View Full Version : Poor kid
Slo-go'en
06-11-2015, 14:56
I saw a kid sitting at the entrance to Walmart today with a sign which read "AT HIKER - BROKE AND HUNGRY".
I was going to stop and give him a buck and tell him it was time for him to go home, but by the time I came out he was gone and there were two Gorham PD cruisers there. So, I guess they told him to go home.
BirdBrain
06-11-2015, 15:05
Just do it. Its just walking. No plan is the best plan. What could possibly for wrong? Hmmm.....
kayak karl
06-11-2015, 17:06
It is just walking. and the best plan is no plan. but that doesn't mean you don't take money :)
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
swisscross
06-11-2015, 17:23
With less than 300 miles to finish...so close yet so far away.
Lone Wolf
06-11-2015, 17:27
i was broke and hungry in gorham many years back. i took my azz home. saved maine for a rainy day
What a great billboard for AT Hikers. No wonder why the hiking community has such and uphill battle when it comes to getting locals to embrace and assist hikers.
BirdBrain
06-11-2015, 17:32
It is just walking. and the best plan is no plan. but that doesn't mean you don't take money :)
Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 2
Until someone suffers. Then we beat the snot out of them because they did not plan or have basic skills. We bring up Darwin and insult them.
Have a plan guys. Prepare. It does require some forethought. Be flexible all you want, but be prepared.
peakbagger
06-11-2015, 17:51
I really hope it isn't a scam. There is "yogi-ing" and then there is begging. I have heard thruhikers boasting how they scammed folks in trail towns to fund their poor planning. I expect that some folks would throw him cash but I expect the best way to help him may be to take him inside and buy him trail food. It will become fairly obvious if the guy is a real poser just by what he selects and I would not be surprised if he come up with a reason why he needs cash (the liquor store is down the road in Gorham).
kayak karl
06-11-2015, 20:03
what basic skills was this hiker lacking? if he made it to Gorham (if he was a hiker at all) he got pretty far on his skills. people can plan and prepare for a year and the plan is shot full of holes by neel gap.
MuddyWaters
06-11-2015, 20:06
When you run out of money on vacation, its time to go home.
But , a few despicable people will beg apparently.
Its the entitlement mentality at its finest.
BirdBrain
06-11-2015, 20:21
what basic skills was this hiker lacking? if he made it to Gorham (if he was a hiker at all) he got pretty far on his skills. people can plan and prepare for a year and the plan is shot full of holes by neel gap.
Given that we know nothing about this person or the validity of the words on his sign, my comments were abstract. It remains a disingenuous claim that the best plan to succeed is to just walk into the woods with zero planning. It does a disservice to those starting out to advocate such a position that everyone here knows is bogus. Plans change. But that does not remove the necessity to give some consideration to the task at hand.
Water Rat
06-11-2015, 21:02
With less than 300 miles to finish...so close yet so far away.
Well, maybe yes... But what if he was going SoBo?
Slo-go'en
06-11-2015, 22:01
Well, maybe yes... But what if he was going SoBo?
Of course we have no idea what his actual situation is (or was), but I suppose you have to be a little desperate to start begging for money like that. I didn't see a pack with him though. He was in the medium between the in and out lanes just off the main road as one approached the parking lot, so I didn't get a real good look other then what the sign said and that he was young, a typical 20 something.
rocketsocks
06-11-2015, 23:32
Back when, I wouldn't have made it past the Doyle. ;)
rocketsocks
06-11-2015, 23:34
Back when, I wouldn't have made it past the Doyle. ;)...and I'd have been ok with that.
imscotty
06-11-2015, 23:47
Berlin and Gorham have enough on their hands taking care of their own without paying for some kids vacation. NOBO, SOBO, what does it matter? When you run out of money, it is time to go home and get a job.
peakbagger
06-12-2015, 05:33
Its the beginning of tourist season in the whites. Anyone who wants a job can get a summer tourism job. Mostly minimum wage and weekends and its over around October but the work is there. Most folks feel they are "too good" for this work and the businesses end up hiring "guest workers" from other countries. Rt 2 is a major east west route and there are lots of itinerants hitching through. They tend to come through when the weather is warm and disappear when its gets cold. There is daily bus service to Boston and RT 16 is generally and easy hitch and it runs right down to I-95 so its not like there aren't options to go home. The local police generally are pretty good at figuring out the difference between hikers and vagrants. There is also a state and federal prison right up the road plus a high concentration of state police who live locally, county sheriffs who are mostly retired local police who live locally and Gorham has a large police department for a small town. Generally when vagrants figure that out, they put their thumb out and head west to Burlington VT when the picking is easier.
I saw a hiker in Manchester Center standing outside EMS holding a sign that said:
"AT Hiker out of money, help me finish my dream."
swisscross
06-12-2015, 13:45
Every Dead show I went to there were at least a dozen folks holding signs sayin', "I need a miracle".
Actually want they needed was a bath and a job.
Old Hiker
06-12-2015, 14:58
Every Dead show I went to there were at least a dozen folks holding signs sayin', "I need a miracle".
Actually want they needed was a bath and a job.
I need a winning Lotto ticket. I had a shower this morning as usual and I have a job.
BirdBrain
06-12-2015, 15:09
I won the lottery of life. I had parents that taught me that my success depended on my efforts. I am not a victim. So many limit themselves through believing they are. I started working when I was 9. I saw a sign recently. It read, "Holy crap! My parents were right about everything." Thankfully I listened enough.
4eyedbuzzard
06-12-2015, 16:30
I saw a hiker in Manchester Center standing outside EMS holding a sign that said:
"AT Hiker out of money, help me finish my dream."Yeah, EVERYBODY has dreams. Financing someone else's vacation isn't one that is shared by many people.
Lone Wolf
06-12-2015, 16:31
Yeah, EVERYBODY has dreams. Financing someone else's vacation isn't one that is shared by many people.
spent all his $$ on dope and beer
Lone Wolf
06-12-2015, 16:32
Yeah, EVERYBODY has dreams. Financing someone else's vacation isn't one that is shared by many people.
spent all his $$ on dope and beer
4eyedbuzzard
06-12-2015, 16:45
spent all his $$ on dope and beerEven if not the case, there are too many who will hear of stories of "how I thru-hiked on less than $1000", and don't even put aside bus fare home. You can't wind up penniless in Manchester, VT, without first being down to chump change somewhere near NY/NJ and a bus terminal.
hikeandbike5
06-12-2015, 17:27
the trail will always provide.
Sarcasm the elf
06-12-2015, 17:40
..........
Walkintom
06-12-2015, 18:01
Hope for the best. Plan for the worst. Accept the reality of what's in front of you and act accordingly.
Lone Wolf
06-12-2015, 18:03
the trail will always provide.
provide what?
provide what?
I think what it's supposed to mean is not to stress out about things like "am I going to be able to hitch into town?" or "will the pizza place be closed before we get there..." and other lightweight worries that pop up while you're hiking.
Stretching it to mean things like you can hike to Maine broke is pushing it.
mtntopper
06-12-2015, 22:42
Maybe the hiker in question was trying to get enough $$ to get home.
CELTIC BUCK
06-12-2015, 22:45
As a boy I was taught to earn my own way; I paid my way to a BSA Jamboree and to Philmont when I was 16.I trapped as an 8 yr old.Had a paper route for years then a job at 14 in a department store plus working as a Caddie.Paid for fun on my dime, Had Great Parents they taught me to earn my own money.
Reminds me of my trip to the Wal-Mart there. As I was shopping and being very selective in choosing my foods, as I only need an additional two days resupply, a man quickly shoved a $20 bill into my hand and he was gone in a flash. I was sorta startled but afterwards realized that I probably looked very homeless and hungry as I was down to about 145 pounds or so, then I had a good laugh at the situation. I guess there's not much of a difference between us and the homeless except we have a goal and a home to go to afterwards.
yerbyray
06-12-2015, 23:02
Anyone can create a budget and plan but they are worthless if you do not have the fortitude to stick with them. Zero days can bet expensive.
Yeah, EVERYBODY has dreams. Financing someone else's vacation isn't one that is shared by many people.
Also known as marriage at times?
I kid..I kid.
WingedMonkey
06-13-2015, 14:53
About every other week during the thru-hiker season someone starts a thread "where is the hiker bubble, I wanna be a trail angel". Like it don't count unless you can meet the maximized number of hikers to get your wings.
Lots of hiker groupies head to the Southern trail crossings to feed the hikers every year.
Maybe that's where this guy (if he was a thru-hiker) learned how to depend on others.
4eyedbuzzard
06-13-2015, 15:02
All the haters, patheticWhich is pathetic? People who believe that someone on a long vacation who starts running out of money should use their remaining money to return home, get a job, provide for themselves, etc.? Or people who think panhandling to continue an extended hiking vacation is some sort of noble calling?
BirdBrain
06-13-2015, 15:18
Which is pathetic? People who believe that someone on a long vacation who starts running out of money should use their remaining money to return home, get a job, provide for themselves, etc.? Or people who think panhandling to continue an extended hiking vacation is some sort of noble calling?
I hate it when people use logic. :D Does that qualify as hating? :p
BirdBrain
06-13-2015, 15:18
I hate my phone. I hate the double posts it does.
Offshore
06-13-2015, 15:55
Which is pathetic? People who believe that someone on a long vacation who starts running out of money should use their remaining money to return home, get a job, provide for themselves, etc.? Or people who think panhandling to continue an extended hiking vacation is some sort of noble calling?
If someone wants to help the kid out, who is anyone here to disparage them for it? If you somehow find the panhandling to be a great moral affront, then don't give him money. Problem solved.
No more like reality at times...There are some hikers that have very little plan and go ape #$% buying beer and other goodies and don't look at the overal picture..Reality hits and then some...
4eyedbuzzard
06-13-2015, 16:05
If someone wants to help the kid out, who is anyone here to disparage them for it? If you somehow find the panhandling to be a great moral affront, then don't give him money. Problem solved.Because I have this silly notion that dependency is neither good for the individual nor for society in general. It's my noble calling :rolleyes: Can you help by throwing a few dollars my way?
BirdBrain
06-13-2015, 16:20
For those that appease themselves by tossing a buck at a beggar and thus feel the better person, try taking them home instead. I have. I should say I have tried. There are some bad situations and needy people. Most don't want the food their sign says they want. Offer them a meal at your home. The vast majority will refuse you. Tell me. Are you really doing a good deed by tossing the buck? You are not a liberator. You are an enabler. Again, I have asked them into my home. It is an easy test to find out who wants help and who wants something else. As to to kid on vacation. Not a chance from me.
Harrison Bergeron
06-13-2015, 16:43
I saw a healthy 30-something man at the traffic light on the corner to the freeway entrance ramp today with a sign that said "hungry with three kids, please help" -- the same bum who's been working that corner for the past six months. Today some fool fell for it and called the bum across three lanes of traffic so he could dump his spare change into the bum's cup -- and 30 cars sat through the green light so that a fool could pat himself on the back for helping a bum get his next drink.
Every single American is born with a golden ticket that about 5 billion other souls on this planet would kill for. All it takes to avoid poverty in this country where wealth practically rains from the sky is to finish your free education, don't get knocked up before marriage, and run like hell anytime someone says: "I'm from the government and I'm here to help".
But yet every street corner in my town of 6 million people is staked out by a bum with a sob story on a sign who apparently used his golden ticket for toilet paper.
I don't know if that "kid" was really an AT hiker, but my response would be the same -- sneer and walk on by. The quicker that "kid" learns that begging is not a solution, the quicker he might someday figure out what the real solution is -- GET A JOB.
Lone Wolf
06-13-2015, 16:47
i'm going to Asheville tomorrow. i dread walkin' the streets there. seems every ten feet there's a 20 something with dreads bummin' $$
Hikerhead
06-13-2015, 17:00
Be quick and ask them for money first.
i'm going to Asheville tomorrow. i dread walkin' the streets there. seems every ten feet there's a 20 something with dreads bummin' $$
Hikerhead
06-13-2015, 17:00
Be quick and ask them for money first.
i'm going to Asheville tomorrow. i dread walkin' the streets there. seems every ten feet there's a 20 something with dreads bummin' $$
Offshore
06-13-2015, 19:40
Can I throw a few dollars buzzards way? I can but I won't. I don't think that his asking makes him an awful person, though. And that's the difference. I can say no, and I did. End of interaction - no lectures or diatribes required.
The preachy self-righteousness in this thread is a bit much. It sounds like the "get off my lawn!" crowd needs to get off the soapbox and out on a trail and figure out the root of all the anger and resentment.
mtntopper
06-13-2015, 22:04
Can I throw a few dollars buzzards way? I can but I won't. I don't think that his asking makes him an awful person, though. And that's the difference. I can say no, and I did. End of interaction - no lectures or diatribes required.
The preachy self-righteousness in this thread is a bit much. It sounds like the "get off my lawn!" crowd needs to get off the soapbox and out on a trail and figure out the root of all the anger and resentment.
What Offshore sais. +1
Hangfire
06-14-2015, 00:20
I had a ton of respect for the young people that I met on the trail who had very little money yet stayed away from towns, stayed away from the party groups and concentrated their efforts on putting up big miles and holding to a budget and finishing. If you're short on money you're not moving fast enough!
Kids will be kids. We all learn lessons in life. Some are more difficult than others. Rather see youth learning on the trail instead of in the streets. Hope his experience brings positive results long term.
Offshore
06-14-2015, 08:27
Kids will be kids. We all learn lessons in life. Some are more difficult than others. Rather see youth learning on the trail instead of in the streets. Hope his experience brings positive results long term.
Going through the "dopey kid" stage is a part of growing up. For years, I volunteered with a student organization at a big university in NJ and had countless "what were they thinking?" moments with the parade of 18 - 22 year olds that came though each year. It really seemed that the ones that had the most "teachable moments" were the ones that went on to great jobs, medical school, or to become officers in all branches of the military. The ones that had the overprotective parents who insulated them from the world really seemed to have trouble functioning as well as the ones that were allowed to make mistakes. Hats off to the kids on the trail and the lessons they learn (and even the lessons we can learn from them).