Nov. 2 , 2001- We ended up staying behind a Scotty's hardware store last night. Might as well been in the Zoo. Wasn't a really cool place to be at all. There were varmits all over the place. Cats , coons , possums , armadillo's and no telling what else passed by.But, Skillet kept everything at bay, Good Dog! We left at 5:30am and we are across the bridge already. That would put us at a 25 mile hike yesterday. We are just gonna chill under this tree until 8:00 and get back on our schedule.
It's after 10:00 and we are just about out of Port Charlotte and pointed in the right direction.Skil's is acting weird so I am going to let him rest a bit. This is the place my daughter is supposed to be a cop. I sure hope she doesn't see me like this. I haven't seen any blonde cops yet . I would like to hang around and see if I could find her , but I am in pretty bad shape right now. It appears that the homeless isn't harassed too much here , they are all over the place. Panhandlers , drunks , bag ladies, a real mixture of world's downtrodden. Not one has the desire to have a dog . One thing I can't stand , is derelicts like me with no class. Everybody needs a best friend !
We are out of town now and stopped for a constitution break , in the woods of course . Sort of says the whole world is a good place to take a shit . Reminds me of a little note I read in the local paper "Do not go where the path may lead , But go instead where there is no trail and leave a path" Well , I'm going right here and there ain't no trail .
It is only noon and I am resting at a abandoned camp next to a closed shopping center . Don't say much for the economy around these parts. A bus just pulled up and unloading a swarm of people . I ask myself , What kind of place is this? Got to keep Skil's quiet , don't need him letting on that we're here. I suppose I'll see a few more strange going's on before this adventure is through.
I have gone as far as I plan to go today , its 5:00pm and I am passed the 2nd crossing of Toledo Blade . I found a big ole' oak tree , that is out of sight of the nosy folks . I found a place to stay for the night , but I'll have to be quiet , its just a few feet from the road . Skil's can get some much needed rest if I hang out here for the night . I have no idea how far the next sign of civilization is going to be . Never got up this way much . The next big town is Sarasota , I just don't know what's in between .I am running real low on funds , but that is my fault , cause I have this devil-may-care attitude . I'll probably pay for it later. I feel something interesting is going to happen soon. It's about time . I am not looking to get into any messes , maybe once I am in Georgia , I'll change my priorities some. I have only found one penny this whole trip . Lady Luck must be on vacation or over on the other coast. Skil's is really worn down , got to take it easy for a couple days. DAMN THE TORPEDO"S , FULL SPEED AHEAD !
Nov. 1 , 2001- Wow! , we are making tracks today . We have at least 10 miles in and its only 10:00am . But, the bad news is , we are both dead tired . I'm over the river and just can't imagine what awaits us . Our first break is at a Ranger station and I don't see anyone around . Probably won't come out here with these bugs . They are keeping me company , pretty good. I am just going to rest here for a few hours , I don't know why I won't to hurry except to get to safe territory. I stopped a ways back at a farmers market and filled up our water bottle. They tried to give me a soda , but I paid them for it. They wished us luck on our adventure and hoped I made it to Asheville.
It is really odd that I don't find anything along the road up this way. If I was walking in Naples I would be finding all kinds of stuff. Must be the prison that keeps the road so clean. I have been here 2 hrs. now and am going to wait one more. Finally shaved today (dry) I don't have a mirror , so I'm not sure how well I did. It feels better , though. I will be changing tactics from now on. No more 4 hr. walks. Just to much for the little guy. My plan is to walk an hr. and rest an hr. That should work out okay.
It is 2:00pm and we are at Curly's Corner , about 4 miles to K-Mart, they said. I'll get Skil's food there and maybe a can of beans for me . I guess I better try to eat something once in awhile, too!
Arrival in Punta Gorda , wow, that really seems like an accomplishment. Just sitting in a field next to a Kash-N-Karry. Got dog food and a can of Bush Beans Wish I had something to smoke . I'll have to see about getting some Top or Bugler. Got to start looking for our camping spot before it gets dark. Tomorrow I'll be on the other side of the Peace River and northbound. Ain't no stoppin me now!
Oct. 31 , 2001-This is as far as I came last time, also where I turned around. We'll not have any of that foolishness this time. It's one way , all the way! I stopped to feed Skil's behind the Juicy Lucy, where I stalled due to my foot problem last attempt. It is going to be a long walk right thru the middle of this "hell-hole". I should make it today all the way to N. Ft. Myers. I will feel better about my chances then. Don't really know why I'm worried so much, the scum that lives in this town should take the heat off me. I am not planning on breaking any laws.
Somewhere ,today I need to find a place to get cleaned up a bit. At least shave.Talk about scum! It's a little after 10:00am and I am already to Page Field. Hell!, I'm doing alright. I found a belt that fits me , now I don't have to walk around like one of the boys from the hood.Lucky me, moving good and a belt . What more could a body ask for?
Crossed the bridge a little after 2:00pm , what a relief . Now lets see if I can make Goodwill and find a blanket. Those sleeping bags are just to heavy. Maybe the Flea-Mkt. is open , I don't remember which day it is open. I may have messed up leaving my sleeping bag.I have this feeling that a blanket will be something , I wish I had, instead of something I have.Pretty smart of me ,Huh?
Yessir that was a major miscalculation on my part, no blankets at Goodwill and no Flea-Mkt.. I guess I'll try to stay around the Shell Factory tonight , rather than get out on the open road this late. I hope I can find some socks along the road! Boy, this is getting worrisome. Skil's is starting to look at me like I'm nuts. Well, such is life. HAPPY HALLOWEEN !!
Oct. 30 , 2001 Tues.-I guess I have been thinking to much lately , I started to call Laura yesterday and say good-bye. She has probably found what she's looking for. So I won't bother her over this . I sure miss her though. We are just sitting here reading the paper at 10:00am. I got to get moving here.
I have to make my way , somehow, over to hwy. 31 and cross the river that way. I don't want to walk thru Ft. Myers if I can avoid it. Never know when one of the local cops will won't to ask me where I am heading. This bench warrent is going to eat at me until I cross the state line. Once I do cross , there will be no turning back. There is a job waiting for me in Spartanburg S.C.
11:40am and I have made it to Alico Rd. and no way to get to 31 from this way. Oh hell, back to 41 I suppose. I'll just walk right thru town , like I know what I'm doing. My feet are killing me and Skil's is pulling like he's on a mission. I believe he is trying to kill me, out of revenge for taking him away from Mommy. I am dumping the sleeping bag, its just to much to carry. Shouldn't be to hard to come up with another one along the way.
We are taking a break about a mile from where I plan to stay tonight and the poor little guy is beat. From one extreme to another. He is having the hardest time keeping up now. I am in the swamp where I got bit last month and my sleeping bag is still here. Maybe , my luck is changing. I haven't had any thing to eat today, but I did feed Skil's. Thinking about cutting down on his intake some , he's overweight and that might be the cause of his sluggishness.Well, tomorrow will be the big day.If I get across that damn river, that's it for Naples. So, I am walking right down 41 and holding my head up like I'm somebody important. What destiny waits on the other side?
Oct. 29 , 2001 - Monday-Its 5:00 am and I guess time to get moving , the Mexicans are moving around all over the place . Looks like a bunch of coons out hunting leftovers . I am going to try and catch a friend before he goes off to work . I can hang out until daylight anyway. Could be a problem getting my dog through this town , without him latching onto one of the local beaners. Waiting for some lights to come on at Bill's and all of a sudden he came out of the dark with that little noise maker dog of his. I didn't dare go near and get that little mutt started. Most of the white people were still in bed. I just stood back in the shadows and quietly said good-bye to myself.I went on to the North end of town to wait near the Circle-K . I needed a beer to get started on this adventure. My luck just isn't up to par this morning . I waited until 7:00am , and then I realized that the time changed last night.Do I hang out or go on? Other drunks answered that question for me. Buddy won't to go half on a 12 pack? This I didn't need this morning. I decided I would just try to walk the shakes off. Four miles down the road is another store. I wasn't the only one here suffering from lack of information. Lot's of drunks frequent this area , it appears.
I made it to the next store and I didn't feel any better , so I did the only thing a good drunk always does. More beer (only a 6 pack) and sat in the woods where I drained my foot last month. Something I hope I can avoid this time. I don't mind snakes too much , I just don't want them gnawing on me. I have to find a sleeping bag today , last night sucked.I plan to check out all the homeless camps along my route, which are many.
Skil's and I took the tracks North and took a break where we seen a bear last month. I am doing a lot of thinking about this trip and I have come to the conclusion that there is no need to hurry.So I am taking a lot of breaks and not pushing the little guy too hard. Two days and we're in Estero .Thats a good distance from Naples. We'll hang out tonight next to the parking lot at Teco-Arena. Having this warrant out for my arrest is going to haunt me until I cross the Georgia line. Never thought I would welcome crossing into Georgia. Maybe in a few days , the answer to "What the hell am I doing?" will get answered.I have no answers right now!
Oct. 28 , 2001 Sunday -Rain has been heavy all week , doesn't do much to deter the bugs. I have been away from home since the terrorist attack. Not even a phone call home.I guess , I must be serious this time.I am not waiting until tomorrow to see if I get picked up for work. I'm just heading out and not looking back this time. I figure I am on my way North finally.Things in Naples are no longer an interest to me . I am not stopping until I get to Asheville N.C. I'll have to figure out how to survive along the way. I am not a thief , panhandler or will I beg for anything.We'll be o-kay as long as Skillet can hold up.
We are walking down the power lines toward Bonita Springs and the water is knee deep all the way . Another good place to get snake-bit again . What a bummer that would be , I would have to think some unknown spirit was trying to keep me in Naples. Our first stop along the way came at the first dry spot I found . Just so happened to be a place I named Rattlesnake Bend . After the huge rattler I saw there once walking my dogs.
There was a fellow living in his van in the woods here , last year, and it appears he's still here. I suppose its a good place to be homeless and not be bothered by anyone . Its a ways to civilization from here. I laid out for three hours and let my boots dry out some . Finally had to get a move on , I left the tent at Skillet Lake and have no protection from the elements, especially those that bite. We stopped at a convenience store and got something to eat , before hiking into Bonita. We laid out at an old restuarant for the night and bugs were not a major problem , but they ate good that night. What in the world could be in store for tomorrow? All night Mexican's were moving around , don't they ever sleep?
Oct. 27 , 2001-Today I am back at the lake I have named Skillet Lake and haven't been home or called for the past month and a half. It has been wild , plus , a drunken blur.I keep telling myself I need to stop this crazy shit and get my act together. But a proclamation as serious as that calls for a drink. Go Figure!
I spent the month at a friends , and kept working without saving anything.Making no plans for ,what I was going to do with the rest of my life. Everything came to a head when Skillet bit the little kid where I was staying, Boy , things can go haywire in a heartbeat.Me , Skil's and the kid were playing with the dog ,throwing sticks and such. Having a grand ole' time , then we went to the trailer I was staying in.This is the time Skil's gets real protective . No growl, no bark, nothing ,just a slashing , ripping bite. Laid the kid open pretty good. These people out here got guns , all I could think of was to get my dog to safety. I doctored the kid ,best I could and took my best friend out in the woods to safety. Went back long enough to get my tent and a few things and hauled ass into the night .
The next morning I started out on a journey that would take me through seven states and every brand of weather imaginable. I did leave the kid's parents about $600.00 for doctor bills before I left . So here I sit not knowing anything about what is fixing to become my daily routine for the next 10 months. The guys I worked with told me they would pick me up later , so I can make it to work. I don't expect them and I am going to start looking for something else. So it begins!
Sept. 18-27, 2001-Everything I went through in these few days are as blurry as my vision was. The drinking was a pretty regular occurence. Seemed to help , but maybe not. I walked as far as S. Fort Myers and camped out in a swamp by a K-Mart. The beer prices were reasonable. I didn't dwell on the fact I had no plans or even a destination. It took a snake bite to bring me back to some kind of reality. I was going broke and my funds were drying up quick . Couldn't hardly walk because my foot swelled to the size of a watermelon. What would MacGiver do? I started limping back toward my neighborhood , where I knew people. Still as confused about life as I was when I started walking 2 weeks earlier. After a day or two ( don't really know how many) I was back on my turf. Foot healed somewhat and the poison out of my system as far as I could tell. Time to do something . My choice was to go back to work , but I didn't go back home. I thoght everything that could go wrong already happened . Boy! , was I dissullusioned! Times sure take a turn for the worse , when you are looking for a break.
Sept. 11,2001-It's Tuesday and I'm at work down in Naples Florida. My girlfreind came by and tried to explain what was going on in New York.I got to say that I thought she might be on drugs or something .Things like that do not happen in the USA. WOW! Did I ever misjudge these Islamic raticals. Things were happening to fast for a guy like me ,who has slowed his wild lifestyle down by half. If anything can be said in my behalf,I am an AMERICAN 100%. Hitting the big 50 and lots of friction between me and my girlfriend , really had me confused. What was happening to my country? I am to old to enlist , my race is probably 3/4 run. I have never really did anything really on the edge. All that had happened and turning 50 took me to the brink.I just felt I had to get away and think.Sept. 14 , 2001-Friday came,I knew I had to go , seemed like the world was closing in on me. I left walking ,just me and my dog Skillet, whom always makes me happy just to be with. We walked about 20 miles to a lake that I have camped at on many occasions. I bought a tent on the way , to keep the bugs from eating us alive . I just wanted to be away from everything for a few days, to think. I sure had no plans for what lay ahead. The whole week-end was just walking the dog and a lot of budweiser. Soul searching , going insane , manic , there must be a term for what I was going through. I hadn't seen my kids in 10 years and missed them terribly , hadn't tried to see them and that is worse than terrible. By Monday and time to think about going back to work , I had enough beer in me by now to make a really illogical decision, which I haven't regretted yet! I mentioned to my dog ,Skillet , that there is another lake up the road aways.(I found myself talking to the dog alot) He agreed we should play hookey from work and go check it out. So, This starts our year long adventure.
