Egg

It feels like there is an egg inside my head

Something spinning around in there, growing

Sort of like what happens to the paper tube they stick into a cotton candy spinner,

Going around, stuff sticking to it…

Not sure if it’s just a blog post, another CTR revelation,

or an outright plan for next summer…

I thought I could walk away,

But I don’t think that that is going to happen.

Lots of potential adventures out there

Including the need to find a route across PA, north to south

So as to make a link up to VA feasible.

Taken together, that would be one great long ride.

Who knows, maybe removing the “race” from the CTR

would remove some pressure, make me faster

Damn, though, I definitely feel like time is marching on and

I don’t have an unlimited number of years left to play with.

But that’s a little silly.

In 1955, At age 67, Emma Gatewood, a mother of 11 and grandmother of 23, became the first woman to thru-hike the 2168-mile Appalachian Trail solo. Grandma Gatewood was also an unwitting pioneer of extreme ultra-light hiking, wearing Keds sneakers, carrying an army blanket, a raincoat, a shower curtain for shelter, a cup, and a change of clothes slung in a homemade bag over her shoulder. She gathered wild foods on the trail, supplementing them with dried beef, cheese, nuts & sausages bought in towns along the way.

She hiked the entire trail again in 1960 and then again at age 75 in 1963, making her the first person to hike the trail three times. She became a bit of a national celebrity appearing on “Today Show”, Groucho Marx’ “You Bet Your Life” show and the “Tonight Show”. She also received free sneakers from Keds.