Poor kid

[Slo-go'en]

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]

Just do it. Its just walking. No plan is the best plan. What could possibly for wrong? Hmmm.....

[kayak karl]

It is just walking. and the best plan is no plan. but that doesn't mean you don't take money

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[swisscross]

With less than 300 miles to finish...so close yet so far away.

[Lone Wolf]

i was broke and hungry in gorham many years back. i took my azz home. saved maine for a rainy day

[FatMan]

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]

It is just walking. and the best plan is no plan. but that doesn't mean you don't take money

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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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

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]

Back when, I wouldn't have made it past the Doyle.

[rocketsocks]

Back when, I wouldn't have made it past the Doyle.

...and I'd have been ok with that.

[imscotty]

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]

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.

[10-K]

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]

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]

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.