Brett Bramble Walks

I started the day in downtown Winchester, Virginia. I ate well and slept well and was ready for a long day of walking. I knew that the West Virginia state line was 22 miles away and I wanted to make it there. My friend was set to pick me up at the end of the day so I didn’t need to push Jenny and Domino stayed with him and got taken great care of by Groomingtails in Winchester. This was the first day that I got to walk completely by myself. I carried a small backpack full of the essentials and that’s it. I got an early start and took off for the hills! …literally.

Winchester is a beautiful town. It was founded in the 1700s and wasn’t damaged much by the civil war because it was a location that changed hands many times between the north and the south. 71 times in fact. There are some beautiful old buildings. As you leave, it becomes country very quickly. Lots of big farms with houses on the hills. A stunning view of the mountains ahead. Daunting if you are traveling by foot.

Spring is beginning and some trees are blooming. Every now and then you get a burst of color. I was walking at a good pace and some of the people would wave at me and wish me luck on my travels. People must actually read the paper in this town. The local newspaper covered a story on me that was in print this morning. It was nice to have people know about it beforehand so that I wasn’t so much of a shock to people.

I took a small side road to cut over from one major highway to the next. I knew that the other highway had a better shoulder to walk on from looking at googlemaps. This small road started off a little sketchy. I saw a lot of empty beer cans and empty water bottles full of tobacco spit on the side of the road. Every other car was a muscle car or a big truck that looked as if they had to rebuild the engine every morning just to get it started. There were a lot of beards, big dogs, and yards full of junk. I realized that I forgot my knife and I was a little worried about that at the time. Luckily, it got a little nicer as I pushed on through with no problems.

I found a golf ball on the side of the road. You would have thought that I found a million dollars worth of gold! I was so excited haha. This was the best entertainment I’ve had all day. I couldn’t believe how excited I got about the golf ball. I walked and bounced it for a few hours. I didn’t care how much energy I was wasting by chasing the golf ball around. It was worth it.

I met many friendly people again today. People pulling over just to see if I was ok. It’s so nice to have that happen. I hope that if I wasn’t ok that someone would come by and be able to help.

The most amazing thing happened. I must’ve walked at least 30 minutes without seeing a car! That was a first for this whole quest. It was so nice to walk in silence and be able to think for the first time.

After about 18 miles I was at my 3rd stop of the day and about 4 miles from the state line that I was trying to get to. It was all up hill from there. The last mile being very steep. I put on my headphones and played Dungeon Family radio on Pandora. I miss Atlanta and wanted a taste of home. The music was so perfect!

As I was on the last leg of the very steep hill to get the the top, a song that Brittany and I used to listen to came on. “Die Tryin'” by Cee-Lo Green. The chorus says, “see there’s no way and there’s no how/ I’d ever stop now/ imma die tryin/ imma die tryin/ sometimes I get weak from walking the road I’m on/ but imma keep on/ imma die trying/ imma die trying…. it was perfect.

I get to the top! I cross the state line! Just before I arrived I turned off the music so that I could have the moment to myself. I ran up to the sign and high fived it and took a few pictures. I even gave it a kiss before walking on.. I put my music back on and my 2nd favorite song of all time came on. “Chonkyfire” by Outkast. I always say that if I was a pro baseball player that would be my walk up song every time I came to the plate. I had my own bad ass moment as I continued on. When I got to the state line I noticed that I was on the top of the mountain and saw a sign that said that the next 4 miles are downhill. I was so happy that I figured I’d just go ahead and do that.

So I did. I just kept on going.

I finally had enough and was picked up and taken back to Winchester for a shower and a bed. Stopped by Chipotle on the way back. One of my favorite meals to pig out to.

Great day. Tomorrow won’t be as long but I’m going to try to go as far as I can again. Monday I am thinking of taking off as it is supposed to rain. Domino will take tomorrow off as well. I’ll get back out there on my own and so my best to make miles through these mountains. Once I get over them it will all be downhill until the Mississippi River.

I worked really hard today. I had a plan and took it seriously. I made sure to stop and eat and hydrate every 2 hours. I felt so good to accomplish a tough goal and go beyond. I can’t wait to cross the big mountain in a few days.

Gonna let these legs get some rest. Good night! Happy Easter!

So today was nuts! My friend John wanted to walk with me so we got a ride back to Berryville where I was picked up last night. A few people wanted to meet me while I was passing through there so I told them to come to me since it takes a lot longer for me to get to them…

A wonderful woman Lisa arrives first. She hands me a picture of her son standing in front of the sunset at the same place I camped just two nights before. Her son is not here with us today due to this epidemic. I will carry the picture all the way Lisa! We talked for a long time and a reporter from Fox in DC came out to do a story about the walk. He started filming and people in the small town in Berryville were starting to wonder what in the world was going on haha.

I said goodbye to Lisa and she gave me a bracelet to wear and John and I took off on foot. The reporter following along setting up his camera and breaking down his camera and driving ahead to get more shots. He was awesome and worked VERY hard on his piece. As we were walking, I noticed the reporter on top of a hill ahead and I could tell that the shot he was getting was incredible. Just then, another reporter from a local paper in Winchester pulls up and walks right into the shot. He didn’t know and he didn’t do anything wrong but I thought it was funny. It ended up working out. I went ahead and did a quick interview with him while seeking shelter from a few rain drops. The Fox reporter kept up for a couple of hours getting awesome shots. It was a lot of fun!

We did the interview while John and I took a break and then he took off to rush back to DC to put it all together before the 5 pm news. Very impressive I must say.

The rest of the walk was nice. It was windy again. Like 20 mph winds. That part was annoying but the sun was out and the temperature was nice so I couldn’t complain. It was so nice to walk without Jenny (my stroller full of supplies). I missed Domino but she needed a break and it was nice to walk with someone who talks back. Today was another easy day for me. With all of the media stuff I didn’t have time to get a lot of miles. I only did 12. But I will make it up the next 2 days.

The West Virginia state line is 22 miles from me and I am hoping to make it there at the minimum tomorrow. It’ll be the first time I will be by myself on this trip. Domino is going to get groomed by a wonderful place called Groomingtails in Winchester that heard about me and offered to give Domino some pampering as a contribution to the cause. How awesome is that!!

It will just be me and a small backpack. I’m curious to see how far I can go. The only challenge will be a lot of big hills as I am approaching the mountains in West Virginia. Wish me luck!

Woke up early this morning and was so happy that it wasn’t freezing and that my tent was dry. The last couple of times that I’ve camped it was miserable in the morning. I opened the tent to let Domino out and noticed the sun rising through the trees and decided to go ahead and wake up and start breaking my camp down so that I could take advantage of the crisp air and stunning view. I took my time with it and got everything packed up and ready to go..

I went indoors to meet up with the other hiker’s and we made breakfast until we couldn’t eat anymore and hung out. I had to say my goodbyes to the awesome couple that I met there and had to say goodbye to Erin for now. Her foot needs some medical attention and a few days off. She’ll catch up down the road I’m sure.

I got on the road and was not feeling it today. I just couldn’t get into the groove of walking. I hated the highway that I was on and people were being straight up assholes. I know that I am kind of weird for being there and shouldn’t really be there but it is in fact legal for me to walk along the side of this road and it is the driver’s responsibility to move over for the pedestrian. Some people think otherwise I guess..

I struggle through 9 miles and get to Berryville where my cousin’s grandmother lives and works. I met up with her and some wonderful women that work with her. They were so nice and we laughed and talked and took pictures and I was treated to lunch. Domino fell asleep on the couch and didn’t care about anything else haha. I knew then and there that I was ready to call it quits for the day.

I called my friend in Winchester VA and he was able to come pick me up and bring to his place where there is an extra bedroom that me and Domino can use for a few days. Tomorrow he’ll drop me off back in Berryville and I’ll continue the walk from the same place I stopped today. I can walk without Jenny and Domino will get to stay at his house all day and rest up (even though she’s just been riding in Jenny for the last 4 days lol.)

I was able to get some news interviews for the next couple of days. I have one tonight and 2 tomorrow. The word is getting out there!!!!

I hope that my body can take a good day tomorrow on the walk. I’d like to get some good miles in this weekend. But for now I am going to rest!!!!

So this was the best day so far.. maybe.. it’s all been so good that’s it hard to pick one..

I woke up early and took off on the beautiful paved trail that I’ve been enjoying for the last 2 days. This trail started in the city and then went through suburbs and I was now in the country. Absolutely gorgeous. I got to see a lot of wildlife and beautiful homes. People were nice to me and some even asked what I was doing and when I told them they commended me for what I am doing. That feels so good. Seriously. A total stranger telling me that I am doing something amazing means a lot to me. Especially when my legs are killing me and I’m trying to find motivation to keep going.

I think I finally am setting into a rhythm. I have figured that if I walk for 2 hours and then stop to eat and stretch and rest for 30 minutes or so that it works really well. I then go for another 2 hours and repeat…

I got to the end of the paved trail and I was bummed to see it end but happy to move on. The town that I was in was beautiful!  So were the people. I stopped at a convenient store for a hotdog and a mountain dew. Both of which I would never consume if I wasn’t on this walk… and people were welcoming me into town and a couple of nice women gave domino and I some money for food. I talked to them all about my cause and unfortunately I didn’t have to explain much because they are affected by it as well…

As things were going so well, I continue on and realize that I had picked a bad road to walk on. It was a two lane road with absolutely no shoulder and I had to walk on the road. People in cars were not being very nice about it. I don’t blame them but I still hate them. Some people thought that it was OK to swerve toward me as if to tell me that I shouldn’t be there. I knew that already but there wasn’t much that I could do about it. So most of them got a middle finger for good measure…

I finally made it through the death trap and onto a larger highway with a good shoulder and the caffine from the mountain dew was pushing me on and on..

I could see the mountains that I knew I had to climb up today and they looked really bad from afar. Luckily, walking up on the highway wasn’t that bad. The slope was manageable and I only had about 2 miles left from where the incline started to my destination for the night. I had pushed Domino for the last 3 days and she is getting better. I couldn’t push her up the mountain so I finally let her out to walk and she was happy and did just fine. With her being so low to the ground the hill didn’t phase her like it did me.

I get to the last turn and decide to take  a breather because the last half mile was directly uphill. While waiting, Erin swings around the corner. Always glad to see her. I knew we’d be meeting up as this was both of our destination for the night. We hang out for a few and prepare for the sharp incline. We get going and of course she kicks my butt up the hill. She waited for me so that we could roll into this place together though. We were both very excited. This place is a hiker hostel along the Appalachian Trail.

We get in and we are the only people that actually hiked in that day. There were a lot of people who drove up to camp on other campgrounds that the place runs in the hiker offseason.  We got very special treatment. Erin was able to stay inside on the bunk beds but I had to camp right outside because they don’t let pets sleep indoors. The weather is great tonight so I didn’t care. Domino is worth it anyways. The owner let Domino hang out inside all night inside until we went to bed though. We hung out with a a couple who was hiking a section of the Appalachian Trail and had a great time. We walked down to a special place and caught the sunset that really hit both Erin and I right in the feelings. It was if we had truly earned this beautiful view. The pictures don’t do it justice. The moment can’t be described in words. You have to be in our shoes to experience the feeling of accomplishment that took over us. Erin and I went in for a hug that had to be done. It was so nice to share that moment with someone who understood. It was only the first of many beautiful sunsets that we’ll see.

We went back and had dinner and conversation with new people and Domino played with the house dog. Life is good. I walk outside to go to sleep in my tent that I had already set up and I realize the moon is full!

The place, which only cost me $12, came with a shower and pancakes in the morning!  I also was able to do laundry. It’s simply amazing. I am really starting to love this walk. The good weather helps so much. 24 miles yesterday and 20 miles today. I’m hoping to get near 20 again tomorrow so that I can be in Winchester. Another big milestone of my walk.

I’m currently very proud of myself for getting this far in this amount of time. I hope I can keep it up while the weather is nice.

Good night everyone. Thank you all so much for reading this and making me feel good about what I’m doing 🙂

Today was great! My uncle made a good breakfast and dropped me off close to where he picked me up the night before. I knew that my whole day would be on the Washington & Old Dominion Trail that is an old railroad line that has been turned into a paved path. Domino needs to stay off of her paws for a few days so I put her in Jenny and we rolled on…

The trail was beautiful and so was the weather. Everyone I passed was kind and courteous and I was well fed and full of nutrients. I rolled on and on and occasionally stopped for breaks or to talk to people who were interested in the walk. 9 times out of 10 the people that I talk to about the overdose epidemic are affected in some way by drugs. Blows my mind..

We walked on and on and saw some great scenery and some wildlife. There was a groundhog which was pretty cool. I had no real destination today. Just walking as far as I could and then was going to find a place to camp. That freedom was amazing. I got about 16 miles in and started to think about where I should start to looking for a place to pitch a tent. While I was taking that break I get a text from Erin, the other hiker that’s walking across America saying that she ended up in a hotel room in Leesburg with an extra bed and that I was welcome to crash there if I could make it. It was another 10 miles away and it was 4 pm. I originally tried to politely refuse thinking that it was just a little too far for me. She wouldn’t let me say no. Told me to tough it out and get indoors for the night. So I did. Why not?!

It wasn’t as bad as I thought. I kept on walking and picked up the pace so that I would beat nightfall. I finally made it and was welcomed with snacks and the sound of the neighbors having adult fun. Very loudly… great start to a night after walking a marathon distance that day haha.

We had a great time chatting and getting to know each other. It’s so nice to have someone to relate to some of the stuff that I am going through that no one else truly understands. As it was getting late, we put the TV on and got ready to call it a night. Twister was on and we thought that it would be fitting since we will probably get caught in a tornado or two in Kansas lol. Sorry moms 😛

I was so glad that I was able to make the distance I made today. I thought that it would have taken me over 2 weeks to get to where I am now and I made it in 10 days.

I saw the mountains from a distance for the first time today. I have to cross them next. I am dreading the uphill battle ahead but excited to overcome it. Tomorrow could be a long day. I am trying to make it to a cool little hiking hostel that is right on the Appalachian trail. We’ll see if I can make it!

Good night 🙂

I had a case of the Monday’s today. After laying in bed all day yesterday my brain and/or my body didn’t want to work today. I left the hotel and went straight to the post office. I had to ship some stuff home so that Domino could fit inside of Jenny. This will allow me to let her walk some and rest some throughout the day. Rather than just pushing her too hard like I have been a little bit. So she’s good now. She likes the ride and people think it’s cute when they see us passing by.

We did a little sightseeing in DC. I have been a few times already in my life and have seen all of the main stuff. But I still wanted to at least see the white house while on the walk. It only makes sense. I kind of regretted it. It caused a lot of attention and while it was good to talk to everyone about the cause, it was holding us up and I just wanted to get over the river because there is a 45 mile long bike path that I have been really looking forward to.

It is a paved path with no cars. They have water stations and it’s well maintained. So I finally get there and put domino into Jenny and walk until mid afternoon. I love this trail! People are so nice and I don’t have to worry about being ran over by a car. My uncle lives nearby and I was planning on staying with him for the night.

I broke down Jenny and was able to fit everything into his car. We went to REI to get some supplies that I needed and then headed to his house for dinner and LAUNDRY!! Haha. I’ve been washing my socks and underwear in showers or sinks and it was so nice to do some real laundry and have all of my clothes clean. I had a great time hanging out with my uncle. It’s been a long time since we’ve caught up. It was nice to see some family too. I miss everyone back home already.

I am looking forward to tomorrow. I’m going to get an early start and I’ll be on the paved path all day. Weather is going to be warmer and sunny. A little windy but that’s all. Domino will be riding in Jenny most of the day.

Now for a good night’s sleep!!

Today I had no idea what I was going to do when I woke up. I looked up my route map that I have planned out to see how far I was from DC and realized that I was only about 12 miles. I looked up the weather and if I could hurry then I could make it before the rain came. I looked up a hotel room in the city and found a great deal on a nice hotel that is convenient to everything in DC. I figured that I’d rather be there since I am going to take tomorrow off. It is going to rain and snow tomorrow. So I packed up quickly and walked 12 miles in just under 4 hours. Only stopped once to eat and hydrate.

I went from bad neighborhoods to good neighborhoods that used to be bad neighborhoods until gentrification happened. There were some fun places that I walked through. As I got closer and closer into the city, the people became less and less engaging. I say hello to everyone that I walk past. I always have. It’s interesting to me to see who responds back. The fact that I look homeless while pushing Jenny makes things amusing. I was flying today so people didn’t have a long time to process what they were seeing as I passed them.

I got rained on a little bit but not enough to get wet. Just kept going. I finally made it and the guy who checked me in thought that what I was doing is great. He waived the $50 pet fee and hooked it up with a few other perks.

I sent some emails and voicemails to some news stations and hope to hear back so that I can get the word out there. A day off tomorrow is going to be great. I’m going to do laundry and hopefully I’ll be able to rearrange Jenny so that Domino will fit in her to get some breaks. I think I can figure something out.

Well I’m going to relax a little and may not post a blog tomorrow since I won’t be walking. Thank you all so much for keeping up with me while I do this. Let’s keep spreading the word!

I woke up this morning and had no idea that I was going to walk 18 miles. I was hoping to take a break from the walk and take it easy today. I looked up the weather and today was forecasted to be perfect and tomorrow and Sunday are going to be really bad. So I decided that I’d get some miles in and take advantage of the sunshine. While I was getting ready a very cool guy named Tim wanted to swing by and say hello. Tim has been clean and sober for 31 months. He came to me and brought some gift cards. Which was a great idea. Jenny is at full capacity so I take any more stuff with me. We talked and I related to a lot of what he said. It was a good start to my day to see such a good person. Someone who has worked hard as hell to better his life and can now appreciate it.

There wasn’t much that happened walk- wise today. There were a lot of hills. It has been the first time I’ve had to walk up and down hills since I started. The wind was also really powerful in the afternoon. Both of those things slowed me down a little. We were doing great for the first half of the day. The second half was rough. Every step hurt and Domino was struggling too. I had a hard time finding motivation but I still just kept on going.

I was found by one of the mothers with the TAM group. She drove a long way to meet me and to pay for my hotel tonight. She also threw in a prepaid gift card with a very generous amount of money on it. She had water for domino and I to refill our bottles with. We sat and talked and I really needed to hear the things she was saying to me. Tim brought up some good points this morning also. I think that I am starting to realize how important this walk is. For the first few days I haven’t been able to think much because of all of the chaos and I’ve been trying to adjust to this thru-hiker lifestyle.

This walk is starting to affect so many people. I had no idea that this would happen. People are sending me messages telling me that I am giving them motivation to stay sober. Do you know how big of a deal that is?! It makes me cry with joy. I also have been able to help with people who are grieving from the loss of a loved one. I remember how important that it was for me to find those people that helped me so much on the critical days. The fact that I am able to do that for someone else just fills my heart with happiness.

I am ready to take on this role and do what I can to play a part in bringing this epidemic to a tipping point. I am so glad that everyone of you is helping me as well as the Angels in the sky that are bringing us all together. People need to know that it is time to live in a society where we don’t judge people with substance abuse disorder and/or the people who have died from an overdose. Whether they were addicted or just trying it out. They are all people. They all have at least ONE person that loves them. I am going to keep this up and try to be as loud as I can. I will use this walk to get on the news all over the country and reach the hearts of America and try to get them to open up their minds to help people in recovery.

I had no idea how many metaphors this walk is to someone in recovery until I started. There is an end result. I have a goal. But it is a lonnnnng way away. The only way to get there is one day at a time. And the only way to get THERE is one step at a time…

You can do anything if you do it for the right reasons. That is what keeps me going. You all are making me and my family so happy by showing your support for me. I just want to say to all of you that if it wasn’t for Brittany that I wouldn’t be here. This is my way of keeping her story going.

There is a lot that I want to personally get out of this walk too. I am sure that I will get that. I already feel like a better person. Inside and out. It’s been such a wild journey already and it hasn’t even been a week yet. I tear up when I think of how many people this will touch by the time it’s over.

Thank you all so much for helping. I will need you all to get me through this. I hope I can do the same for you in return. Let’s make this thing special!! Somewhere, someone’s life will be saved from this. Someone will be inspired to do something that betters their happiness. Someone will stop using.

Have a good weekend!

So I wake up at 3ish in the morning and I keep hearing little sounds all around me. Domino isn’t bothered so it’s probably ok. I keep telling myself that anyways, as I try to go back to sleep. It sounds like the trees were trying to wake up. Like they were stretching and getting ready for a day of standing all day. I guess I nod back off because I wake up a little later and it’s starting to get light out. I notice that everything is wet. The sounds I heard were drops of water coming off the trees because of the very thick fog that I was enveloped in. I laugh at myself for thinking that it was the trees.

It takes me way too long to pack up and get moving. It’s hard to get motivated when every step you take is in the mud and every thing you touch is wet. I finally did it though. I put on my green leprechaun hat and green shoes and a green sweatshirt. I also put on a green tshirt that was given to me by a mother who lost her son last month. The shirt has her son, Kevin, printed on it. I was very honored to wear it. I was excited because I wanted to surprise her and the rest of Kevin’s loved ones that I was going to be walking for him today. Little did I know that it would just happen to turn out to be my lucky day!!

Before I get into that I HAVE to throw this in.. as I was walking out of the woods.. with a stroller.. and a silly green hat on.. and across a bumpy field.. and then onto the highway.. there were 4 construction workers just standing there staring the whole time. I don’t blame them. I laughed in my head at myself and walked on up to them. I had to go by them to get to my route. When I was close enough I shouted, “not something you see everyday!” The ringleader chuckled and the rest followed suit. I offered them an explanation saying that I’m walking across America and we camped out down there last night. The ringleader gave me a thumbs up and a “good luck!”

Very shortly after that I THINK I saw a bald eagle. I’m about 80% sure it was. I wish I would have seen it just 2 seconds sooner before it was too far. I have seen probably 4,000 buzzards already and I am very confident that this bird was different. The big white head being the main reason. It also flew more smoothly and the flapped more. Buzzards usually just hover.

Anyways, I walked and walked. With no cell phone because I’d been on the road for 3 days without any power. I was in the middle of nowhere. But it was beautiful! I could have taken pictures that could turned into puzzles. I walked through some towns where the only thing I could hear were the sounds of my shoes coming off and on the pavement. That was a nice change from walking on major highways for most of the trip.

I started to freak out a little when the ‘town’ that I had assumed would have some sort of resource to restock on water and to charge my phone was a total bust. I walked 6 miles to get there thinking that I could find a gas station and take a break and eat lunch and charge my phone and check out all of my Facebook stuff and also where the heck I was supposed to go from there. Well I had to turn on my phone and look at the map quickly and skip Facebook because I only had about 6% battery. I was about 6 miles from what looked like the next chance of water and power. This time we were completely out of both. But we walked on.. going slowly to not overheat since I had no more water for domino. We stopped at an old church. Like 1700s old. And I thought that I’d fill up with water there. No one was there and the water was turned off. Total bust again. We sat there and I plugged my phone into my solar charger so that I could turn it on to see how far we had to go to get to where people are and a car pulls up. Nice timing.

A wonderful woman by the name of Diana stopped by and donated some money. She said she is a 911 dispatcher and so is my mother. She has also unfortunately been affected by the drug epidemic. I ask if she has any water and she didn’t but she tells me that there is an outlet mall about a mile and a half ahead. Score!

We get there and I plug my phone in at a gas station and fill up on water. Domino drank a ton of it up. Good girl. We get some attention at the gas station of course and it is always fun to hear what people say when I say we’re walking across America lol. Most say “why?” When I tell them they get it. 90% of the time they have a story that shows how they are affected by drugs in some way.

One lady pulls up and gets out and I could tell she knew who I was. Her name is Kennedy and I thought that was perfect for St. Patrick’s Day. I always like when people stop to say hello. I was telling her that it’d been a little tough on both of us and that I was trying to figure out a place to sleep before continuing on so that I at least knew where to walk to. Before I can even try to think about it she offers to pay for a hotel for me and Domino. I couldn’t believe it and it was hard to accept such kindness. We really needed it though. I mean I could have done another night in the tent but I really didn’t want to. Everything was still wet too.

As we were both on the phone calling hotels to see of they were pet friendly I look over and spot Erin. Erin is another hiker going across America. She started on the same day as I did and in the same place. We even ended up at the same house the first night through a website called couchsurfing.com.  A total coincidence. Instant friend. She had it rougher than I did for the first few days. She had bad blisters and had to take a day off completely to heal up. I knew she would catch up to me because she’s a real hiker and I’m just some guy that just had a crazy idea. I didn’t think she’d catch up that fast. I was so proud of her. I was happy to see her too. We text to check in on each other occasionally and I knew she was out in the woods last night somewhere too. She also had gotten everything wet and muddy. We hung out for a while and Kennedy gave me some gift cards and told me to contact her when I needed a hotel room. Saying that if it wasn’t tonight then it would be any other time. Amazing. I mean really…

Erin took off and I told her I’d be behind her because I didn’t think domino could keep up. That was a lie. Domino walks way faster than I do. I just didn’t want to slow her down. She told me she was trying to make it to the bay bridge today. Another 12 miles. Once she left, I was like man just go. So I grabbed domino and Jenny and took off after Erin. Not to catch up with her but to stay behind her at the same pace. I actually liked the faster pace better. So did domino. We must have walked another 6 miles and I start getting Facebook messages from people telling me that some women have come together and want to give me a ride over the bridge and a hotel for the night on the other side. I was like whoa. I obviously wanted to accept but I didn’t want to cheat on the walk. So I picked up the pace and we came up with a place to meet so that I could be taken across the Chesapeake Bay bridge. Which is impossible to walk across and I knew that I had to get a ride across it. That part wasn’t cheating. Had to be done. I was picked up just 3 miles shy of the bridge. After a 21 mile day I had no problem with that.

There were a bunch of people who came together for me today because they wanted to help. That’s the only reason. It made me feel so good to know them. They kept saying that what I am doing is helping people and they want to support me and do anything for me. I couldn’t believe it. I have to give some credit to Kevin. He and the rest of the Angel gang got together today and put some moms to work. Amazing things happen when moms are on a mission! I will forever hold each of them in my heart for all of today’s good deeds. Me and Domino have been fed, sheltered, we’re clean, and we’re on a bed! I had no idea that was coming. I thought I’d be on the side of the road again.

I am going to take full advantage of this hotel. I already did my laundry in the tub lol. They have breakfast and I’m sure they have a computer. I want to catch up on all of my comments and emails. Thinking of taking the morning off to do all of that stuff. Or maybe just lay in bed until they throw us out lol.

Great day. Thanks to all of the Angels out there. I’m glad I’m on the other side of the bridge now. There are way more resources for places to stay or anything else that I made need. Even with bad weather I should be able to make some good distance here in the next week or so…

Good night and I have no idea what is in store for tomorrow!  Domino says, “ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!”

I woke up and it was still dark. I felt like it was 3 or 4 am on my biological time clock. So I tried to go back to sleep. I just couldn’t get comfortable. So after tossing and turning for about 30 minutes I gave up. I noticed the slightest hint of sunlight coming up. I turned my phone on to check the time (yes I started to walk across America without a watch.. ugh) and it said 7:14. I was way off. I laid there for a while and then started to pack things up. I fed domino but not myself. I only had 3 miles to a Walmart and I had a list of things to get. The list got a lot longer after my first night camping. A watch was one of those items….

I packed everything up and it was sunny by the time I got started. The first house I passed a woman waved and said, “good morning!” As if seeing someone push a baby stroller out of the woods and across a busy highway was something that didn’t strike her as odd. I said it back and smiled.

It is amazing how much a kind gesture can lighten my feet and how a rude one weighs them down. Very shortly after I started walking I felt the sun and could tell it was going to be a warm day. I took off two layers and got down to a tshirt. It felt great to be out of all those clothes.

I finally get to Walmart. I felt like suck a redneck to be so excited to see one. I tied Jenny and Domino up in the shade and walked into a Walmart. It was like a scene from a movie. This has to be the cleanest walmart I’d ever seen. Angels sung out and the lights got brighter. This must be what Heaven is like!

I go through and try to be a little quick with shopping. I had things that i wanted to do there besides shop that would take a little time… I ran through my list and got a new sleeping bag because my last one was so uncomfortable that it defeated it’s purpose. I looked at watches but was surprised on how much they cost there. I will find a better deal somewhere else. I was over shopping by the time I got to the watches and didn’t have the patience to figure out which watch to get. I went back out to arrange Jenny with the new items and to go through my clothes to see what I could get rid of. I packed way too much stuff and it’s time to start to figure out what to give away or send back home for use later in the walk.

As I was doing this, a woman who I’d been talking with on Facebook and her daughter pulled up to bring me breakfast and hang out. I was starving!  She brought a scrapple sandwich and said it’s something big in the local area. Sounded awesome!  It was. She tells me not to ask what it is.. which obviously makes you ask what it is.. I’m glad she told me AFTER I ate it haha.

We sat and talked and I really liked her and the stories she was telling me about her family and things that connected her to my cause. I spent way too long sitting there but the time was not wasted. I enjoyed every second that I sat there.

We went over to Petco next. I needed to get Domino a name tag because she recently lost hers and I wanted to look at dog shoes for her. We walked in together this time and our vests caught people’s attention. I told a clerk there what we are doing and she thought it was cool and interesting. I gave her a card when I paid for the name tag. As I was waiting to get the name tag engraved in the machine she comes back to me and tells me that she also lost a sister to the same thing and appreciated what I was doing. I wanted to hug her but I smelled so bad! I hope she is doing ok and I hate that she has that hole in her heart. I know it all too well.

After that we finally got on the road again and it was hot now. We walked through the town of Denton. It was beautiful. I loved it! I headed one way on Gay street. It was fun! Haha.

After Denton we started moving really slow. The sun and lack of sleep and food was kicking both of our butts. We stopped for water way too much. I kept feeding domino food but for some reason I never ate more than a few bites of trail mix. I just wanted to make it to Queen Anne. It was my goal to get there today. It was nice and everything but I passed through it to get to a Shell station that I saw on the map. I wanted to get a soda or something and to charge up my phone. Well it was closed but there was another gas station across the street. So I turned back and went there. I went in to buy a soda to justify me using there power to charge my phone. I bought the cheapest one and passed on a few snacks that I wanted because I didn’t want to spend money on food when I had been pushing so much of it all day. I come back out and a guy who I had seen before I walked in came up to ask for change. I don’t do that. I live in Atlanta and know of places to get them shelter or food so I always let them know about that and go about my business. But out here in don’t know of any resources. I still thought that it wasn’t fair to just give this man money. I had been walking all day and I spared my own comforts to save some change. I still hadn’t even figured out where I was going to sleep tonight and the sun was going down in about an hour and a half. I told him no. I said I don’t want to give him money. Maybe if he had come up with a story and/or a good reason I would have done it. But he was just loitering and asking everyone there for money. It’s something I can’t stand. I’ll be honest. And now that I’m basically homeless also, I still don’t feel bad to say no. I offered him crackers and he didn’t take them. That’s all I have to say about that.

I started to get anxious when I plugged my phone into the outlets outside of the gas station and they didn’t work. I had about 50% on my cell phone and I had no idea where to set up camp. I looked on Google maps and found a wooded area nearby. I walk down a backroad and pass a few nice houses. With nice yards. That they probably would’ve let me camp on if I had just asked but I can’t seem to get there yet. So I kept going. Frantically trying to find a good spot to sleep for the night. Being that I am trying to not be seen, I want to set up my tent and cook before it gets too dark to see and I need to use a flash light. Flash lights are a big no-no in this situation. I struggled a lot to find a place. Everywhere that looked promising from a distance was a total bust. I notice a bridge up ahead and figure I’d find somewhere under or around there. I dash through a huge yard of bumps and mud to get to the tree line between a break in the cars. I get there and there is mud everywhere and nowhere good to camp. The sun was setting.

I decided to just set up anyways. I had to pretty much make a space by stepping on small trees and roots so that I could get it as flat as possible. I laid a tarp down because of the mud and put my tent up on top of that. I set everything else up and cooked and we ate and I’m blogging. I don’t think we’ll get into any harm tonight. I saw some deer tracks in the mud but nothing else. I’ll have a mess with all of my stuff but I can figure that out later. Right now I’m just ready for a good night’s sleep.

I’m going to turn my phone off now. I don’t have much battery left to do all of the comments. I’ll catch up tomorrow.

All in all in was another good day. We got some good miles in and we’re safe. I struggled in the end there but I think it was unnecessary. Everything would’ve been fine had I not let myself get hangry. I’ll be sure to eat better tomorrow.

This new sleeping bag is great by the way! So at least I ended on a positive note 🙂