2015 Recap | eric

The 2015 Walk

The 2015 Walk took place the week of May 16th to 22nd.

The following is a synopsis of how things went:

Day 1: The walk commenced at 5:40 am at the Adonai Lodge #718 in Highland, NY. There was a flash of lightning and a boom of thunder and I was off. The rain lasted an hour and a half and I was soaked. I walked a total of 36 miles and made it to Platt Cove Rd. in Tannersville, NY. I spent that night sleeping on a rock and was too tired to do anything other than crawl into my sleepingbag. And of course, it rained that night.
Day 2: I reached Camp Trimount in East Jewett at 10:30 am, refilled my water bottles, and continued on my way through the Catskills of Greene County. I made it as far as East Durham that evening after 31 miles and unrolled my sleeping bag in the woods next to a cemetary.
Day 3: Sunny & hot! I did a total of 30 miles and spent the night at the Cyprus Shrine Center in Glenmont, NY. A college friend met me and brought me ice cream, sunscreen and aloe vera gel for my sunburned legs. I was set to spend the night outside but a fellow Noble opened the Shrine Center for me and l was able to be indoors. It rained that night and I was grateful.
Day 4: Another sunny & hot one. I headed east, crossed the Hudson and reached New Lebanon, NY where I spent the night in a UHaul trailer. There was a severe thunderstorm that night and I was glad to be under cover. Along the way to New Lebanon I stopped at a Stewarts to use the bathroom and freshen up and when I came back out, there was a dollar on my stroller. Someone thought I was homeless. The dollar went to the kids. I also got a flat on my stroller near the end of the day which made it pull to the left for the rest of the Walk.
Day 5: I enetered Hancock, MA that morning and proceeded to walk to Beckett, MA where I was to spend the night with friends. My directions had me take a wrong turn with 3 miles to go that day (my friends road doesn't come up on Google) which resulted in a 5 hour, 9 mile detour. My friends managed to find me at 6:45 pm and brought me to their house for a warm shower, a hot dinner and a comfortable bed.
Day 6: The day started with a 4 mile uphill leg and then it was downhill after that. I had an easy day walking only 20 miles to Russell, MA where I spent the night by the Russell Cemetary hiding behind the vault.
Day 7: An early start (3:56 am) as I was awakened by rain hitting me in the face. I staggered to a nearby gas station, got some coffee, and waited for the sun to come up. I reached the Shriners Hospital for Children in Springfield at 11:50 am completing the Walk. I had a nice lunch in the cafeteria and met with the hospitals PR person who gave me a ride to my hotel. My wife arrived later that evening.
In total, the 2015 Walk took 7 days and I covered 198 miles.