Sun vs Lawn Mower – The Trek Hoodie

The social interactions that make up the stories of the hike are really the most important element of a hike on the Appalachian Trail. Moments of pure joy sharing events and happenings with others. The uncontrollable laughter that comes from sharing something happening that everyone can relate to. I remember when my hiking companions dissipated in 2022 and how going from a group of open-minded adventurers to being alone again is a difficult transition to make. Now I see that it wasn’t just the Flip Flop strategy of 2022, but I see the same need in my current GAME of 2026. The same need to belong and share the adventure is always present, and perhaps even more so in an initial NOBO strategy in Georgia.

Our group had just spent a fantastic series of days hiking. Beautiful weather, great stories, fantastic memories made. We were at a hostel relaxing and catching up on hostel chores. In my opinion, there are four “levels” of tasks. The most basic is “the rain has soaked everything, from camping using our backpack and we have to recover.” This level is quite focused on individual recovery needs. It also has a nuance of protecting multiple stacks of stuff due to the need for usually multiple people to have to recover from a «caught in the rain» event. There are social interactions and even laughter, but the gravity of anticipating the uncomfortable hours ahead due to the inability to fully recover in the woods keeps everyone a little on guard. The exception here is if you encounter a power outage where the canopy opens and the blazing sun presents itself as a gift from God calling you «give Me your wet tents, your wet socks, your wet shoes, place them under My warm, powerful rays and I will make them new again…» This type of event has people dancing in the heat of the drying sun while playing the guitar in parallel with the time needed for the wet equipment to dry under the sun. The next level is “shelter tasks.” This could include rain recovery, but mainly it involves fetching water, cooking, organizing camps or shelters. This level allows for greater social interaction. The best level for social interaction is “shelter duties.” Hostels really are the key to creating a great social network. Since there are things available to help with most situations that may arise in shelters, the ability to invest in developing friendships is always present. In most hostels, you also have time to spend with other people, since setting up the necessary cleaning equipment is less than trying to do things without the usual equipment (like washing machines, stoves, barbecues, etc.). However, not in all hostels. There are some that may not be so well configured, and that is a topic for another post. The most individualistic level of “chores” are motel chores. This is where your situation is so messed up by equipment, weather, illness, or other potential major issues that it’s best to isolate yourself, regroup without having to interact with space and thought, and then get back into the game after you have your personal stuff where it belongs.

We were in a hostel. It was time for “shelter duties.” I washed the clothes. It was a beautiful sunny day. I like to hang my clothes to dry on a clothesline instead of throwing them into a mechanical dryer. Even at home, residual fabric softeners or dryer sheets coated with amphoteric surfactants leave many clothes feeling strange. We like to hang our clothes to dry in the California sun (or the upstate New York sun when we’re there). I also believe that the sun’s UV rays may do additional work by killing certain bacteria that may have accumulated in the interstitial spaces of the woven fabric and mutated around the various agents added to laundry detergent that are supposed to kill anything that creates odor or, worse yet, affects the person wearing the garment by emitting microbiological agents that may not match the surface of the skin or mucous membranes.

I hung my clothes on the clothesline and used pins to make sure they didn’t fall off. I moved on to other things. About an hour later, I heard a lawnmower doing its job on the property. I didn’t think anything about it. Maybe another 30 minutes pass and I walk around the corner of a building. The noise of the lawnmower had stopped, I assumed the job was complete. I look at the clothesline and my orange hoodie isn’t hanging where I left it before. Almost immediately I saw the hostel hostess walking frantically towards the bunkhouse, she saw me and asked, «You don’t have an orange hoodie, do you?» His face was a combination of sadness, fear and apology. I glanced past her at the lawnmower near the clothesline and saw a circular design of shredded fabric forming a beautiful orange chard pattern around the lawnmower on the ground. I immediately discovered why he was asking me that question. I responded as calmly and in the most forgiving tone I could, “yes, I had it on the clothesline.” He almost looked like he was going to cry and said, “I owe you, it looks like it got caught in the lawnmower.” I quickly said, “don’t worry, things happen, it was falling apart anyway.” “You don’t owe me anything.” The relief on his face was immediate and visible. He was truly sorry for the mistake and perhaps had realized the cost of the hoodie. Shelters don’t make much money from what I can estimate, and I think the fact that I didn’t ask for anything to make amends was a relief to her. It just happens. We both laugh. And now each of us has a great story from different perspectives. I then asked him if he needed help untangling the rest of the rotor shaft sleeve from under the mower. She said no and went to get a knife and scissors to cut the blade handle off the tangled shirt.

It is true that the shirt was beginning to fall apart. It was very disappointing that it looked pretty beat up after only 550 miles, or two and a half months on the road. I don’t mind paying for quality, but it seems like this big name brand «took all the chocolate chips out of the chocolate chip cookie,» which is what I often see with much of my team. The logo on the hoodie was gone. The seam at the bottom was coming apart. The severed thumb was stretching beyond use. Needless to say, I will not buy that big name brand again.
Other teams also disappoint me. I thought my favorite big box would have offered a quality puff. I have had to sew failed seams many times already. My socks, made in Vermont, have worn out. Now its warranty is airtight, but it’s tricky to execute the details along the way. My package saga was not resolved with the last exchange. Again I appreciate the excellent «we’ll replace it» guarantee, but how about we get the quality back to the point where it doesn’t need to be replaced in the first place?
There are other flaws in the equipment and it makes me feel like the big name brands are resting on their laurels and not maintaining the quality needed to make more profits from their past reputation.

As for things that happen. I am of the opinion that it is a privilege for me to be here on the road. I try to give my business to local trail towns. I try to tip shuttle drivers, food servers, and hostel hosts well if they deserve it. I’m happy to let things go that may have had a negative impact on someone’s tight budget. I hope these little things create a calmer, more loving environment along the way. I see a lot of people lately struggling with the increased cost of everything. That is expressed in many ways and affects the warm atmosphere that we all want to enjoy when we live on this side of the arc.

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