Gilligan on the AT Revisited: 14-Aug-1993

August 14, 2008

This is a 5-month long series of blog posts that are the entries in my journals written on most evenings as I hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1993. The journal entry appears first — indented — and then any additional commentary from my 15-years-removed perspective follows.

8/14/93 – Fri.

Before I get, I want to document a bit of trail humor:

Q: How can you tell a thru-hiker from a weekender?
A: Throw an M&M on the ground in front of him

Q: What’s the difference between a thru-hiker & a homeless person?
A: Gore-Tex

Q: How can you tell someone’s a thru-hiker?
A: When he checks into a hotel, he asks the clerk where he can hang his food. (Roadrunner original)

I had a really long 20 miles today. I stopped at a little store at about 9:30 to get ice cream and call Julie, which took about an hour. Then, 10 minutes after I took a 45-minute lunch break, I caught up with Roadrunner, who was taking a break. While we were talking, a ridge runner showed up, and we talked to her for about 45 minutes. So, I didn’t get to the shelter until almost seven o’clock.

Tomorrow, I’m shooting for a 27-mile day to make it all the way to Salisbury, CT, so I can get my maildrop, if it’s there, early on Monday morning.

I’ve now crossed three state lines since I last saw Julie, and I caught myself sinking into a bit of a blue funk this morning thinking about how much I miss her.

Posted in Appalachian Trail, Tim