Episode #100 - Ken Hall (Lighterknot)

Mighty Blue On The Appalachian Trail: The Ultimate Mid-Life Crisis

Steve Adams

Sports, Wilderness

4.8 • 599 Ratings

🗓️ 16 August 2018

⏱️ 88 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

For our 100th episode and, indeed, for our 101st, I have two friends with whom I finished the trail. Next week, it will be Pat Coate, or Tee Bird. This week, Ken Hall, or Lighterknot, joins us to tell us how the Class of 2014 affected him. We have a wide-ranging and definitely nostalgic chat about the time we spent together.

In the interview, our laughter was incessant and proved how easily we picked up with one another again. Ken was supported on his 2014 journey by his wife, Deb, who was there at Springer to see him off.

He is a man of faith, and his prayer at the end is burned into my mind, yet this is the first time I've seen the picture that was taken. That picture is placed at the end of these notes. If you'd like to read more about Ken's journey, here is a link to his blog. https://lighterknot.wordpress.com/

We also had three more interviews from the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in Denver recently. I met:

James Peet of Simple Shower - https://www.simple-shower.com/. If you click on the link to his website you'll see a really good video that shows you what this simple device is like and what it can do.

Ethan Devine of Solarcamp - https://www.solarcamp-usa.com/. The solar charger that Ethan talks about is the Solympic-Hue.

Andy Birutis of Alchemi Labs - https://www.alchemilabs.com/ told us about his reflective hats that reflect 80% of the sun's heatwaves. I liked the River Hat. Could my shirt really be any more pink??

Chrissy Funk returned to the show with If I Did It Again. Her sometimes almost-harrowing videos displayed the emotion she has for the AT and she resolved to get back to it someday and told us the changes she would make.

We hope that you take the opportunity to support our sponsor, Trailtopia, when you consider your next backpacking trip. Go to https://www.trailtopia.com/ to check out their wide variety of meals.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	You are listening to the Hiking Radio Network, where we talk the walk with shows by hikers,
0:05.4	about hikers, for everybody. Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis, joined Stephen his guests every week as he staggers from Georgia to Maine.
0:33.6	Hello and welcome to the 100th episode of Mighty Blue on the Appalachian Trail, the ultimate midlife crisis sponsored by Trialopia Adventure Foods.
0:43.6	Actually, several people thought I was having yet another midlife crisis when I went to hike the Appalachian Trail in 2014.
0:49.9	And even more wondered that when I told my friends that I was going to do a podcast.
0:54.0	They may have been right. This may have initially been a bit of a vanity project.
0:58.0	To be honest, I can't quite remember my motivation for doing the show, but I can tell you that I know precisely what it's for now.
1:05.2	It took me a while to understand what was happening, but my inbox kept getting emails from listeners telling me how inspired they
1:11.1	were from many of my guests so i know why this show and i know why this time the mighty blue show gives
1:17.8	hope comfort recognition and even strength to regular people who once thought that they could never
1:23.8	ever hike the appellation or other long-distance trails.
1:28.3	I think I led the way.
1:29.8	After all, people reasoned, if this fat Ove can do it, I should be able to give it a shot.
1:34.6	Then they heard stirring stories from my guests of danger, faith, injuries, laughter, tears
1:41.5	and even breakdowns on the trail.
1:44.4	They heard about trail magic and the almost indescribable joy of finding a cooler left near a road crossing.
1:51.9	Somebody has gone out of their way to drive to the road,
1:55.1	lug a cooler full of power aid and snickers, several yards up the trail,
1:59.3	for the simple reason that the bloke who has done the lugging
2:02.6	just wants the hikers to have a joyous moment. Where else in, as Dixie calls it, the synthetic
2:09.1	life, does that happen? Then they heard me talking about and asking my guests for their
2:14.2	impressions when they finally touched that almost mystical brown sign at the
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Steve Adams, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Steve Adams and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.