When my friend was having an affair with her married boyfriend her aunt used to say of the times that she was away with her beau, "she's south of Chattanooga." "Hiking the Appalachian Trail" sounds like the same thing with the Guv. Dude is having an affair. Betcha.

Ditching everyone for five whole days better be for a better reason than an affair.

Sorry, the story just still doesn't add up. If they'd known he was on the AP, they would have said so right away. The statement would have been, "We haven't heard from him but we know he's out hiking."

The real kicker here, and what Josh failed to mention on the front page, is that his wife said she didn't know. No way can that be true. Do you know how much gear you would need to go out for five days?? You don't just grab a knapsack and hiking boots and go. This takes major preparation.

The man has 4 sons and he didn't take any of them hiking with him over Father's Day?? While his family was on vacation togehter without him??

So I say he has not been out on the AP and his office did not know where he is. What is even more strange is that he wouldn't be back today...that he would just keep on keepin' on in this environment is also a shocker. I'd be all over this if I were a reporter. I'd want to see him coming off the trail with all his gear before I believed the story. And at that point, I would still call him negligent, a bad father and husband, and irresponsible.

In addition, it was reported yesterday that Sanford's cell phone location had been late last week traced to Atlanta, which would seem to be on any logical route from Columbia, South Carolina to the Appalachian Trail.

The missus and I were "hiking the Appalachian Trail" just the other night.

I worked on a Democratic US House campaign back in '94 when Sanford first showed up in politics running for the seat. He's from a wealthy family and took time off in his youth for extended travel. I'm not surprised he would take off like this (which is also why he should not be an executive officer - too flaky), but it makes no sense that he would go to the AT via Atlanta.

I've hiked parts of the AT, and I have never gone via Atlanta. He could have gone to Atlanta first for any number of legitimate reasons, but shortcut to the AT is not one of them.

It could be that the cell phone call just went through some tower in or near Atlanta from where ever it started. I don't know how cell phone call traffic works.

The incident is most likely not nefarious, but underscores his lack of judgment and his lack of common sense. I don't think he relates to others well. To me he seems inside his own head and is surprised that people might be surprised at his behavior. Just look at his fractious relationship with members of his own party in the SC legislature. He's an idea (lame though the ideas may be) guy, not a real world guy. Should never be in a position of executive authority.

Or, was Palin in her office? Maybe there's some 2012 planning going on. They both didn't want to take any stimulus, which we all know was an Obama trick to make us all slaves to our gubment. Maybe succession is in the future for SC.

This sounds like a bimbo-eruption story, but if it is not (and even if it is), TPM and other media outlets are getting taken for a ride by the South Carolina pols who obviously don't like this Gov.

Many governors, including Rudy and Whitman, get nailed in gotcha-games for taking their "details" (ie, state cop-chauffers) on personal business, even in their own state. Palin scored big points in AK for insisting that she drive herself to work without them. Why should South Carolina taxpayers pay two cops to have a 5-day hiking trip in Georgia?

And I find the not-worthy-of-being-called-speculation of the "armed" SUV to be a particularly naive bit of reporting. That's jus giving ink to a politician's enemy so he can throw out a from-the-ether accusation about guns in the SUV based on... the guy having been a cop many years before, and passing through the motorpool?

and don't we have some sort of laser-deal to keep an eye on these Hurricanes? I think its out on the tubes.

all that said, I agree with Tosh: He's out getting laid.

Hiking, especially on AT is rather dangerous, people can and do go missing and get hurt.

Any sensible (normal) hiker leaves detailed instructions including their intended route and contact points in case of emergency. Those details would include time of return. This is especially the case if you are intending hiking alone (extra risk). So either the gov ponys up a companion or someone who has the detailed route 9from prior to departure). You carry a ton of stuff for five days hiking, tent or tarp, sleeping bag, food, clothing, cooking gear, and a large back pack.

Either the gov is going to do a lot of public safety anouncements along the lines of don't do what I did, or more likely he was getting laid. five days is a lot of viagra.

BTW the AT is crowded this time of year particullarly weekends, at times its like walking down broadway. Someone would have seen him...witnesses any one? oh those bedroom eyes.

I am all for people taking vacations - and even if his story does end up checking out - why wouldn't you put yout Lt. Gov in charge? I mean isn't that what they are there for?

Oh wow, As I noted yesterday, he is tall, dark and handsome and he can't get along with anyone, such as his own party.
Teamed up with Howard Rich to defeat his own party members so he could create a state ruled by himself and have no balance of power. The stimulus debate was about Governor control over state funds vslegislative control (SC is heavy on legislative control)and he lost big.
He does not care for the people of SC only his own views, and being president..

The first time I saw Sanford, I thought "he looks like an alcoholic". He never looks well rested, and he seems agitated and aloof during interviews. Couple that with that clammy, flushed face and the huge bags under his eyes, he looks like the classic detox patient in the ER. Everyone seems to be speculating about an affair, but I have a feeling he's either in rehab, or a mental hospital of some sort. The recent events in SC are enough to trigger a psychotic break or alcoholic binge. I'm just speculating, but this makes way more sense given the circumstances. If it was an affair, he would have surfaced already. His cell phone pinged in Atlanta, not the Appalachian Trail. I bet he's receiving mental health services of some sort and his staff and family have done an awful job at developing a cover story.

I don't believe his hiking story for one minute. However, I live in Georgia, and I have previously lived in Columbia SC. I want to acknowledge that it is actually plausible that someone driving from Cola SC to the southern terminus of the AT at Amicalola Falls State Park in North GA would most likely go via Atlanta. There are not good "direct" routes from Columbia through north Georgia to the AT, and the quickest route is actually likely to be one where you'd take I-20 to Atlanta and then head north on Georgia 400 up to the mountains. Again, not that I believe this story in the slightest, but I think we should at least acknowledge that it's not totally out of the question that a cell phone would be picked up in Atlanta for someone heading to the AT.

Fathers Day was Naked Hiking Day, which might explain why he was away from home that weekend.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090619/ap_on_re_us/us_odd_naked_hiking

The important question is: has anyone ever seen Sanford's birth certificate?

I haven't.

I therefore conclude that he's not an American citizen, and, therefore, is ineligible to be governor of South Carolina. Fer gawd's sake, it was one of our 13 original colonies! So it hardly matters if he goes missing, since he's not really the legitimate governor anyway.

There is only one explanation that makes sense:

He went hunting with Dick Cheney. Sanford must have had a bad connection when he called his office. He didn't say Appalachia Trial, he said Hunting Quail.

Plastic surgery.

What father actively avoids his family on Father's Day?

"I love you, but you little bastards are driving me crazy. See you next week. And if I get another tie, maybe not even then."

Religious Dementia, followed by sexual reassignment surgery: He wants to come back to work as Amiee Semple MacPherson.