As usual, the trail provides...

It's a well known fact that there is nothing on the trail that cannot
be fixed with either duct tape or "Shoe Goo". Today, I fixed a pack
strap with duct tape, kindly provided by another hiker via the "hiker
box" here in Killington, and a shoe insert with Shoe Goo, kindly left
at the last shelter I temporarily inhabited....along with an enormous
mice colony. But that is another whole story.

I remember my mom using Shoe Goo to fix her running shoes when I was a
kid. Who knew one day I too would come to value this amazing yet
totally toxic viscous "goo". I have needed it to reglue soles back on
boots before, just as most hikers will to try and squeek out a few
more miles before buying new boots. I found this tube just as I
realized the metatarsal support, which had been taped on with two-
sided tape (like that had any chance of sticking in MY shoe), began
floating around freely inside my new fancy-dancy shoes. The goo worked
great! Thank you, whomever, for sharing your goo. Timber had found a
tube just laying on a bridge bannister one day, amazingly when she
needed her own boot repair. Like we always say, the trail always
provides.

In case you don't know what a hiker box is, it is a box of discards
(food, clothing, half used tubes of Shoe Goo, one wool sock, etc) that
you usually find at places frequented by hikers. Of course usually
they are filled with ziploc bags filled with mystery powder (What is
in all those baggies of pink stuff???) and dubious recipe components
that are mailed to hikers in their resupply boxes. People! Before
placing that bag of ambiguous powdery mixture in the box that will get
tumbled around just enough to create a hole in the bag, and leak
indeterminate sticky stuff all over everything else, label it with the
sharpie that is almost always present in the bottom of the box.
Really. Mommy would be so proud of you.

Another handy thing to have on the trail is the device I hold in my
hand this very moment. Timber notoriously always said, "Just ask the
Superphone". Just yesterday, Safari and I were crossing the road to
Rutland, VA that my guide book indicated having a restaurant a short
distance away. So naturally we headed that way for breakfast and hot
coffee. Whenever I have good service, I always check the weather. I
realized as we sat there with about six other hikers that there was a
huge blob of dark green and yellow heading right for us. (Read: Green
bad. Yellow worse. Red really ugly!) So we completely chilled out and
waited for the rain. One guy didn't believe me and started back toward
the trail. I told him to wait TWELVE minutes but he went on. And about
fifteen minutes later we all, well most of us, were celebrating our
success at avoiding a huge storm. Of course we had to sit outside the
Whistlestop restaurant for three hours. Ha. "Tree, ALWAYS trust the
superphone!"
There have been numerous times it has saved us as well as helped us
find hotels, restaurants, laundromats, our way back to where we got
dropped off, etc. It even tells you the best route to walk there! I
love this thing. Thank you!