Something truly and remarkably amazing

[Morph Ghost]

I'm not an AT hiker. The most I hiked was two miles (From the Tellico Gap S.R. 1365 to the Wesser Bald Fire tower and back, part of a camping trip last year). Although that small stretch was kind of brutal on my native Floridian self, I knew thru-hiking the AT is one of my life's goals. In March, I met AWOL, author of the book "AWOL on the Appalachian". My how ignorant I was. I just thought he lived elsewhere in Florida and was on a tour book signing or something. Nothing of it, until I finally decided to actually sit down and read the book did I see, halfway in, I learned he lives in the same town as me. Then, I ultimately realized the truth: I was in the same graduating class as one of his daughters. So little stuff I knew.

I don't know why exactly I'm sharing this, but it truly did open my eyes up. Amazing how small this world is. Anyways, I truly look forward to hiking the AT one day. Based on the stories I heard it's life changing.

[litefoot2000]

Anyways, I truly look forward to hiking the AT one day. Based on the stories I heard it's life changing.

It is indeed.

[hikerboy57]

welcome to whiteblaze. theres a lot of great people here and a few not-so -great to give you unsolicited advice as to hike your own hike their way.if you stick with us, though, you can learn a lot here.

[Datto]

Amazing how small this world is.

About a month before I started my AT thru-hike, hunkered down in the cold, cold winter of northern Indiana, my buddy Tony and I decided to fly out to the desert of Arizona and hike on the Arizona Trail. Through a whole series of misadventures (some of them actually funny today), after a few days we found ourselves hitchhiking on a road humping our backpacks up past Tonto National Monument. We stopped at the monument and took that in, then walked on up the road a few more miles to Roosevelt Dam where our ride was to pick us up.

A small convenience store/general store was there at Roosevelt Dam so Tony and I went in to see what we could order to eat and drink -- us being parched and all from our highway hike. Keep in mind this is way, way out in the middle of nowhere in the desert of Arizona. I was in the back of the store looking for, duct tape, beer and ice cream as I remember, and my buddy Tony yelled across the convenience store to me, "Hey, there's some guy out here who's hiked the Appalachian Trail."

I headed out to the front of the store and a bearded guy was there with his 10 year old daughter. He was headed to the big jewelry show in Tuscon -- he and his daughter had, after having driven to Arizona from New Hampshire as I remember, had just by chance on a whim decided to stop into this convenience store to get ice cream where Tony and I had decided to stop in too.

We all sat down for lunch at the picnic table in the shade on the side of the building and began talking a little about our backgrounds. He'd talked a little about his AT thru-hike and then about him being a jeweler as a profession. As he was talking, I couldn't help feeling that he and I had met somewhere in the past. I was sure of it and while he was talking I was mind-busy running through all my mental 5x7 file cards trying to figure out where I'd met him in the past. Just couldn't place where it was but I was sure I'd met him before.

After an hour or so, the guy and his daughter said goodbye and they left in their car headed toward Tuscon, AZ for the jewelry show. My buddy Tony had said to me while we're still sitting at the picnic table, "Wow, wasn't that unusual to meet some guy who'd hiked the Appalachian Trail with you just about ready to start your AT thru-hike?" I agreed and told Tony that I'd met that guy someplace before. Tony said, "Really?" I said, "Yeah, just can't place where it was but he and I had met before someplace."

A few weeks later as I was preparing to get my place cleaned up so I could go on my six month adventure, already having turned in my resignation at work and making arrangements so I could head to Springer Mountain in a week or two from them. That Saturday I'd put in the VHS tape of the Five Million Steps video (that I must have watched a zillion times before then) and got out my sweeper to sweep the carpet at my place. Above the din of the sweeper I was catching the Five Million Steps video playing on the TV and then...

There was the guy. The guy from the little convenience store in Arizona. He was in the beginning of the Five Million Steps video. Plain as day. I stopped the sweeper and walked over to the television. Yeah, it was him. Same voice and all. I'd thought to myself wow, this is going to be something coming up.

And, it was.


Datto

[Datto]

Here's that convenience store via Google Maps. Hard to believe in such a short time since then a person can fly Google to places from their past and look at it in 3-dimensions.

I can see the canopy where we'd all had lunch is still there but the store seems to be out of business.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Theodore+Roosevelt+Dam,+Tonto+National+Fore st,+Arizona+85545&hl=en&ll=33.668126,-111.134823&spn=0.001442,0.003195&sll=33.674152,-111.149685&sspn=0.001451,0.003195&geocode=Cc2QINtqXPSjFW3KAQIdq9Bf-SlVQOkdQd4rhzHqRnCt-gIYbw&t=h&hnear=Theodore+Roosevelt+Dam&z=19


Datto

[max patch]

After a few short vignettes, the first person featured is Jack Brady, the guy who got the bad blisters and stopped at Neels Gap to let his feet rest.

He passed away a few years ago.

[Drybones]

It's a small world...after all.

[Gray Blazer]

I'm not an AT hiker. The most I hiked was two miles (From the Tellico Gap S.R. 1365 to the Wesser Bald Fire tower and back, part of a camping trip last year). Although that small stretch was kind of brutal on my native Floridian self, I knew thru-hiking the AT is one of my life's goals.

Next time take the jeep road straight up.