[at-l] What else Hikin

[greyowl@rcn.com (greyowl@rcn.com)]

I am envious of all the people who made it to the gathering.  The weather i=
n PA has turned cold and crisp.  I truly enjoy living in an area of the cou=
ntry that truly has four seasons though there is not a lot of snow in PA.  =
I do like the south having lived in Tennessee, Georgia and North Carolina. =
 They just don=92t have good winters.  To get back on topic, this is a grea=
t time of the year to hike in PA.  Cool weather, plenty of water and except=
 for the Delaware Water Gap, few hikers.

I had a medical check up last Friday and the news was not good.  Part of my=
 problem is that I am in a new position and I am under a fair amount of str=
ess.  Add to the fact I did not get out and hike much this summer.  With th=
e temperatures in the 90=92s and the relative humidity approaching 100% on =
would have to be almost insane to go out walking.  I also discovered that a=
 bad day hiking is worse than a good day at work.  I was always getting ver=
y tired and showing signs of heat exhaustion.  I also developed raging head=
aches.  I had a long talk with my physician and we decided that the blood p=
ressure medication was not working properly so I am now taking two new medi=
cations.  We also dramatically changed my diet and I have to walk an hour a=
 day.  The latter is a real joy for me.  I feel better now even tough I hav=
e been on the new meds and life style change only a few days.

This got me thinking about hiking the AT.  I have portion of the AT hiked b=
etween Shenandoah National Park and Connecticut.  I have Gaps of roughly 19=
0 miles.  My wife asked me if I had any plans to hike the whole thing.  Thi=
s was the first time that she has shown a lot of support for me hiking the =
trail.   I have sort of a goal of finishing the trail in the next 8 years. =
 This fall I am going to start focusing on building up my stamina and stren=
gth to start out an all out assault on the trail in the spring.  At my adva=
nced age ;-) I have decided that I am going to get the northern half finish=
ed first.  Next summer the ATC 2003 takes place in New Hampshire and I am p=
lanning on leading some hikes at the conference. I am also planning on lead=
ing some hikes in New Jersey and New York (to fill in some Gaps).  These ma=
y be hikes that I lead or other AMC hikes.  I hope that the Yankees on the =
list (Hey I am one of you, sorta) will provide me with lots of information =
as I make my plans.  I know that in the spring I will be leading hikes thru=
 New Jersey (The hike series is called the March to New York and in true so=
uthern fashion we will only hike south to north).  Details of the plans wil=
l be forth coming.

Hope to see you all on the trail.

Grey Owl