Taking a Walk to Clear My Head

"I said not long before that work and weakness were comforters. But sweat is the kindest creature of the three--far better than philosophy, as a cure for ill thoughts." -- C.S. Lewis

I am within a couple of weeks (hopefully) of departing for the first half of my Eastern Continental Trail walk. The ECT is basically an extension of the Appalachian Trail in both directions, to the ends of the continent. I'll be starting in Key West and, for phase I, ending at my house in the mountains of central Virginia which is, conveniently, 4 miles from the AT and just about halfway through the continent. In phase II, I'll go from my house to the Cliffs of Forillon at Cape Gaspé, Quebec.

I'm fervently hoping to be gone before Christmas, but am tied up with gear woes at the moment and feeling rather restless and frustrated. Preparing for this trip has been much more complicated and expensive than I had anticipated. If I can't get off within the next week or so, I'll have to wait until after the New Year, as train tickets are expensive and hard to come by from about Dec. 20 until Jan 2.

I'll be taking Amtrak from Charlottesville to Ft. Myers, FL, then a ferry across to Key West. I like trains. And boats. And I detest flying, since it became an exercise in dystopian control. Then, the winter months will be spent hiking through Florida. with a special goal of getting through the Everglades before the weather turns hot and the rains start: if you walk through in the winter dry season, you're only wading through knee or thigh-deep water rather than waist or chest-deep. Then a much anticipated break while I visit my dear friend Jessica in Orlando, and on through northern Florida. Another short break at my uncle's hotel in Panama City, then a roadwalk through southern Alabama before picking up a series of shorter backcountry trails which will link to the AT in Georgia.

By the way, if any of my local Virginia friends would like to volunteer to drive me to the train station... :)