Sunny on Flagg once again
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M.J. “Sunny” Eberhart smiles with his cupcake cake celebrating his 2,617 mile journey. Photo by Rod Macleroy
M.J. “Sunny” Eberhart, also known as Nimblewill Nomad, pauses for a moment atop Flagg Mountain before entering the fire tower. Photo by Harold Banks
Eberhart waves to the crowd below gathered at the base of the fire tower. Photo by Harold Banks
Eberhart smiles as he continues on the trail, returning to Flagg Mountain at last. Photo by Rod Macelroy
Eberhart greets the crowd gathered along the trail as he finishes his hike, accompanied by District 5 County Commissioner Lamar Daugherty, District 4 County Commissioner Ronnie Joiner, and Sheriff Michael Howell. Photo by Rod Macelroy
Overcome with emotion, M.J. “Sunny” Eberhart takes a moment to soak everything in at the base of the fire tower on Flagg Mountain. Photo by Rod Macelroy
Proclamations are read and presented by guest speakers honoring Eberhart and his historic achievement. Pictured from left are County Commissioner Lamar Daugherty; Mark Tuggle, chief of staff for Speaker of the House Mac McCutchen; Rep. Ed Oliver; and Sunny Eberhart. Photo by Jodi McDade
Rep. Ed Oliver speaks to M.J. “Sunny” Eberhart while presenting proclamations from the state. Photo by Mary Haywood
Numerical balloons commemorate Eberhart’s 2,617 mile journey as he made history and broke records. Photo by Rod Macelroy
Eberhart embraces fellow Alabama Hiking Trail Society member Jodi McDade as he returns to Flagg Mountain. Photo by Rod Macelroy
Eberhart takes time to sign books he authored while visiting with guests and fans following his return to Flagg. Photo by Rod Macelroy
A “cupcake cake” celebrating Eberhart’s record-breaking achievement as he completed his 2,617 mile trek. Photo by Sheryl McKinley
By Christa Jennings
Senior Staff Writer
Sun has returned once more to Flagg Mountain in Weogufka – M.J. “Sunny” Eberhart, that is.
Eberhart, also known by his trail name Nimblewill Nomad, returned to Flagg Mountain Sunday where a celebration awaited his return following a historic event. At the age of 83, Eberhart became the oldest person to hike the Appalachian Trail.
Many have waited months for his return to Coosa County, and to celebrate both his return and his achievement a crowd gathered at Flagg in time for him to finish his trek. Commissioners Ronnie Joiner and Lamar Daugherty were there with other dignitaries for the completion of the hike.
To officially end the latest stretch of his most recent hike, Eberhart was even able to climb the steps of the historic fire tower atop Flagg – one of very few to do so.
Amid the lively celebration Sunday there was food, music, cupcakes, a “cupcake cake” commemorating Eberhart’s historic feat, and special speakers.
Mark Tuggle, chief of staff for Speaker of the House Mac McCutchen, read a proclamation from Gov. Kay Ivey recognizing Eberhart for his accomplishments. District 5 Commissioner Lamar Daugherty presented Eberhart with a resolution from the County Commission, and Alabama Rep. Ed Oliver presented proclamations from the Alabama House of Representatives and Sen. Clyde Chambliss from the Alabama Senate.
Additionally, a representative with the Boy Scouts presented Eberhart with his very own official hiking badge.
The crowd also had the opportunity to watch a documentary titled “The Last Last Hike” about the journey.
But that was Sunday. After the grand celebration and after receiving great recognition for being the oldest to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail, making headlines across the nation, Eberhart comfortably settled back in at Weogufka’s Flagg Mountain to resume his caretaker duties at the place he calls home.
Most locals know what a special place Flagg is, and Eberhart is hoping to bring more awareness to this gem in Coosa County. His genuine love for the mountain is evident.
Even when thinking back to what inspired him to begin this historic trek, the people who are such a part of Flagg Mountain played a part in it.
Eberhart recalled that he has served as caretaker of Flagg for more than three years, which he said is the longest he has stayed in one place for quite some time. He had not done any long-distance hiking since 2017 and said that he got the urge to get out and enjoy the freedom.
Over the years Eberhart said he became friends with a long-distance hiker, Dale “Greybeard” Sanders, who would come over and spend time with Eberhart. Sanders held the record for being the oldest person to hike the Appalchian Trail, which he did in 2017 at the age of 82.
Eberhart credits Greybeard with encouraging him even at his age to get out and do some hiking again.
“I just enjoy putting a backpack on and going out and experiencing nature and all the challenges, rewards and joys of what time I can spend – that solitude – what that amounted to me, and I was missing that,” Eberhart said.
He said that a combination of those things, as well as encouragement from friends and others, inspired him to give the Appalachian Trail another go while taking his “last last hike.”
He added that the people of Flagg Mountain encouraged him to do it and said they would find people to fill in as caretaker of the mountain while he was gone.
“I pretty much felt that I had yet another, maybe one more, good long hike left in me,” Eberhart said. “So I said what the heck, let’s go do it. I just decided, ‘What the heck, old man, put your pack on and go.’”
However, Eberhart said that probably the main and primary purpose of doing this latest trek was that he wanted to bring more awareness to Flagg Mountain – a place that has become so near and dear to him.
He described Flagg as “a special place,” noting the old Civilian Conservation Corps, or CCC, structures and the fire tower. He said that it is “amazingly important and productive” as far as creating more infrastructure use for Coosa County.
Additionally, he said they have a “beautiful trail, a really fine trail,” the Pinhoti that starts on the flank of Flagg Mountain.
“So the two significant things about Flagg – one is the geographic importance, and the other is the historic importance – the historic being the old CCC structures and the geographic being Flagg is the southernmost mountain in the Appalachian Mountains range,” Eberhart said. “So the mountains start here, and the trail starts here. I wanted to bring awareness to the beautiful trail we have in what I call the southern Appalachians.”
All of those things combined, and Eberhart put his pack on during the first week of January and started hiking north on the Pinhoti Trail. He just recently finished a 261-day trek that included the Appalachian Trail – a total of 2,617 miles hiked.
He hiked from Flagg to Springer Mountatin in Georgia and then hiked the full Appalachian Trail and came back. He said the bulk of his odyssey was his completion of his third thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, with him turning 83 years old a couple of weeks before he completed the remainder of the miles he had left to finish the trail.
Eberhart recalled a favorite short quote from Walt Whitman, stating, “If you done it, it ain’t bragging.”
“So now I hold the record of being the oldest person to have ever thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail,” Eberhart said. “Of the tens of thousands of people that have stomped that thing down, I’m the oldest one to do it.”
When asked how it feels to be the oldest to achieve that feat, Eberhart summed it up as “humbling.”
“To have had the good health I’ve been blessed with – we all know 80-year-old people that have trouble getting up out of their chair and walking to the kitchen or whatever, going to the doctor three times a week, and having the lined up case of all their daily medications that they have to take – the pain and suffering that really deprives them of maybe having a few more months or years of happiness in their life,” he said. “I’ve just been so incredibly blessed with good health, stamina and passion. You’re not going to do something like this if you’re not passionate about it. It’s a day to day struggle. You’ve got to have your head straight and your heart and mind straight to do that, and that’s where the passion comes in, the desire to get up and go again.”
He added, “I guess you can appreciate something that you’re going to put out in front of you that’s going to take 261 days of constant effort.”
Eberhart spent January and February making it from the first blue blaze where the Pinhoti Trail starts on Flagg Mountain to a point adjacent to Mt. Cheaha State Park in Delta. On March 1, he put his pack on for good and headed north on his historic hike.
The only days Eberhart said he did not hike were when he was sick or if there was inclement weather. He complimented “The Weather Channel,” stating that their short-range weather forecast accuracy is “incredible.”
He said that he would keep a check on the short-range weather forecast, and if rain was forecast for a particular day then he would stay in someplace, catch up on his journals, rest, and “listen to the rain patter on the roof.”
Eberhart also said he got “deathly sick” coming down out of the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. He was “really bad sick” for about 5 days and did not hike those days.
However, he did not ever just take a day off from hiking. If there was bad weather and he had the opportunity to rest, he did so.
Otherwise, he said he had a pack on for 8-10 hours every day “hammering on” the Appalachian Trail.
When asked what the most memorable part of his latest journey was, Eberhart credited the people.
“The great outpouring of love and caring and prayers that came my way uplifted me and carried me,” he said. “It’s just profound – the goodness in people that I met along the way that encouraged me and would smile and greet me with, ‘You’re that old guy, aren’t you, that’s hiking the trail?’ Can you feel the energy that’s just come out of that expression? It was just amazing.”
He said that he never grew tired of the joy of having that goodness and those well wishes and prayers coming his way.
“Of all that I experienced, the trials and tribulations, the days I had to grind and really work at it to finish, and the days I was discouraged and ready to quit, I was bolstered and carried and lifted, moved along in a very fashionable way simply because people loved me, cared for me and wished me well,” Eberhart said. “Of all my memories that have anything to do with climbing over a pile of rocks, or worrying about how hard it’s going to rain today, or how much longer it’s going to be till I fall again, or can I actually all the miles I want to do today – all those day to day frustrating things that you fret over and worry about, they’re just in a shadow, and they’re minimal compared to the beautiful time I had being greeted, welcomed and encouraged by the people all the way along.”
While he enjoyed the journey, Eberhart said that it is a blessing in his life to return to Flagg Mountain. He said that the Alabama Hiking Trail Society and Alabama Forestry Commission, as well as others, encouraged him to come back and were eager to have him return to the mountain in Coosa County.
“Most important of all, we have some of the most loving, caring and beautiful people that live all around the base of this mountain,” Eberhart said. “They love the mountain. I’m part of it. So I guess I get caught up in that love relationship with the mountain. They all wanted me back. So I accepted the invitation to return.”
He went on to say, “I don’t own any real estate. I don’t have a home. I don’t have an apartment. I don’t rent anything anywhere. I’ve got an old pickup truck with a couple of Walmart bins with all my worldly possessions that are in those. I just tell folks, I’m not homeless. I think this is my home. I expect to be here.”
Eberhart is happy to be back, but also said he does think this may have been his last long-distance hike. He described the trek as difficult and challenging, adding that it wore on him.
“This journey took it out of me – whatever I had left in me at age 83,” he said.
With his sincere love for the mountain, Eberhart spoke of the special energy that comes from Flagg and how it felt for him to not only return to the mountain, but also to actually be able to climb the steps to the top of the fire tower.
“This mountain is emanating energy, and everyone that comes up here can feel a sense of what is going on,” he said. “I’ve never been able to figure it out, but there’s some form of energy emanating from this mountain.”
Eberhart said he first climbed Flagg Mountain on December 17, 2000, on his southbound Eastern Continental Trail trek. However, returning to the mountain he now calls home was somewhat overwhelming, as the energy and emotions coursed through him.
“When I reached the fire tower up there, I just cradled my head in my arms against the stones and the tower and wept,” he said. “That energy was coming up through the top of that mountain through me.”
Eberhart added, “They opened the door to the newly constructed stairwell that’s been put in the old stone fire tower, and you’re talking to the first person besides the workers and some of the forestry people that had the opportunity to climb those stairs, and it’s beautiful.”
When it is open to the public, Eberhart encourages everyone to climb the stairs to fully enjoy and appreciate the breathtaking beauty that the view has to offer.
The windows were open when he got to the top, and Eberhart recalled how he felt at that moment.
“I could look down on all the beautiful people,” he said. “I guess there must have been maybe 75 or 100 people up here Sunday to welcome me and greet me back. The energy was coming up out of the top of that mountain… The mountain was just radiating energy from the base of the tower and from all the beautiful people that surrounded the tower that were waving to me, shouting my name and welcoming me back.”
Eberhart succinctly described that moment as “pretty intense.”
Now that he has returned from this historic adventure, Eberhart says he is not sure what is next. However, he said that he might release a second edition of his book of poetry that is currently out of print.
Eberhart, at the age of 83 and a long-distance triple crown hiker, also has life advice for others and encourages them to be passionate about life and things they enjoy.
“I’m 83 years old,” he said. “I’ve outlived everyone in my family age-wise – my parents and my grandparents on both sides. I still love life. I still find challenges. I still go and seek new goals. There’s one word that describes the fact that I’ve lived this long… one word that’s a secret to all of this, and if you’ll just remember this word and go back to it and apply it to your life and everything you do – that word is ‘passion.’ Certainly to begin with, you’re going to want to be passionate just about living, getting up in the morning, being greeted by the sunrise – whatever it is that you find and take joy in on any given day, be passionate about that. It’s a glorious thing.”
In addition to just being passionate about living and having a joyful life, he encourages people to embrace what they have within their lives that they can be passionate about. He said that people who do that will “probably live quite a while.”
Eberhart plans to continue enjoying life and finding joy in everyday things atop Flagg Mountain while once again being caretaker of the area.
Although he may have taken his “last last hike,” he has tips for beginning hikers and those who may wish to begin backpacking.
Eberhart said that he encourages people to “give it a lot of really deep thought,” adding that hiking and backpacking is a strenuous and demanding sport.
“You have to have the ability to endure; endurance is very important,” he said. “You also have to have patience.”
He said that before someone goes out and spends a large sum of money on gear, he recommends people get an inexpensive pack, have a decent pair of shoes and get some hiking sticks.
He also encourages beginning hikers to come to Flagg where they have a network of trails. He said he can get people started on a 1-mile, 2-mile, or 5-mile loop so they can see what they think of it.
Eberhart described it as a “transitional thing” and said it is evolutionary. For those who just decide to go hike the Appalchian Trail, “well you shouldn’t oughta’ do that,” Eberhart says with a chuckle.
However, with many years of experience under his belt and thousands of miles beneath his feet, Eberhart also has wisdom to impart to seasoned hikers.
“Those of you who are seasoned backpackers – we want Flagg Mountain to be the hub of the south when you think of backpacking and hiking,” he said. “We want you to think of Flagg Mountain. We want you to come here. Those who are seasoned backpackers and hikers, if you have not been to Flagg and been welcomed by the old, bearded, gray-haired long-distance hiker here, then you need to come here and meet him and hike some of our trails. Add that to your experience. You know where you’re going next. You know what you want to do next. You know what mountain you want to climb next. Somewhere in there, come see me and let’s spend some time together.”
Flagg Mountain is open seven days a week from 9 a.m. until sunset. Eberhart lives in the rangers cabin at the mountain, where he is more than happy to greet guests.
“It’s open,” he said. “Come on in, and sit by the fire with me a while.”