After five and 3/4 months, 14 states and 2,175 miles, our extraordinary adventure has finally come to an end. We began hiking north from Georgia on April 22nd and finished the 17th of October in northern Maine on the snow-covered summit of Mt. Katahdin in Baxter State Park.
Each year over 1,000 hikers from all walks of life set out to complete the Appalachian Trail in its entirety and of those approximately fifteen percent finish. People drop out for a myriad of reasons ranging from financial, environmental, psychological to physical. The average hiker takes 5-7 months to finish and some are unable to finish because severe winter weather closes the trail ascending Katahdin. Since the completion of the trail in the 1930s fewer than 10,000 people have ever hiked it's length whether straight through or in sections.
On average the trail is very rugged with rocks and roots covering the
path frequently. There is 90 miles of elevation change over the entire
trip which is equivalent to hiking up and down the Grand Canyon every 2-3 days. Getting lost is usually not a concern as the path is well worn and
also marked with 2" by 6" white strips of paint called "blazes" at
least every 1/4 mile. In rocky areas where a trail is indiscernible piles of rocks called cairns mark the route.
Everything we needed was carried on our back including cold-weather gear, wet-weather gear including an umbrella, a sleeping bag, a tarp with net tent, a sleeping mat, two liters of water, three to five days of food, a stove (Jet Boil), hygiene items, water purification drops, clothes, other assorted items and a guidebook. The guidebook clued us in to where towns, campgrounds and water sources were along the trail. When we needed to go into town to resupply we'd hitchhike and when we needed water typically we stuck our water bottles in a spring and treated it with a small amount of chlorine (AquaMira).
The trail also has its own community that you become a part of simply by the nature of thru-hiking (hiking the entire AT from end to end in one season). Over time you begin to know the other hikers on the trail and you keep up on the trail community through trail registers. Registers are notebooks located in three-sided shelters every six to ten miles along the path where people write about trail conditions or anything on their mind. People identify each other by their trail name which is usually given to you by another hiker for any number of reasons; mine was Hawkeye and my wife's was Wyoming. Although most people like the peace of the outdoors they also tend to seek out the joys of friendship and camaraderie. Every night people tend to meet up at campgrounds and spend the night together typically sleeping on the ground or in shelters.
The peace and the beauty of the wilderness is what I loved the most. My favorite states were Maine and New Hampshire for their ruggedness and beauty but it would be wonderful to be in any of them once again. The biggest challenges are the physical and mental challenges a journey of this magnitude inevitably entails. It isn't easy hiking 8-10 hours a day and when you throw mountains, weather and a backpack into the mix it gets tough.
Every hour of every day you are rewarded by the magnificent views, landscapes, flora and fauna. During the trip we saw black bear, moose, rattle snake. porcupine, bobcat, deer and a range of other beautiful creatures. There is no reason to be afraid of these animals either. Typically they will run from you before you even see them. A lot of the wildlife we saw was a result of listening and being able to spot them before they got out of sight. It's beautiful.
My words of advice for any prospective long distance hikers are to go light. The less weight you carry the easier it will be for you. I encourage anyone with the desire to go out and do it. You CAN succeed. You don't have to be an athlete to walk and carry a pack. Indeed, there were 70 year old people who passed us and overweight people that plodded along at a snail's pace and succeeded. You will never know your capabilities unless you push them. It is an experience of a lifetime.
"It were as well to be educated in the shadow of a mountain as in more classic shade. Some will remember, no doubt, not only that they went to college, but that they went to the mountain." -Henry David Thoreau
If anyone would like further information please feel free to contact me via email with your questions. I am happy to pass along my knowledge from this experience. For more pictures and information please be sure to visit my photo albums.