Last Monday Recycled took off to do the Pacific Trail. He went to San Diego and stayed with his sister, starting the trail on Wednesday. Late in the day Saturday, hikers found his body. He was just below a hill, lying near a creek. It didn’t appear that he had fallen. His backpack was at the top of the hill with water in it. Pending autopsy, the cause of his death is all supposition.
May No Way and Recycle Hike that big trail in the sky.
LionKIng
I hiked with Recycled in 2000 and again in 2003 when he did his final thru hike and we have been friends for the last 6 years. It was a shock to hear of his passing. He stayed with his sister-in-law in San Diago. He stopped to visit a stream and fell on the approach to it. He had Multiple blunt force injuries… rib fractures with punctured lung or lungs. Recycled loved to hike and had talked about the PCT for the past three years. He will be missed by this hiker and by those who met and grew to know him. Our prayers were always with you so rest in peace my friend.
Sarge
Sarge
…I didn’t know him well…in fact we had yet to meet face to face but you could tell he was a true gentleman with only the most honorable intentions. His only problem was he loved backpacking and hikers. Rest in peace sir.
That’s the way I want to go.
skeemer
I was told a few weeks ago about Recycled and was deeply saddened by the news. In 2000 I hiked out from Amicalola Falls just behind him (we were both hitting the AT for the first time) and met him on the approach trail at a lunch stop. We had a good chat and on parting he said “see you later on down the trail Downunda” and from that day on I had my trail name.
I then hiked with him on and off for about 2 months and we became good friends. He was a very engaging person and was always up for a laugh. He had to bail out in 2000 at Front Royal due to a foot injury.
If I remember correctly he hit the trail again in 2001 at the southern terminus to commence all over again, and yet again had to bail due to a foot injury.
He returned to the trail again in 2002 to commence at the southern terminus and this time was successful in completing his thru-hike. Unfortunately I was about a week behind him and never maganged to catch up with him.
Clearly he was a very determined person (in his own words stubborn) as many of us would recommmence our hike from the point we had dropped out, not recycled. To meet his standards he had to hike the trail in one go from beginning to end.
He loved life and his family and he died doing what he loved. RIP from Downunda.
Downunda