Who is krispykritter?
krispykritter on the AT-Little Hump, NC
In the civilized world my name is Wayne Petrovich. I grew up as a child learning to appreciate the outdoors with my family both in the woods surrounding my parents home and during summer vacations out west at the National Parks. In a previous life I spent 33 years in the fire service. Starting out as a firefighter/medic with the City of Hollywood Fire Department I concluded my career as a fire investigator/supervisor for the Florida State Fire Marshal’s Office. I became a Search and Rescue Technician during my later years at the State Fire Marshal’s Office and was instrumental in organizing the Bureau of Fire and Arson Investigation’s Technical Rescue Team (TRT). The TRT responded to natural and/or manmade diasters and assisted governmental agencies in the search and rescue of lost individuals in the wilderness.
When I wasn’t firefighting, I would spend weekends and annual leave on backpacking trips throughout the mountains of the United States. My first backpacking trip occurred in 1976 and since that time I haven’t stopped. I lost my civilized name and became KrispyKritter every time I paddled or hiked (earth-touch as I call it) into the wilderness. My friends call me “Krispy” or “Kritter”.
I found a second life after retirement in 2004 as a long distance hiker during a six month communion with nature on the Appalachian Trail. Since that first journey, my boots have logged over 8,000 miles of world class trails in both the United States and Europe. I’ve completed thru hikes on The Appalachian Trail, Bartram Trail, Foothills Trail, Tahoe Rim Trail, John Muir Trail, Ocala Trail, West Highland Way in Scotland, Pennine Way in England, sections of the Florida Trail and countless other smaller trails. In 2010 I completed a second thru-hike from Georgia to Maine on the Appalachian Trail.
I currently work for an outfitter store in Central Florida, called Travel Country, helping others enjoy the rewards of Mother Nature.
Through my wander lust I have learned, to respect and appreciate Mother Nature like the Native Americans who have earth touched before me. We, as a human race, cannot survive without her.
The Birth of KrispyKritter
I was baptized with the name KrispyKritter during a wilderness adventure on Fisheating Creek. Sitting around a campfire with several friends after a hard day of hiking and canoeing someone mentioned I did not have a nickname (Everyone had a nickname except for me). Suddenly, several one word adjectives were blurted out from the periphery of the firelight in an attempt to bestow upon me my new name. Thankfully, they all quickly died and are long forgotten. Then from the periphery of the firelight, a deep baritone voice echoed, “Since he’s a firefighter, let’s call him Crispycritter”. Heads nodded in agreement and before I could say, “Pass me another beer.” There was a show of hands for a vote, with one objection, mine. I was handed a beer and advised that, from that point on, I would be known as Crispycritter. I didn’t have a choice in the name, but I did have a say in the spelling. So I took out the c’s added the k’s. And that, folks, is how Krispykritter was born.
This website has been developed to share these long distance hikes in words and pictures. I also realized I could describe events leading up to other backpacking trips, help other long distance hikers and backpackers in their journeys and to promote events, people and places within the hiking community. Enjoy your journey through these pages, and remember to softly earth-touch in your communion with Mother Earth.