2013 Following Atticus Gratitude Hike: Breakfast at RiverWood Inn

I got a good night's sleep, after not sleeping much the night before, but 5:00 am came quickly and I climbed out of bed. I felt like a little girl getting out of this antique twin bed because it was so high. The bedding was luxurious, the comforter soft. Denise slept soundly in the other bed. I peeked out of the blind and all was dark outside. My usual practice at home is to spend the first hour of the day with the LORD, reading the Bible and writing in my journal. I had to rush this special time and just read one chapter instead of three. I happened to be in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) in my thru-the-Bible reading. I thought about how often Yeshua (Jesus) resorted to mountain settings. I thanked the LORD for my safe arrival in NH and prayed for safety for everyone and a good day on the mountain. A quick shower came next, and then the decisions. What to wear, what to bring. Denise and I hardly had room to turn around because we both brought huge suitcases, not knowing what kind of weather we would face. As it turned out, neither of us used 90% of what we brought. We definitely overpacked! The weather was pretty mild. I couldn't decide if I should wear the hiking pants or the hiking shorts, so I wore both. I figured if it got too warm, I could shed a layer. I started stuffing my small backpack with extra socks, clothes, hat, gloves, sunglasses, headlamp, flashlight, rain jacket, fleece jacket, Bible, etc. and then wondered how I was going to fit my two 32 oz bottles of water in there, along with my 24 oz Camelbak water bottle. Tom had told us we needed to bring plenty of water. He brings 100 oz in a bladder type Camelbak. And where was I going to get the water? This was a bed and breakfast and the hosts were busy preparing breakfast for us all. We ended up filling our bottles from the small bathroom sink. The water was cold, mountain water that tasted great thankfully. My two large Nalgene bottles fit in the side pockets of the backpack. I ended up carrying the smaller Camelbak and sipping it throughout the hike. It turned out I didn't need this much water and it really weighed me down. But dehydration is a danger on mountain hikes so better safe than sorry.

I could not believe how fast time was flying on this entire trip! What I thought was efficiency, getting ready for the day, turned into a mad rush as other hikers started arriving downstairs for the group breakfast. I met Laura first, on the porch, and introduced myself. It was neat to recognize "strangers" from our private facebook page. We had all gotten somewhat acquainted beforehand. So the greetings between us were comfortable and not awkward. As more and more hikers arrived though, it became a buzz of activity and excitement. Some brought gifts for everyone, thoughtful little bags of goodies. I was overwhelmed by it all. I hadn't been so thoughtful to even think of bearing gifts, other than the trinket for Tom that we all brought for the basket we would present to him. Mine was a Culver Academies soft beach towel with flowers on it. I thought of it as a "Will blankie" knowing Will liked flowers. I had also purchased funky blue plastic sunglasses with flowers on them in honor of Will, who likes flowers. Of course he can only smell them, not see them, but it was my way of thinking of him, the dog I admired as an overcomer. I needed to be an overcomer also, in many aspects of my life, especially when it came to leaving my comfort zone and normal routine and embarking on this road trip and adventure of a lifetime.

I met Roy, the local radio personality, and asked him to remind me to change into my hiking shoes before we left, as I was wearing my regular running shoes for breakfast and did not want to end up on the mountain rocks without the right gripping soles. He joked that he would be sure to take on that responsibility of reminding me. I never know what I'm going to say to people. Sometimes I'm shy, sometimes I'm too bold.

I met so many people that morning it was confusing to keep their names straight in my mind and where they were from and their stories from facebook. I was getting one mixed up with another. Finally we all sat down to breakfast. It was fancy. A pineapple and rice concoction, and a quiche in a fluted cup. I should have mentioned beforehand that I don't eat ham/bacon, but the question had been "do you have any food allergies." The coffee was in a french press and very good. Tom was presented with a walking stick that Michael had carved all of our names into along with a picture of Atticus and the map logo from the book. It was beautiful. Such a great moment. The new "mystery hiker" sat at my table. Her name was Jenn, from Worcester, MA, and she was a great addition to the group.

We were presented with lovely gift bags from Tom and our Gratitude Hike t-shirts. Many of us decided to wear our beautiful shirts, including me. One of the gifts Tom gave me was a writing journal. I will treasure it. He is the most thoughtful man I've ever met. The beautiful sunflower design gift bag included an autographed White Mountain map like the one that appears in the book, fancy chocolate from the Bavarian Chocolate Haus (the chocolate dog bone was cute!), blueberry jelly, hiker keychain, scenic calendar, MountainEar Magazine, and a Mountain Wanderer hiking hat (which I wore). Someone gave me a button/ribbon representing the virtual hikers from the FA page that we were taking up the mountain with us. I attached it to my backpack. Was it Erica who gave me this? It was a blur of excitement and activity at the Inn that morning and my recollections are jumbled. Everyone was milling about outside enjoying Will and Atticus, taking photos, having conversations. I was too busy to socialize much, trying to get myself ready. I remembered my hiking shoes, decided I had no room for the fleece jacket and packed a lighter one, and wore my little black running jacket over my base layer shirt and the Gratitude Hike shirt. It was time to get in some cars and follow Tom to The Local Grocer where several would pick up their lunches. I brought two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches that I made in my room very quickly. We also needed to stop at the Vet (Rachael) to drop off Will for the day. I got to ride with Tom and Denise, Will and Atticus! How special was that! Both dogs rode up front with Denise, but I got to hold Will on my lap on the way home. And then it was off to the trailhead at South Moat Mountain!

......to be continued