I was enjoying the cool serenity and the green lushness that is typical of the month of May during one of the many hikes I have been doing in the Portland-area Tryon Creek Natural Area. I stopped walking when I saw the 25-foot high branch in a tree along the trail, grabbed a 50-foot neon green rope attached to a small stuff sack loaded with a small rock, strategically swung the rock/stuff sack and released the rope with precise timing to hurl the weighted end up and over the branch. Once the weighted end of the rope fell to the ground and was properly draped over the branch, I whispered “awesome!” But I was not alone. As I proudly looked at the neon green rope, now hanging conspicuously from the branch, a woman asked, “are you pruning?” Feeling a little embarrassed and self-conscious while tugging the dangling cord I honestly confessed, “I am practicing my bear hang technique for my hike of the Appalachian Trail next month! No bear will steal my food at night!”
Continue reading “An Appalachian Trail Thru-Hike!”