Larry Hillberg's "Long Walk Home," 3-CD set KVMR Membership Thank You Gift

Larry Hillberg's "Long Walk Home," 3-CD set

$120.00 Sustainer · Thank You Gift

All new or renewing members receive KVMR's bi-monthly Listeners' Guide and our current bumper sticker or window decal. When supporters join KVMR's Membership rolls (or renew) at membership levels of $120.00 or above, you are invited to select this limited edition thank-you gift.

Larry Hillberg's "Long Walk Home," 3-CD set

Said Alice to the Cheshire Cat, "Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?" "That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said the cat. "I don't care much where..." said Alice. "Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the cat." "...as long as I get somewhere." Alice added as an explanation. "Oh, you're sure to do that," said the cat, "if you only walk long enough."
From Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

From March 12 to July 1 of 2000, Larry Hillberg backpacked from Albuquerque, New Mexico to his Michigan hometown for his 40th high school reunion. With every night's stop a mystery, along a mix of back roads and trails, he trekked almost 2000 miles over eight states. Every two weeks he phoned Danny and Julie Chauvin on their Street Legal show on KVMR/FM, Nevada City, California, and chatted on-air about his travels. On October 9, 2005, this story of his adventure was broadcast live on KVMR/FM Radio.

For their help with this package, a sincere thank you to Chuck Carlson, Carolyn Crane, and John Patterson. For their original idea for these calls, a special thank you to Danny and Julie.

Larry Hillberg's "Long Walk Home"

3-CD Track listing

Disc 1
1.	Introduced by Chuck Brodsky's "Goddamn Blessed Road", the adventure begins. Larry is fit, prepared, excited, but apprehensive. Go East Old Man.
2.	Larry starts out for a walk, a very long walk. He plans to backpack almost two thousand miles, over sixteen weeks, without ever having to turn around and go back. Why would anyone want to do such a thing?
3.	From Albuquerque, after learning one fast lesson that begins his enlightenment, Larry starts east along Route 66. The mystery begins. Tom Russell sings "The Ballad of Edward Abbey." Edward himself narrates his "Benediction".
4.	Along the Turquoise Trail, sleeping with the coyotes, Larry finds freedom, funky desert towns, daytime heat, and nighttime frost. Generic strip malls and junk food ruin the entry to historic Santa Fe. Greg Brown sings from "Poet Game".
5.	Now grubby, Larry learns another lesson about modern fears - someone else's. The Camino Real leads to a potluck, a whiteout blizzard, deep snow, and a brief phone call to Danny and Julie Chauvin's Street Legal radio show on KVMR/FM.
6.	Along the mountain route of the Santa Fe Trail, falling snow and the Colorado Highway Patrol add beauty and challenge to historic Raton Pass. Townes van Zandt sings "Snowin' on Raton". Hasta la Vista New Mexico.
7.	Larry joins the American Discovery National Scenic Trail on its route from Pacific to Atlantic, hiking alongside the Arkansas River and on the Santa Fe Trail. The wind blows mighty cold across flat, open prairie. Peter Rowan sings "Land of the Navajo". Cowboys pull a gag. After our meeting, Leona Turner will later escape her comfort zone and travel to Alaska.
8.	Unlike in Easy Rider, local cowboys offer gifts from their pickup window and shoot pool. Larry becomes a grandpa, gains wisdom from a working cowboy, walks flat, prairie back roads, and phones Danny and Julie from the wide-open spaces.
9.	Circular pivots and the unseen Ogallala give life to the sand hills and fill abundant grain elevators. Dirt roads and a silent Arkansas River lead Larry across Kansas. Cimarron's finest do not take a liking to bearded strangers with backpacks.
Disc 2
1.	An intrepid hiker arrives in Dodge City, like the Texas cowboys of over a century ago. About such a cowboy on a cattle drive, Ian Tyson performs "Bob Fudge". Unlike its wild, storied past, today's Dodge is quiet. Immigrants have brought new cultures and into an economy now dominated by meatpacking.
2.	Along the historic Santa Fe Trail, slammed by wind and rain, with miles to go and promises to keep, Larry pushes on. Historic trail travelers had it far worse.
3.	Now leaving the Santa Fe Trail, shoved into a gas station by a dramatic wind gust, Larry phones Street Legal from Great Bend, Kansas. According to Bob Dylan, "Things have Changed". Indeed. Spring arrives, with unsettled prairie weather.
4.	Every single year, on their flight to the south, forty five percent of the shorebirds in North America visit the wetlands of Cheyenne Bottoms. As Larry passes, tens of thousands rise from the cattails. Now headed north, Larry becomes front-page material for several small town newspapers. Headline: WALKER IS ON A MENTAL HIGH.
5.	Lebanon, Kansas, at the geographical center of the USA, crumbles like nearby farms, while cities sprawl and strip malls fester rampant across America. Greg Brown, Iowa singer and songwriter, sings of such a place in "Our Little Town".
6.	A WELCOME TO NEBRASKA sign shelters Larry from a sudden, horizontal thunderstorm, while streaking sunlight illuminates distant Red Cloud. Hiking on, Larry learns the Nebraska wave. In Central City, he meets a senator and gets a job offer.
7.	Strolling downtown for breakfast, with the key to the Methodist Church in his pocket, Larry enjoys his typical massive breakfast and phones Street Legal from Fullerton, Nebraska. Bob Dylan sings from "Meet me in the Morning."
8.	Who is most at risk during a tornado, those in a tent outside, or those safe in their beds at home? Touchdown! The Greatest Adventure of All Time, gusty Midwest thunderstorms, and a visit with granddaughter give context to the trek.
9.	Staggering, blown into town while watching a barn roof peel away like a sardine can lid, Larry phones Street Legal from Jasper, Minnesota. Bob Dylan, maybe inspired to leave Minnesota by such weather, sings "Like a Rolling Stone".
10.	Larry, spared by his trek from chores, job, and the mundane, expends miles and days in blasting wind and rain. Greg Brown sings of a gentler "Spring Wind".
Disc 3
1.	Minnesota deals dramatic weather, dire traffic, and daunting suburbia. Suburban folks are wary of bearded strangers. Even when you once enjoyed living there, as observed by author Thomas Wolfe, "You can't go home again."
2.	In the Midwest, people watch the Weather Channel. From a complimentary motel room in Hastings, spared from thunderstorm and hail, Larry phones Street Legal, then crosses the muddy Mississippi and blue-gray St Croix into green Wisconsin.
3.	Pastoral, laid-back Wisconsin provides serendipity and variety, with birthdays, flying saucers, storms, hypothermia, dehydration, ticks, the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, and unexpected wisdom at a Rib Lake gas station.
4.	From Green Bay Packer country, in Tomahawk, Larry phones Street Legal to talk about adventure, wildlife, and bugs. Ramblin' Jack Elliot and John Prine perform "Walls of Red Wing".
5.	Rain, mosquitoes, and deer flies drive our intrepid hiker into the northern woods of Michigan's Upper Peninsula. A quiet, pristine place creates enlightenment.
6.	In Marquette, the town where he was born, Larry experiences friends, nostalgia, and the awakenings of old memories, along with unexpected media, fame, and notoriety. Sipping cognac, enjoying a favorite song from local Paul Whitens, he sees visions of dad. Months later, Larry will learn that he was on the exact site of the house where dad was born. John Prine performs his original "Hello in There".
7.	From Skandia, two days before reaching his destination, Larry makes his final call to Danny and Julie on Street Legal.
8.	Those final sweet days roll around. Larry leans on a rock and reminisces while Greg Brown sings "Laughing River". On a worn out third pair of shoes, on the exact date planned, Larry reaches his destination of Munising. Reduced to the same weight as when he graduated, he attends his fortieth high school reunion.
9.	Back home, reflecting, Larry speaks of escaping comfort, confronting fears, walking on our own two feet, gaining perspective, and enlightenment. Louis Armstrong, as only he can do it, confirms a truth. "What a Wonderful World."

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