More Trail Angel Messages!!

It touches my soul to its core to receive these emails from random people who have interacted with Teddy for a moment, a car ride, or an afternoon of chatting.  Every single one has stated how great it was to meet Teddy, and how excited they were to find out how far he has come, and how much he is anxious to see his family and friends...
I do not think Teddy realizes just HOW MUCH he has impacted our lives.  He has inspired people to live their dreams, and go after what they want, and support others who want to achieve their goals.  I am so proud of you, Scarecrow, and cannot wait to see you on Friday.

An email entitled "Greetings from a Scarecrow Hitch" came through today:

Hi,

I wanted to let you know my wife and I had the pleasure of picking up Teddy this afternoon just south of the US/Canada border. Please wish him once again our congrats on having just completed the Triple Crown. While he may have been stinky on the exterior, it was quite clear he's awesome on the inside. We had a great opportunity to talk before dropping him off in East Glacier. It was fun to hear about his adventures. We hope that when you and your family get to visit Glacier, that you'll enjoy it as much as my wife and I have.

Wishing you all the best,

David & Melissa D'Angelo

PS: Once I get the photos off the camera, I'll send you a photo from an overlook we took while driving with Teddy to East Glacier.

THANK YOU for the check-in, David and Melissa,  and thank you for getting Teddy safely to his destination.

Only two days left, 

The Thruhiker's Wife

A Signal from Scarecrow = Pretty Pictures

Warren Lake

As Scarecrow flies through Montana towards the finish line of the CDT, we have heard from him several times from his cell phone, or his hiking buddy Medic's phone with a pretty weak signal.  It was never quite strong enough to send pictures, but we loved hearing the updates and progress being made.  Finally, Scarecrow has entered into an area where he has a signal.  He was able to send some updated pictures of his latest stops. These first two pictures were in an email entitled "Warren Lake."  

Warren Peak, Warren Lake, Scarecrow Warren

It looks like it is getting really cold, but the lake, with Warren Peak behind him made for a beautiful picture.  Great job, Mr. Warren.  Just so you know, this picture is my new laptop background - I love it.

As Teddy updated me over the past few weeks, he had said it was getting colder, with temperatures in the twenties, and some light snow.  Well, I guess he didn't want to worry us too much by telling us about the storm he must have been traveling through.

It looks okay in this picture, with the sun out, and the trees lightly covered, with what looks like a path through the snow.  Well, the other pictures from this same email, entitled "Snow Storm", were the ones that had me a bit more concerned.  Yes, Teddy failed to mention the sightings of the tremendous BEAR PRINTS in the fresh snow.  Teddy is a shoe size 14, so this should show you just how large the bear was who was traveling a little too close to where Scarecrow was.

fresh bear tracks in the snow

And, this last picture made me shiver - for obvious reasons.  

time to de-ice the beard, Scarecrow

This picture was taken on September 11, and he is heading North to colder temperatures.  No, that is not just more gray hair in his beard - it's FROZEN.  At least he is smiling this time - thoughts and memories of the PCT came rushing back, with the photo of Teddy frozen, in snow, taken on the day he stepped off the PCT due to weather.  Would weather get in his way again? Will he be able to push through and make it to the end?? Once I saw the next two pictures, I was relieved.  They were in the email entitled, "Fall is Here". I can only imagine how beautiful the changing leaves and landscape are as he heads further North towards Canada. 

YES, he will not be held back by Mother Nature and harsh weather.  The bright side in all of this is that the weather will not get in the way of his successful completion of this trail.  He has made it through all of the weather elements, and as I type this, only a day or two away from the finish line.  I am anxiously awaiting the text/call that it is a "DONE DEAL".

For now, click HERE for his latest location.  As for travel arrangements, I will continue to keep you all posted.  THANK YOU to all who have expressed an interest to greet him as he arrives on Friday at the airport.  We cannot wait.

Until next time,
The Thruhiker's Wife

Almost to the Finish Line

The day we have been waiting for!!! Scarecrow called from East Glacier Park - the last town stop before heading on to the end.  Hebsaid he was actually a bit ahead of schedule and is about to reach the monument at the end of the CDT on Monday - WOW  This now means if I can secure flights and transportation for Teddy over the next day or two, we could be collecting him from the airport on WEDNESDAY next week!!!

For those of you who asked about his travel plans and arrival home, I will definitely keep you posted over the next few days about definitive plans.  Some have expressed an interest in greeting him at the airport - he would LOVE that.  He is very much looking to be back home and reconnect with family and friends.  There would be nothing better than to have you all there to show him some love and support as he lands - it will DEFINITELY be at MacArthur airport and I am looking at a 5:15 pm landing.  I will know for sure after talking with him further over the next day or two.

The day is here where I can say, my (almost) Triple Crown hiker will be back home next week.  I will post again VERY SOON with an update.

Until next time,
The Thruhiker's Wife

In The Home Stretch...

After almost a week of no communication, I finally heard from Scarecrow.  He called from Stehekin, Washington on Sunday night with nothing but excellent news.  The trails are clear, the weather is beautiful, and he is now only 90 miles away from the "finish line" in Canada.  He expects to complete these 90 miles by Friday afternoon.  He said the landscape he is witnessing is breathtaking and the pictures he took do not do justice to their true beauty.  I am anxious to get a hold of his camera to check out the final pictures of this extraordinary journey.  He explained how he had to buy a calling card and use a "satellite phone" because he is really in the middle of nowhere over in the Northern Cascade Mountains ~ good thing I picked up, because I wasn't going to being that I did not recognize the number.

His plan is to average 20 mile days, give or take a few, and soak in the feelings of accomplishing his dream as he approaches the last days and miles of the United States and Canada that will complete his Pacific Crest Trail experience.

I will not hear from Teddy until after he reaches the monument in Canada and then walks another 8 miles to Manning Park, which is where he will be able to finally see civilization again after being in the woods.  So for the next few days, I hope you will join me in sending Teddy prayers, positive energy, and support as he approaches the end of this emotionally taxing, physically exhausting, spiritually fulfilling, wonderfully exciting and rewarding experience that he has been on over the past year and a half.

We, as a family, have been through something so extraordinary ~ a forever life changing experience that we will cherish and grow from for the rest of our lives.  So many people have asked: how do you handle all of this?  Why were you okay with this?  My answer will always be the same...  I am so proud to be a supporter  and an integral part in helping someone I love achieve their dreams.  I wouldn't have it any other way.  Who am I to say that it is not a realistic goal?  Obviously it is.  Who am I to say that Teddy should not go and live out his dreams?  I am happy I did.  Who am I to say it's not good for my children?  It was a wonderful lesson that they are proud of living through.  Who am I to say?  I am the Thruhiker's Wife.  I wouldn't have it any other way.  To watch it all unfold and hear the determination and enjoyment in his voice whenever he called was such a rewarding experience.  I feel honored to have been able to provide strength, support and love for my husband.  To be able to lead by example for my children ~ to help them learn what it feels like to support someone while they live out their dreams and achieve their goals.  My children learned what compromise and sacrifice were, but in a positive light.  Dakota and Jagger both know that they are a big part of Teddy's success.  As do I.  This experience was a huge life lesson on many different levels that I feel lucky to have learned from.

Personally, I wish everyone could feel and experience all of the positivity that my family felt through this journey.  Surround yourself with the ones you love, make a decision to be happy, live your life, create dreams and goals, and then go out there and accomplish them!!

Until he checks in from the finish line,

The Thruhiker's Wife

Late Night Check In

google image of Stevens Pass

So, after a wonderful weekend with a group of trail angels that we call family, Teddy was dropped off at the point up in Washington where he had to bail out last November.  He walked up the bail out trail and back onto the PCT and went about 10 miles before calling to check in.  He is making excellent time and is very excited to be walking in the uncharted territory that he missed last fall.  We are both very excited that it worked out so he can finish the trail at the "finish line" up in Canada ~ and he is thinking he will be there in about 9 - 12 days.  As of last night, he had ventured down into Stevens Pass, describing this terrain as more jagged and pointy, instead of the rolling, smoother terrain of Oregon.  

Our excitement for Scarecrow as he moves closer to the monument in growing rapidly every day.  I can only imagine how anxious he is getting.  I will post pictures as soon as they are sent to me.  Please continue sending positive energy and prayers Teddy's way, as they are working and felt by him (and me) daily.  The trail, everyone and everything surrounding this trail adventure has been so kind and welcoming for this last leg of the trip.  For whatever reason, NOW is the time that Teddy was meant to finish this extraordinary goal.  We could not be prouder of you, Scarecrow.

Happy Trails, my love.

The Thruhiker's Wife

The Guy We Call Scarecrow

There is a mood, a feeling, an atmosphere around the Warren home these days.  I have been racking my brain to come up with a single word that could describe it accurately.  A word that could encompass all that the kids and I are feeling as we await the remaining 26 days until our hero comes home.  It has been 142 days since we have seen the guy we call husband, dad, brother, son, uncle, nephew, friend...

photo taken by NOT RYAN

In those 142 days, we have gone through the end of spring, the whole summer, and most of the fall season thinking about, talking to, dreaming of, praying for and missing our guy.  On one hand, I am thankful for all that we have going on right now to occupy our time - school, work, soccer, football, scouts, and every day life -  as it has kept us extremely busy, allowing the weeks to rapidly fly by.  On the other hand, the schedule we are keeping is quite chaotic and somewhat overwhelming.  So, all of this, jumbled together, is generating a semblance of eagerness and anticipation for us to sort through as we count down the days.  Each time we talk to Teddy, he gives us his new location - hundreds of miles closer to his goal.  Closer to the finish line.  Closer to getting on the plane and flying home to us.  These welcomed calls bring strong feelings of restlessness, waves of impatience, bouts of anxiousness and always an abundance of pride.  All of these emotions, these feelings, these words... they all bring me to one word they have in common - ANTSY.

According to dictionary.com. ants·y [ant-see] unable to sit or stand still; fidgety


There you have it - the description of our physical and emotional state as we anticipate the arrival of the guy we call Scarecrow.  We cannot wait to see him - yes, even his grizzly face and skeletal body.  We cannot wait to hug him tight - yes, hiker funk and all.  We cannot wait to have him home, to hear his stories, to see his smile, and hear his voice.  Yes, we are ANTSY.  There is so much to look forward to in the next 26 days, all coming from the guy we call Scarecrow.

~The Thruhiker's Wife~