Day 1 May 30th 2014

Moving light and moving fast. After staying a night in Newton,nj seeng old friends, Jim and I drove to Williamstown which put me on trail about 1pm. Nothing, no matter how meticulously planned, works exactly the way you'd like it to out here. 6 miles in I got caught by a nasty rain storm. I ducked into Seth Warren shelter, 7 miles shy of my destination,to see how things played out. Mentally I'm not ready to pull miles in the rain on day 1. Period. So here I sit, the rain has passed but I've already eaten dinner(freeze dried tortelini),gotten water and set out my bag for the night. Tomorrow will be a big  day so I'm not concerned. There's a northbound section hiker in here tonight his trail name is Deuce, haven't gotten a story behind it yet, but he's from Maryland. Oh the people you meet. After reading the log book it seems there are a couple other LT hikers just in front of me, hopefully with a few big days I can catch them. My pace is good and my pack feels great so the weather is all I've got to worry about. I find it funny and Kindof sad that I have 3G service out here but it's good to be able to update like this. Morning comes early hoping to put down 15 tomorrow to make up for lost time today. Feel free to post your questions and comments. I'll update as I can.

-Fresh

1 checked bag

It's 5:14 AM on Thursday the 29th of May and I am in route to the Atlanta airport leaving Cartersville in a dark rear view mirror.  The journey has begun. 

The Time Has Come

         Today it has finally hit me. In just 4 days I will be departing on my hike. This journey has built itself into something big. Hike for the Fallen has received more support than I could've ever imagined. I am humbled to be giving back to the fire service through hiking.  I feel like I have packed and repacked my pack 100 times. I am really happy with where the weight is.(27lbs) fully loaded.  here is a link to my pack weight via GearGrams.com Pack Weight. There are a few odds and ends missing but for the most part its all there.

          Thursday morning I will be catching a flight to Newark, NJ where a close friend and mentor, Capt James Vance will be picking me up for a road trip to the trail head in Massachusetts. This in itself is a special moment, as it was Capt Vance and his family that took me in after my AT hike in 2010. James took a chance on some strange hiker from Georgia, helping me with my education and getting my foot in the door in fire and EMS. The love and respect I have for this man is beyond words. I am very much looking forward to this reunion. I remember in 2010 when James dropped me off back at the trail head. We had some small talk and discussed the possibility of returning to NJ. I'm certain he expected that to be the end of it, but by November 2010 I had moved in with James and his family while I started the EMS program and volunteering with Blue Ridge Rescue Squad. It all seems so long ago. I am fortunate and blessed with everything in my life, and the journey I have been on for the past 5 years. I am excited for the future.

     I encourage you to follow me here as well as on my facebook. I will post as much as the terrain allows me to Feel free to post any question or comments you may have. 


Big shout out to my CDP 2014 folks. The boys from Abilene, the Paris guys, Vegas PD, and ofcourse  those lovely nurses from San Fran.

"shit it and get it boys" 


"Family helps Family become Family.Family"