September 12, 2016
“Hiker Friends, we need a hiker friend, to pick us up at this trailhead and take us to town.”
That’s my new thought when I have to hitch a ride into town for resupply. I accept that most of the drivers passing us by don’t know anything about the Long Trail and why backpackers would be hitching a ride. I pass by all the self-hating things they could be thinking about me. They are not who I am signalling with my thumb.
I’m signalling one of the Hiker Friends, who know that long distance hikers need a ride into town every few days.
And here they are! A car pulls over. The driver hops out and coaxes the dog to the back, puts up the back seat. His wife smooths a cover over the seat, apologizing for the dog hair. Our backpacks go quickly into the back stowage and we’re off.
“I hiked the Long Trail a few years ago,” he says. Yep. He gets us! He’s our Hiker Friend. Waterbury, here we come!
In joy,
Regina