Moon up and settling in.  My friend Kelly (Sleeping Beauty) threw up here. I had to stop.  I had only gone about 5 miles, but I just wasn’t up for another 4 to the next Shelter. Besides, Kelly threw up here,   and there’s a library!  How cool is that! Take a book, leave a book! […]

Well, my Trail Angel, George and his wife, Jeannie, dropped me off at Rt 22. This is the view I had as I started my trek. Directly behind me, although I had no idea, is the Train Station which drops off hikers from Manhattan! How cool is that!  Anyway, off I went. A little nervous […]

I know it should be USA, but from overseas it’s been looking like we’ve been modeling our new leadership after Vladimir.   Besides, it’s a cute reference to the Fab Four, right? I’m sitting in the lobby of the Airport Holiday Inn, Newark, New Jersey.  This is the liftoff from Dubai. We actually started in Cape […]

That’s me in the Middle. Flanked by my two HS buddies, John and Gates. John is/was an Eagle Scout. Gates taught Outward Bound.  Me, I played sports. And sports. And more sports. I always wondered about these outdoor types. My pharmacist, Julie, after a cycle trip up near Mt. Kathadan, came back calling those odd […]

There was a huge fire on Sir Lowrey’s Pass, about 60K East of Cape Town. The strong winds sent the smoke all the way to us here in the city, very quickly.  The whole Mountain was on fire. Houses destroyed.  We have tremendous fire fighting forces here. Dedicated women and men always on call in […]

A pink Citroen. I was just shooting stuff. Trying to divert my attention from my terrible feelings of loss. Lost my nephew Daniel. He was a beautiful boy. Came to the aid of two woman being mugged and was stabbed to death by one of the muggers.  They caught the man. He is in jail. […]

This is our nephew Daniel Koetter Knight Ullrich. He was 25. That’s his sister Nina with him in the photo.  Last night, while in the process of defending two women from a mugger, our Daniel was stabbed in the neck and died at the scene.  He was with us for 4 months, a couple of […]

This was such a people walk. I had the best time! I walked all day without any anxiety about where I was going to camp. Besides, WATER is the real problem out there. Not where to camp. It’s very dry. Oh yeah, the people.  Stephanie.  Look at that face! THAT is Trail Joy! Does it […]

I took the “easy way” blue trail around the climb, after the Lemon Squeezer. I was so tired. So tired. It was over 90 degrees, and I had already gotten lost and added two miles to my, already challenging day.  There it is. See that devilish little blue sign on the left? It says “easy […]

There’s my friend John and his (and my) new friend “Lifesaver.” We three slept in the Fingerboard Shelter. Lifesaver had arrived early, John and I after dark. Turned out Lifesaver was leaving the trail. He had started at Katahdin and expected to Thru Hike, but boredom got the best of him. It’s tough being a […]