Steely Dan says, «Do it again.» So I guess I’ll do it.

A weak intro hook involving an obtuse reference to a ’70s band

Hello fellow travelers! Welcome to my Trek blog. Happy to have you with us on this walk that will begin in just a few months. And many thanks to The Trek team for allowing me to talk about things on this platform. As for the adventure… well. It could be brief. Or a long time. It could be gloomy. Or exuberant. It could be illuminating. Or ignorance. But if the Past is Prologue, as the Man said, I can guarantee you that it will NOT be boring… and that it will be full of pain, carbs and stories.

I love Steely Dan (which is a band, by the way, and an inanimate character from naked lunch, which I urge you not to investigate). So when they say «Do it again,» I listen. Look, I completed an AT NOBO in 2012, so I guess that makes me a repeat offender.

“Nor’Easter” was the name of my tour then, and I’ll still be that guy on this one. Isn’t it fascinating how we separate the self in the so-called real world from the person on the road? There is definitely a dissertation lurking in that phenomenon, waiting to be written, but not by me. No. I’d rather scribble incoherent nonsense and contribute to the white noise of the world. More on trail names in a future post.

8 x ads that may be useful but probably aren’t

I’m not a big fan of writing about myself (yes, yes, I totally recognize the irony), but I realize that doing so can help readers better understand perspective, context, and jokes that are usually only funny to me. So here are 8 things you might want to know. Am:

1. 64 years old, divorced, father of 3 fantastic children (1 Millennial and 2 Gen Z) and recently retired (less than a week ago and it’s incredibly strange) from my second career working for the State of Vermont.
2. Retired, formerly enlisted Naval Intelligence Officer who served 20 years and left active duty as a Commander in 2005.
3. Graduate of the University of South Carolina (Go, ‘Cocks!) and the Naval Postgraduate School with studies in Philosophy, International Studies and Strategic Planning.
4. An endurance athlete (grizzled), who has done: AT NOBO, LT NOBO and over the last 10 years or so logging something like 25,000 miles training and competing over many distances and terrains across the country, from 5K to 100 Mi. If you are on Strava, feel free to follow: Todd’s Strava. My personal blog where I write about running, etc. is Daily rhythms.
5. Facilitator/instructor, he has taught critical thinking skills and analytical techniques throughout Europe and Africa. THE best job. Although, to be honest, I also spent a couple of years working in intelligence on a SEAL team; and that was great. So many stories.
6. Fascinated (intimidated, actually) by perplexing topics such as: AI, free will, theology, simulation arguments, antiquities, cosmology, quantum oddities, and Tolkien’s world-building. But also cocktails, formulaic and overly sentimental Christmas movies, comfort food and walks in the woods.
7. I am very interested in the stories of others and hope to hear many of them on the road next year.
8. A boy from the Matrix. I like to plan things out and have this hike planned for the day. Ask me where I’ll be on a specific date and I’ll tell you. Whether I can execute this great plan is another story… and I don’t know the end.

My approach to this high literature

I think this blog will emerge as it gains a definable rhythm along the way. It will take about a week to get back into the swing of AT life, barring an initial catastrophe. I’ll probably have Hiawasee fix it. But basically, I think at the end of each day I’ll get to camp, settle in, eat some delicious, highly processed, steaming food, chat with people for a while, and then take notes about the day, waiting for hiker midnight to arrive. Then when I get to a city to resupply, I’ll put it all together and post it. This can happen in a hostel, a hotel, or a bar stool.

My relationship with social media is strained. This may be an «Ok, Boomer» moment where I don’t see the clear, deep value of these networks, but I’m just not motivated to harvest thumbs, hearts, smiles, squeaks, and emojis I don’t understand. I find the current climate of social media participation to be, on the whole, self-centered and vapid, although I admit that there is some good and valuable work out there as well.

The AT ecosystem, however, is a little different because those of us who walk are taking on something big, hard, exhausting and three-dimensional. Most are eschewing the lure of the 2D screen in search of self-reflection, human connection, consonance with nature, the physical, and the search for some kind of revelation or epiphany, whether conscious or unconscious. We all have reasons and that’s great. I look forward to hearing yours. That said, I’ll probably impale myself on a waist-high pine branch if I watch too many examples of viral TikTok dance videos composed and filmed in shelters. Unless there are bears involved, then I’d take it.

But seriously, the purpose of writing this blog is twofold. (1) Record this for posterity so that my children and loved ones can have an idea of ​​my journey. Because after a dirty nap, we all dissolve into irrelevance in this world unless there is an artifact, like a story, to hold on to. (2) Perhaps the exploits found in these pages will motivate someone who needs a push to get out of their chair, away from the dronescape, put on some trail shoes, and hit the jungle singletrack. I may not care about the thumbs up, but I would consider it a win if this blog amuses you in some way or, better yet, inspires you to go out and rediscover your humanity.

The things I’ll write about before Wander

In 2012 I recorded my AT journal in Trail Journals. People enjoyed it and I got some good feedback and a few in-person visits from readers along the way… which was strange, but kind of heartwarming. A lady bought me soup. But now that site is very clunky and slow, so I’m writing a blog for the good people at The Trek. In fact, part of my foreword work here before I leave next year will be to revisit some of those topics I covered a decade and a half ago and update them. Some newer themes too.

Right now, these are the things on the agenda, before launch. If you have any other specific requests or questions that interest you, please write in the comments.

• Reasons
• Trail name
• Equipment list
• November Shake Down: Lessons
• That I will probably fail
• My Rules of purity during the walk
• Training and fitness
• Technology and my associated agonies and ironies
• Conclusions from 2012. Is it still valid?
• Hiking style

And then when I’m out there

I’m sure it will be more (Ha!) pedestrian. It will include slices of life, interesting and fun characters, local colors, random thoughts, some images and more than a few silly musings. That said, the general themes I’m interested in along the way this time are:

• Generational perspectives. I’m a boomer. How do my views and perspectives compare to those of young people?
• Deltas of 2012. I did it once but this is something completely different. How is that?
• Life purpose and evaluation. Have I enriched my perspective on what it means to be human and humanly me?
• What comes next? Maybe nothing, but I have time ahead of me, in theory; So how can I add value to my community, to my country, to my world?
• Connections, common points and unity.

I write this as the first breath of Connecticut winter begins to blanket my backyard. The anticipation of this adventure is becoming palpable. I look forward to continuing the conversation. Thanks for checking in and maybe sharing something with me in the future.

YAWP

Nor’Easter

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