This is all I have written to date of my book The Adventures of Puma Ghostwalker…Hiking the Appalachian Trail….. An autumnal October twelfth, a full moon supplying the entire local inhabits, a smorgasbord of fresh clams providing they dig them up. The shallows of an impressive low tide was completely at its lowest point when he approached the beach, two sea gulls were skirmishing in midair. The bearer of the prize victorious, retaining the hard dug clam. Sea gulls with their relatively short legs, (for a bird that would forage at a waters edge) were quite successful uncovering the tasty morsels. Standing in the shallows the gulls would probe the sandy bottom where the clams lay just beneath the surface; grabbing the calm in its bill the sea gull would take flight. The burdening cargo clumsily laying in the gull’s mouth, an easy target for an in-flight robbery tests the gull’s tenacious hold. Soaring high, the gull zeros in on a rock bellow, using the skills of a bombardier, eyeing the target to crack open its precious cargo. Puma, out for a break from climbing trees finds closeness with nature that few have mastered, some call it, the call of the wild. Having just stepped off the Appalachian Trail… hiking close to 800 miles, in a three month journey… Only!!!.. to immediately.. go to climbing trees in New York City where the Puma resides. This abrupt transition delayed any thoughts and reflection of Pumas recent vision quest. Puma Ghostwalker left NYC in late May 2011 taking his backpack down to Springer Mountain Georgia, the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. The north bound Puma hiked up past Roanoke Virginia when a hurricane due to hit New York City, pulled him off trail, dedicated to go back home and face the destruction of falling trees on houses. Two months later Puma gets a break and grabs his Nikon d 7000 and a 300 mm lens and hits a local state park for the day. The sea air and sounds bring him back in time and soon he was walking on trail the smells indeed… you never forget the smells and Kitea. Kitea was a shape-shifter; she came to him at night late in the season when Puma slept alone in the shelters. With not many hikers on trail Puma would sleep in the shelters that were built and maintained by the local hiking clubs of that particular location. She would always come to him late in the evening. Appearing as a mountain lion she would approach him, Puma reaching out and scratching her ears and rubbing her neck Kitea… instantly transforming to human form and with the same agility… leap in one move laying aside Puma for close human contact, a closeness she had done with him many times before. Every morning Kitea would be gone and Puma just thought of it as lucid dreams, a part of his vision quest. Swiss Miss was a north bound hiker from Switzerland, she met-up with Puma in Virginia and became his companion. She came to America to hike the Appalachian Trail, to learn what it feels like to be alone in nature and commune with her Mother Goddess. Ahead of… or trailing Puma she spent many days in the stillness of the forest,climbing mountain after mountain. The darkness of the night, deep in the forest, moon and star light struggles to penetrate. One night camping right at the shore of Jennings creek, a bear came down to the creek for water, the soft sounds of the creek was no match for the heavy breathing and lapping of the water by the bear. The sounds and smells of nature can hold you in its captivating spell, in enough time you can…. just be part of it…. in body… and ...…in spirit. It is in this time… magic can happen And…. supernatural forces can… interact with you, you are one with all things. Its in despair.. when … you relies You do not fear and it does not fear you, you are one… After hiking for two weeks with Swiss Miss, Puma was being called back to New York early in preparation for the hurricane that’s about to hit the city. The final day on trail,Puma discovered a mountain lion kill… reenacting the hunt, Puma recorded a video for YouTube. Following the animal from were it ambushed a deer… then a tumble 5 meters where she made the death bite, …right on the trail… that caught Puma’s eye then, dragging the creature down the mountain for consumption, it was at that moment… Puma thought about Kitea as a real being out there and maybe…….just maybe…. To be continued….. When I left to hike the Appalachian Trail last May, I had the knowledge of several books on hiking the AT (as it is called) and how to do it. I still arrived at the Gainesville Georgia bus depot with an 85 pound backpack. It had all the things I found necessary to hike “My Hike”, including my laptop, solar panel and 12 days of food. I remember waiting for car service at my camper with my friend Gary. He even said its very heavy, when I went to pick it up I thought the shoulder straps were going to rip off, the fabric would stretch and make loud noises. At Gainesville I grabbed a cab and was driven to Amiclola Falls State Park, where I reregistered for my hike. I told the ranger I’m out for three months and was shooting for 1,000 miles, ending my season at Harpers Ferry West Virginia, about half of the entire Appalachian Trail and the location of the ATC headquarters. It was a great get off point, they have a train station to Washington DC, there it’s a quick jump home to NYC at Penn Station. Because I was going to be out for three months I decided to get a ride up the forest service road to the start of the trail, avoiding the approach trail of almost 9 miles. Thank goodness I never would of made it to the top of Springer mountain that day. When we got to a parking turnout next to the Appalachian Trail, I paid the cabby and got my pack ready. I read that when you take this rout you have to go south on the AT to begin at the starting point, the problem was there were no signs saying “This Way South”. Not a problem, I took a compass reading and was on my way, after about an hours time I wasn’t seeing any features; my map said I would see. As it turns out in my first moments on trail I was lost, well not completely lost, just going the wrong way. It was hot and my pack was incredibly heavy, I tried to focus on my footsteps, a wrong step would end my hike before it started with a twisted ankle or a blow-out knee. It was early after noon when I arrived at the top of Springer Mountain, I was exhausted and I was just getting started. My cell phone worked and I took a few photos and sent them out in real time, I’m here at the top of the world mom…..My Journey Begins….. The top of Springer Mountain was rocky and exposed, so I took my solar panel out and charged my cell phone while I wrote a bit on my laptop, snacking on trail-mix. After an hours time or more I hoisted the pack to my shoulders and was on my way Northbound for 1,000 miles. I was very pleased when I got past all my previous steps and was on new fresh ground. At 2.8 miles I came to Stover Creek Shelter, it was gorgeous and enormous, sleeps 16 according to my trail guide. There were two groups of people out for the weekend, a mother son and a father son, they seemed to take up the whole picnic table to cook and eat so I set up my cooking off to the side. It didn’t feel like they were interested in sharing the space. Later in my hike I would be more aggressive with people but at this place in time I wanted to be alone anyway and setup camp far away from the shelter. For the most part I met many wonderfully kind people on my trek but there are always people I wish not to be close to in the world no mater where you are. I actually almost threw a few guys off a tight mountain ridge, when they passed me to fast and bumped me knocking me off balance closely causing me to fall. Two guys I had to yell at and chase away. One night I woke up to a guy standing over my pack in the middle of the night at a hostel, and I thought I might have to kill an other, that I will explain in detail later, in the Smokey’s he came up behind me when I was napping wearing a ski-mask….. very frightening thing to see on a hot day, he clearly had mental health issues. Hiking 2.8 miles to Stover Creek Shelter was a pretty pathetic first day, but I was exhausted and don’t want to get hurt or have a heart attack, I was that tired and hungry. I made a huge pot of chicken noodle soup, it made a half a gallon, from Bear Creek and I ate every bit. My feet were sore and would remain that way for the entire hike. It felt great to take my boots off and wear my sandals; I was hot and wet with sweat. Lying down in my tent for the night I was so happy I had a very good sleeping pad to rest on. The next day May 26, I was up with the sun and eager to get a full day hiking in. Cool morning temps. made the three packs of instant oatmeal quite sustaining, Breaking down camp, cleaning my cooking gear and repacking my backpack will be something I do constantly for the next three months. It was rather early in the afternoon when I approached the Hawk Mountain Shelter. Running low on water, my guide book said water was down a blue blazed trail behind the shelter. The AT is a white blazed trail and white paint is applied to the trees and rocks from Georgia to Maine baby, but not always in the right place at the right time. The US Army Rangers train all over this area and there were so many trails crossing other trails and as I set out to find water I got lost again. Or I knew where I was, I just wasn’t where the water was, I hiked about a half a mile then went back retracing my steps to find where I went off trail. That was pretty much at the beginning, by the shelter. Returning to my pack at the shelter two men hikers were there and resting. By the time I got back with my water it was getting very dark, a storm was coming in and it looks real bad, the thunder was loud and getting closer. I wanted to get further down the trail today, but this storm looks bad and the shelter was filling fast. Just as the storm was about to hit I ran out with my gear to setup camp, in no time at all, all hell broke out….. just as I setup the tent I grabbed my pack and dove in my tent closing the zippered door behind me. Sitting up, my back to the wall of the tent, rain drops so big they hurt my back. The wind howling pouring rain and thunder rocked the ground. The rain was so heavy, a river flowed under my tent flooring, it felt just like I was sitting on a waterbed. As soon a s the rain letup a bit, I got out and scouted for higher ground and there it was, twenty meters up from me was a piece of dry land, a slight elevation was all that was offered. I grabbed my tent and dragged it to the space and readjusted the tent real quick and dove back in for round two…… After an hour or so the rain slowed to a point so I went back to the shelter to find it packed mostly men in pairs getting ready to all start cooking. I re-greeted the hikers As I started to gather twigs and small dried branches for my zip-stove. I was saying the rain was hitting like hail. Harvey said it was hail, just a bit smaller than ping pong balls, then showed me the photos he took of the hail on the picnic table, I was amazed. My fire was smoking very much with the wood so wet and two women approaching could smell the fire before they saw the shelter and safety. The lady’s were a mother, daughter group from Dallas Texas and were on a three week journey, I believe they were going for the Tennessee border. Drenched they were removing all their cloths, telling their story of the storm, the hail was hitting them so hard , they would duck their heads down to protect from the pounding of the hail. They were very nice and driven, I hiked with them the next day off and on, I was in no race This was just day two……what a start… The storm was incredible, the winds knocked trees down, it rained for fourteen hours straight through the night. The next day there was so much moisture in the air. Dew condensing on all the leaves in the forest, it was like it was raining all day, hot and sticky. Such an adventure so far, this is when I started having the same dream over and over for the next three months, that I would be bitten by a poisonous rattlesnake. I would be in a storm right before I hit the Smokey’s so bad that it produced three tornados and killed people, crossed the path of six rattlesnakes, attacked by two rattlesnakes at the same time and... I was hit by lightning…….my pack is heavy and I don’t have this, Oxen From Isak Dinesen..(Karen Blixen) Out of Africa “God is happy, Msabu. He plays with us.” The moon was slowly disappearing to the west as the sun rose in the misty mountain dew, Kitea full from a meal she had buried two nights ago on the full moon. The cool crisp air of December made her longing for home. Kitea was born Emily Harris Little Crow from the South Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation in the state of North Carliona. Kitea’s people, the North Georgia Chattahoochee River Band is part of the Qualla Boundry, where tradition has been past down for centauries. She is of mixed blood, Cherokee and English, has the Cherokee features of long black hair and high cheekbones, combined with the light european skin tones and blue eyes. Add a very curvy athletic build on a 5.8 foot frame one would say, she is gorgeous, but the Cherokee are a beautiful people inside and out anyway. Capote, Kitea’s grandmother and tribal medicine-woman was out picking the last remaining herbs of the season, when a gentle breeze caught her attention and the scent of her granddaughter, her journey has ended for this year and is returning home. At that very moment a single crow flew over and confirmed it, Kitea’s coming home. Grandmother Capote smiling had a warm rush fill her heart, her prodigy, her kind. Capote and Kitea are Therians an ancient group of people that can change back and forth form human to animal. Throughout history from the Egyptians and Greeks, to deep in the old forest of Europe and to the New World where the Native Peoples, spoke of peoples that took the form of an animal, Shapeshifters, Skinwalkers or Ghostwalkers. Some First People of North America have legends talking about these, persons with the supernatural ability to turn into any animal they desire, to be able to transform, they first must be wearing a pelt of the animal. Further south a Nagual or Nahual is a human being who has the power to magically turn themselves into any animal, even powerful animals such as the jaguar and puma too. The most common modern known form of therianthropy is lycanthropy. The Werewolf is generally held as a European character, although its lore spread through the world in later times. Ancient Turkic legends from Asia talk of shapeshifting shamans known as "Kurtadams" which translates directly to "Wolfman." The idea of being descendants from wolves has been a part of Turkic shamanist beliefs. Shapeshifters, similar to Werewolves, are common in tales from all over the world. Although the definition specifically describes a metamorphic change from human to canine form, the term is often used to refer to any human to animal transformation. Kitea will often take the shape of Klandagi, the Cherokee name for mountain lion. When she is far from her home, the mountain lion allows her greater speed, safety and adaptability to the mountain environment of Appalachia. Many seasons ago Grandmother had a dream that Kitea would meet a man in the forest carrying a great burden. As she discussed this dream with Kitea, she told her she will meet with this traveler and will aid him in his burden, and she alone will know what to do from that time forward, and that was all Grandmother said about it. Time went by little crow, spent most of her life as Kitea Klandagi a shapeshifter like her Grandmother before her, alone traveling great miles of the Appalachian Mountains, searching for the answers that bother her mind. Following the contour of the mountain chain north bound to North Carolina and along the Tennessee border, Kitea would encounter people deep in the forest hiking the Appalachian Trail and she would laugh saying to herself mimicking grandmother, “and he will be carrying a great burden’ Bursting out load, she would say, that’s every soul out here backpacking. Then one day she was napping under a thick covering of Rhododendrons in the heat of a dry Georgia day. She heard a man talking to himself; “The Turtle Teaches Us” and he went on, “The Turtle Teaches Us…..Patiences With patiences we gain ……Wisdom With wisdom comes…….Perseverance” Perseverance she mutters, that man needs his head examined, Look at the size of his backpack. Wisdom, he would be smart to just dump the whole pack and go home. The hiker was at a wooden bridge crossing, placing his camera on the railing and setting the timer the photograph himself and that’s when she saw into his eyes for the first time and hit her like a sack of potatoes….. it’s him… the …the man grandmother talked about, she knew it inside her heart like a the deep pulse of a lighting strike that penetrates the deepest part of your body. Although the hiker was no small person standing at six feet and 240 pounds, his backpack was enormous, what made it worse was his sleeping pad was attached to the top and hung out wide on both sides snagging on all the lower branches of the rhododendrons as he passed her buried deep in the canopy and her tail swishing back and forth with short fast sweeps. The hikers backpack weight in at 85 pounds and with his added weight combined, a weight of 325 pounds came crashing down on one foot at a time making the ground tremble to Kitea’s sensitive ears and body. Adding to that was his deep voice almost gravelly, sounding more like the roar of a tiger when he spoke, to a purr sound when he whispered, so cat like she thought and loved to hear him speak. Kitea had followed many hikers through the years thinking the one her Grandmother talked about would probably be a hiker, being the Appalachian Trail crossed the territory she always traveled, it was like a game to her the cat and mouse kind, moving silently through the forest like a ghost. Later that day the backpacker came to Gooch Mountain Shelter, where he came upon some hikers out for the weekend, travelling southbound. What’s his name Katea whispered, I hope he’s not completely antisocial, come on go say hi and introduce yourself. Approaching the picnic table he unclips the waist belt of his pack and with a deep breath he swung his pack around, taking it off his shoulders and to the seat part of the table, with great relief to his back, and exhaled slowly, stretching his arms up then out and then back like a gigantic ballerina with an enormous mustache. The pair were from Baton Rouge Louisiana and were section hiking from Neels Gap, US 19 to Springer Mountain the southern terminus on the Appalachian Trail. A 30 mile hike, a great little weekend jaunt. As the pack was hitting the table the hikers both said at the same time, how much does your pack weigh then laugh, you must get that all the time the man said. Oh! my name is Sandman and this is my wife, and she said; Azalea, after the gorgeous Flame Azaleas that exclusively grow in this region. Kitea, slowing her breathing so she can get his name sat very still. Sandman asked if he had a Trail name and the man replied, well I just use my name, my pen name; I’m a naturalist and writer in New York City. I write about the natural world in NYC, my name is Puma, Puma Ghostwalker nice to met you, Sandman and Azalea. Did he just say Puma, Kitea thought, what are the odds of that, it’s so weird how the cosmos works and I cant believe its just chance, crazy, and that all things happen for a reason. Well Mr. Puma Ghostwalker, its nice to meet you said Kitea whispering to herself and laid her head on her front paws resting now. Puma was tired and thought to call it a day and went to setup camp way off to the side. He came to hike alone and hasn’t gotten use to the idea of sleeping in a shelter, especially with people he doesn’t know. Puma has proximity issues with other humans and requires a lot of space, and time alone. Kitea was pleased with his sleeping choice, she could get very close at night and sleep along side of his tent when it’s late and everyone is asleep. At that moment she caught herself, saying, Jeeeze…. “It’s like he put a spell on me, I’m obsessing this guy just like that.”……then caught his scent…….hmmmm She said, he smells like peanut butter and honey…..I’m so hungry… Kitea left Gooch Mountain Shelter a few hours before sunrise; she was so hungry now and thought to hunt north to keep with Puma. That was a magical night she said, to sleep so close to his tent. He keeps the rain cover off his tent and I can see and smell him so well, I dreamt we were walking together, long distances gathering food, Swimming, holding hands……….ahhhhhhhhhh so nice… Kitea overheard Puma talking with Sandman and Azalea over hot chocolate after supper. He said how his daughter died a few months ago in early December, just days after her 27th birthday. He spoke of how intelligent and beautiful she was, if only she had more time, she was plagued with demons he said. Puma thought in time she would learn how to deal with them and use it as a positive to empower her. He said, he’s loaded with demons and that he learnt over the years to control it. Laughing, he said it has nothing to do with the devil, we all have good and evil in us, or positive and negative, Yin-Yang it goes by many names in different cultures. He explained we all experience pain in some form Its how we deal with it, we all have different copping skills that we have adapted to since childhood. Kitea then seen Azalea get up and hug Puma then Sandman followed, a tear fell to Pumas cheek then a tear fell from Kitea’s too. The morning of May 27th was cool and clear at Gooch Mountain Shelter, hikers had flowed into the shelter area well into the evening before. I got my cooking gear, Zip-stove, tea and oatmeal to join the group for breakfast. Greeting Sandman and Azalea first they introduced me to the rest of the hikers but to tell the truth, I was so sore and tired from lugging my 85 lb pack on day 4 I was still in survivor mode, just the basics, lizard brain was all could offer and not in the mood for chit-chat. I said my pleasantries, kept it simple. Focusing on boiling water for my tea was my first duty, Bengal spice from Celestial seasonings is a cinnamon spiced tea that I’m totally mad for. Coffee, from childhood has always been a big part of my mornings, but as I was filling my backpack up with food I had so little room left. The pack I purchased for my hike didn’t come close to holding all my gear and food so at the last moment I got out my expedition pack for Alpine style mountaineering and still couldn’t fit everything, coffee became a luxury I couldn’t afford to carry. After breakfast Sandman, Azalea and I said our goodbyes, heading out in opposite directions. With the cool morning air I wanted to get on the trail and try to improve my mileage for the day. Don’t get me wrong, I was still very concern about getting injured, so my pace was slow relaying on my great strength and stamina, it was more about putting in the hours to get my miles….. Slow and steady like the turtle……. After the huge storm of May 25 it became dry and hot, the mountain air would cool down a bit late into the evening. I like to keep my rain fly off and look out into the darkness at night and gather any cool breeze that would come my way. My tent was the two person marmot-2 and had screening all around and on top as well. It was heavy and big, the tent poles took much space too. I haven’t had much time to write on the laptop I carry, or the energy at night in camp and the solar panel idea doesn’t seem to be working. You’re almost always deep under the canopy of the forest and the only sun you see are small patches and you don’t have time to stop and charge. My plan was to go green, charging my Blackberry, my Sony camera, the Zip-stove batteries, batteries for my headlamp and laptop. It’s truly unbelievable how many adapters and wires you need for all of the charging devices. As I’m hiking I start to revaluate all my gear and what I don’t really need. My pocket shower, all of my charging devices, solar panel, my two piece rain gear, salt and pepper shakers, reading glasses. The compass was pretty useless, it got me lost the first moments on trail at Springer mountain. There are times on trail that you hike south for many hours at a time following the contour of the Appalachian mountain chain. My goal is to mail all the gear I’m not using home when I get to Neels Gap. The end of the day brought me to a lovely camp site on a creek at Dan Gap, I had hiked over seven miles this day not very far but still an improvement, If we can show improvement each day we are learning and growing, that is a good thing and I’m happy….. I’m just starting out on a long journey, and I wish to absorb, take-in every moment, savor each sound, sight and smell. Two gentlemen from Tennessee were cooking supper when I approached, they were very nice and I enjoyed their company. I setup my camp down the creek and started my meal too, with the 10 to 12 days of food I started out with, was very sustaining. I enjoyed the gathering of twigs to start my Zip-stove, it had a small motor powering a fan that blew air up and under the fire making it sound like a blowtorch and is operated by two AA batteries. My cook pot was quite large, two quarts and I was always very hungry. I remember reading that many people have a loss of appetite when first starting out on a long distance hike… that was not me. Most of my suppers were from a company called Bear Creek, they boast it makes a half a gallon of food, my favorite was the chicken noodle soup. After a bit of conversation, I was ready for bed, still so tired and sore. The sound of the creek was so soothing; it felt so great to lie down on my air mattress, I will never get rid of that. It is at Dan Gap when I first heard the owls at night. They would start after midnight, and I could hear them from great distances all around in 360 degrees calling…hoohoo-kook- ca-chooo… hoohoo-kook-ca-chooo….. Then...Oh my goodness! My best guess would be some were Screech Owls …… They made a horrible…loud….eerie…sound. If you could imagine and animal screaming… Like it was having its skin torn off while it’s was still alive….. WOW! What a sound! They would fly and call near and far, for a few hours this went on, one flew to a tree right above me. I tried to look for it, but the darkness was great yet all so fascinating, I’m sure it brought great fear to some. I awaken form a dream….. I was talking to someone… I was saying…. I make the sound of the deer well, I grunt softly and they come to me...I’m a killer and I feel my prey like a ghost walking among them….. Crazy…. Then went back to sleep…… The morning came at Dan Gap and cook pots were boiling water, I made a cup of tea. As it steeped I started breakfast, 3 packs of instant oatmeal, then was cleaning my pot and chatting with the gentlemen, when one offered me a instant Starbucks coffee packet. I heated some water right up and realized how much I missed my coffee in the morning. Every time from that moment on I would get coffee at my resupply towns. Neels Gap is just six miles north and there I can mail some of my gear home, but first I have to hike over Blood Mountain, I took water at a beautiful little stream just north of Bird Gap. Heading up was pretty steep and rocky but nothing like the north side. It is here I noticed my first fossil, a sea urchin, but by the time my brain processed the information, there was no way I was going back down there to take some photos, surly a missed opportunity. My legs ached from the steep ascent and I couldn’t imagine going backwards at this time anyway. The summit of Blood Mountain had some spectacular views and the stone shelter, a two-room stone cabin which was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1934 and is eligible for a listing on the National Register of Historic Places, but is not currently on it. In North Georgia in the 16th century there were two Native Peoples, by the late 17th century the Cherokee and Creek began to compete for resources and fought a battle on the mountain. The Creek lost, releasing Blood Mountain. The Cherokee consider it a sacred place others believe that the name is based on the color of the lichen and Catawba rhododendron growing near the rocky summit. Blood Mountain is the highest peak on the Georgia section of the Appalachian Trail, with an elevation of 4,458 feet. The north side is really steep and rocky and I take great care, my hiking polls saved my ass many times already. I can see small broken branches all over the ground from the hail storm a few days ago. I was thinking back to that huge storm and how this place really got battered too. I arrived at Neels Gap, US 19 and the Walasi-Yi Hostel and Outfitter Store, the roof was covered with small branches from the storm too. I met up with two employees and former through-hikers Pirate and Lumpy. Lumpy said it was really bad; it took a long time to clean up the mess and how enormous the hail stones were. I really liked them and we hung out a bit telling stories after work. The owner Winton Porter just had his book released and was doing book singings so his gracious, gorgeous wife showed me around the store, she smelt nice. You really notice things like that after being out on trail for a bit, and I have 3 months to go. I think she watched me eat three pizzas and two cheese burgers. The hostel was a bunk house that had 22 beds I think, I got one of the last beds available, a full house, smelt like sweaty hikers and was hot. I knew I was going to have a hard time sleeping in there. I haven’t slept that close to so many people since my Marine Corp’s days, I didn't like it back then too…. It’s a people thing….. I stayed up to past midnight, my laptop plugged into an outlet outside the store, uploading photos to Flickr and writing a bit. Lumpy and I hung out talking about nature; I showed him some photos of a huge black snake climbing an oak tree. The next day Pirate made hotcakes for a donation, I think out of 22 guys he collected two bucks, I gave him 5 to help balance it out, you get what you give, I met a lot of cheep and broke people out on the trail always complaining about money or the lack of it, I felt a few people were thieves, I kept a close eye on them. Later I had to call Pirate, I left my camera battery and charger in a wall outlet in the hostel, Pirate mailed it to me in Franklin and I mailed him 10 bucks for the post and his kindness. Lumpy gave me a box and I filled it with things I didn’t think I really needed to Hike My Hike……. Lumpy then asked if he could go through my gear and he got rid of some extra bandages in my first aid bag. The total loss of pack weight was twenty pounds. I still carried my laptop all the way to Franklin North Carolina though, my pack is 65 lbs now, it felt so light and when I hit the trail later that day I was flying, flying to my standards anyway. Ahead and north bound it was getting late I stopped for water at Bull Gap and met two very nice young ladies hiking with their dog. They were setting up camp and offered me a space to camp as well. The water was a trickle in the dirt and I opted to hike on for better water and more space after my hostel stay. I hiked north to Rock Spring Top and couldn’t find the water there and pressed on. Baggs Creek Gap left me with no water and it was getting really late, I hiked on to Tesnatee Gap and the Ga.348 no water. I didn’t want to camp next to the road so I put my headlamp on and hiked in the dark up Wild Cat Mountain and in the dark with one liter of water, I set up camp and just went to sleep…… exhausted……..again Kitea came up to camp after feeding; Puma was out like a light. She thought about what he had said to Sandman and Azalea and that she felt there was much more and perhaps the great burden Grandmother dreamt was indeed a great burden Kitea will assist Puma with, he has such a huge and caring heart. Goodnight Puma dear, once again resting her head on her front paws…. My stay in Franklyn North Carolina, was all I could imagine and much more. I spent the first two days of three off trail, prospecting for the local native rubies. In all I mailed back to NYC 35lbs. of rocks and semi-precious stones. Thank goodness for the USPS priority package, whatever fit in the box went for one rate. Here I stopped carrying my laptop and would ship it priority to my next resupply town too. I have spent the last several years building the second largest geological and fossil collection in NYC through the help of the Boy Scouts of America where I’m a volunteer. First would be The American Museum of Natural History and I will never come close to their collection, so I must settle for second, resting under their greatness is a wonderful place to be if you ask me. A friend and colleague Dr. Alan Benimoff a professor at a local CUNY university, said I was already there. He marveled at some of my specimens, the flint nodules he said, where the best examples he had ever seen. I told him he could bring his students by for study and specimen projects too. My third day in town was spent resupplying, I got two more batteries for my blackberry. My camera has three batteries and with all the recharging in place, I was able to use my Blackberry and camera as much as I need to and charged them from town to town as I went in for resupply. I remember searching for the best cell phone carrier information as I planed my hike two years past with no luck. I made the right choice with Verizon, I had Sprint and my gut said switch and I always follow my gut…it’s a gift….. Hiking for three months, meeting many people along the way with cell phones I’m here to testify that Verizon works best, well from Georgia to the north part of Virginia anyway. I keep my cell phone off and would power it up at camp and post in real time, you got to love technology…….and duct tape. I stayed at Ronnie Haven’s Budget Inn in Franklyn and I must say the ladies were so helpful kind and lovely through and through. I would eat pizza delivered as I spent time at night uploading my photos and video to my laptop then to my many blog sites on the internet. I started shooting video south of Franklin at Betty Creek Gap and my videos on you-tube was a big part of my documentation, filming all the sights nature had to offer me. The few months prior to my hike, I started making videos of beekeeping and wild food foraging, so I had a little experience already. Like I said before I follow my gut and my gut said to make more video of my hike so I did, now its so much a part of my hike, when I pick up the trail in May I have to continue, I want to continue. Processing the video to the internet was very time consuming in my town stays and I would spend many nights uploading all night long, getting up and checking progress. As time went on I would make about five, ten minute videos from resupply to resupply and post them to youtube. North of Franklyn at Wine Spring I made camp on the tenth of June. Rested and ready to go on my next resupply point was at the Fontana Dam right at the foot of the Great Smokey Mountains. Wine Spring was a cozy little camp spot with a great water source. In the morning I broke camp and headed out with fresh eyes to see what our mother earth had to offer me. It was a beautiful sunny day and when I made it to Wayah Bald, the views were spectacular. Wayah is the Cherokee for wolf and it felt like a sacred place in my heart. I took it all in, had lunch shot lots of video and took my rain coat out and had it dry in the sun. for the last week or so you could hear the thunder around two PM. By Four PM, it was raining every day like clockwork. I was so use to being wet, I was wet from sweat or rain, but usually both, one thing you can count on when your out hiking long distances, you will always be wet. Your rain gear is just to help keep you from being drenched and that’s it. Every night at camp I would take my wet cloths off and put my camp/town cloths, a pair of shorts and a dry shirt no undergarment. I needed the fresh air to dry me the best I could. I slept nude every night it actually was the only time I would be totally dry during my whole hike. Long pants helped me from getting totality eaten by bugs, the black gnats were the worst and I ended up with infections from the bites. That was my biggest health problem during my hike, I would carry sanitizing wipes and clean my body every night before or in bed worked well as I was totality naked. Heading down from Wayah Bald the trail blazes were white and yellow ones too. How it happened is anyone’s guess, I got off trail when the trail blazes went to only yellow, at that time I should of turned around but I didn’t. My head was in other places, captivated by the all the sights and smells of nature, nightmares, I never slept well my whole life I was plague with demons, from childhood. To add to it I had a hiker named Bob that followed me and camped at the same sites as I did for many days. He was a very nice guy but I came to the mountains to be alone, to really get into my head and work on my healing and Bob was just such a presents in my head every day and night. The camp the night before, Bob was all set up at camp and I kept going hiked all the way to Wine Spring, so if you could imagine my surprise when Bob came up to Wayah Bald saying. How he cut two miles off his hike following the road going to Wayah Bald to catch-up with me. Here is why I think I got off trail, and stayed off trail for about a day and a half. I hiked down that yellow trail all day to four o-clock, half not sure lost in my own mind. My mind imagining some features that could have been right the feel of the elevations seemed right, sort of. Well a t four I called the Nantahala River Outdoor Center, I had planed to stop over night for a shower and a hot meal. The young man said I should keep going I will be okay, it just didn’t feel right, so I called Lumpy at the Walasi-Yi Center. Lumpy said quickly and decisive that I was going the wrong way and turn around, I knew it I just needed someone to tell me. The rain was threatening for the past two hours and at that moment all hell broke loose…again. Putting my rain gear on I felt so beaten lost, I hiked almost all day off trail, its late in the day, I’m in a thunderstorm and have to hike all that way back just to get back on trail. By the time five o-clock rolled around it was raining like hell and my spirit was Injured breaking my promises to myself not to stop in the rain to setup camp I stopped. By the time the tent was up with the rain-fly there was much rain in my tent. Taking my camp towels I dried off the flooring as best as I could and just collapsed on my pack. With just a bit of water left I chose not to eat and conserve my water. All the hiking I did to get out there, I didn’t see one water source and I had a long way to go. Deciding to just stay in my tent and lay there till morning was probably a good idea, it was getting dark early with the storm looming down on me. The next morning I was up at five and broke camp and headed on, later in the morning I stopped to take some of my remaining water then started to record video explaining my situation. I was embarrassed to be so lost for so long. It is part of my journey though like it or not, I swallowed my pride and humbled myself to the realization that I was in a jam, almost out of water, far from the trail and I just have to suck it up and march on. Must have been around noon when I found water, drank my fill, then filled my two nalgen bottles and my two liter platypus. I made another video speaking about my thoughts and what this means to me, how I have learnt a very valuable lesson to share with all. In my three month hike of close to 800 miles, I stepped off trail many times as the trail intersected many other trails. Many times the trail got rerouted and a log or brush was placed over to block the old trail and other times logs and brush fell from storms. In time I learnt the trail better and how the trail maintainers would think and mark the trail. Moments later I reached the place where the trail split, I saw error of my ways and continued on. Just then a rattlesnake was sunning itself right across the entire trail. I thought it was a Diamondback, I never seen a Timber rattlesnake before, a real beauty, big and thick. When I was a child of seven I was bitten by a rattlesnake and early on in my hike I started having dreams that I would be bitten by a rattler on my hike. Relocating said snake off trail I hiked on, to the Wayah Shelter, there I stopped to have a meal, I was so hungry and pleased that I was back on trail and could sit on a nice flat picnic table and gather my thoughts and reflections. The rattlesnake taught me to be more observant the ground below me and to be aware at all time where I am, and to watch my step too. I walked up on six rattlesnakes during my hike and had dreams throughout that I would be bitten by one. One month later I met a fellow who said he had hiked the trail for the last ten years and only seen one rattlesnake At that time I had already seen three………. Go figure. The Wayah Shelter was dedicated to thru-hikers Ann and Larry McDuff, who both died independently, yet were killed riding bikes very close to there home. As I shot video I mentioned again how the rattlesnake teaches us ALL to be more observant and cautious. After being lost, spending the night off trail then the rattlesnake, starving and almost out of water. I have no idea where I spent the night, I want to say by the Cold Spring Shelter, but I’m just not sure I was still quite frazzled. In mid-afternoon on June 12th I made it to the Nantahala River exhausted and my feet were killing me. The hike from Wesser Bald was very rocky and I found going down hill was more dangerous than going up hill, I was always worried about damaging a knee or an ankle. I remembered seeing a few guys at Neels Gap with busted-up knees hiking down Blood Mountain (perhaps that how it got its name) to fast, one guy even broke a hiking pole. A few times during my hike my poles got stuck in-between rocks and if I was going any faster I would of broke them or fell. I checked into a private room at the Nantahala Outdoor Center, I couldn’t believe how busy it was there. The great thing was they had little restaurants all over the grounds. First I went to my room to find it was a tiny poorly built box with a bunk bed and very hot, I opened the window dropped my pack. There was no sink or shower in my room it was just a box, but I could rest and gather my thoughts. Priority number one food, I went back across the river to a cozy little restaurant and sat in the back overlooking the river. I ordered a cheeseburger and fries while I waited for my pizza. Living in New York I’m use to very good pizza, I must say their pizza was very good they had a real wood fire pizza oven just like at home in NYC. When I think back, I ate a lot of cheeseburgers and pizzas on my hike, well they have all the carbohydrates protein and fats body craves. I must have drunk two gallons of sweet iced tea with my meal, or should I say meals….. Hot and wet from sweat I smelled like a wild animal but I just didn’t care. After priority one, came number two a hot shower and laundry. Purchasing laundry soap and getting a towel, I went to my room and started charging my batteries. It always felt great to be clean; taking long showers and fresh dry cloths was like a luxury, for a long distance hiker. The next morning I was up and out fast and with a new problem, a new guy wanted to hike with me, I could just tell. He wanted to make sure he didn’t miss me so he dragged all his gear outside by the common way hurrying to get his pack squared away. This guy was trying to hike the trail living on unemployment checks. He was complaining about money and how he is almost out of minutes for his cell phone. He had said he was waiting for a call, someone was going to lend him money until his check came. I no time at all here he comes huffing and puffing, hiking really fast and past me going up the steep incline leaving the river behind. Moments later I passed him off to the side wheezing out of breath…… heeeee heeeee heeeee I hiked on past, and a bit later here he comes again, huffing and puffing hiking really fast Passing me only for moments later he was off to the side again wheezing……. Heeeeee heeee heeeee….. I thought how much of this do I have to stand, he is “Totality Disturbing My Wilderness Experience”. So I stopped… I asked if he took care of his financial situation, he started going on and I just knew, here it comes…..he was going to hit me up for money, so I yelled at him. I suggested he go back down to civilization and get his money problems straightened out where they have a phone he could use. He went on ahead of me again and I never saw him again, which was fine by me…….. Hiking on to Swim Bald I shot some video singing the Sound of music and in my defense with my pack on and strapped across my chest, out of breath from hiking its hard to hold a base baritone voice. Later up on Cheoah Bald I was inspired to belt out Roller Derby Queen by Jim Croce. By distracting you with my animation I was able to mask a few missed notes, theater is a better home for me. Cheoah Bald had a beautiful grassy top very suitable for a gorgeous camp site. I have yet to camp on top of a mountain in the last 143 miles of my journey. The thought of being so exposed on top of a mountain and the possibilities of a beautiful sun rise and or sunset excites me. I’m always deep down in the forest, that it self is such a joy. Today it’s way too early to even think of stopping. My mileage has been poor so far so I can’t afford to stop so early in the day and every afternoon I’m ravaged by thunder storms. That evening I setup camp at Locus Cove Gap where two brothers sat at the fire ring cooking supper. They were like me and several other hikers out at the same time, we are all hiking this year to Harpers Ferry West Virginia, a 1,012 mile hike. The oldest of the two carried a can of pepper spray on the shoulder strap of his backpack, he had all the bells and whistles too. Well I can’t hike with these guys I want to talk to a bear and film one. The camp had a lot of low spots and took my a bit of time to find higher ground up and off to the side. I like to set my tent close to the edge of the tree line with the back of my tent toward the forest, I’m very habitual that way, I liked my back to the forest. June 14 started routinely, I was still having hot oatmeal and coffee for breakfast. I stopped at Brown Fork Gap Shelter for lunch, it was vice to sit at a picnic table, the shelters always provided. Later in the afternoon I came to a tree just past Cody Gap that was hit by lightning. It was quite an impressive strike the tree was hit in two separate places going from the very top of the tree and pealing two huge strips of bark all the way down to the base of the tree. I shot video of this for my youtube channel and talked about it. As I was concluding this segment of video, you could hear the rumble of thunder ahead of me. “So into the belly of the beast we go” I concluded and hiked on. In no time at all the sky started to darken Really Bad…. Like night time. Then came the wind, it blew so hard and constant with wind gust that must have been 70 miles and hour, I could hear trees cracking and falling, huge branches were breaking off and falling all around me. Then came the lightning so furiously all over the place, incredibly violent. I’m not sure if I mentioned my camera being the Sony Cyber-shot, the TX5 it was advertised to be waterproof to 3 meters. This camera took great photos and video for a little point and shoot and being waterproof I shot video of the storms is was in. The sky became so dark when I stopped to put my rain gear on I had to put my headlamp on as well. I have been in many hurricanes, aboard a Navy Ship when I was in the Marines we were hit by a Typhoon in the South Pacific that washed guys off and we couldn’t even stop to look for them…they were just dead and that was that, 90 foot waves washing over the bow, we all could have died. The rain, wind and lightning was unbelievable, then the hailstones came down being blown by that powerful wind, so I took cover behind a giant hickory tree. The tree could have been hit by lightning but I didn’t care, I need some cover….. and I shot more video. The hail bounced off my body and camera as I shoot video, they say you shouldn’t be around trees when in a thunderstorm, but when your deep in the forest with trees all around you…. There is simply no were to go…. So you block it out and hunker down. It did let up briefly and I went to a smaller tree for cover. I was totally in survivor mode And the nearest shelter was Cable Gap Shelter, over three miles away…..and to me it might as well been 3oo miles it felt like an eternity…… I just sucked it up and marched on……if its my time to die its my time… I have been in some pretty terrible situations Before and I always seemed to get through it I say….so I will survive this too…. I have no idea of the time when I approached the empty shelter at Cable Gap but it was a welcome sight……OMGess….. As I was setting up camp, this will be the very first time I will sleep in and shelter in the last 157 miles of my journey. Gathering wet wood for my Zip-stove really started getting on my nerves and here was no exception I was so frazzled from “the belly of the beast” storm. My stove smoked so badly from the wet wood all the time and carbon was building up on the bottom causing an insulation barrier that made it take to boil water and cook. Then out of no were was a hiker from the south like me, she looked so happy to be here. Susan was a young school teacher from Tennessee out hiking by her self and I have to say, I always loved it and admired a woman out here hiking alone. Only when you’re alone in the forest, you get that deep understanding of you with nature…..no distractions of another person to talk to or feel close to you taking up head space…. You become one with the wilderness, Earth-mother….. Our Mother Goddess… Susan was such a joy to have around though and we hike from time to time all the way to Hot Springs North Carolina. I was so hungry and fill my 2 quart cook pot up with chicken noodle soup from Bear Creak, I ate every bit. We talked until it got dark and Susan suggested we hang our gear and food on those dangly bits of rope in the front of the shelter. Kitea had been caught up in the storm as well and just as stressed as Puma and Susan when she approached the shelter. She was surprised to see Puma sleeping in the shelter, taking up all of the left side and Susan had all of the right. Kitea was hoping for this moment from the very beginning of the hike when she first met puma back before Gooch Mountain Shelter. She approached the shelter on the side close to Puma sleeping with his head toward the front. Closer and closer she moved so silently like a ghost. She stood right at his face, she could hear his heartbeat and feel hers. That that very moment Puma reached his arm out from under the blanket touching her face, scratching her ears and neck. From the time she started to purrrrr, Kitea transformed to her human form. Something she hadn’t done in a very long time and with the swift and gentle speed of a mountain lion she leaped quietly to his side and under the blanket, along side his warm body, Puma instinctively bringing his arm over her shoulder holding her closely. A calming feeling came over and a warmth that touched the deepest part of her soul….. He the one for sure she said and slept motionless till about 4:00 am. and disappeared into the forest fresh, rested and in love. When I got up from the best sleep I had in a very long time I noticed a mouse got into my pack and found my food and ate into my trail-mix. That was the second time that happened, the first time I had put my food on a rope in a tree at Dan Gap in Georgia. Susan was a very fast hiker compared to me, she was off and running excited to make her resupply in Gatlinburg Tennessee. She was meeting her family and boyfriend there, taking a few days off trail to spend some quality time with them. I on the other hand Made planes from Franklyn to resupply at the Fontana Dam, I had mailed my laptop to the Hike Inn... motel. I made it down to the Fontana marina where I could use a phone and call the Inn. The woman said she will have someone pick me up, to just sit tight. They had a soda machine but the power was out and I was out of luck. Some bicyclist drove up in there SUV a husband and wife, we talked about the storm, they got caught in it and left there bikes off to the side and got a lift out. The woman had so much energy, she was incredible, wanting her husband to take some photos with me, then she put my pack on her and I said to her husband…..is she always like this.. he just smiled and nodded. I made a new friend that day and we are still in touch and share our stories. My ride showed up and the first thing the woman said to me was…….. Your one of the survivors…… apparently the storm I called… “The belly of the beast” It produced three tornados and devastated a camp park on a river. Power was out in the whole region, she said the power company told her she won’t get power where she lives for a week or more. She said the storm killed some people and I’m so lucky to have survived it….. Fortunately the Hike Inn had power after the tornados hit, Nancy Hoch said, if she didn’t have power she wouldn’t have been able to accommodate me there. Her husband Jeff was out of town. Sadly, I would have loved to talk with him about his extraordinary first people collection of arrowheads and spear tip points and other Native artifacts. They had no internet there and all I could do was upload my photos and videos to my laptop from my camera. The processing of a video to my laptop takes a while; I just splice the segments together in chronological order, that’s it. No editing. I shoot; I talk and try to keep it interesting, and speak correctly about all the facts and science in my head. I have no script to follow. I just shoot from the hip, sort of speaking. It was sunny and warm, enabling me to dry out all my gear. After resupplying in Robbinsville I was given a ride back to the Fontana Dam Marina. My next resupply point was over 100 miles away, past the Smokey Mountains to Hot Springs North Carolina, where I mailed my laptop to the Bluff Mountain Outfitter. This will be my longest leg of my journey so far. If I get jammed-up, there are points along the way I can stop, like Gatlinburg Tennessee. The Fontana Lodge had a restaurant, so at the dam I called for a pickup to have one last good meal, while I still smelled nice, then off to the Smokey Mountains. I hiked to Birch Spring Gap, the only tent site with no shelter in the Smokey’s. In the great Smokey mountain National Park you can‘t setup a tent anywhere you want to, and I knew I would have to start sleeping in the crowded shelters soon, so I stopped at Birch Spring to be alone after my resupply. The Appalachian Trail in the Smokey Mountains is very heavily visited, so to reduce the impact on the natural surroundings, it’s pretty mandatory, that you stay in the shelters. Birch Spring was a beautiful camp site, the best water I ever had came from the Smokey’s, and this spot was no exception. I carried the SteriPEN….Adventure to purify my water, I highly recommend it. But to tell you the truth, when the water from a spring came right out of the side of a mountain, I just drank it. Up from the blue blaze trail they had a hitching post for horses; the Smokey’s is the only place where people with horses share the Appalachian Trail. Many hikers have mixed feelings about sharing the trail with them. I do not. . I love horses so much; they have such a beautiful power. I love to touch them and hold them in my arms and really feel them. That night I heard my first bear in the middle of the night going down the hill very close to my tent, it was big and noisy, obviously not very worried about being heard. My plan was to hike to Spence Field Shelter for the night, I was excited to camp up on a grassy bald and take in some grand views. I fell short of my goals many times during my hike, but I wasn’t going to let that get me down, I just want to go with the flow of the cosmos, wherever it lead me was fine too. It took me longer than I expected to hike through the Smokey’s, the shelter weren’t spaced right for my speed. I found much later, when I could hike much faster, that I didn’t like to go faster than 16 miles a day. The reason was, when I went faster than that I noticed, I would’nt take many photos, shoot many videos, I just wasn’t observing nature like I wanted to. Up the trail just before Mollies Ridge Shelter I ran into some guys that said Mollies Ridge was dry, and I should take water down a side trail, that was poorly marked and I did just that. Coming up on Mollies Ridge Shelter it started to get real dark again, I could hear the thunder for the last two hours and although it was early for a lunch I thought, I would eat and wait the incoming storm that will be here at any moment. I went around to the front of the shelter to see someone’s gear, an old mid 1980’s Jan-sport external frame backpack and in the lower left corner a sleeping bag opened. I called out and with no reply I went back to the side where the built-in table was, to have lunch and then came the rain. After a light snack I propped my pack up and laid down against it for some rest. After a short while and the rain was coming down, I could feel something, like someone was watching me, my hair rose up on my neck. I looked over my left shoulder and a guy, wearing a ski-mask, was coming up behind me with one hand behind his back. Swiftly I jumped up and cut him off with the angle of the table. Instinctively my left hand went into my pocket, holding my knife with my thumb on the bolt that would quickly open my blade. If he would have came up with a weapon behind his back I would have cut his throat and he would have bleed-out dead before his corpse hit the ground. Kitea, off to the side in the brush, was watching the whole thing go down from the very start. She saw him sneaking up on his blind side, with her body stretched out and on the tips of her paws, her tail straight and the tip whipping with fast short strokes back and forth ready to pounce. „What is this crazy bastard doing with a ski-mask in this heat?“ She felt much better, when Puma saw him and jumped for cover, with the posture of his hand in his pocket she assumed he had a weapon, and said „I got your back, big boy…“ His senses are very in-tuned she said, he has developed his 6th sense very well, very intuitive, it must have been all that Marine Corps training, he is so hot…. A Natural Borne Killer…. I remember several nights ago, when I was sleeping next to his tent, he talked to me in his sleep. He said, “I make the sound of the deer well, I grunt softly and they come to me...I’m a killer and I feel my prey like a ghost walking among them…” The guy held out his other hand and in it was a very old leather glove, cheaply made, worn out and only one. He was saying something….. „wouwoouwo“… with his ski- mask it was hard to understand him and I said to him with a loud voice….. “I cant hear a damn word you are saying…. WITH YOUR SKI-MASK ON”… Then he said it again….. it was something like…… he found this glove and was it mine. His speech was distorted and I could tell he had mental health issues…. Still crazy or not he had his other hand hidden behind his back and I’m on guard… I told him one more time I cant hear him with his ski-mask on. It is not my glove and I don’t care, and for him to go away from me, I lunged at him just to give him a bit of a scare and yelled …..GO…OOOOOO …… My heart was pounding, and I said to myself as soon as the rain lets up I’m so freaking out of here. Two days later I ran into a work party at Derrick Knob Shelter and a young man in charge had a radio and called it in, two days after that, I ran into a Ridge runner, and he said, they went up and got him out and that he was removed a few weeks before that too. They had to counsel with lawyers, to find out what to do with a homeless person, living in the shelters. The rain let up and I was gone, but that was just the first band of the storm. The events, that occurred after that, were incredible, this will be the third biggest storm I was in during my hike, it sure was a season for storms and tornados. The winds, heavy rain, hail and thunder once again, unbelievable. Trees were being uprooted, snapping into and falling everywhere. I had to step off trail, the water ran down the trail like a river and I shot a video of it for my youtube channel. When I got to the Russell Field Shelter, it was still early, two men from Atlanta Georgia where settling down there for the day. They were out for the weekend and this will be their last night out. We talked for a while, they were very nice, I like them very much so. They loved to hear my stories of my hike, the storms, the crazy’s…. hikers where coming by from the north, talking about the guy with the ski-mask, they had heard from other hikers north bound, I thought it was funny, the hikers, that told me about the water, never mentioned him. The traffic south bound talked about a backpacking guide from REI, that would tell all the hikers, that stayed in “Her Shelter” for the night up the trail what to do, where to cook, where to sleep and where to hang there packs, she was even giving my dear sweet friend Susan a hard time about where she can cook. Susan argued with her, that she came from Springer Mountain, and that she has been backpacking for many years, and she will not tell her what to do. It hurt me to hear such things, its always about power and control, humans trying to force their will on others. She was some kind of “Hiker Nazi”, cutting all the dangly bits of rope that people hung their packs on, really, they were in every shelter, I have seen during my entire hike. I wanted to hike on, it was still early and I could have made it to Spence Field Shelter like I had planned. The news was, that the REI guide was there with her party and my new friends begged me to stay with them. Why put yourself through the stress of having her around me like that. Relax here with us, we love to hear your stories…. Oh yes, I was a story teller my whole life, since childhood I could spin a good yarn….. it’s a gift. Although it was probably a good call, I did stay, but I had no idea that it was a Saturday and the shelter was filling up fast. I took a spot on the upper left side with my back to the wall. That night I woke up, packed close with so many people. I couldn’t breathe, I was having a panic attack. I sat up for a bit and then went for a walk. It always took me some time to put weight on my feet when I first get up, my feet where chronically sore the whole time I was on trail, and I had to move my feet a bit every morning so I could walk, hiker hobble they call it. I’m sure the people, that were awake, when I had my episode during the night, were shocked; I knew I would have trouble sleeping in the packed shelters here in the Smokey’s. The next day I was up and out early, said my goodbyes to my new friends, who were going down to their car and back home. They gave me some of their extra food, some fancy backpacking meals. I hiked to Derrick Knob Shelter, where a group of volunteers were camped, doing trail maintenance. I tell you, if they didn’t maintain the trail like they do, nature would claim it back in a year or two, that’s it…. It was fun sitting with all the young people, talking about Religion and Politics, two of my favorite subjects. There was a photo-journalist there writing a story about trail maintenance. It was love at first sight…… he was in the Navy and loved to call me Jar-head, affectionately of course…… and I referred to him as Squidly……. They all stayed in their tents and with the weekend over it wasn’t too crowded. I loved their youthful energy, they had a fire going all the time, cutting and splitting wood, gave me a chance to dry my boots or make them not as wet. Most of the kids were taking a break from their studies in the universities. The young women were quite attractive and it was fun watching them all jockeying for position, guided by their hormones running wild. In the evening we sat around the fire and talked, I’m sure it was me, that started the conversation about religion and politics and how closely they are related. It’s all about power and control, I said. Separatism is the major flaw in human development, we are so busy discounting everyone’s believes, that we are missing the big picture. Religion has killed more people than all the plagues; I think religion caused some of the plagues. Then the social class system of the rich and poor, money is the cause of all evil the in world. We should do away with it, its all a big lie anyway. Our monetary system is flawed by corruption; they have juggled the numbers for so long, it was just a matter of time when it would all come crashing down like a house of cards. We went back and forth through the night in interesting debate. Before the emergence of the big three monotheistic religions Judaism, Islam and Christianity, there was no “Gender Assignment” for a god, in fact men and women were equally represented with gods and goddesses and a balance of power was achieved, men and women were equal. What if, way after the death of Jesus and Christianity became legal and rose to power in Europe, with The Church” in their struggle for power made an allegiance with the monarchy to control and rule over the people. What a head trip to say “ you better be good for goodness sake” or you will spend eternity burning in hell. Anyone, who has ever had a bad burn, knows, its an endless pain to be burned, many hours and days even after the burn it still feels like your burning. What a brilliant physiological torture to impose on the masses to keep them in line. What if, they could cut half of the population right out, by making women second class citizens with no say so what so ever. If Eve, beguiled by the serpent, went against god and ate from the tree of wisdom, ruining mans great life in paradise, then she was maid to serve man as a punishment. It sounds like a lie to enslave half of the population. Who ever said, god was a he anyway, I bet it was a man. I bet a man wrote the book of genesis too, just that in itself needs to be addressed, the serpent was a pagan goddess deity, how coincidental is that. I think, if Jesus was alive in the here and now, he would be very upset how his good work has been tarnished for the sake of power and control. Women have been victimized and still are all over the world in places like China, Japan, Africa. In China they have a astrological calander and the Chinese Zodiac here women born under the sign “Fire horse Women“ In Japan it’s called Hinoeuma Fire Horse women are called dangerous, headstrong, and are seen as deadly to men. This may sound quaint to western ears, but the 1906 Japanese women were subjected to poverty and starvation because they could not marry. According to the Chinese Zodiac, girls who were born in the year of the horse were said to be stubborn and short tempered. Fire Horses are seen as outgoing, people-loving, ambitious, rebellious, and independent. They are supposedly freedom-loving and impossible to contain. While ambition and independence are prized as ingredients for success nowadays, they were never seen as ideal female qualities. The proper woman was seen as submissive, quiet, and dependent, not rebellious and strong. This prejudice against fire horse women kept the 1906 women wracked by poverty in Japan, since no one would risk marrying a woman with these qualities. Now over 90 years old, many of the surviving hinoeuma women are poor and homeless. Out spoken women in Europe were taken care of by saying they were witches in league with the devil and simply murdered in the name of Christ. Thousands of women were hiked this way, in the New World too. It wasn’t long ago, when women couldn’t vote in this great country. Women in Europe and in America around the middle to late 1800’s started to protest, woman like writer and poet Renee Vivien from Paris France will always be rememberd as one of the “First Wave Feminist” and many others too, Separatism….. we have to stop the insanity of this odious behavior, inherent in all of us, if we wish to evolve into better human beings, after all we are from the same “Human Family” We have lived in tyranny long enough and people will rise up around the world and say we will not take this anymore. Everyone stood and cheered, I love young people, they are willing to see things in a different light not afraid of change, unlike us old folks, well that’s a different story. The passion of my thoughts exhausted me and I said good night. Kitea, thinking of all that was said, lay in the woods, unable to sleep all night. She said, his great burden never was about his pack weight, it’s what’s in his head. He sees the world as one, united in a common good for the entire world to share equally. The end of separatism and equality for all…..how great life could be for all… Feeling quite well and rested, my boots and socks were the driest they have been in a few days I hit the trail. Silers Bald was covered in fog, hiking the trail reminded of being in a rain forest all morning the fog and mist would rise to the heavens, in the afternoon it would come down again as rain everyday after day…. As I got close to the highest peak on the Appalachian Trail Clingmans Dome, I got lost again. The trail got tight along a ridge, then widened but started to go down, it didn’t feel right but I followed for a little bit then turned around. I went back to where a sign was and saw a white blaze up on a rock cliff, it was a bit of a scramble then the trail leveled out on a beautiful ridge. I loved to hike the ridges, you could see very well where you were going… you could see for miles and miles, it truly my favorite hiking. The bad part was, if you were up on a ridge when a storm came in the lightning was very dangerous You were so exposed; I was caught up on a ridge twice and hiked very fast to drop down for shelter. The trail got tricky close to the Dome and I slowed not to miss the trail. Getting low on water but not wanting to go off trail to the Dome I pressed on not sure where I would find water. It was getting quite late when I arrived at the Mt. Collins Shelter and water. Two guys both named Dave and heading in opposite directions had a fire going when I approached the shelter. The north bound Dave and I talked a bit in the morning; I had hiked 13 miles the day before, climbed the highest peak on the AT and was so tired when I made it to camp the night before. Every night my feet were so sore and I was so tired, having to setup camp and make supper, gathering wet wood for my Zip-stove I took my time in the mornings enjoying my coffee rested and could really relax and take it all in. South bound Dave was up a gone early, while north bound Dave was on his final day. He was getting off trail at Newfound Gap heading down to Gatlinburg and home to Florida his journey ended. We hiked together for a bit, the smells in the conifer forest were incredible, very sweet and spicy like cinnamon, gorgeous and the shades of green with all the moss covered rocks and fallen trees were on of my fondest memories. Dave talked about the town below and I decided to go down to Gatlinburg for pizza and cheeseburgers. Kitea following closely as she always had since she found Puma thought what a great opportunity she had to go home and see her Grandmother Capote. Puma didn’t plan to stop in Gatlinburg and it wasn’t a thought for her but now she was excited to talk to grandmother about him and read the smoke and her dreams. Newfound Gap was right in-between Gatlinburg and Cherokee town and Reservation. She figured it’s only 30 miles away, Puma will probably stay for two days, she could catch-up with him on the trail by picking up his scent. When I got close to the Gap I could hear the traffic first, then I got to the road and could see it was an overlook across the road. Tired, wet, hungry for a proper meal, I smelt like a wild animal I thought as I crossed the highway to the parking lot full of people. They had all pulled over to rest and take photos of the mountain views. When some people saw me coming I was swarmed by them, like I was some kind of celebrity or something. A man came up to me by the restrooms asking about my hike, then asked if we could pray. I said sure, I love all good people and respect everyone’s right to worship in there own way. He asked Jesus to watch over me, protect me while on my journey as we held hands and tears fell from my eyes it was so beautiful. A man asked if I would like some granola bars I said sure. People came up to me so curious and full of love, wanting to have their photo taken with me. Four beautifully stout southern black women came up to me in their Sunday dresses and hats with very colorful flower prints. They just dazzled me, they were so beautiful and smelt so nice, touching me, hugging me and kissing me on my cheeks. I went to apologized, for I smelt so badly, one of the women whispered in my ear you don’t smell so bad. I did change my shirt to my camp shirt to get ready to hitch hike a ride to town. Their husbands where taking photos of the spectacle or I think one was making a video, when one of the women asked if she could go and hike with me. I said to her, baby I will cook for you every night……. If you will carry my backpack. Her husband looked away from the viewfinder of his camera and at me winking and smiling at me, it was truly a beautiful experience. Newfound Gap was like a melting pot of tourist, it was like the whole world was being represented. Even the bikers, both the men and the women looked my way in appreciation. Bikers and I are very similar in a way, we are a bit standoffish, loners and rebels, if you ever met me in person I have a look about me that is somewhat threatening and somewhat loving, people can feel me and I can feel them without ever saying a word….it’s a gift Perhaps because I’m so sensitive…. Or maybe when I was electrocuted by 5,000 volts at work one day… Or when I was shot…. Or when I was stabbed….. Or when I was bitten by a rattlesnake as a child….. Or maybe when I was struck by lightning…. I feel much differently since I was hit by lightning, it scrambled my brain Sometimes things get so mixed-up in my head and random thoughts bounce around like electrons, neutrons and protons in a pattern like a spider web all connecting, yet random like the cosmos. Whatever it is…… People can feel me when I write too….. I write with my soul…..