[at-l] Newbie Intro

[m-lambert@mediaone.net (Mark Lambert)]

Hi Folks!
I figure its about time I introduce myself. I have had a secret desire
to hike the AT for nearly 20 years. Not really a secret... I just never
talked about it much. I'd mentioned it to my wife and a few friends but
had never talked seriously about doing it. The idea has been in the back
of my mind, but I was resigned to the fact that it would probably never
be possible.

June 19th, 2001 - nothing special about the day except that was the day
I said to my self "Hey, I CAN do this!" It was a slow day at work and I
was stuck in my windowless office. I decided to "escape" a little and
surf over to GORP. I naturally was drawn to the Shenandoah National Park
to revive some old backpacking memories from my youth. I started
clicking around and was surprised at how much information was out there
about the AT. One of the primary reasons I had never been serious about
a thru-hike was I didn't know where to begin. I figured there must be at
least a half dozen people who had written a book about hiking it. (I'm
embarrassed to even write that, considering how common it seams
now.) I knew nothing about how long it would take, what kind of gear I
would need or even where the termini were.

Anyway, I became engrossed it the multitude of web pages, gear lists,
and planning guides. There is a great wealth of information out there! I
started to see that it was possible and perhaps even necessary to try.
It took me 3 days to muster up the courage to tell my wife I wanted to
do it. It took about that long for her to talk to me again... well, not
really but her initial reaction was not positive. She calmed down and we
were able to discuss it more productively.

And now here I am. My sights are set on a 2003 thru-hike. I'm thinking
of starting in Harpers Ferry and heading north. From Maine, I'm not 
decided yet if I would return to HF and head south or go to Springer and
head north. It would be nice to finish at the southern terminus of the
trail on Springer and the weather would be better sobo. OTOH, finishing
in Harpers Ferry would mean the final stretch of the hike would be
through SNP, where I first caught the backpacking bug... (sort of a
homecoming?)

I guess I shouldn't worry about how to finish my hike yet, I have to
start first! My three biggest obstacles (poor choice of words) are my
wife and 2 daughters. Can I really leave them behind for 6 months? My
youngest is 3 now and will turn 5 while I plan to be on the trail. Is
this too unfair for her (or the others)? Will I get over the guilt? 
The next biggest hurdle is of course financial. The $4000 to $5000 is
not the hard part, The hardest part is the mortgage, car payment, living
expenses, etc. that continue in the real world whether I'm there or not.
(Maybe I should buy a lottery ticket tonight...)

How about a little background on my camping? I grew up tent camping with
my family in Wisconsin. That's where I met my personal rain cloud that
has been with me on literally every camping trip since. I lived in
Virginia for several years and I was in a boy scout troop that did lots
of camping. We took many trips to SNP, Old Rag mt. was my first
backpacking trip and a frequent destination. (It has become a bit too
popular since those days...)  

I married a non-camper who has been a very good sport about camping with
me and my personal rain cloud. She actually enjoys it now. It definitely
gets in your blood. Anyway, these days my "camping" has been in a Jayco
pop-up. Buying the Jayco was the only way I could get my wife to go
camping when she was pregnant. With the kids, my hikes last all of about
a mile or two, but at least they take all day. There's magic in my
daughter's eyes in the woods. They see things I don't and I enjoy their
discoveries. 
So it has been years since I've been backpacking. I still have my
backpack & tent from way back when. I'm actually going to use it again
next weekend. I'll be doing a section of the NCT in the Allegheny
National Forest with a friend. Not the greatest gear but it'll get me
started again.
I live in Cleveland, OH. Not much backpacking going on around here. You
have to head to PA or southern OH for anything but car camping. At lease
there is an outfitter near me... (I'm not sure how they stay in
business.)

As for this list, I've come to respect many of the regulars in the few
weeks I've been lurking. I was a bit unsure of the list during that
"elitist" thread a while back. Overall, I've noticed that the people
here have some good advice and are pretty knowledgeable. Like most
people I've met camping or hiking, this group seams good-hearted,
friendly, down to earth people. I'm happy to be joining you.

BTW, I used to think the Appalachian Trail was the route the early
pioneers traveled through the Appalachian mountains on their way out
west. It never made much sense to me that it runs North/South through
VA. I won't tell you how old I was when I learned the not quite as
romantic origins of the trial! Lets just say I was old enough that I
should have caught on to that north/south vs east/west thing...

Anyway, I just wanted to say Hi and thanks for all the advice and
information you didn't know you were giving me!

Mark