AT Thru-Hike 2008

We apologize for the extended lack of communication for all of you following our progress. The past month has been eventful and we will attempt to recap what we can remember.

Disaster Relief Part II

Following our wonderful stay with the East Moline Fire Dept. , we were given a tip from the fire chief to head on to Keithsberg, IL where we hoped to do some sandbagging. We really wanted to do some preventative aid. Upon our arrival in Keithsberg we found that the water had already risen throughout the town and there was little to be done. We did, however, meet Homeland Security coordinator, Rich. He was understandably overwhelmed but invited us into the mobile command center where he made some phone calls to find some areas in need of volunteers. We then headed South to the Alton, IL area where flood waters were rising.

On the drive we found many roads closed off or leading directly into flood waters. These obstacles made traveling seem as though we were trapped in a maze. After being ferried across an unexpected river, courtesy of our “Fearless Leader”, Slap Happy, we stumbled upon a convoy of sand filled trucks. Our instincts told us we were headed in the right direction and we followed in hot pursuit leading us to the hamlet of Hamburg, IL. A spray painted sign calling for sandbagging volunteers confirmed our hunch and we quickly sprung into action. After signing in we grabbed our shovel (which has since been lost), and furiously filled as many bags with sand as we could. We were accompanied in our efforts by local community members, military personnel, and “well behaved”, volunteer convicts from the state prison. Around 6:00 P.M., the military personnel and community members disappeared, leaving us alone with the orange, jump-suited convicts. Pemmy, receiving suggestive smiles from the men, was a little unsettled and tried her hardest to focus on the task at hand. An hour or so later, the community members reappeared to resume building the walls.

<–Assembly line of the convicts and local community volunteers building up the sandbag walls.

<–Pop Tart, Machete and Slap Happy’s back in front of the sandbag pile wall.

The locals were curious as to how we ended up in their small town and were surprised to learn of our adventures. The next day, a Washington Post reporter arrived and had been told that we “were the story” and proceeded to interview us. A little while later, the walls were completed and we hopped back in the car to chase the flood waters further south in hopes of doing more preventative work. When we arrived in Alton, IL we realized that we would have to travel much further south in order to get ahead of the rising waters. We decided that rather than traveling too far south, it would be more productive to head back north to help with the cleanup process in the areas where the waters had receded.

Cedar Rapids, IA, being one of the hardest hit, seemed like the most in need of assistance. We headed back up the Missouri side and arrived in Cedar Rapids to find unfathomable devastation. The entire downtown area and the surrounding residential areas had been submerged in 33 ft. of water leaving businesses, homes, hospitals, and even city hall in ruins. Not sure where to begin, we learned of a volunteer organization called Serve the City. They gave us breathing masks and gloves and suggested that we find any areas in need and volunteer independently.

Cedar Rapids neighborhood. Water lines on the homes in the background indicate how high the flood waters rose.

Being that the majority of the city was in need of help, all we had to do was drive around and ask residents if they needed a hand. The first house we arrived at was that of Willy, an elderly landlord cleaning out the home of his father, which he had left to his fathers caretaker. The woman was too distraught to return to the house after the flood leaving Willy 30 days to have the home emptied and ready for demolition. After removing all of the larger appliances, washer, dryer, refrigerator, etc., we went next door to help his neighbor, Mike. Mike’s house, which actually turned out to be his daughter’s house, was in better condition than Willy’s and was not condemned. We helped Mike and his friend, Dave, remove all of the carpeting and take everything out of the basement.

Covered from head to toe in sewage water and mud, we soon realized it was a necessity to find a vacant hotel room in order to shower. This proved to be more difficult than we had originally thought. With 4,000 homes having only limited entry until emptied and reevaluated, the local hotels were all filled with displaced homeowners and families. The only vacancies were at hotels located 40 or more miles outside of the city.

The next day we headed to the local clinic to get precautionary tetanus immunizations which were being done for free for everyone in the area. We then walked across the street to the hospital to donate blood - a first for Machete and Pemmy who handled it like the champs they are. Feeling completely useless following our needle-fest, we found sanctuary at the Marion Public Library. After resting there for several hours we headed to the nearby Wapsipinicon campground for the night. In the morning, Slap Happy was feeling quite ill so we dropped him back off at the Library and drove back into Cedar Rapids to resume cleanup. In a neighborhood near the flooded Mercy Hospital, we started to clean out a basement at the home of Lawrence. Pemmy began feeling lightheaded and weak, which we suspect was from dehydration and lack of blood. She rested in the car while the only remaining two strapping young lads and able-bodied workers of our group, continued until Lawrence’s family showed up to take over. We picked up the other sickly one, and headed to the Super 8 in Anamosa to recover.

<–An ill faced Slap Happy the day after needle-fest.

On the following day we decided to try something new and different by visiting Serve the City. Here, there were chores to be done such as sorting through donated clothing, directing flood victims, and unloading donation trucks. There were many other v0lunteers here and we felt our help was needed more elsewhere. We headed back into the city, passing by one elderly womans house who seemed to be struggling. We stopped and offered her our assistance which she happily accepted. Little did we know what we were getting ourselves into. Maryann, an eighty nine year old woman, had lived there since 1952 and the house was filled with thousands of tiny trinkets that she wanted sorted through. We helped as best we could by removing her demolished fence in the back yard as well as the stove and refrigerator from her kitchen. Beyond this we were somewhat overwhelmed by the magnitude of the sorting chore before us. Luckily a group of volunteers who had gotten word about this “challenge” were happy to help her sort and box the items.

Driving around the city once again, we found the home of Linda, who’s elderly father, Jack, was about to call it a day in his efforts to clean out her basement. We offered our assistance and helped him remove the washer and dryer, and vowed to return the next day to finish the job. We returned to the Wapsipinicon campsite for the night. The next morning, or should we say “our morning” of noon-ish, we arrived back at Linda and Jacks unaware of the task that lay before us. Linda is a lifelong collector and housed all of her items in the basement. Since she is technically not in the flood plane, storing these valuables here was of little concern. Additionally, Linda did not qualify for flood insurance as was the case with the majority of flood victims. Load by load we carried everything up and outside onto the lawn where Linda had the arduous task of sorting through it all. Five hours later, the basement was empty and we were exhausted physically, emotionally and financially. It was time to cleanup and hit the road back toward the trail.

Jack, Linda, Machete, Slap Happy and Pop Tart after 5 hours of clearing her basement.

Byeowa!
Before we returned to the dusty old trail, we decided to drop by Athens, OH to visit the friends and families of the merciless FIFO’s. It was good to see everyone and get Machete and Slap Happy’s winter gear organized for a mail drop with the fall months approaching. We then made our way back to Richmond, VA to pick up our packs and leave our beloved Pop Tart. We love and miss PT, XOXOXO, and hope all is well as he is currently “sail hitching” to the Bahamas. We were dropped off at Front Royal to begin our comfortingly easy re acclimation. After three weeks of not hiking we anticipated the loss of our trail legs, but we kick ass pretty much, and it was no big deal.

“Nothing really bothers me, I don’t judge”

This is the first of three posts updating y’all, stay tuned and don’t miss our other two!!!!!