National Hiking Day?

“Look we have National Trails Day so now we need National Hiking Day.I think it would be a good idea.What do you all think?”

“Sounds like a good plan!

Sign me up”

“As long as I can get a day off work to go.”

“What month should it be in?”

“january? then we have the trails to ourselves!”

“March sounds good.I think the 18 of march.How does that sound?Oh ya thats also my birthday....:P”

“What about National Trail Talk Day?


.....................Naw, That's pretty much everyday.”

“That it is.....:)”

“Real hikers hike on a trail on Christmas Day! Most of them do not have to work that day, so there is no excuse for not getting out there after the gifts are unwrapped. And it is a perfect day for checking out that new gear!”

“Thats a very good point but not everyone will agree with that.”

“Of course, Mike, not everyone is a real hiker!”

“Ha ha ha very funny I will have you know I did go hiking on christmas day thank you very much!”

“One other thing I have gone backpacking 8 weekends in a row.....:P”

“Even real hikers have family obligations.”

“Good point Skully!!!!!


Right back at ya!”

“You go man...I nominate Its Crazy Mike, for Hiker of the first Quarter...can he keep up this grueling pace to hike and pacback every weekend??? Only time will tell. It is a quest to shirk all other responsibilities and duties, it is his appointed duty, from God, to be a forest bum.

Dear God, give, It's Crazy Mike the strength to see you will done, protect him, guide him, and keep his back strong, his will focused and his stamina unending. God, take him into your holy woods and keep the creepy crawly and viscious creatures, (even though they are your creatures) from impeeding his progress into and then back out of the dark places on the earth...Thank you God...Amen. Oh yeah...PS God, make him write great trip reports, and if he doesn;t, let him get chiggers...thanks God.”

“You rock Stikmon!!!!!!!


My goal this year is 60 bag nights!”

“I was really just trying to suggest that Christmas Day could double as National Hiking Day. Most people do not have to work that day. If some other day is declared to be National Hiking Day, it unlikely that many employers will let their employees have that day off.

One important family obligation, especially if you are the breadwinner, is to try to keep yourself in shape. What family would try to keep a person from trying to maintain or improve his or her physical condition?

I did say, "after the gifts are unwrapped." Or, in other words, in most (not all) cases, it is possible to discuss a schedule with the family that will permit time for some hiking. Since it can provide some health benefits, many family members probably will encourage it and some may want to join.

Before this last Christmas I announced my intentions to go hiking that day to all the family members. I had to turn down several invitations. My real objective, in adition to the physical exertion, was to avoid exposure to all the food and sweets which I would not resist. I need big meals and sweets like a hole in the head. Everyone was understanding. We did have celebrations, and it was a great Christmas Season. Christmas Day is only a part of the Season!

"Real hikers hike on a trail on Christmas Day." was said with tongue-in-cheek. I do throw out a little humour, occasional. LOL”

“Ok I get it....:)”

“Lets vote on the day. I say March 18.What does everyone else think?”

“I Can't get out on holidays. How about Feb 23?”

“Crazy Mike has a loooong way to go before he catches up with Snow Nymph - I forget how many weekends in a row she did but I think it was almost a whole year.”

“I vote for Dec. 25th.

I now plan to hike every year on Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas Days. They are great days for hiking and for diet control. (Those are the only holidays that the store is closed, so I know that I can play excursions then.)”

“nowslimmer, don't try hiking on Thanksgiving Day in the Northwoods unless you are clad in blaze orange togs -- it's already Deer Hunting Day for those who couldn't take their vacation during the rest of the gun season.

I like the idea of Christmas hikes; New Year's Day would be good, too. I have backpacked on the 4th of July -- weren't as many folks on the trails as you might think, though that was a number of years back up in the Porkies.”

“pekka - What do you define as the Northwoods?

I grew up on the south side of Chicago. To me the Northwoods always meant northern Wisconsin and Minnnesota. All a kid had to do was mention the Northwoods and he would get everyone's attention. It was captivating. (I went to college in Appleton, WI. and later lived in MN.for about 10 yrs.)

If you are still in Wisc., you may have similar feelings.”

“Before we pick a date, shouldn't we call HalMark and see which one is available????”

“oops,,,,,,that is HallMark”

“Wouldn't otherwise be redundant?
/o%”

“I lived in the Northwoods. 25 miles west of Duluth to be exact.”

“In Wisconsin, the de facto border is Highway 29 that crosses from Green Bay to Chippewa Falls/Eau Claire by way of Wausau. I live in Rhinelander, which is 52 miles north of Wausau, and we kind of think of that zone between 29 and U.S. 8 as a transitional buffer between the farm country and the forest. Of course, I lived in Marquette in the U.P. for 16 years before coming south, and that was after spending time in mid/northern L.P. of Mich., all prime deer hunting zones (and much of it traversed by the North Country Trail, come to think of it).

While folks from Chicago think that going to the Dells is going Up North, I suppose folks in Alabama think of Tennessee as Up North, too.

Perhaps one measure would be, if Canadians don't sound funny to you when they talk, you know you are from the Northwoods.”

“Bacpac has just declared this National Get Your Lazy Asses Back To Work Day.”

“Pekka, I don't think folks in Alabama feel that Tennessee is "up north",,,,,but I am sure that we don't feel that moving from the U.P. to Rhinelander is "coming south". :)”

“chili: How about Kentucky? Or do you have to cross the Ohio River? I find these types of perceptions interesting. Could I presume that Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia have any identity divides between those who live in the northern portions of those states and those who live in the southern parts? That divide seems pretty clear in Minnesota, Michigan and Wisconsin, politically and culturally, as well as geographically. That may be why I am more likely to identify my location simply as the Northwoods rather than say Wisconsin. Different lifestyle here than in Milwaukee, that's for sure, as with the U.P. and Detroit, or Bemidji, or even Duluth, and the Twin Cities.

Yeah, I know it's all relative and steeped in historical thinking. I find the notion of The Midwest to be particularly odd anymore, finding more sense in terms such as The Great Lakes Basin for the states bordering, or even the Upper Great Lakes Region for those of us in northern MN, WI, MI and our neighbors in ON.”

“No offense meant pekka. I am from the Gulf Coast of Alabama (originally) and we commonly refer to it as LA (Lower Alabama).

However, my definition of coming "south" is to arrive at a place where grits is a staple on every breakfast menu.”

“Gunman Says Sound of New Jersey Made Him Snap
Thu Feb 14, 7:24 AM ET

GALVESTON, Texas (Reuters) - A Texas jury on Wednesday found Thomas Mitchell guilty of aggravated assault for
shooting his girlfriend because he thought she was about to say the words "New Jersey."

His attorney unsuccessfully sought his exoneration on grounds that certain words set off an uncontrollable rage in Mitchell,
who has a history of mental illness.

Words that triggered a bad reaction in Mitchell included "New Jersey," "Wisconsin," "Snickers" and "Mars," lawyer Maria
Mercado told the court.

Throughout the three-day trial, Mitchell, 54, covered his ears when he thought the words were going to be spoken.

Witnesses used flashcards with the words written out instead of saying them in court.

"When he has one of these episodes, he isn't focused," lawyer Mercado said.

Prosecutors contended that Mitchell was troubled, but not crazy.

He was convicted for shooting girlfriend Barbara Jenkins three times on March 19, 1999, when he believed she was about
to utter the phrase "New Jersey." She survived the attack, but died from unrelated causes just before the trial.

In a statement, Mitchell told police: "I had seen that word at my mom's house and then Barbara said what she said (and) I
just snapped."”

“chili: Believe me, no offense taken. And I like grits. Not to mention a visit to the Gulf Coast of 'Bama would be very agreeable about now (got any good shrimp joints you could recommend?) Do you do any beach walking? That's a fine form of hiking in my book.

BTW, aren't you glad "Alabama" doesn't make the list of "killer" words (at least not until football season for some folks, LOL)?”

“Bahama Bob's in Gulf Shores
Nautilus in Daphne
Buccaneer in Orange Beach

You won't go wrong in any of those.

And the Texas case is a prime example of what defense lawyers refer to as the "Twinkie" Defense. Patterned after the defense several years ago where the defendant claimed he killed because of all the chemicals contained in twinkies, which he had consumed daily for a number of years.

It is also known as "if you sling enough sh!t through the fan, some of it might stick to the wall" defense.”

“Don't forget; the summer solstice(sp?) is National Nude Hiking Day. :)”

“It should be celebrated on May 11th, like this !”

“I LIKE TO SEE NUDE GIRLS HIKING.....:)”

“Well I think the day should be March 18.....:)”