I KILLED SPOT. Awwwww…
Spot is a satellite tracking device that tells my followers
where I am. It sends a signal that show where I am on Google Maps. Some of the
little lights still blink, but not the ones that say that it is working
correctly. Ignoring the little lights, I moved Spot around from one pocket to
another hoping for better transmission, but the lights were telling the truth;
Spot was dead. I didn’t mean to kill Spot, but I probably flung my pack one
time too many and Spot’s poor processor got rattled and quit processing.
Spot no longer blinks
Shirley bought Spot several years ago when she realized that
if something happened to me while I was out in the woods that she might not
ever find me. Needless to say, Shirley wasn’t too keen on waiting to see if
Spot would come back to life and she immediately ordered me another newer one
with a few more bells and whistles. Shirley uses it for more than just finding
me if I break a leg and can’t get in, she follows my progress on her computer
so she knows when to get to our rendezvous location. Cell coverage out here is
poor and calling her from the trail isn’t a certain option.
After reading several blogs and books on the Appalachian
Trail I found that Shirley is not unique. Several writers said that their
partners were reasonably keen on them hiking alone if they carried a Spot and
shaved and showered before coming home. Anyway, I plan to be nicer to new Spot.
