Date: 2014-08-24
To: Recap
Miles today: 0.0

AT RecapWhere to start? So many stories to share. This amazing summer has fully lived up to and even exceeded all my expectations. I am glad to have this daily journal for my own records, and I was happy to share it through trailjournals. I have loved hearing from many of you. I will respond to all those who left their email, but probably not until I get home to my real computer. If you have any questions feel free to email me at AZontheAT@gmail.com or through my guest book. I am a degreed mechanical engineer who does not really have an artsy side. The writing and photography does not come naturally to me. My mom was impressed with my writing and you know she is totally unbiased. I was not able to easily put pictures on trailjournals since I have a Windows phone and never figured out how to upload photos. My website AZontheAT.com has photos of the entire journey. I took almost 2,000 pictures along the way. It¢s funny how few I took during the tough climbs of Maine and New Hampshire. Guess I had a little Katahdin fever and just wanted to get the miles done. It still astounds me that I walked from Georgia to Maine ¢ proof that as the saying goes, if you want to accomplish something extraordinary, just do something ordinary, consistently. That is a great segue into a common question I was asked. How can you afford to leave a job for five months at 55 years old to hike the trail? My answer is that I started saving and investing 30 years ago and have stayed the course this entire time. By living below my means and investing carefully I am now able to afford to do an adventure like this. By investing an ordinary amount of money consistently I have had what I consider extraordinary results.What was your favorite part? The trail has so many wonderful little things that make an incredible experience. I do not have the writing talent to put it in words. If I had to choose just one thing it would be the people on the trail. In order to make it to Maine you need a positive outlook on things around. I can be critical of our younger generation because I think they can feel entitled without doing all the work. I was especially impressed with the 25 to 35 year olds I met on the trail. I met many outstanding young men this summer. I really enjoyed being a part of this amazing trail community. Did you ever come close to quitting? Honestly, no. Hiking the entire trail is not easy, but most worthwhile accomplishments tend to involve some hardship. There are many life correlations to thru hiking. As its been said many times, as the going gets tough, the tough get going. As a business owner I would certainly look highly at someone who had a thru hike on their resume. Did you see a bear? I am not sure why most people are afraid of bears. I saw about fifteen (counting the stuffed one in Cabellas and the two in the zoo) and never heard of anyone having problems. The bears want your food so we would hang our food in trees. The chipmunks and mice are definitely much more aggressive and tougher to keep at bay. They have no fear whereas the bears keep their distance. What did you fear most? Ticks, ticks, ticks and lightning while hiking on a ridge! I know of ten people who got Lyme disease this summer. I checked myself for ticks every night and fortunately was able to avoid any problems. In the mid states the volunteer trail maintainers did a great job trimming back the overgrowth along the trail. Anyone thinking of hiking on the AT needs to take ticks very seriously. What was tough for you? Living in Arizona now, the eastern humidity was the toughest for me. I quickly got tired of always being wet and putting on damp clothes to start the day. What was your favorite stretch of trail? Without a doubt it was the 100 Mile Wilderness and the finish up Katahdin. I was with a great group, the terrain was beautiful with rivers, lakes and of course mountains and the anticipation of finishing as katahdin grew closer and closer each day. A perfect set up to the grand finale of climbing Katahdin.What would you do differently next time? Overall I was very pleased with my hike. I started relatively slowly and took my time from Pennsylvania through Vermont. I did this knowing New Hampshire and Maine would be tough. The biggest thing I would suggest is to hike your own hike. Sounds a bit cliche, but is so true. I saw several people wear out or get injured by trying to keep up with someone else. I started mid-April to avoid the cold and wanted to finish mid August, again to avoid the cold. I would do the same if I were to do it again. My base weight was fifteen pounds without food and water. I would do food differently by preparing things at home and sending to myself. There were lots of re-supplies done in convenience and dollar stores which ends up getting pretty repetitious. Did you suffer any injuries? No, I stayed remarkably healthy. I started slowly and never really pushed too hard. Even though it was a four-month hike I was well within my comfort zone the entire time. My feet were my concern before starting and they were my weak point but were never a real problem. They are tired now. I used five pair of shoes to assure good footwear the entire time. The used pairs were shipped home so I have plenty of shoes to go home to. I only took six or eight Ibuprofen in the beginning and none the past three months. I never used my first aid kit. I was good about filtering water and staying clean, so never had any stomach problems. I am a regular day hiker so was in pretty good trail shape before starting. When do you plan to start the PCT? No plans at this time for another long hike. I can see hiking the John Muir trail (200 miles) next summer. I'll keep you posted.In my upcoming gear review I will discuss in detail what I carried and suggestions of different gear I saw on trail.Thanks for for joining me on my hike from Georgia to Maine!