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Hi All,
Just Joined today, Was very impressed with the amount of information on this site so I feel It's a must to be a member here.
I am 30 yr old soldier serving in Iraq and almost done with my tour. My plans are to leave the Army when my enlistment is up almost a year from now and hit the trail spring of '07. Thats far off I know and a bold prediction but I feel like I have to throw that out there, making it real or somthing.
My hiking experience has been in the adirondacks where I grew up , uhwarrie forest, pisgah (NC) , All over Mt. Rainier, glacier, and the Alpine Lakes wilderness.
I will be going back to Ft. Lewis Wa. in a couple of months so if you are going to be planning a trip in western washington and you need a ride from the Airport to trailhead or any info let me know how I can help.
In the meantime I look forward to gleaning all I can from the collective wisdom here to help me prepare for my own AT thru hike.
With Regards,
Gerard
sherrill
07-13-2005, 14:32
Welcome. You'll find plenty of help here.
You said you hiked the Uwharries. Were you stationed in NC?
welcome to white blaze dream,stay safe ,i hope ya have a great hike when ya get back:cool: neo
Trail Dog
07-13-2005, 17:46
Hey dream what unit what base? I'm in Taji just north of Baghdad. I'm with the National Guard guys wearing those funny new uniforms with all the velcro on it. Welcome to white blaze.
Get home soon and safe. If your anywhere near Taji let me know maybe we'll run into each other.
SGT Rock
07-13-2005, 18:05
Keep your head down Dream and make sure you make it back to these mountains.
TJ aka Teej
07-13-2005, 18:23
Welcome, and thanks for your service. Come home safe & soon!
Footslogger
07-13-2005, 18:46
I'd like to add a Thanks for your service to our country.
Hooah,
'Slogger
Welcome! Thank You for serving our country proudly. Hope to see you on the trail one day when you get home.
Lone Wolf
07-13-2005, 19:15
What Sgt. says. Thank all you soldiers for your service. Come home. Hike.
Semper Fi
I gotta echo the same thought, sincere thanks for your selfless service and welcome to it, dream. I think you'll find you can shed a whole LOT of weight in 07 compared to what you probabily lug around now!
You said you hiked the Uwharries. Were you stationed in NC? Yes at Ft Bragg from 95-01
sherrill
07-15-2005, 06:49
Don't live far from there, in Pittsboro, NC.
BTW, I echo everyone in saying thanks for your service and I pray for safe passage home.
thanks everybody for the warm welcome. This is a nice forum with nice people and tons and tons of info , very current as well. I am impressed with you folks , good job.
Gerard
Mini-Mosey
07-15-2005, 10:45
God bless you all over there and thank you for your service.
It is never to early to dream about the AT. Stay safe and Thanks!
squirrel bait
07-16-2005, 03:13
Thanks soldier. Come home safe back to NC, this time maybe have some fun here at the beach.
TakeABreak
07-16-2005, 05:24
Welcome, You will find a lot of proud veterans here. And a lot of good information as you said in your opening statement, we may not always agree with each others opinions, but most opinions are based on personal experience's and those that we witnessed while hiking on the trail's.
Keep your head down, don't forget to talk to God daily, I personally try to remember all of our men & women in uniform, in all of my prayer's.
God Bless you and keep you safe. Hope to see you on the trail one day.
Thanks soldier. Come home safe back to NC, this time maybe have some fun here at the beach. nah , fraid not , couldn't stand the piedmont of North carolina, great mountains , great beach . Everything in between just ........not very special. I haven't been living in NC for 4 yrs now. I remember actually saying "yaaaay!" out loud , alone , in my car and doing a little dance in the drivers seat when I passed the state border into Tenn on my drive out west to Ft. Lewis Washington. I love it out there (washington)and seriously miss it big time. As for missing Ft. Bragg/ Fayetteville ? HA HA.... never gonna happen.
walkin' wally
07-17-2005, 19:55
Thanks for your sevice to our country and be safe.
StarLyte
07-17-2005, 21:23
This is so damn cool. You are over in Iraq, and I'm here in Cleveland Ohio and I have the privilege to communicate with you in a hiker forum. I had to jump in on this one. And hey-there's NOTHING wrong with planning a hike so far ahead, I'm planning a Florida thru hike in 2007. Glad you're here ! You too Trail Dog !!! ----Marsha
Shucks maam,..... the priviledge is all mine.
Gadog430
07-21-2005, 14:16
Welcome, and a huge THANK YOU for your service to our country.
We can never repay you, we can only be grateful.
Dawg
Ps. Are there any snakes in Iraq?
Jack Tarlin
07-21-2005, 14:28
Gerard----
A whole bunch of folks beat me to it....thanks for what you're doing and your service. Stay in touch, let us know how you're getting along, and when you get back.
As your hike plans for '07 progress, drop by more often and let us know if we can help. Here at Whiteblaze, you have a lotta friends you haven't met yet, but we'll see you somewhere down the line. You and everyone you're with, stay safe and well, and Godspeed home.