Category Archives: Uncategorized

A “Rockin'” Time at the Hike Inn

January 7, 2016Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

A while back I sent a copy of THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story to the editor of an award-winning blog titled Lady on a Rock. Go to http://www.ladyonarock.com to see this blog which combines great Western hiking commentary and photos.

Fortunately, Christy (trail name – Rockin’) Rosander thought THRU was a winner, and she also took me up on an invitation to see the Hike Inn. While visiting her son, Silly Chili, in Tennessee, the family took a hiking detour to Georgia to see the Hike Inn and explore Springer Mtn. Pictured above (from left) are Silly Chili, daughter Stealthy, husband Dan, Peregrine, Corinne Peace (Hike Inn GM) and Rockin’.

This hiking family were naturals to enjoy the Hike Inn, and we also had fun discussing THRU. Christy asked the question I often hear: “Which character are you?” The truth is that there is no character in the book based on a single person. All are amalgams of the many colorful characters I have known on the AT. Some are close friends, and others are people I met in passing who left indelible images emblazoned on my memory. And of course, some are woven out of freshly woven whole cloth.

But, I have to say that the alter ego in the book for myself would have to be the obese Captain Stupid. The Captain is that person I fear I would turn into if I did not stay vertical and keep walkin’ virtually every day. Walking and hiking are my favorite forms of redemption.

I encourage all of you to go see Christy’s blog. I am envious when I see how a skilled practitioner can combine good pictures, nice graphics, and great writing to make a blog a place to return to time after time.

Home is a road!

January 5, 2016Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

It took me 64 years on earth to become a grandparent, but it was worth the wait. Little Rosalia Kathryn Judy appeared five days before Christmas and changed the world for all of us who love her. Her parents have a passion for nature and adventure inherited from generations before them, and I have little doubt that Rosie will eventually discover that much of what matters comes from roaming the open road of adventure. “Man’s real home is not a house, but the Road, and that Life itself is a journey to be walked on foot.” With parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles to inform her trek, I suspect this child is on the brink of a journey lived within the most thrilling generation in human history. I plan to stay vertical and keep walkin’ for as long as I can, because I want to watch her living her dream. And though she will make up her own mind how she does it, I will certainly be available to take hikes any time she’s interested! IMG_1093 (1)

Five Days on the Benton MacKaye!

December 7, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

My friend of sixty years (if you’re doing the math, we met as infants in a church nursery) David Chandler and I recently spent five days on the trail named after one of my heroes — Benton MacKaye. The BMT begins at Springer Mountain and goes hundreds of miles through Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina to the far side of the Great Smokies.

David took the photo above which gets a little squashed in this blog format. It shows me with a copy of THRU at a place called Three Forks, just a few hiking miles from Springer. David and I hiked 10-11 miles per day to eventually come out a little south of Blue Ridge, Ga. During those days we never saw another backpacker.

For the most part, the trail is as I remember from hiking on it years ago — harder than the AT. It tends to have steeper climbs which apparently follow old logging road beds. However, there are many stretches where trail crews have rerouted to include switchbacks and portions that slab gradually beside ridges. The trail is phenomenally well marked, and in five days of hiking, I never recall taking a wrong turn or having serious problems finding our way. I tip my hat to the Benton MacKaye Trail Association as well as to the author of the trail guide, Sargent Rock.

David and I are retired guys. We took great pleasure in knowing that when we returned to the real world, there would not be tons of emails, phone messages and eager co-workers banding together to drive us nuts. It makes the time off much more enjoyable.

Plus there’s this: One afternoon, David and I knew we were going to have sixty mph wind and lots of rain. We could set up tents in the mayhem or call a B&B listed in the trail guide and seek luxury. David had three bars on his smart phone, so he was able to call Bear Rock Ridge Inn and connect with a trail angel named Joe. Joe met us later in the afternoon — two drowned rat-like people — and took us to his ridge-top palace where he dried our clothes, provided palatial accommodations and fixed a great breakfast before driving us back to the sunny trail the next morning. I’ll never forget my response when David looked up from the phone and asked me how much I was willing to pay. My reply: “$3,000!” I may be getting older, but I’m not stupid.

The Benton MacKaye Trail is a nice new challenge. I can imagine knocking off stretches from time to time and eventually completing it. In an era when our beloved AT is becoming more a cultural phenomenon than a wilderness experience, the BMT is a parallel dimension that starts where the AT starts but heads in a much quieter direction. Try it, you’ll hike it.

Thru-hiker David Hiscoe Still Carrying a Big Stick after all these Years!

October 30, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

When I was an AT SOBO thru-hiker well over four decades ago, the fellow pictured above was somewhere behind me. He started hiking in the small cohort that embarked after I did and finished his own thru-hike adventure that same year, 1973. This photo of David Hiscoe was taken at Rockfish Gap just before he took a break to heal up an injury. Since that time, David has had a good life and a successful career. He will be visiting me in less than two weeks, and we will hike together to the Len Foote Hike Inn where we will swap countless stories about our adventures, a few of which may actually be true. David — like me — is a writer. His hiking-themed book is nearly ready for publication, and I look forward to telling you folks about it when the time comes. Meanwhile, stay vertical and keep walkin’! (Photo by Barry Arney, all rights reserved).

THRU Goes to Ireland!

October 14, 2015UncategorizedAppalachian Trail, Dingle Way, Irelandrichardkjudy

Steady, my AT thru-hiker daughter, joined me over the past couple of weeks to hike what many call the most beautiful trail in the world, Ireland’s Dingle Way. I’d be hard pressed to disagree that any place is more beautiful, and to make matters even more wonderful, we were there for just over two weeks and never wore rain gear while hiking. We climbed rugged peaks, traversed gorgeous pastoral tableaus, strode along the edges of sheer sea cliffs and often walked for miles on lonely strands of beaches. We saw sheep, surfers, cows, horses, castles, ancient abbeys, museums, peat bogs, craggy tors, idyllic villages and people whose speech is as much lyrical as communicative. Unlike trips in recent years to the Himalayas and the Balkans which left me exhausted, this trek energized me. I’m eager to hit the Benton MacKaye Trail in a few weeks. Hiking with Steady was a treasured experience. She seemed ready to chuck her return flight ticket and stay in Ireland forever. Stay vertical, my friends, and keep walkin’!

High Five Gives Thumbs Up to THRU!

October 13, 2015UncategorizedTHRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Storyrichardkjudy

The terrific Appalachian Trials blog based on a fine book by the same name has a wonderful review of THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story written by High Five, a talented writer who also happens to be a thru-hiker. High Five and her thru-hiker husband gave a positive review of THRU and even suggested it as a great gift idea for the upcoming Christmas season. Click here to read: http://appalachiantrials.com/book-review-thru-an-appalachian-trail-love-story/

And remember to stay vertical and keep walkin’!

What’s Missing in this Photo?

August 27, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

Two of my best hiking pals made it up Mt. Katahdin today. Steve Skinner (trail name Pressure Free) looks wistful in his sporty yellow jacket. I’ve known him since second grade, and despite the fact that he went to Georgia Tech, I count him among my best friends. Eric Graves (Hike Inn Dude) is wearing his customary fishing shirt and looking a bit grubby after two weeks battling the 100-mile wilderness and slogging up Katahdin. I’ve been up the Big K three times. First in 1973 to begin my thru-hike. Then, I hiked twice more to see my kids off on their SOBO thru-hikes. Each time the weather was postcard perfect. Katahdin has a rich history, particularly considering that when you climb it, you follow the footsteps of Henry David Thoreau and Benton MacKaye, among many other nature luminaries. I also consider it to be the hardest climb on the trail, more than 4,000 vertical feet from Katahdin Stream Campground and up and over the Hunt Spur Trail. The view is awesome, and I use that word sparingly. When I wrote my novel, THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story, I must confess that I shed tears when I took my characters up Katahdin. (You’ll have to read the book to see how that plays out). I just love the mountain and all it has meant to me, my family and my friends. So, you must have wondered what my headline implies. When Steve and Eric began hiking about 12 days ago, another member was in their crew. Tom LeVert is nearing the end of his multi-year section hike of the AT, and he really needed that mileage. Sadly, he took ill on the second day and found a valiant trail angel to get him back out to civilization. He ended up in the hospital and feeling sick as a bullwhipped dog. He is ok now, but sorry he didn’t finish. My guess is he’ll try again next year, and I predict success. I can’t wait to see the photo of Tortilla Tosser staring down the camera with his customary grim expression when he takes his place next to the Katahdin sign.

Want a good belly laugh? Go see “A Walk in the Woods!”

August 21, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

I joined a huge group of ATC and GATC hiking fanatics to view the Atlanta premiere of Redford's long-awaited film treatment of Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods." I had some quarrels with Bryson's book, and I have some quarrels with this movie. However, I have to say that I loved the way the book made me laugh, and judging from the reaction of the crowd, the film is a winner on laughs alone. The Hollywoodization is at times ridiculous. For instance, Redford and co-star Nick Nolte are besieged at one point by grizzly bears. So far as I know, there are no free ranging grizzlies in the US anywhere east of Wyoming. And often the movie has the characters -- who are on a northbound trek -- suddenly appearing well south of where they have already been. Atlantans were also delighted to see the Collonade Restaurant subbing for a trail-side eatery. But you know what? The Bryson and Katz characters embraced by Redford and Nolte are delightful, crude and funny. They capture the idea of redemption on a trail trek as well as the deep renewal of male friendship. My favorite character was an annoying hiker named Mary Ellen, a know-it-all who stole every scene she was in. I also enjoyed seeing my old friend Morgan Summerville and a few other folks featured in the background. ATC ED Ron Tipton told me that he is still kidding Morgan that he is the movie star now and Ron isn't. So go see the film! It is not the most accurate portrayal of trail life by any means, but it is a loving treatment of one of my favorite institutions, our beloved AT. — I joined a huge group of ATC and GATC hiking fanatics to view the Atlanta premiere of Redford’s long-awaited film treatment of Bill Bryson’s “A Walk in the Woods.” I had some quarrels with Bryson’s book, and I have some quarrels with this movie. However, I have to say that I loved the way the book made me laugh, and judging from the reaction of the crowd, the film is a winner on laughs alone. The Hollywoodization is at times ridiculous. For instance, Redford and co-star Nick Nolte are besieged at one point by grizzly bears. So far as I know, there are no free ranging grizzlies in the US anywhere east of Wyoming. And often the movie has the characters — who are on a northbound trek — suddenly appearing well south of where they have already been. Atlantans were also delighted to see the Collonade Restaurant subbing for a trail-side eatery. But you know what? The Bryson and Katz characters embraced by Redford and Nolte are delightful, crude and funny. They capture the idea of redemption on a trail trek as well as the deep renewal of male friendship. My favorite character was an annoying hiker named Mary Ellen, a know-it-all who stole every scene she was in. I also enjoyed seeing my old friend Morgan Summerville and a few other folks featured in the background. ATC ED Ron Tipton told me that he is still kidding Morgan that he is the movie star now and Ron isn’t. So go see the film! It is not the most accurate portrayal of trail life by any means, but it is a loving treatment of one of my favorite institutions, our beloved AT.

Congratulations to Scott Jurek!

July 16, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

Well, it’s happened again. Another person has set a “supported” AT thru-hike speed record. Scott Jurek did it in 43 days. He beat the record set a couple of years back by Jennifer Pharr Davis. I have a few thoughts on this:

Perhaps the greatest record on the AT was when O. d. Coyote took the longest time in history to complete a thru-hike 30 — or so — years ago. I suppose someone has done it in even more time since then, but the hike that Mr. Coyote described in his memorable book, Chained Dogs and Songbirds, was an odyssey much richer than most mortals will ever know.
In a letter from Benton MacKaye in 1974, the AT visionary answered my question about his opinion of setting speed records on the AT. He told me that the AT was never envisioned as a race track and that in his opinion, “the prize should go to the person who took the longest time to complete the trail.”
Having said all this, I still feel compelled to congratulate people such as Scott and Jennifer. As I understand it, they are both very nice people who treated other hikers with courtesy. As long as speed hikers do not feel they are “entitled” to special treatment, I say “God bless ’em!”
I hope to meet Scott in a few days at the ATC Biennial in Winchester, VA. I will shake his hand and think to myself that he is a pretty good example to a generation that is in dire danger of atrophying in front of computer screens.

Stay vertical, y’all and keep walkin’! And don’t forget that THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story is available on Kindle. If you read it that way, promise to go for a long walk when you finish.

THRU Gets First Novel Honorable Mention from the Georgia Author of the Year Awards!

July 10, 2015Uncategorizedrichardkjudy

Here's good news! THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story recently received Honorable Mention in the First Novel Category of the Georgia Author of the Year Awards. All my good sales and good reviews are validated even further, and I have thousands of loyal readers to thank. Please share the THRU story with friends and help support the AT Museum. — Here’s good news! THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story recently received Honorable Mention in the First Novel Category of the Georgia Author of the Year Awards.

Recently, THRU: An Appalachian Trail Love Story received Honorable Mention in the Georgia Author of the Year Awards in the First Novel category. There was plenty of stiff competition, and getting singled out made me believe that the positive comments I’ve received from my loyal readers and from many reviewers are all on the money. Now, please keep the word of mouth going with your friends. Every copy that sells supports the Appalachian Trail Museum.