Final Thoughts

The journey is over. Four months and eight days of sore feet, blistered hands, bug bites, hunger, and exhaustion; four months and eight days of spectacular views, fantastic people, exhiliarating animal encounters, great trail towns, and trail magic. Four months and eight days of freedom. Complete. Done. Over. How does it feel? Pretty amazing. As I alluded to at the halfway point, this was not a camping trip. This was not the type of journey where the campground was the destination. This was a hiking trip. I hiked every day for 10-14 hours over extremely difficult terrain and ended up camping wherever I passed out from exhaustion at dusk, sometimes even hiking into the night. There was a lot of suffering involved, but the suffering was in a way that made me more resilient to suffering. It was a journey of a lifetime filled with incredible ups and downs (pun intended), challenges, and soul searching. It was a journey that I would encourage everyone to attempt, in whatever form is possible under the circumstances. It was a journey of relearning and rebirth, and as the journey progressed, I began to have a better understanding of limitations, realizing that sometimes there aren't any. There are only CURRENT limitations. I began to realize and fully grasp (or "grok" as Michael Valentine Smith would say) the fluidity of reality and limitations. The body I'd wake up in was different than the body I went to sleep in. Reality was changing; and with it, some limitations no longer existed. I understood that if I continued pushing myself day after day, that my body would adapt, grow, and become stronger. I realized it's the same for anything--exercising the mind, learning something new, etc. If I kept working at something tirelessly, pouring myself into it completely, the limitations that I thought existed would one day disappear. Reality would have changed. It was a great realization and I saw the changes occurring in me on a daily basis. I will take that knowledge with me into "real" life knowing that if something seems out of reach, all I need to do is push myself harder, reshape reality, and continue bending it until I CAN reach the goal. Anything is possible. All goals can be realized with enough will power and determination. That is true for everyone. All in all the Appalachian Trail was an amazing, unparalleled adventure. For four months and eight days I bathed in the splendor of the natural world and was cleansed through human kindness. My mind is clear, my soul is pure, my heart is open. I am in perhaps the best shape of my life and I am able to reenter a world now in which everything is a luxury--every taste seems new, every seat seems comfortable, every hour seems like a blessing. I am reentering the world knowing that anything is possible, that anything is within reach with enough hard work. I am in an amazing position right now and cannot wait to see what the future holds (or more so how I will go out and shape it!). And perhaps a few years from now I'll come across someone new and they may ask "Have you ever seen the Appalachian Mountains?" And with a quiet smile I can think back to this journey and reply more/less truthfully: "Yes, just about all of them...." :) What an amazing journey. Thank you friends and family for all the support. Now let's go out and tackle the future!

Before/After





Day 125 - 131

Day 125: Distance hiked: 10.4 miles. I had a great breakfast at Shaw's before getting a ride back to the trail with MMRF, Golden, and Crush. I did not really feel like hiking after such a great and relaxing time in Monson (the Lakeshore House hostel where I stayed was incredible!!!) but the 100 Mile Wildnerness awaited. I entered the 100 Mile and had a rather uneventful day (forded Little Wilson and Big Wilson streams and saw a nice waterfall near Big Wilson) before the sound of a thunderstorm gave me reason to take shelter in Wilson Valley Lean-to. I ended up staying the night despite only having done 10.4 miles for the day (I simply just didn't feel like getting wet and wanted to dry out some of my stuff after my water bladder sprung a leak in my bag and soaked my stuff).








Day 126: Distance hiked: 20 miles. I left Wilson Valley Lean-to and climbed the Barren Ledges first thing in the morning. The view up there was great but more importantly I recieved unexpected, real, trail magic! My water bladder had sprung a leak the day before and going through the 100 Mile Wilderness without being able to carry water is a pretty ridiculous, if not deadly scenario. So when I was sitting up on the Barren Ledges and an army guy (day hiker) insisted that I take his water bladder, full of water mind you (he said he had six of them at home from the war in Afghanistan), I took it without too much question at the urging of MMRF and the Army guy's friend (we were all on the Ledges together). So 15 miles into the 100 Mile Wildnerness I managed to replace my water bladder when I needed it the most. It was increcible trail magic.  MMRF and I climbed several mountains together that day and had some good views. We made it to West Branch Pleasant River around 6:30 PM, set up camp, and went to bed.









Day 127: Distance hiked: 22.1 miles.  I left camp around 8 AM and forded West Pleasant River immediately. Climbed several moutains before finally summitting White Cap Moutain after hiking through the rain. I saw Mt. Katahdin for the first time (knowing for sure that it was the correct mountain), and it felt great to have the last large mountain behind me (other than Katahdin itself, of course). I really enjoyed the next stretch of forest and ended the day at Crawford Pond, camping next to a beautiful sand beach.











Day 128: Distance hiked: 16 miles. I woke up and ate breakfast on the beach before walking two miles to Cooper Brook Falls Lean-to where I had a second breakfast about an hour later. It was a great day of flat land, ponds, and lakes. I stopped at the Sandy Beach on Jo-Mary Lake and went swimming which was awesome! It felt great to be in the water. I then pushed on and got another view of Mt. Katahdin from Pemadumcook Lake before ending the day at White House Landing. White House Landing is a hostel in the middle of nowhere on a lake. In order to get there I had to take a mile side trail through the woods, blow an air horn hanging from a tree, take a boat across the lake (the air horn alerts the owner across the lake that someone needs a pickup), and finally arrive at the very remote hostel.  I ate a pizza and drank lots of Dr. Peppers. It was an awesome day! I then went to sleep to the sound of loons calling each other across the lake.













Day 129: Distance hiked: 26 miles. I ate a great breakfast at White House Landing before hiking past many more beautiful lakes and ponds. I had another great view of Mt. Katahdin from the top of Nesuntabunt Mtn and it was great hearing the loons call each other as I passed Rainbow Lake. I kept pushing until I reached Rainbow Ledges with a spectacular view of Katahdin. I camped on the ledges with the view, ate dinner, and reclined against a perfectly slanted rock overlooking Katahdin, reflecting on my journy. I knew it would be the last time I camped on the trail as my parents were arriving the next day. It was the perfect last camping spot with the perfect view.









Day 130: Distance hiked: 14.8 miles. I ate breakfast on Rainbow Ledges with the view of Katahdin before hiking out. I stopped at Abol Bridge Camp Store and had some Dr. Peppers, ice cream, and two slices of breakfast pizza. Yum!  I then walked into Baxter State Park with MMRF and we drank a celebratory PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) next to Katahdin stream before stopping near Big Niagara Falls. I took a little bath/shower in the falls and then layed next to the falls for about an hour and a half. I then hiked to Katahdin Stream Campground, registered with the Ranger Station (I was the 316th thru-hiker to reach the finish this year! [I was about the 2000th to start!]), and then sat in a parking lot for two hours waiting for my parents to pick me up. It was awesome to see my parents again after four months and we caught up over a great dinner in Millinocket before attempting to sleep in the Katahdin cabins prior to the big day. We barely slept with all the anticipation.










Day 131: Distance hiked: 5.2 miles (10.4 miles). My parents and I got out of bed at 4:30 AM in order to eat breakfast, ready our bags, and leave the cabin by 5:00 AM. We arrived at Baxter State Park and started our hike from Katahdin Stream Campground at 6:15 AM. The weather was perfect and my parents were amazing! The trail was extremely tough and the toughest it's ever been, but my parents just kept climbing. We helped each other up steep rock faces, used rebar where it was available, and kept pushing further and further up the mountain to the Tabletop. Once on the Tabletop, my parents decided that it was a little too much to try to go to the summit so we agreed that I would continue on and they would start down to save time (going down can be harder than going up on that kind of terrain!). My parents ended up making it a half mile from the peak though, and that is incredible!!! They showed a lot of will power that day over extremely hard terrain. It was very impressive. After we split ways, I summitted Katahdin, enjoyed the spectacular 360 degree views of the Knife's Edge and surrounding mountains, took a few pictures with the sign, talked to a bunch of fellow thru-hikers that had also just completed their journey, and eventually started down after an hour on the summit. I caught up to my parents about two miles from where I left them (I was super impressed with how far they had gotten!) and we made the long descent back to the campground, finally arriving at 5 PM. We drove back to Millinocket to our cabin, had a celebratory dinner, and then slept like babies after the exhausting hike. It was the perfect day!

























Day 120 - 124

Day 120: Distance hiked: 13.6 miles. I had breakfast at the Diner in Stratton, dropped some stuff off at the Post Office, and then hitched a ride to the trail at 11 AM. The guy that picked me up, DJ, actually planned on hiking to the first peak I was going to for the day and asked if he could tag along. I said no problem so we hiked together up South Horn and then Mt. Bigelow and the views were spectacular! I crossed the 2000 mile mark in the morning, took some great pictures from West Peak and Avery Peak, and then ended the day stealth camping on the peak of Little Bigelow, watching the sunset. It was a perfect day.














Day 121: Distance hiked: 19.8 miles. I ate breakfast on the peak of Little Bigelow (amazing view) and started hiking around 9 AM. The day consisted of many ponds and the trail actually became a beach for 10 ft which was pretty cool! Pierce Pond was beautiful and it was sad to see the place where Parkside, a Northbound thru-hiker from this year, drowned earlier in the year. It was just another reminder of how fragile and unexpected life can be. We should all make the most of every day as we never know when the ride will end. I then finished the day at Tim Harrison's property (Tim cooks a famous 12 pancake breakfast for thru-hikers every morning), stringing my hammock up in the woods close to his camp.




Day 122: Distance hiked: 18.3 miles. Awesome breakfast at Tim Harrison's (19 pancakes, 4 eggs, and 4 sausage links!) and then I headed into Caratunk to resupply. I crossed the Kennebec River via canoe (the official way to cross the trail) and got picked up by the Sterling Inn. After resupplying and eating Ben and Jerry's on the front porch, I pushed on and climbed Pleasant Pond Moutain, sitting on the summit for about an hour. A section hiker and former thru-hiker, Lady Sherpa, caught up to me on the peak and we finished the day hiking together to Bald Mountain Lean-to, getting rained on the last half hour.




Day 123: Distance hiked: 22 miles. Woke up early and summitted Moxie Bald by 7:30 AM. Hiked with Lady Sherpa and Hot Shot for most of the day. We forded two rivers, climbed a few small hills, and sped over mostly flat land into Monson, Maine. I stayed at the Lakeshore Hostel which is an awesome place to stay with free kayaks, a lake to swim in, a pub with great food, and pretty much anything else a hiker could want. It's been amazing and it's so exciting to be this close to the end!









Day 124: Distance hiked: ZERO. Went grocery shopping, swimming, and currently hanging out at the Lakeshore hostel. Getting ready for the family fantasy football draft today! A nice day off before heading off into the 100 mile wildnerness tomorrow! If I don't emerge in 6 days call in the rescue squad.