CHARACTER

Hi all this is post #10 and we have reached New York State which means New England is around the corner! Well at least for one of us and maybe with some luck both.

Wanna go to Oz but Kayak can't get you there? Just go hike the AT instead. While there you can be like Dorothy (or me too for that matter) moaning for home while having the time of your life. This hike has been a whole lof of fun. I have never eaten as many hamburgers, and pie slices as have these past 3 months.
Thankfully the same can be said for the number of pints have downed.

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 Those aspects make up somewhat for what have not been doing which is better off kept unsaid.

The scenery has been fab, and the people have met along the way super colorful. How could they not be with trail names like Rocky Racoon, Calamity, Which Way, A-Train, Emerald, Frog Monkey, Chain Saw, Raven Cloud, Blitz, AppleJacks, Bearbait, Roadrunner, Bartender, New Hampshire, A--hole, Grasshopper, Napolean, H2o, Mowagli,Wicked Wahine, Grease, and Lead Dog. They and so many other fascinating people have met along the way have added greatly to the enjoyment of the hike. There are pictures of several of them but cannot upload till find a tab or pc with a port.Will do so by the end of football season  promise!

The most memorable character that have met of all though am glad to report have buku pictures of. That would be the one and only my bro Papa Paul. One night at a campsite in Shennadoah chatted at length with an attorney and finance consultant from Maryland. After awhile lawyer Andy noted to me that Paul and I are so different from each other and asked if we get along. He was right about us being different of course. Although with the recent addition of facial hair and long term lack of such on the head we now look more similar than ever.

Since March 11 when arrived on the continent till now Paul and I have been together stride by stride 24/7. We shared a bed in a hostel but he drew the line much to my chagrin (as it meant another nite on the floor) at his son's home! Looking forward to the future when can kick him out of the bed!

This trip has afforded the opportunity for each of us to learn much about what the other had been doing the past 40 years and to learn about the persons we have become. It has deepened the respect, admiration, and love I feel for my brother Paul. He is just one great awesome individual. (oldest brother John feel the same about you but hey we lived practically next door to each other for like 30 years therefore no need for us to hike months on end!). So, to answer Andy's question, yes we get along, and except for minor skirmishes while growing up always have, and always will. Okay will leave it there as Betty may get ticked off if I make this post more mushy than the one did about her!

What follows are some pictures from the mid atlantic area stealing from Paul's blogsite. You can view more by going to www.papapaul.net. There is one shot though of a character met off the trail in NYC. Don't know who the bum is next to her though.

LOST

Hi everybody! Thanks for the encouragement and support as we continue on our journey of hiking the Appalachian Trail. This is post #9. Brother Paul and I are moving along and soon will be in New Jersey! At this time am about half way to Maine and on target to get home in the not too distant future!

Half the time I don't know where I am, and the other half is spent searching for temporarily misplaced or gone forever items. Those facts made the title of this post inevitable!

Lost is one of my all time favorite words. It is associated with feelings and moments of excitement, anxiety, joy, relief. Hey it's awesome to find your electronic car keys a mile from home along the roadside! Wish could say the same for watches, wedding rings, tent poles, and countless other stuff that has somehow disappeared.

Hiking the Appalachian Trail is quite similar to being a character on Lost the TV show. Can really identify with them as they did not what was going on most all of the time and often walked around from one point of the island to another without getting anywhere. Most days out here I have no idea where going and we also go in circles. It is easy to get off trail and end up where started a hour earlier. When the weather was cold could blame the snow for missing the white blazes but now guess have to look at whom was in the lead when get off track. Will need to get the eyes checked when return home and in the meantime stay in the rear!

The losties had to deal with time travel and space issues. Although we aren't breaking any natural laws at times there is so much variation you could almost picture yourself in a different era. One night may be a campsite seemingly in the middle of nowhere and the next by a railroad track at freight train central crossroads USA. You could hear those whistles blowing all night long for sure. The fab lost characters developed special skills as the series went on. Although we are not able to save the universe as they did we are getting pretty darn good at tick removal, duck calling, and stream fording.

Lost was filmed mostly on the windward side and the north shore of O`ahu. Our home is near Kualoa (brother John was the first director at Kualoa regional park years ago) where most of the windward shooting took place.

Mokuleia was often the scene for shooting on the north shore and is where Ho`opono has its annual camp.

Special places and stupendous scenery all around both locations. The Appalachian Trail also has much beauty. At times the vista views go on for ever. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes I think that this journey may end in similar fashion to how the TV show did with all of the people have met along the way gathering in one spot. Instead of going up to bright light in the sky though we all board a plane heading to that slice of heaven on earth known as Ahuimanu valley. Hallelujah! Gonna change the homestead into a hostel and charge fellow travelers exorbitant resort rates!