Interview with The Baking Soda Kid

The Baking Soda Kid (Caleb) is a barista from Atlanta Georgia. This interview took place at  Shaw's Hiker Hostel in Monson, Maine.

What was your motivation for starting to hike the AT?

Starting the AT was a little more of a whim for me than I think most people. I learned about the AT in high school, I had a friend who wanted to hike it. And I was like, “Oh, that seems like a challenge.” And I'm always up for a challenge. So I started looking into it more, learning about the culture around backpacking and what backpacking really was and stuff like that. And I’m out here basically just pushing myself. Just seeing how far I can go.

What have you enjoyed the most about hiking at so far? 

The views. I love whenever I sit down for breakfast or lunch, I'd always try and find a pretty spot. And you just sit there for like 20, 30 minutes, and you can just take it

on the spot. Just gorgeous. 

What is the story behind your trail name?

Well, The Kid came first. I was The Kid. I met a met some guys in the Bangor airport. And they were going northbound through the 100 Mile Wilderness section hiking and I was going southbound. And we were from the same area of Georgia. So we  bonded over that. Then, when we passed each other in the 100 Mile Wilderness, one of them went, " Do you have a training yet?” And I was like “no.” And he goes, “Well, we forgot your name. So we just started calling you The Kid. So you're The Kid.” So originally, I was just The Kid came in here to Shaw's. But in the front of my pack, I had packed this box of baking soda, because I heard that it was good for brushing your teeth. And then day one here at Shaw’s, I dropped my pack down, and the box was wet from from rain, and it exploded in the front pouch of my backpack. And so when I came here to have a shakedown, I just had a ton of baking soda in my pack.