage while Burrows will be working on music selections for the film. The final documentary will consist of two different themes – one for distribution and a shorter one for television broadcast. Generous sponsors for the project include: Baylor Wellness Center, Asolo Footwear, Campmor.com, Equinox (Fundamental Tools for Earth Travelers), Mountain Hardware (Tents & Backpacks), MSR (Innovative Adventure Gear), Silva USA (Watches, Speed odometers & Compasses) and Barking Harley Productions.

For more information on the documentary visit:
http://www.walkingwithfreedom.com (http://www.walkingwithfreedom.com/)
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[Just Jeff]

Can't wait to see it.

But the PCT is a N-S trail - are you really "Walking West"?

[Tin Man]

Ah well, maybe they mean Walking in the West? :-?

[Tin Man]

From communitypress.com (http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060510/NEWS01/605100535/1078/Local)

Friends will hike trail for Make-A-Wish
BY JANE STORMER | COMMUNITY PRESS STAFF INTERN
<!-- Article Text --><!--ARTICLE BODY TEXT-->This September, three young Cincinnati men will hike the Appalachian Trail, starting at Mt. Katahdin in Maine and ending at Springer Mountain in Georgia sometime in February.
Joe White, 21, his brother Jon White, 19, both from Milford and their friend Bryan Wolf, 24, from Union Township will attempt a thru-hike of the 2,167 mile footpath through the Appalachian Mountains during the winter. Along with a sense of personal accomplishment, they will also be raising money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Southern Ohio.
While approximately 8,500 people have made the long trek either during the spring and summer months or section hiking, only a handful of adventurous souls have accomplished a thru-hike, traveling the entire length of the trail in one trip, during the winter.
"It was my idea,"Joe White said. "It's something I've talked about my whole life."
Joe and Jon are Eagle Scouts and spend the summer as guides on one to two week hikes in the back country of Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska, part of a high-adventure base for the Boy Scouts.
"I didn't want to miss doing that," said Joe White. "So I decided what about starting in September and going through the winter." Jon and Bryan were quick to jump on board with the idea.
"This is going to be such a great accomplishment for me,"said Wolf, a business major at the University of Cincinnati. "It will challenge me physically, mentally and even spiritually on so many levels."
Unlike his two companions, The Appalachian Trail will be Wolf's first extended hiking trip.
"Since it is going to be such an accomplishment for us, we almost felt like it wouldn't be fair not to share it in some way," Joe White said. "We wanted to give something back."
Partnering with the Make-A-Wish Foundation and actively fundraising in conjunction with their hike, the three friends are seeking pledge donations from individuals and corporations totaling $30,000, which will grant wishes to five local children.
"I'm very proud of them,"said Joe and Jon's father, Bill White. "For these young men to be doing something like this for benefit is fantastic. They are great role models."
As part of their fundraising, a benefit concert featuring three local bands, and a silent auction was held April 29 at the Cactus Pear restaurant in Blue Ash.
Gift certificates from Nature Outfitters in Milford were among the items auctioned at the event. Tim McMannis, owner of the shop, also supplied the three hikers with everything from backpacks and snowshoes to headlamps and warm socks.
"This is a unique thing they are doing, hiking the trail from north to south," McMannis said. "I'm going to make sure they have the equipment they need at a good price."
Along with the 50 pounds of gear each of the men will be carrying, they will also take a GPS (global positioning system), a satellite or cell phone and a collection of maps.
'I found a CD-ROM that contained two and three-dimensional maps of the whole trail," Joe White said. "So we are able to get a preview of how the terrain is going to look." The maps also contain the locations of campsites, three-walled shelters and marks the distances between towns.
"The trail could be a little hard to pass at times,"said Wolf. "It's really narrow in places so you don't have a lot of room to make mistakes when you're going up the side of a mountain."
While most hikers traverse the trail from south to north, the three men have chosen to head south, tackling the most difficult section of the trail first.
"Maine to New York is probably the toughest part," Jon White said. "For the first two weeks you don't see a town and it's some of the steepest terrain." But the group is confident that once they finish the northeastern section of the trail, the remaining miles will pose no problem.
"Except, you know, the winter storms," Joe White said. Their zero-degree sleeping bags, extra fuel and using the walled shelters as extra protection should be enough to sustain them through the storms.
"Sure, I have a lot of concern," said Bryan's father, Charlie Wolf. "But it will be a great adventure for them. I'm behind them."
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[Tin Man]

Meant to start "make a wish" in its own thread. Anyway, this sounds like it should be titled "say a prayer" not "make a wish". :-?