ATTITUDE

A Walk in the Park

In the past 5 years I put on an average of 10 lbs a year. Stress in high workloads. Not to mention my love of good food.

Win the battle before the war.

I love walking the beach. And there’s TONS of them around here. So I decided to park my car at one end of Tybee and walk to the other.…..on the beach…. barefoot….

I decided to carry a Camelback with 25 #’s of sand. I didn’t know it was 25 lbs until I got home and weighed it.

I’ve had this Camelback forever. The bladder is long gone…replaced 3 or 4 times. This thing has traveled the globe with me and never disappointed.

Lucky for me it was low tide and coming in. Tybee is gorgeous today. 78° and a light wind. I walked along the North River, by the Tennis Club.

Pelicans, and Plovers and North American Oyster Catchers, lay carnage to the land locked Horse Shoe Crabs.

I walked the hard-packed sand closer to the water. The soft sand is treacherously hot. Its also more difficult to walk in as you lose traction. The water is beautiful and the beach is gorgeous.

Along the way I called home and checked in. Grabbed a few sea shells. Snapped a few pictures and walked in the shallow salt water.

6 miles later I was at the boat ramp over by AJs. My goal was AJs Dockside. For this to be a true feat, I had to walk back.….in FlipFlops. MAHI OUTFITTERS FlipFlops with a 40# bag of sand on my back…

Yes….after 6miles it got WAY heavier lol.

There were moments I thought I wouldn‘t physically make it. I’m an old goat in my mid &@‘s. ;) I stopped and stretched frequently. But never sat down….because that would be easy.

I stopped and clutched my knees a few times helping to stretch my back. Take some weight off my legs.

I stopped into that minimart by the Chamaco’s Tacos. Grabbed a coke and a Kind bar.

After that every mile was a struggle. It was hot, I was exposed. Little shade along Rt. 80.

I crossed 80 and took a wrong turn. Ended up by the Tybee Police Station. (*Nice* place by the way.)

I realized where I was and got back on track.

As I entered the shady canopy of the road passing River’s Edge Campground, I stopped to catch my breath. A man asked if I was ok. And said….”you just walking to walk.” To which I said, yes.

That was at about the 10 mile mark.

As I walked that last .68 miles I thought to myself, I could have quit a while back and called a Breezy Cab. Or dumped the sand out of the Camelback. Asked for a ride from a passing golf cart. I walked 10.68 miles, never sitting down, with a 25lb bag of sand on my back? If this was a physical test, I passed it back at AJs. That was my goal.

I didn’t stop because way back when I was a kid and we hiked and camped, we couldn’t just sit down. we were fighting daylight. We couldn’t empty our packs, we had food and dry clothing. Cooking tools and fuel. Canteens and salt pills. Hatchets and rope. Tents and sleeping bags. When you‘re at your physical limit, it turns into an Attitude challenge. How strong is your mental attitude? Your legs say they can’t keep going. Your brain says shut up and do what I tell ya. Or you’re gonna sit here like an idiot all day. After the full 10.68mi that pack was 100lbs.

Its a bit poetic. The physical challenge of carrying a pack and the mental challenge of ignoring it. I’m a big advocate for mental health. And there’s definitely a correlation between the physical and the mental carrying of a burden.

How many of us, knowingly or not, carry that back pack? In todays day and age everyone calls it baggage. Im not a fan of that term. I’d prefer someone say, he’s got strong legs, or she’s got strong legs. For some reason people emphasize the burden on the person. Not the strength they gained to carry it. And it’s more like we’re pushing it. And trying not to show it.

No one seems to question the tide. The tide has extreme highs and extreme lows every day. And we still find joy in it. People are no different than the tides on the beach. When it’s low, it pulls away from people. When it’s high, there’s surfing and fishing.

I got to my car and celebrated with air conditioning. Reclined the seats and let my body be still for a couple minutes. I wasn’t even hungry for some reason.

Whats the next hike?

I‘m making a list. And I’m bringing my bag of sand too.

So here’s the start of my list:

Jekyll Island - start from the south end finish on the north.

Hilton Head…start on the South end and walk north as far as I can.