Day 8: Doug the Hermit

Mileage: 0

Here's one sentence I never thought I'd say, and still don't quite believe: 'I had wine and cheese and maybe the best cup of coffee I've ever had with a hermit in the Gila Mountains.' Definitely not what I expected when I left Silver City on Saturday morning. It all started when I met some ATVers while I was taking a break by Bear Creek. 

They were two older men who struck up a conversation. They knew about the CDT and we talked about that for a bit. When I asked what they were doing, they said they were helping out a hermit to resupply. They said he only comes out once a year and they had just dropped him back off with a year's worth of goods. The younger of the two men told me that the hermit would be 'delighted' if I stopped by and 'he wasn't what I'd expect.' He gave me instructions on how to find him (go right when you see the 'COT' written in sticks).

Well, I wasn't going to pass up talking to a hermit! So, by around 6:30pm I came to the sticks and sure enough when I took the ATV track right I came to the hermit'a cabin (side note: to call it a cabin would be exaggeration ... it has a gas and wood stove, a bed, and plenty of food, but in reality it's more like four pieces of plywood nailed together with the insulation still showing and a corrugated metal roof on top).

Anyhow, the hermit, who introduced himself as Doug, was definitely happy to see me. He was a tall, wiry guy probably in his mid 60's but definitely in shape.. Though I scared him a bit when I walked up, you could immediately tell he loved people. In fact, we stayed up until 11:30pm talking (wayyyy past hiker bedtime) and I barely even got a word in. 

But first, he showed me around his property, including the well that he dug by hand (with the pipe he also buried by hand 1/4 mile all the way to his 1000 gallon water tank), the garden with raised beds, and miles and miles of trail he'd built himself.

It was amazing because he did all this without any prior knowledge of carpentry, well digging, gardening, or trail maintenance ... and no access to the internet. I mean can you imagine learning anything without first using Wikipedia or Google? He literally learned everything he did by doing. It's not the fastest method, but it's fascinating to see his approach to problem solving. For example, after the garden did so poorly his second year (all the nutrients were used up), he started experimenting with different methods of composting at high altitude and through trial and error over the past 10 years he probably knows more about gardening at high altitude than almost anyone in New Mexico.

And he was like this in everything he did - truly fastidious and exacting. He made his coffee in just a certain way (4 tablespoons into a gold filter with just the right amount of water). He cooked his rice in the same portion every night. For dinner, all he had was that rice and a handful of sprouted beans ... every single day.

He was thrilled I knew something about gardening and I promised to try and find him some seeds adapted to high altitude. He had some starts he'd found in town but we both agreed he'd be better off if he could have plants better adapted to his climate. 

It's hard to describe his energy. He just was a non-stop talker and at times I couldn't tell if he was a little crazy or just really excited to see another human. He invited me into his cabin and insisted on opening his only box of wine he had gotten at resupply. Remember, this was all he had since he only goes out once a year. I went and got my cheese from my bag and with his ritz crackers we ate like kings and sipped our wine (it turns out he loved cheese, but hadn't gotten any at resupply so I left him with the block afterwards).

Doug had been out there for 16 years in one shelter or another. He is very religious, almost like a monk without the vow of silence. He believed hermitage was God's calling for him so that's what he did and never looked back. When he's not praying or doing his rosaries he does trail work or fixes whatever needs fixing. It's a very simple life, but he said he didn't miss a thing in the outside world. What got me is how he obviously loved people - he couldn't stop telling me about the other handful of hikers who've stumbled into him. But it's almost like he treats it as sinful to be with people ... I even saw him cursing himself a few times when he thought he was talking too much. It was such a pleasant and bizarre experience - on the one hand it felt so normal but then I remembered I'm hanging out with a hermit who sees only a handful of people a year and insisted he was gaining 'new revelations about Mary' that the church would never believe.

The next morning, we woke up and he had a cup of coffee ready for me done just right. It was amazing. It was incredibly smooth and almost oily. The coffee had a hint of sweetness and required neither milk nor sugar. I want coffee like that every morning - and I've never had a cup like it even at the fanciest coffee shops (Laura, it's worth the trip just for the coffee ... Mom, since you're the only one actually reading this -- the coffee was from Costco as was all his food pretty much.

After socializing for a few more hours, I set off in the morning promising to send him a postcard and some seeds. You never know who you'll meet on the CDT...