Pit Bull Trial Lawyer Transforms into ‘TinMan’ on Appalachian Trek

By Natalie Posgate

(Aug. 13) – Last year, Mike Lynn won the biggest feat in his career and, possibly, the biggest in North Texas courtroom history: a $535 million jury verdict for client Energy Transfer Partners.

And now, over a year later, Lynn has accomplished an equally impressive – though much more physically taxing – milestone: a 700-mile hike on the Appalachian Trail. Lynn returned to his practice at Lynn Tillotson Pinker & Cox last week, about a month after his June 28 homecoming from the three-month hike, which took him through the Georgia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, New Hampshire and Maine segments of the trail.

Lynn said backpacking the Appalachian Trail had been a lifelong dream of his, and one that he would soon lose if he did not go forth with it.

“It was a challenge I needed to experience; I needed to take it at 65 or lose it,” said Lynn, who celebrated his birthday on the trail. “It was really important to me to be able to challenge myself away from the office and away from whatever position I had – away from money and away from assistants – and see whether or not I could survive. I proved to myself I could, and I’m very proud of that.”

Lynn decided to take the plunge despite undergoing two knee replacements in the past two years. The obstacle, however, provided him with a killer trail name: TinMan. The trail was an alternate universe for Lynn, known in Texas as a “pit bull” trial lawyer, because other hikers did not know he was a lawyer, and “the ones who did didn’t care.”

He said he thoroughly enjoyed the people he met on the trail – never meeting one jerk his entire trip – and his encounters with them will better him as a lawyer.

“I think I can relate to people more. It was interesting talking to people about their lives,” Lynn said. “I believe a lot of the lessons of the trail probably translate very freely to how we ought to treat one another, which is probably what trials are all about in the first place.

Lynn celebrated his 65th birthday at the Aquone Hiker , the best one he saw on the Trail: Aquone Hiker Lodge, the best hostel he saw on the trail. It is run by Steven and Maggie, both British expats. — Lynn celebrated his 65th birthday at the Aquone Hiker Lodge, the best hostel he saw on the trail. It is run by Steven and Maggie, both British expats.

“Most importantly, I learned patience,” he added. “I can’t control a lot of things. I can’t control the rain, how steep the rocks are, how high the mountains are, or whether I could make it to the next shelter. I had to learn to accept the way things are.”

Favorite moments from Lynn’s journey included reaching Neel’s Gap in Georgia – where 25 percent of hikers abandon the trail – and reaching the top of Mount Washington in New Hampshire, where he has a family connection.

As a young engineer for Bell Helicopter, Lynn’s father, who is now 89, was sent to Mt. Washington one winter to sport a parka while developing and testing deicing systems for the Model 47 helicopter, which was used in the Korean War. At one point he had to descend Mt. Washington, widely known as “the most dangerous little mountain” in the world, which Lynn said “became a giant myth of bravery” in his family.

While hiking, Lynn stayed connected with the world by way of his blog and phone calls with his wife, U.S. District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn (and only one time, a conference call with a client) when he had reception. Lynn said the transition to often having no cell phone bars was not an issue, except for April 27 – the day his second granddaughter was born.

Lynn received a message that his daughter was going to the hospital, but he didn’t know whether the reason was problematic.

He tried running up to the top of a ridge in the Great Smoky Mountains to get a stronger signal, but “running with 35 pounds on your back doesn’t last very long,” and he was forced to stop and set up camp for the night.

“I find it ironic that I was disconnected at the time I wanted to have the most connection,” he said. “I woke up the next morning to a picture of my granddaughter and a message that my daughter was OK that somehow made it to my phone despite no service. I had no outwardly idea how it got there other than God let it through.”

The backyard of Woodchuck Hostel in Damascus, VA, where Lynn stayed during Trail Days, an annual festival that celebrates the Appalachian Trail. Lynn's tent on left of orange one in the foreground. — The backyard of Woodchuck Hostel in Damascus, VA, where Lynn stayed during Trail Days, an annual festival that celebrates the Appalachian Trail. Lynn’s tent is on the left of the orange one in the foreground.

The fog banks cleared as Lynn descended Mount Lafayette, and he could not believe the view. He remembers stopping and staring at it thinking, "There is no way I can capture this on my phone." — The fog banks cleared as Lynn descended Mount Lafayette, and he could not believe the view. He remembers stopping and staring at it thinking, “There is no way I can capture this on my phone.”

The first hostel Lynn stayed in during the hike. "It is not hard to tell my leg is injured as I am having a hard time standing straight at this point. I am not yet in hiking shape," he says. — The first hostel Lynn stayed in during the hike. “It is not hard to tell my leg is injured as I am having a hard time standing straight at this point. I am not yet in hiking shape,” he says.

"I was excited to get to the top of this long, long climb at the beginning of the hike," Lynn says. "I had not yet focused on the fact this was the first of three mountains I would climb that day." — “I was excited to get to the top of this long, long climb at the beginning of the hike,” Lynn says. “I had not yet focused on the fact this was the first of three mountains I would climb that day.”

The “crew” Lynn ran into at Fontana Dam where they were drying out from all the rain before entering the Great Smokies. Most people Lynn met on the trail were only known by their trail names.

“I was excited to have made it up Mount Washington so easily after all the tales of how dangerous it was,” Lynn says. “The wind had picked up and I was holding onto the sign to avoid being blown around. The temperature had dropped and since I had stopped climbing I was very cold.”

Lynn coming off of Mount Lafayette and descending to Camp Garfield.

Lynn reaching the North Carolina border.

Lynn's common view after "day after day of rain and mud." — Lynn’s common view after “day after day of rain and mud.”

"This is my favorite picture," Lynn says. "Winds at this point about 40 mph and it is in mid 30s; I did not know clouds were behind me when this was taken." — “This is my favorite picture,” Lynn says. “Winds at this point about 40 mph and it is in mid 30s; I did not know clouds were behind me when this was taken.”

Lynn's view from the top of Mount Katahdin in Maine, where the Appalachian Trail ends. He said this view made him frightened of the climb. — Lynn’s view from the top of Mount Katahdin in Maine, where the Appalachian Trail ends. He said this view made him frightened of the climb.

The trail to ascend Mount Webster is in the middle of the rocks pictured. Lynn said this picture demonstrates how finding the trail could be difficult at times.

The White Mountains in New Hampshire. "This was a glorious day which one does not find often in the Whites," Lynn says. "The clouds cleared and I sat on a rock thinking, 'This is wonderful to be here.' " — The White Mountains in New Hampshire. “This was a glorious day which one does not find often in the Whites,” Lynn says. “The clouds cleared and I sat on a rock thinking, ‘This is wonderful to be here.’ “

The woods that Lynn hiked through in the Great Smokies, which he had few words for: "rain and more rain and mud and more mud." — The woods that Lynn hiked through in the Great Smokies, which he had few words for: “rain and more rain and mud and more mud.”

© 2015 The Texas Lawbook. Content of The Texas Lawbook is controlled and protected by specific licensing agreements with our subscribers and under federal copyright laws. Any distribution of this content without the consent of The Texas Lawbook is prohibited.

If you see any inaccuracy in any article in The Texas Lawbook, please contact us. Our goal is content that is 100% true and accurate. Thank you.

Mark Curriden

Who We Are

Stay Connected

Our Partners