I heard tell of one fella who brought one of these.
beanwom.jpg
Some years ago as we were trying to get across a swollen stream, we ran across a small plastic figure that caught my eye. It was a plastic indian figure from a cowboy and indians figure set sold in the 50s. The indian is in full head dress, in a partial crouch, and carries a spear in the ready to use position. We have named him Chief Squatzalot, who resides on the back of any pack I take into the woods. His primary purpose is to be a talisman to ward off danger and provide a direction of travel where a coin toss would be used. So far, Squatzalot hasn't called a direction/trail choice wrong and we have not been eaten by bears, captured by Bigfoots, or molested by space aliens, so he must have magical powers.
One of the oldest pieces of art is a rock that has two indentations and a small grove that approximates a mouth. The rock suggest a face. It was found twenty miles from the closest bed of similar rock. According to what I remember reading, they said it had to be carried to its new location since it could not have migrated there by itself. It is 30,000 plus years old. So a Neanderthal was out hiking one weekend and carried the art form in his pocket to the next location. Someday someone in Maine is going to find a rock from Georgia and they will ask the important question. Wonder if this was a Thru Hiker?
Sign your rocks fellow hikers. You never know.
Rolls
Rolls down the hill, Kanardly hike up the other hill
May all your hikes have clear skies, fair winds and no rocks under your pad.
That rubber chicken Bomber had takes the cake for me. Thats a funny story Baltimore Jack from 2003. Spoke to you only once over a camel. Years ago. Think I saw you asleep leaning up against a stump in Southern Vt. South of Maine Junction. Glad you mentioned your open to conversation, but only way I'd wake you is with the smell of frying bacon. I'm from the let the tired hiker sleep. But it is nice to know an AT expert such as yourself is open to conversation.
Also have the feeling your the type whose friendship is easy to come by and still meaningful. Glad ya still post here also. Nice to hear from a very human hiker with an overflow of experience on the AT.
http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/show...mageuser=12038
This fellow carried a kitty cat on his back the whole way.
OK I admit to carrying a Wista 4x5 film camera, tripod, light meter, etc all the way through Shenandoah. Too busy hiking to take many photos, though. Still kept pack weight under 30 lbs.