LIFE
By Kate Hofstetter
I
f you want to see
the world through
Paul Eveland’s eyes
you’ll need a good pair of
water proof hiking boots,
a decent pocket knife and
a flashlight. A light weight
tent might also come in
handy.
Paul, a resident of
Smith Mountain Lake
and retired after 43 years
in the food business with
Campbell Soup and Ruiz
Foods,
developed
an
interest in hiking during
his college years back in
Wisconsin when he took a
summer job that involved
leading youth groups on
extended canoe trips. He
quickly developed a taste
for raw, natural beauty,
walks through the woods
and camp fires. Younger
brother, David, followed suit and over the years the
two have become faithful hiking companions.
Paul and David will be hitting the longest trail of
their lives in mid-March. They plan to walk the entire
length of the Appalachian Trial (AT), an estimated
2,200 miles that winds through 14 eastern States. Why?
Well, primarily because it’s there and has been calling
to them but they are also hoping to raise funds for Lake
Christian Ministries as they click off the miles.
You are invited to join them. Before you start
packing, however, there are a couple of things you
should know. Hiking the entire trail is something
only 10 to 20 percent of hikers accomplish and the
“total elevation gain” is equivalent to climbing Mount
Everest 16 times.
One other nugget of advice: the Eveland brothers
will be hiking primarily in wilderness and Paul can
attest to the fact that black bear abound along most of
the trail and certainly in Virginia.
During the summer of 2013 while the two brothers
were hiking in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park,
another hiker who Paul called a “tag-a-long” joined
them. As the three walked, Paul, who was in the lead,
became separated from the other two by a couple of
miles. As he looked for the posted campsite where they
were to spend the night, Paul realized he had overshot
his mileage goal for the day and had walked right past
the target campsite even though it was posted so hikers
wouldn’t make that mistake.
His brother and the tag-a-long hiker were behind
him by an estimated two miles. Paul, who had just
walked up a rugged hill, was exhausted and, instead of
going back to join his companions, decided to pitch his
tent in a small cleared area near where he had stopped.
Aware that there are between 300 to 500 bears living in
the park, Paul hung all the food he had from a high tree
limb out of the reach of keen nostrils. What he didn’t
remember were a couple of candy bars he’d stashed
inside his backpack in case he needed an energy boost
while on the trail. His backpack was inside his mummy
tent with him.
As you can imagine from its name, a mummy tent
offers about as much protection from wild animals,
especially bear, as being wrapped in a twin size
comforter. Paul, who stands at an estimated 6 feet
4 inches, must have looked like a giant hot dog that
smelled like a Hershey bar.
He was asleep only about two hours when he was
awakened by a soft grunting or snorting sound. Then,
he says, he felt a firm, wide head pushing against his
back. It was, of course, a black bear.
“I could feel the warmth of the bear’s breath
through the tent,” Paul said, “And the force of that
push against my back caused me to do a 360 degree
roll. I was sure he was going to come right through my
tent after those candy bars.”
Although black bears are considered the least
carnivorous of the carnivores, they can and have
done great damage to humans while protecting a cub
or searching for the things they do prefer to eat like
berries, herbs, roots, fruits, nuts and, no doubt, candy
bars.
Somehow, despite the thrill of having a bear
breathing down the back of his neck, Paul remembered
that his son had told him about a cell phone ring that
mimics a barking dog. As the bear nudge and sniffed
against his back, he managed to get his phone and
play that ring 6 or 7 times. He also made a few noises
himself which, fortunately, discouraged the bear and
sent it on its way. Once he was sure the bear was gone,
Paul calmed his nerves and got rid of the tantalizing
Longest Walk
The
of His
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