Arkansas

The pilot did not look happy as he exited the jetway. His short conversation with the gate agents ended with frowning and some shaking of heads. Then one of the agents picked up the podium mic and said something about a maintenance issue and the word “delay.” A collective grumble rippled through the crowd. Five minutes turned to 10, then 20, and at 30 minutes the agent announced that they would be rebooking passengers at a different gate.

We all ran down to that gate and over a hundred people lined up. Then my phone dinged a notification. It was the airline. They had rebooked me on a later flight getting me to Arkansas at 10:30PM instead of 5:30. Ok, no problem. But just to be sure, I stayed in line. When I finally got to the podium she told me she didn’t think they would be able to fix the original plane and confirmed my new flight arrangements. Hopefully my bag will make the change.

The adventure begins. I got to New Mexico on Wednesday and have had a nice time hiking and hanging out with Cappuccino. As I mentioned previously she has a very sick friend. She has decided to stay home for that friend. So Cappuccino will not be going on this trip. I think it was the right decision, but I am disappointed. It will be a different trip without her, but it will still be an adventure. At least I got to go hiking with her and her husband, along with her friend Polly. And we were able to fit in a couple of meals with my good friend Level.

Assuming I actually get to Arkansas tonight and the Uber shows up in the morning, I will be spending my first day on the trail tomorrow. It starts out with a dicey ford of Frog Bayou and is scheduled to be about 17 miles. But that is tomorrow.

Take care, and until tomorrow, Happy Trails!