Gone Fishin'

Here I go again, leavin' for a while on a trip. My group leaves tomorrow for a 14 day backpack trip. We will be hiking over 40 miles in the Uwharrie National Forest in southern North Carolina. I'm supposed to be packing right now, but I'm having a little trouble staying on task. That's o.k., it's only 12:42 a.m., and I have to get up at 6:00 tomorrow. I can sleep on the van ride though.

A backpack trip is a brilliant way to test a young man. He is faced with the daunting task of propelling two weeks of food, shelter, clothing, water, eating and cooking gear, etc. on his back; walking on his too tender feet over rock, dirt, water, grass, root, incline, decline, crevice, cliff, and crack. Reared in the city, he suddenly finds himself in the middle of the wilderness, fending for himself. It is a struggle of the will, a strain on the mind, a punishment to the body. At the end of the trail is more than just a van ride home. It is victory. It is pride. It is strength and confidence. A new young man emerges from his chrysalis to face life with new eyes.

I also get to play with fire the whole time.

No one ever forgets a backpack trip.