The Case Of The Missing Wallet: Solved

Over coffee and toast the other morning I went through my daily web update and email ritual when I found an email sent to my address for communication trough my other website – the long time blog “The Digital Tavern”.
I couldn’t believe what I was reading.
A gentleman doing some training in the Montana wilderness found my wallet!
Even better, because I didn’t have any information of how to contact me other than my driver’s license, but thanks to the initiative of Will Hicks, the guy who retrieved my lost wallet, I will get it back sometime next week.
Will simply “googled” my name on the internet and came across the Digital Tavern website, which since 2002 has been a top ranking blog and therefore gets to the top of the search engines. WorldRider is new and with the hope that my blogger brethren will link to me often, this site might come up if I lose anything again! Because his approach and initiave was so nice and honest, I have to put it here:
From Will:

> will hicks [1] sent this email to you through the Radio UserLand
[2] community server, re this page [3].
where is your home address on your driver’s license. Have you lost
something of importance. I may have it. Need to know if this the
Allan F. Karl that is the owner of such.

Me:

oh you have made my day!
I lost my wallet in Montana I think around Lost Trail or somewhere between Salmon ID and Darby, MT (maybe road around Gibbons Pass)?
I am on a motorcycle trip around the world! my website is https:// www.worldrider.com and yes the Digital Tavern site is mine, too.
I’m going to be in San Diego in a couple days (keeping moving) and if you could send it to me at my girlfriend that would be great. If there was any cash still in there (maybe around $20 you can keep it! and maybe pull a few dollars to send priority mail?)

Will:

Allan,
Bingo !!! I have it, and it appears that it hasn’t been touched; still $23 in it. Found it on a FS rd. off of Lost Trail Pass in Montana while out running and training on (on the 29th of August) I ,too, am travelling and will try to get it off FedEX or US priority in the next couple of days. Will pay for it with the cash that is in the wallet. I’ll send it to the address given. Weird situation to say the least.
Don’t have a lot time time to chat at the moment, however, would like to touch base in the future about the whole episode ,as well as, your trip. (One side note of bizarre in this whole thing; your b-day is the same as my brother’s).
Take Care, and most importantly : SAFE TRAVELS !!!

And A Follow Up By Will:

Allan,
I put the wallet in UPS 2 day service for a ‘cool’ $16.92. Said that it should be a your girlfriends place in Carlsbad, CA by Friday the 2nd. Please let me know when you get it. It will make me sleep a little easier knowing that you got it. Glad this all worked out for you.
Again, safe travels and good luck with everything. Enjoy that open road.
–W. Hicks
p.s. What the “hey” were you doing down that side road…. of a side road,… of a another side road ? To tell you the truth I thought I might be coming up on a murder scene when I happened upon your vitals. I was spooked to say the least. Truly, one of the strangest finds to date in my 30 yrs of traveling the backroads of the western states.

Me:

Will – Very interesting. In my tracking my “steps” that day I went down that dirt road that goes from near the Lost Trail Visitor Center/Rest Area (across the street through the parking lot) and through a referral was looking for the road up to Gibbons Pass, with verbal info and not remember all the details I thought it’d be easy to find… I made it hard to find by taking two snowmobile trails […] I’m assuming it’s one of these side roads that you found it on; unless you found it on the main 1206 or whatever road. But going back I didn’t take those little side roads because it was a pain turning my loaded BMW Dual-Sport motorcycle around the narrower trail so I was lazy and depressed and ready to toss it in. Frankly, I had to take a leak up on gibbons pass that day and hiking my motorcycle jacket up and the like I thought the wallet might have slipped out. But I got back to the place and nothing! I was sure that’s where it was. So I’m not sure how it fell out of my pocket on the little snowmobile trail, but whatever…
Thanks so much for doing that for me. I’ll email you back when I get the wallet and definately will drop a note from somewhere interesting along the road.
[…] You’ve made my day and it’s reassuring to know as I tell my friends that there are good reasons to have faith in humanity!
smiles
/allan

This is amazing! I’m so happy.