Spartan Hike - Day 4

Update from a hiker: Tuesday, Feb 15, 2011

Day 4 started with Dan reminding me that I needed to be prepared to slow my pace down today. The reason being is that we were going to be spending the day hiking the majority of our 19.7 miles through the city of Santa Cruz and we were looking to engage as many people as possible as we had just made today's issue of The Santa Cruz Sentinel. We decided to delay our start time in an effort to maximize the amount of people we would encounter. So we decided to have a nice sit down breakfast at the Santa Cruz Diner. The eggs were mighty tasty, the coffee was strong and we were serenaded by The Stones, The Beatles, Slowhand, Johnny Cash, Frank Sinatra and Simon and Garfunkel. There wasn't a complaint from the group as we left full and happy, setting out for the days miles. As we pulled up to our start point, we were greeted by a couple of guys who were taking their dogs for a walk in hopes of meeting us as they had read about our cause. After a few minutes of conversation, they gave us a handsome donation and wished us well and with that, we were off.  

With ear to ear grins and our American flag blowing in the wind, we received many waves, horn honks, donations and well wishers along our route. As we closed in on our days stopping point, we were approached by a genuine lady who stated that she had read about us while drinking her morning coffee and that she was a supporter. She then told us that she had dinner covered and would personally deliver it to our campsite at Sunset Beach State Park around 5pm. Staying true to her word, she arrived  just before 5 as we were just getting our fire going. She had prepared a fine and filling meal of Mulligan Stew, a hearty ensamble of meat, potatoes, carrots, celery, peas, corn and a gravy type broth that her great-grandmother had given her the reciepe for years ago. Over the course of more than two bowls a piece, we enjoyed each others company and conversation. She was the mother of a former Marine and a physical therapist who had previously worked with disabled service members. She had an inspirational tale of how she and some co-workers had helped a pilot facing a difficult challenge back into his cockpit. As we thanked her, she went further than we could have ever anticipated and she reached into her pocket and gave us a very generous donation. We snapped a couple photos, gave her a hug, thanked her again and waved as she departed, truly affected by her generosity.

Thomas Muir