Mcginnis Harry Lee (w2266)

History of the Walk: Original Departure Date: August 28, 1983; From Arlington, Texas. Finished the Fifty States of America February of 1987 (3 years and 6 months).

After a five year Hiatus... On March 16, 1992: Landed in Dublin, Ireland to march in the St. Patrick's Day Parade on March the 17th..And to finish walking the rest of the World.

During The Walk of the Fifty-States of America:

I mailed 142 self-addressed postcards from every State, for verification purposes.

Collected over two thousand names in all Fifty -states.

Gave two hundred newspaper interviews.

Interviewed by 100 plus Television Stations for the Nightly News.

Gave twenty Radio interviews.

Spoke in all Fifty- states to various Colleges, Universities, Elks, Rotarians, Kiwanis, Lions, Professional Clubs, High Schools, Primary Schools, Mountain and Hiking Clubs, Boy Scouts and the Girl Scouts.
 

The Fifty-State Walk Of America 

 
Logistics of the Walk
248 days or Eight months per. year of walking to and in between Villages, Communities, Towns and Cities.

In walking the Fifty-states of America, plus the length of British Columbia. The Yukon Territory via The Chilkoot Trail, on into Whitehorse then into Dawson. Then down into Alaska.
Translates into: 
248 days x 3.5 years 
868 days x 15 miles per. day 

: 
868 days 
13,020 miles 

Approximately four months out of the year for Sight-seeing, Miscellaneous Time and a little R&R in the Villages, Towns and Cities of the World. And keeping in condition, when I am not on the road. You know what they say; 'All huffing and puffing and no play, makes Hawk a dull boy'.
Translates into: 
409 days x 5 miles per day
..2,045 miles 
13,020 miles 
15,065 Total miles in 3 years
Walking the Rest of the World up to this point. 53 Countries.
248 days x 7 years 
1,736 days x 15 miles

Four months each year for the Miscellaneous...
..1,736 days 
26,046 miles
117 days x 7 years 
819 days x 5 miles
.....819 days 
.4,095 miles 
26,046
Total 
Add the Three and a half years
30,191 in 7 years 
15,065

45,256 Total Mileage/10 and a half years

 
Stage #1
Walked all Fifty-States

Dates: August 28, 1983 - February 10, 1987 
14,000 plus miles
 
Stage #2
Rest of the World

Dates: March 16,1992 -

Europe

Ireland - Scotland - England

Belgium - Luxembourg - Netherlands

[Note] November of 1992, winter set in, retreated down into France and Spain.

France

Spain

[Note] Returned to France in the spring of 1993.

Then up into Germany and the Scandinavian Countries

Germany - Denmark - Norway

Sweden - Finland - Estonia

Russia 
[St. Petersburg, Novgorod, Moscow, Ryazen, Tomtov, Saratov and Volgograd. Then back to Moscow Over to Brest  

Into Poland, After Warsaw, I took a bus all the way down into France and then back into Spain

Gibraltar - Morocco

Algeria-Tunisia 

Italy - Vatican City- Switzerland - Liechtenstein

Austria - Czech Republic - Slovakia - Slovenia ( a side walking trip into Krakow,Poland)

Bosnia-Herzegovina

Hungry - Romania - Bulgaria - Albania

Turkey - Greece - Mt Athos - Mt.Olympus - Jordan - Israel

Northeast Africa

Egypt - Sudan - Chad - Ethiopia

Kenya -  Mt. Kenya -  Tanzania - Mt.Kilimanjaro - Zanzibar

Malawi - Zambia - Zimbabwe

Botswana - Namibia - South Africa  
[Note] Returned to Zimbabwe ( took a plane to India.}
India - Nepal - China

Vietnam - Thailand  -  Cameroon - Cambodia

Malaysia - Singapore - Indonesia

New Zealand

South America

Argentina  Uruguay  Bolivia

Chile  Peru  Ecuador  Colombia 

Panama  Costa Rica  Nicaragua,

(Emergency arose; a quick trip to the VA. Hospital, Houston,Tx.)

Returned back into Mexico ( Dream finished)

Crossed  the Border into Texas Jan.12, 2012

Boarded a bus to Houston

Any Future Travels ?

Yes! and No!

This Traveler Knows; that down deep in the crevices of my imagination there are five destinations still to be walked.

                                                   Venezuela, Brazil, Antarctica, Australia and Tibet

                                                                              Just maybe!

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The Hawk Has Landed

 No pen, brush or note; no depth of heart, mind or soul can ever come near the mark of defining or expressing the greatness, the grandeur of this Odyssey. This "Walk-About" and its' completion.

After Twenty; consecutive years {backpacking} trek is finished. The Hawk has landed. The last border was crossed between Mexico and Texas, (January 2012).

Seventy Borders walked across. Seventy Countries and Six Continents backpacked (80,000 miles plus/plus) A continuous self-supported backpacking trek. No employment along the way. No returning home for 20 years.

Documentation; Two Passports filled with Supplement pages, plus Newspaper Articles - Emails- Guestbook signings.

The second passport was issued in Chengdu, China in the year 2002.

Finances:

Two Government checks; World War ll Disability check and a Social Security check. Total $916.00 per. month.

The World Trek was well covered by the media (newspaper, television and radio).. I spoke by invitation too; Schools, Universities, Social Organizations and Professional groups.

Where possible; 'English Conversational Corners' were established on campus and off. Student translators were used when necessary.

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The Question

 Why The Journey?

Answer:

"I was following my dream."

But it became much more than that. There is a deeper answer,

a deeper meaning, a truth to be had.

 A  journey is not about the destination. In light of this truth;

the destination is a lesser gift,

 It is about reaching beyond ones' grasp, about experiencing,

about doing the dream. And even more important, it is about

becoming and being that which you seek after.

The pages of History are filled with the names of the "can do" people.

Those who had a dream; a vision which they became.  Because this was so.

We became the recipients of their "greatness".

 Every four years: the best of the best gather together from the various countries

of the World. Those who have reached and proven their excellence in the events,

each will perform.

 Unless one has walked in the shoes of those of excellence. It is very difficult to

understand their passion, commitment and their determination as they strive to wear

the gold.

 The World will watch these Olympians as they "raise the bar" of excellence

 If only the World could "somehow" educate the 'Youth of the World' as to the true meaning

of the word "excellence" in thought, word and deed. 

Surely, each would be the benefactor. As would be the World.

 And since the "impossible", is possible and the "unreachable' is reachable

 Let us all join in and take up the challenge to help each child wherever

they might be. The meaning of "excellence". 

As is said: "dreams do come true." 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++reachable+++++++++++++++++++++++++

 The Joys Of Backpacking The World

Fishing in every state in America including; British Columbia, Alaska, the Yukon and Hawaii. For my breakfast and dinner at times.

Reliving those roaring, "hell bent" days of those early miners that came from all over the World in the late 18th. Century. Looking for "Yukon gold." As they stood at the beginning of the "Chilkoot Trail". To make the climb for "fame and fortune"

As I looked down as I topped the rim of the mountain, I could almost see the long line, of those thousands of men that challenged "The Chilkcoot" and its' elements. As they had looked, to the top and beyond to their dreams and hopes for the future.

Panning for platinum gold. Moving tons of dirt through a sluice box in the Dawson area of the Yukon, up beyond Alaska. For only a few precious ounces of "yellow". Then they would make their way down to the City and "Dirty Gertys'" Gambling Emporium. Where the "can, can" girls did their thing. As the wheels would spin, cards were dealt and fortunes lost.

Ah! yes; the era of the "good old boys" and the "good old days" of years past.

 Walking through time; while descending down through the walls of the Grand Canyon, above the rushing waters of the Colorado River.

 Capturing the sunrise in the lens of my camera, as it played hid and seek amid the monolithic rock giants that rise  from the floor of Monument Valley National Park, in Arizona.

 Competing in a tomahawk and knife throwing contest with some Native Americans on a Reservation, in Arizona

 All the sights and sounds and the smells of the many marketplaces, fairs and Casaba's around the world

Pitching my tent in the middle of the Serengeti Plain or the Riff Valley. Or along the banks of the Zambezi River where Dr.Livingston might have camped. I have walked, camped and cooked all over the World. There is nothing that compares {well, maybe something} with the sense of freedom that one feels upon awakening amid the sounds of the natural world. I am sure that Thoreau must have felt the same thing at "Walden Pond" as he awakened each morning to the freshness and innocence of the day.

The game trails and paths; two days with the Masai people shortly after crossing over into Kenya from Ethiopia. In and out of the back door of many of the Game Reserves. Feeling the thrill of the challenge, as I approached Mt. Kenya's and Hemingway's' beloved Kilimanjaro' peaks. For as a boy; I had read of his experiences and adventurers during his time of climbing this jewel of Africa.

What a thrill to finally be standing at the foot of each of these mountains. And accept the challenge of the climb. Words fail to portray the beauty and grandeur of these two timeless gifts.

When one becomes a part of and feels the presence, the energy of the climb, the alive-ness of the moment. One becomes aware that each and everything" above and below" are but one. We are connected, we are "family". I am convinced that this aware-ness can happen anywhere, anytime. The time is not predictable. "Silence and attention" are vital for this to happen. "Be still and know, " This is the call."

All the "oohs, ah ha's, and wows"! Of this big Wide Wonderful World, we have inherited is beyond words. Our shame is; that we seldom give any thanks for the abundance.

The architectural and natural monuments of "man" and nature. The Great Pyramids rising out of the sands of Egypt. The "Leaning Tower" of Pisa. The Acropolis, Stonehenge, Notre Dame, along with St. Peters in Rome. Monument Valley and Grand Canyon and the list goes on..

The scattered reminders of the pomp, power and ceremony of our past, as represented in the thousands of Castles, Museums and Art Galleries spread throughout the Countries of the World

I have been privy to see and experience the various ethnicities, cultures, customs and traditions of the peoples' of the world. And felt the wide spread generosity,the willingness of peoples, all sizes and shapes, creeds and colors, giving to a total stranger {Food and shelter}. But even more important, a feeling and seeing their concern and friendship, their smiles and laughter. Even in the midst of the most adverse, heart rendering conditions of scarcity and hardship. One could ever imagine.

All the visual sights of Nature. With her hues and colors that would cause an artists' palette to blush. And tongue-tie the most gifted of poets 
.

The rolling hills, the thundering waters that cascade over rocks, rushing headlong down the mountainside. To become part of "all and everything". The beauty and peace of the Worlds' forests with her thousands, upon thousands of tree lined sentinels, standing in silence, watching over Natures' Kingdom.

Those breathless sunrises over the rise of a distant mountain or on the crest of a shimmering wave. All the sunsets that take, ones' breath away. Those of the postcard variety.

The bursts of spring that sing of life and love. The thaws of the Worlds' winterlands. 
That has that fairy book look.

The fusion's of flowers that carpet the interiors of the World, with their dazzling fashion of colors. That swing and sway at the slightest hint of a breeze. Wither along the boulevards of Milan, Paris or London. Or in the flower boxes and fields of Holland, Russia or Spain

The deadly silence of both sea and ocean or the constant babble of a running brook. That plays among the rocks. And then, you have the running rivers. Some quick, fast, and dangerous. With their hidden rocks and the killer jaws of submerged Crocks and Hippos.

All the animals in their native habitat, where "survival of the fittest" is the name of the game. Where beauty, grace and speed is on a grand scale. And the animals do those things; they are best at, be they big or small. Of land, air or water.

And the deserts of the World, that have a surreal beauty, all their own. As one watches the light and shadows, dancing in and out of the shifting sands. As the mind begins to fill with images of the endless lines of man and beasts, who at one time traveled the famous ""Silk Trade"" routes of yesteryear. With their fine silks and spices for a price.

As the light begins to slowly fade. The surrealistic beauty of the day is replaced by the resplendent beauty of the night. A night that has a thousand eyes, that holds you in their gaze. Until "Amorphous" the prince of the night arrives, and you ask; "please hold back the dawn, let the night with her beauty, stay with me. A little while longer. "Just a little while longer."

On the "I-Max." screen of the World, there is so much to see, to become part of and it of us. That one needs at least a hundred lives or so. But since this is not possible at the present. We should not miss, even the tinniest of moments to see all we possibly can. What is that saying, 'we past by this world but once'" so we need to soak in all we can, before our bodies dry up and blow away. I am so often ask; do I ever get lonely walking the World. How could this be possible, when just around the corner or over the next horizon. Or down a lane or a city street there could be "the sight", the wonder. The experience of a lifetime. Just waiting for me to come along. When you think about it, how lucky can a fellow be?

Well, here comes my signature.

Do you happen to have a dream tucked away somewhere, a dream, to be or do? If you have, don't ever lose it. Hold on to it! Take it out and dust it off, now and then! Maybe that very ""now"": may be the right "now". To just do it. For, the final reality of any dream is, just do it

Source: https://teleosus.github.io/hawkwalk.github.io/index.html Backup of now down hawkwalk.com website