Okay, this is my first post to the blog, so I hope this works.
Julie and I spoke with Dad and Ben on the 3rd and they seemed to be in good spirits. They were on the Horn (insert corny joke from Ben here - can you hear us, ha ha). They were five miles into their day, and there were two shelters they could shoot for one was less than five miles and one was more like ten. They said they would just have to see. The wind was blowing pretty hard, so I would guess that would be a factor.
Here is another update from Mom (Terri):
Dad & Ben are doing well. They continue to amaze me with their flexibility. They planned their trip so that they would have two nights off the trail relatively close together. I think thir off days were to be July 2nd & 5th. Both nights they planned to stay at the same hostel. The hostel provides shuttle service.
When they got to the hostel only the box for the 2nd was there. They were concerned because of the holiday. Anyway, yesterday when they arrived only one of the two boxes I sent for the 5th was at the hostel. Naturally they were a bit distressed. They did what they could, washing clothes, looking at maps & whatever else they could come up with a new plan. They decided to take a zero day today. While I was talking with them on the 6th morning box #2 arrived. They will hit the trail again on the 7th.
It looks like they are really working as a team to achieve their goal!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Friday, July 2, 2010
June 2 - No more photos for now :(
Sadly, I have run out of time so I'll have to post the photos later.
Brief Update
Dale and Ben were somewhat disappointed that they could not keep up with the rigors of their planned agenda. The day that they hiked the “hardest mile” of the trial they only hiked 5 miles. I have not heard from them in several days, but they told me that they were trying to decide if they should try to hike longer days to maintain the schedule. My guess is that they have been doing just that.
The weather has been fairly good, some rain, but nothing they cannot handle. They have started to see a few more hikers so that makes the day a little more interesting. I am going to post some photos taken as they hiked. They have truly seen some beautiful stuff along the way . . . to fulfilling their dream.
The weather has been fairly good, some rain, but nothing they cannot handle. They have started to see a few more hikers so that makes the day a little more interesting. I am going to post some photos taken as they hiked. They have truly seen some beautiful stuff along the way . . . to fulfilling their dream.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Spectacular
The guys called today around 5:00 p.m. They were nearly to their designated shelter. They were in good spirits. Dale was complaining that Ben didn't laugh at his jokes.
According to Ben, Dale has a very appropirate hiking name (Turtle). Well, Ben did add a description to Dale's hiking name "Pokey Turtle" ...you guessed it, Dale's pace is definitely slower than Ben's. I asked if it was becuase Dale was having a hard time. Ben said, "No, he's just a slow hiker. That means that I get lots of time to rest."
The good news is that they are still teasing one another. All is well as long as they have something to talk about. Neither Ben nor Dale are very big talkers.
Last night when they arrived at the shleter they met another hiker. Coinsidentally, the hiker was from metro Atlanta. Not just metro Atlanta, but he graduated a year ahead of Ben from the same high school and . . . was in the same boy scout troop as Ben! What a small world it is!
Over the course of the last 23 days Dale has shared stories about falling, but Ben really hasn't said much about missed steps. I figured that either Ben had not fallen or that he didn't want to talk about it. Well it turns out that Ben won the most spactacular fall award for the year. Not only that, he won that award today!! Ben said that he was hiking along and lost his footing. He fell down, landing on his backside. As he was sliding he rolled to his side. He couldn't stop the momentum until he rolled on his back landing in a ditch. Of course this debacle happened in a blink of the eye. There he was lying there with is backpack lodged the ditch. Somehow Ben managed to get on his feet without any help. There were no broken bones! Yes! And only a few scratches (That trail talk for, I got skinned up and really don't want to talk about it.)
As Ben was telling me his story I was laughing. Then Ben said something like, yup, I'm just like ice cream . . . "Good Humor." Ugh . . . Dale is really rubbing off on Ben. Maybe Dale is going to have to start laughing at Ben's jokes. Get it? Huh? Get it? Ugh!!
According to Ben, Dale has a very appropirate hiking name (Turtle). Well, Ben did add a description to Dale's hiking name "Pokey Turtle" ...you guessed it, Dale's pace is definitely slower than Ben's. I asked if it was becuase Dale was having a hard time. Ben said, "No, he's just a slow hiker. That means that I get lots of time to rest."
The good news is that they are still teasing one another. All is well as long as they have something to talk about. Neither Ben nor Dale are very big talkers.
Last night when they arrived at the shleter they met another hiker. Coinsidentally, the hiker was from metro Atlanta. Not just metro Atlanta, but he graduated a year ahead of Ben from the same high school and . . . was in the same boy scout troop as Ben! What a small world it is!
Over the course of the last 23 days Dale has shared stories about falling, but Ben really hasn't said much about missed steps. I figured that either Ben had not fallen or that he didn't want to talk about it. Well it turns out that Ben won the most spactacular fall award for the year. Not only that, he won that award today!! Ben said that he was hiking along and lost his footing. He fell down, landing on his backside. As he was sliding he rolled to his side. He couldn't stop the momentum until he rolled on his back landing in a ditch. Of course this debacle happened in a blink of the eye. There he was lying there with is backpack lodged the ditch. Somehow Ben managed to get on his feet without any help. There were no broken bones! Yes! And only a few scratches (That trail talk for, I got skinned up and really don't want to talk about it.)
As Ben was telling me his story I was laughing. Then Ben said something like, yup, I'm just like ice cream . . . "Good Humor." Ugh . . . Dale is really rubbing off on Ben. Maybe Dale is going to have to start laughing at Ben's jokes. Get it? Huh? Get it? Ugh!!
Saturday, June 26, 2010
Made it to Gorham and Beyond
The guys have made it through another week. Over the past seven days they have hiked through the White Mountains and are now heading toward another set of challenging terrain. Ben seems to be doing well. Dale appears to have been a little more acrobatic. Dale said that wood has been places over some of the more swampy parts of the trail. About mid week he walked across one of those wooden planks. The wood was so slick he thought he was on ice. From what he described he did some gymnastic moves to save himself. Thank goodness the only casualty was a trekking pole.
During one of the midweek updates Dale mentioned that his shoes were falling apart. Yup, that’s right . . . those new shoes are falling apart. Thank goodness REI was able to ship a new pair of shoes to Gorham. (OK, maybe that’s an overstatement. They shipped the shoes because we purchased them, not out of the goodness of their heart. Although, REI really does have good customer service!)
Apparently Dale was struggling a bit with his energy level last Saturday. That explains why they cut the day short. Not to worry. The next few days they pushed and made it to Gorham. Julie was able to visit them. She also served as their chauffer taking them to get the pole fixed and assorted other things. From what Dale said, Julie was less than impressed with the Motor Inn they were staying in. It had to be pretty bad for Julie to say something!
Even though the Motor Inn was not even close to four star hotel, they were grateful to be there. They managed to relax and take their first scheduled zero day. It was a good chance for them to prepare for several more weeks on the trail.
Today they called at 7:30 a.m. just before they got on the trail. They were in good spirits. I was too until they shared this little tidbit of information. If I want to walk up Katadin with them to see them finish I will have two choices. Choice #1 – be at the park when it opens at 5:00 a.m. or Choice #2 bring a tent and sleep in the campground. OK . . . Dale’s sister Ann is probably thinking what a sissy I am about now, but really it’s not about the tent camping. It’s about the smell. They will have nine (9) days of funk on them when I arrive. Even the wildlife steer clear of them when they smell that bad!!!! Yuck!
Day 22
Miles Completed: 245.70
During one of the midweek updates Dale mentioned that his shoes were falling apart. Yup, that’s right . . . those new shoes are falling apart. Thank goodness REI was able to ship a new pair of shoes to Gorham. (OK, maybe that’s an overstatement. They shipped the shoes because we purchased them, not out of the goodness of their heart. Although, REI really does have good customer service!)
Apparently Dale was struggling a bit with his energy level last Saturday. That explains why they cut the day short. Not to worry. The next few days they pushed and made it to Gorham. Julie was able to visit them. She also served as their chauffer taking them to get the pole fixed and assorted other things. From what Dale said, Julie was less than impressed with the Motor Inn they were staying in. It had to be pretty bad for Julie to say something!
Even though the Motor Inn was not even close to four star hotel, they were grateful to be there. They managed to relax and take their first scheduled zero day. It was a good chance for them to prepare for several more weeks on the trail.
Today they called at 7:30 a.m. just before they got on the trail. They were in good spirits. I was too until they shared this little tidbit of information. If I want to walk up Katadin with them to see them finish I will have two choices. Choice #1 – be at the park when it opens at 5:00 a.m. or Choice #2 bring a tent and sleep in the campground. OK . . . Dale’s sister Ann is probably thinking what a sissy I am about now, but really it’s not about the tent camping. It’s about the smell. They will have nine (9) days of funk on them when I arrive. Even the wildlife steer clear of them when they smell that bad!!!! Yuck!
Day 22
Miles Completed: 245.70
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