AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David Miller Read Free Book Online

they found him dead in the morning. He also told us more upbeat stories from the trail. On the first day of his hike, he met a retired woman who was also attempting to thru-hike. She didn't even know how to set up her tent, so he helped her, thinking she wouldn't be on the trail for long. They hiked together all the way to Katahdin.
    This planted the seed for doing a thru-hike. I had imagined that only young people did this sort of thing, but speaking with this man made me consider the possibility of thru-hiking with Juli when we retire. I immersed myself in books, magazines, the Internet, anything I could read about hiking. The more I read, the more interested I became.
    A few months later, I was peppering Juli with stories I had read about the trail. This was just weeks after I had shared with her my interest in an AT thru-hike being a potential retirement activity, and I was revealing to her that reading had changed my attitude. I was completely uncertain of her reaction, so I said with a tone of jest, "Maybe I should go by myself. Maybe I should go now."
    Her reply was immediate: "Maybe you should."
    I was just testing the waters, and I surprised myself with the wave of enthusiasm I got from Juli's go-for-it response. All of a sudden, hiking the AT went from a crazy whim to a real possibility. And I wasn't intimidated by the possibility. When the path is clear to pursue a fledgling goal, the path is also clear for deeper insight into your desires. Sometimes the reality of it is less romantic than the fantasy, and you get cold feet. Not this time. The inner me was elated, screaming, "Hell yeah, let's go!" Outwardly, I tried to give Ji the impression that my question was hypothetical. But I knew she was not indulging me with a flippant response. She was serious and supportive, and she knew that the answer she just gave was a commitment.

    I hit Newfound Gap midmorning on a Saturday. This is where U.S. 441 crosses the mountains, and there is a major parking area. Tourists stop for pictures at the overlook or take a day hike. I am shamelessly setting myself up for venerated trail magic. "Trail magic" is a broadly used term covering any form of serendipity encountered on the trail. Hikers believe that good karma exists in the hiking community, which manifests itself in the form of assistance when the hiker is in need: a hitch from the middle of nowhere, lost equipment turning up, and, most coveted of all, hot food or cold drinks offered at road crossings.
    Most often, trail magic comes from previous thru-hikers or family members following current thru-hikers. When you encounter tourists unfamiliar with the needs of thru-hikers, you have to wheedle your way into their coolers. This fine art of giving karma a little push is called Yogi-ing. 14 Sometimes the trick is to look pathetic without looking scary.
    Or you can engage in conversation about the trail:
    "Walked all the way from Georgia...
    "...Haven't seen a bear yet...
    "...No, I don't carry a gun...
    "...I'm headed for Maine...
    "...About five months."
    If they don't catch on and break open the cooler, subtlety goes out the window: "Yeah, I get pretty tired of eatin' nothin' but raisins. Tried to catch me a squirrel last night..."
    The problem is, I'm terrible at Yogi-ing. Best I can do is linger to increase my odds of being seen by the right person. I splash-bathe over the bathroom sink and set up to cook in a high-traffic area between the men's and women's bathrooms. I take out my tiny stove to boil water for oatmeal, trying to look none too happy about eating it. No success. Plenty of tourists around, but only one diffident couple speaks to me.
    "Thru-hiking?" the man asks.
    "Yep."
    That's the whole conversation, verbatim. He gives a grinning glance back to his wife, as if to say, "I told you we'd see one of them here trying to beg for food. Isn't this fun to blow him off?"
    The section just north of Newfound Gap is austere. The ridge is sharper, more open. At times