ANDOVER – So many things to say, and I’m going to start by introducing myself. My name is Mojo. Well, that is my trail name. I’m not sure where it came from. I don’t drink coffee, and I am a slow walker. A hiker said , maybe I give energy to people. That’s nice. All I know is that in the morning I have my ‘mojo on’ and move fast. But, once I hit a hill, I go to ‘granny gear’ and I am very slow. One night, I came in and ended up putting my tent up in the dark. I had walked over 10 hours with few breaks so my mojo was pretty slow. So your guess is as good as mine on my name. 

At mile 31, there is a tree where people throw their shoes as a sign of ‘ I’ve had enough’. It is the end of the first tough day and for some the end of their trek. 

Views of the Blue Mountains are beautiful . The blue mountains are really bluish. Not sure how. The landscape is still winter dead, and lots of trees are down from a hurricane that hit a few years ago. 

One day, on top of a mountain, I met an 83 year old Cherokee woman walking in flip flops because she had a ‘bad toe’.  She was foraging for early Spring greens. I learned a bit about mountain foods at that encounter.

Without my glasses on, I see bears, elk and even a kangaroo in the old dead stumps of trees or rocks.  Am I hallucinating from walking alone for hours at a time? Whatever it is, I love the use of my imagination. 

I hit 70 miles on my 70th year, I took a picture with my walking buds – Butterfly and Princess Leah. Here is a picture of me at 100 miles on top of a mountain. 

My natural gait, on a ‘groomed trail’ is a ‘walk in the woods’. I don’t have to think of my feet tripping or rolling. When I have to lift my leg 12-15” to get over a rock or log, then I have a bit of an issue. Lifting my body weight and my 30+ pound backpack up to get over a rock or walking on rocks changes my gait, and I have to pay attention to my feet instead of the bird sound or views or conversations in my head. Also, when the trail is four boot width apart with the side of the mountain steeply sloping down, I’m paying attention to my feet walking along. 

At night, some hikers use earplugs to block out the ‘night chatter’. I love listening to the screech owls, wind and other sounds that ‘go bump in the night’.

Slow down and enjoy this life- you only have one life to live. Take one step at a time and one bite at a time. Even when things are mostly negative, focus on the one positive, life is better!

Today is the present, let it be pleasant.