Mountains Under Foot

About Trail Names:

A trail name is a nickname that a hiker uses on the trail. It both reflects one’s inner self and is our alter ego; like Superman to Clark Kent or Spiderman to Peter Parker.

Tradition says that you have to earn your trail name out on the trail and that you cannot name yourself. It is said that trail names “arise out of actions, events, or observed characteristics of the hiker himself and reflect how he is seen or experienced by others.” We have both earned our trail names from years of backpacking and being outdoors.

• Spoon

Madison Driver’s trail name is “Spoon”. It was earned during a hike on the Appalachian Trail when, at Thomas Knob Shelter near the Grayson Highlands State Park in Southern Virginia, he lost his spoon. Hikers generally carry only one eating utensil because they have no need for the extra weight made by forks and knives. When a hiker loses his spoon, he has lost his way of eating meals. Instead of going hungry, Madison decided to face this challenge and, while dinner was cooking, he cut down a tree branch and carved a spoon from it before dinner was ready. The thru-hikers spending the night at the shelter started calling Madison “Spoon” because they didn’t know his name right off, and the name stuck.

• Hazard

Fred Gunther’s trail name is “Hazard.” Fred has always been kind of clumsy, and he winds up with random cuts and bruises all the time. He is the sort that jumps the stairs instead of walking down them. This has naturally led to an assortment of tents collapsing and things breaking around him. The name originated during a trip to Lynville Gorge in North Carolina. Our group was on the wrong path and had wandered into a section that had caught fire during a thunderstorm. We hiked along cliff faces and through narrow passes and never seemed to make progress. On a narrow footpath next to a cliff, Fred attempted to squeeze through two small trees. Not surprisingly, the tree nearest the woods pulled out of the ground and the cliff side tree broke under his weight, causing him to fall at least 20 feet onto the rocks below. Everyone rushed down to him but the only thing that was damaged from the fall were his new pants, which had been ripped by the jagged tree stump he was responsible for creating just before the fall. He was then declared a “Hazard” to himself and everyone around him. And thus, the name became his trail name.

We have received a ton of comments (which we love) on MUF and with the little extra time we have here in Damascus, VA we will try to address some of them…

• Our Hats:

Spoon writes: We have been fielding many questions about our hats. Well, this is about just that. The first hat received was my Morfelt 100% pure wool Derby/Bowler hat. I had long wanted one and I received the hat as a gift from someone that I had dated for a long time. It was slightly too small for my head, so I rarely wore it, but over time it was shaped in and it eventually fit. I started wearing it more when I worked outdoors helping troubled children by backpacking with them and teaching them primitive survival skills. It became my camping hat. The next hat (Hazard’s) came about mostly from peer pressure. Basically, I had wanted Hazard to get a hat before our thru-hike; the only question was which kind. After much deliberation (and nixing from Cat) he chose a Bailey 100% wool Porkpie. It seemed to match his personality and complimented my derby, both being 19th century era wool hats.

Now that our hats have been rained on quite a bit their original shapes have taken on a slightly different form. The Derby has faired pretty well, but the Porkpie is worse for wear; the crown is no longer flat or indented and the brim has wobbled. We wear them for several reasons; first and foremost, they are memorable and stylish! They also tend to make us look warmer and friendlier, which consequently gets us a ride faster when hitchhiking. It also keeps the sun out of our eyes, our heads warm/cool and the ticks off. They also make the rain more tolerable, keep the sweat out of our eyes, and help people recognize us. Basically, any reason you can think about why we would wear the hats is correct.

• Our Feet:

Hazard writes: We both have had a rough time with our feet out here which is to be expected. Early on, soreness and bruising were the biggest threats to our comfort. However, when it rains and our boots get wet things get nasty and fast. We each had blisters on our pinkie toe but Spoon’s was a lot worse. Things have since healed up nicely and our feet are harder and tougher one month in to our hike. With the help of after-market insoles and better weather we hope our feet will remain intact. ‘Zero’ days, of course, help immensely.

• To poster Badams:

Big Bald is exactly what you are thinking about. I think it would be amazing to have owned land out here and have the AT run through it. I will, most certainly, need to hear the hermit story when I get back!

• Refriedreezedried beans:

Call them what you want, that hippie stuff really rocks!

• What are you guys eating?:

We eat just about the same thing every night: a Knorr (Lipton) pasta or rice side, a pack of Ramen noodles (for extra carbs) and a meat of some kind; either pepperoni, chicken, or fish from those foil packages. Everything ends up tasting the same out here no matter what flavor it is and the addition of Mrs. Dash can only help so much. Lunches and breakfast have a bit more flair. Lunch is usually peanut butter and crackers, or tuna on crackers followed up with a candy bar. A Snickers bar pretty much supplements all of our meals out here because we need the extra calories. Breakfast is a feast of Pop-tarts, dry cereal, granola bars, etc. We try to get as much food intake at breakfast as possible. The best decision we made regarding food was to get rid of hot or “wet” breakfast which consisted of oatmeal because we a.) wasted fuel b.) wasted time c.) it didn’t fill us up enough.

We will try to continue to answer more of your questions and comments along the trail. Keep them coming!

-Hazard & Spoon