As I was settling in for bed last night, looking at the fullest, brightest moon, I said a prayer for my hikers ~ I prayed they were having a wonderful time, that they would stay warm through the night, that no furry visitors would visit their tents and freak Dakota out, and that she would really embrace this experience with Teddy by her side. So, I actually didn't hear from my adventuring family until almost 9:00 pm this evening. So much for staying in touch. I am happy to report that MOST of my prayers were answered. All but the one about them staying warm through the night. Dakota said she froze during the night, so Teddy gave her his good subzero sleeping bag and took the liners from both bags, plus every single piece of clothing he had with him and tried to stay warm. He ended up not sleeping a wink through the night because of how cold he was, but thankfully Dakota warmed up, as he heard her finally doze off and begin snoring :) Their goal for the day was to hike 12 miles, and they did just that. We are so proud of both of you.
 |
| lunch time / nap time |
As you can see, Dakota needed to catch up on some much needed rest by lunch time ~ when they arrived at Jim Murray's Secret Shelter, Dakota caught a nap before and after lunch.
They set out to complete at least another 12 miles today, and actually went beyond that and logged 14.1 for today ~ unbelievable. Their destination was High Point, New Jersey ~ an exciting piece of trail for them, as this was where we all took a day hike a few weeks back with the whole family.
 |
| High Point, NJ |
They arrived there around 7:00 pm and were picked up by Teddy's brother and sister-in-law, our latest trail angels, who gave them a lift to the store to resupply their food, brought them back to the house, fed them a delicious steak and potato dinner, they got to take hot showers and get a good night's rest. When speaking to Ronnie, I was expressing my gratitude and thanks for all that his family was doing for Teddy and Dakota, and he said "It's what we do for our family." Family is wonderful, but "Family Trail Angels" are extraordinarily wonderful. The actions and deeds you provided that you thought were no big deal mean so much to us, especially the cold, hungry tired hikers. We appreciate every single thing that you did. THANK YOU.
 |
| Dakota with her Trail Angels Aunt Liz & Uncle Ronnie |
So, two successful days down, 27.1 miles under their belts, and still in great spirits. Only one more thing would have made this a perfect update ~ if Dakota had decided on a trail name. Oh well, maybe tomorrow.
Sweet, restful dreams Scarecrow and Dakota.
Happy Trails to both of you...
Love Always,
The Thruhiker's Wife
When I was younger, we had a CB in the kitchen & 1 in the car. I use to talk with truck drivers passing by our town since we weren't very far from the expressway. My handle was "NatureGirl" If Dakota likes it, she can have it as her trail name, since I doubt I'll ever need to use it again. lol
ReplyDeleteI feel like I remember knowing that!! I will definitely pass that on to her Kendra ~ it's funny because Ted calls her Big Girl, from when she was really little, so this might be the perfect spin off of that!! I will let you know!! Thanks.
DeleteWow what a great experince , sounds like they r having a great time.
ReplyDelete