Gilligan on the AT Revisited: 04-Oct-1993

October 4, 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.

10/4/93 – Mon.

Okay, to hell with the introspecting I had planned on doing these last few days. I’ve got other stuff to write about.

I forgot to note that yesterday I watched a tree fall down about a hundred feet off the trail to my left. At first I though it was a moose crashing around with typical gracelessness, but instead it was a tree, about 8′ in diameter at its base, that was returning to the earth from which it had sprung. It was kind of eerie. After 5 months of crawling over, under, and around downed trees, I actually witnessed one fall. There was a light rain falling, but virtually no wind. Quite an experience.

I am staying tonight with “Hobbit” (GA –> ME 1985), who wrote and recorded 10 songs about the A.T. on an album called Woodsong. I was going to give him $10 and have him mail me the tape, but he said just to give him my address and he’ll send me one free as a congratulations for finishing the hike. He’s a pretty neat guy. He & his wife manage a homeless shelter in Ellsworth, ME, and he’s working on a second album of trail songs. There were a lot more simillarities between his 1985 thru-hike and my 1993 hike than there were between mine and Glen’s (Mr. Excitement) 1973 hike. I think tonight would make a top 10 list of shelter company were I to complete one.

76.4 miles to go!

Posted in Appalachian Trail, Tim