Hey,
Went to a state park today to test out some of our gear and train in the woods. Ordered some more stuff on Amazon and now I’m going to bed. God Bless everyone.
Testing out our gear.
Getting ready to go.
Hey Everyone (who sees this…),
Still in preparation mode. I have not stopped since this whole thing started, but still not giving up.
We have almost everything we need. I keep having to change our equipment list because of expense and weight. Most of us don’t realize how much something really weighs until we have to carry it for 4 to 12 hours a day.
I have lost track of the days so I can’t give you a complete rundown of all that has happened. I was trying but got sidetracked.
In the last week we went to McKay’s books to sell stuff twice, had two yard sales, went to Bass Pro shops twice, and went to Good Will three times. I am waiting till 6AM to set up another yard sale, I’m hoping we can sell a lot of stuff; with only a week and a half till we leave it’s getting down to the wire.
God Bless,
John
Had another divine appointment today. I went to a class at the VA. There I spoke to a man who “just happened” to be a Park Ranger! Spent an hour and a half discussing the ins and outs of trail and wild life. He gave me a class on Black Bears; he used to work with them on the West Coast. He sacrificed his time to make sure I knew what I needed to know to take my family up in to the mountains. He is an amazing man and I am blessed to have been given the opportunity to talk him.
Again, God is Awesome!
Hi,
When I set up the gofundme site I made a mistake with the authorization process. It should be fixed now. So if you want to donate to our trip please click here.
Almost there! God is still providing. Today. I have gotten four more Backpacks and some of the equipment needed for the trip. Again I checked Craigslist before going to bed and saw an old ad for two backpacks. They were selling for $65. I offered $50. The seller agreed and Viki and I went and got them. A huge duct tape covered box arrived by UPS. In it was 1 Tactical Tailor Rucksack (which I know saw the sands of Iraq), 1 Gunslinger pack, 2 water bladders, a jet boil stove, a solar battery charger, a snake bite kit, and a water filtration System. Still overwhelmed with God’s provisions and people’s giving. Check it Out!
Packs Bought
Packs Sent
Going to Bed. Planning for this trip is one of the hardest thing I have done in a long time. It is wearing me out, But I haven’t felt this good in a long time. I found out today that a friend of mine is going to send me some of his gear for our trip. I am overwhelmed with how things are coming together. It is amazing. Good night and God Bless.
Another amazing day. Last night when I was getting ready to go to bed I decided to check out Craigslist for Camping Gear. There was one camping post that had been posted twenty days ago. A woman was offering 3 tents, 5 sleeping bags, one Army cot, and 2 Army bed frames for $180. I decided to offer $100 since she had been waiting so long to sell them. When I got up this morning, she had sent me an email and accepted my offer. I can’t use it all, But I’ll use what I can. Three of the sleeping bags and two of the tents are usable for the trip. I picked them up today and the tents are airing out outside and the sleeping bags are going to be washed tonight. Sometimes the things God does seem too good to be true! God is Grrrrrreaaattt!!!
The Tents
The Sleeping Bags
The Cots
Got our guides for the southern part of the Appalachian Trail. Dehydrating bananas and pineapple tonight. Was very hard not eating them while cutting them. God Bless!
Appalachian Trail Guides: First Leg!
Another long day. Viki sat outside and sold stuff all day at the yard sale. I went to my appointment at the VA and worked on some trail planning. T
Today I sold my Mossberg 835 Ulti-Mag. Still trying to get it done. Well the guy at the Gun store just happened to be an Appalachian Trail Hiker. Talked to him about it for a half an hour or so. I hope everyone had a good day. God just keeps confirming that this is what he wants us to do…
Mossberg 835 Sold!
Still going. Been a Busy day preparing for the trip. Made my first batch of Trail Jerky last night in the new dehydrator. Making our own dehydrated foods will save a ton of money!
A Picture should be in the post.
Viki had a yard sale with lots of the stuff we had in storage. She’s a crazy woman. She loves selling stuff that is worth money for a dollar. But she sat out there all day today and I love her so I can’t complain.
Bought 5 of the 6 trail shoes and bought four of the 6 Packs we will need. 6 Because we are going to take a friend of mine (He is going to be our pack mule…).
I’ll put a pic of those too.
And last but not least, We sold our old van today. Hated to see it go, but the the guy who bought it is going to turn it into a 4X4. Going to be Awesome!
Pictures in this post are: First Jerky Batch, Shoes on table with packs in the background, and the van on a trailer ready to leave.
I am going to try and update as I go. I don’t really know how posting and updates work here…
Johnny & Viki 