trail names

Day 27 ~ zero in Agua Dulce

I won't bore you with the details of our day off, but it fully met our expectations.  We did the typical zero day things: town chores, rested and relaxed, and ATE!

And a few words about trail names...

Those of you reading who may be unfamiliar with long-distance hiking may have wondered why everyone has such funny names.  I'm not sure when or where trail names originated, but I would venture to guess that it was on the Appalachian Trail, at the time when the trail began to gain popularity and there were more than just a handful of hikers on the trail each year.  A trail name is an alias that one goes by on the trail.  A trail name is usually much more memorable than "Bob from New York" or "Suzy from Tennessee".  Some people make up their own trail names, but many people are named by others on the trail, based on a unique characteristic or funny incident (remember Half & Half's story?). 

So here are the stories of how we came to be Moonshine and Sideways D, if you were wondering.  We were both named on the Appalachian Trail.

I was named Sideways D by a dear friend, Bryan, because I smile A LOT, and my smile looks like a  big ole' sideways D (like this emoticon :D).  I usually just go by Sideways.

There are a few different theories as to how Moonshine got his name. 
~Moonshine has been known to have an affinity for bootleg corn liquor.
~Moonshine likes to hike at night, by the light of the moon.
~His favorite soda is Mountain Dew (which is how some old timers refer to moonshine).
You can subscribe to whichever you please :D. Back to the trail tomorrow!