Date: 2011-02-22
To: Pre-hike
Miles today: 0.0

As I sit on my final business trip with less than 6 weeks to go before starting the Appalachian Trail, I¢m reflecting on just how long I¢ve thought about the Trail. I¢m guessing I first began thinking about the AT in the mid-70s. It was always at arms length and I continually struggled with how I would make it happen. In the summer of 1981, I met Dick Hudson in a hostel in Crawford Notch, New Hampshire, while my wife, Laura, and I were hiking the AT from Glencliff to Pinkham Notch, New Hampshire. Laura and I were getting settled when Dick announced he had a car and was going into North Conway for dinner. We jumped at the chance to enjoy a meal in town and the opportunity to exchange stories with a fellow hiker.At dinner, I was enthralled as we discovered Dick was the 50th person to complete the AT! I recall asking an almost endless list of questions to include, ¢How did you manage to find the time to do the Trail?¢ Dick, matter-of-factly, replied that he had hiked the trail in ¢sections.¢ He had used his vacation time from his job with the Postal Service to pursue and complete his goal.It was as if someone miraculously cleared the fog and I could now see how I would hike the Trail. I would figuratively, and perhaps literally, follow in Dick¢s footsteps. I would become a ¢section hiker.¢Within days of that meeting, Laura and I completed my first ¢section¢ hike. Dick met us at the Joe Dodge Lodge at Pinkham Notch to celebrate and encourage. The following year, Laura and I hiked from Hanover to Glencliff and in the fall I completed the AT in New Hampshire by hiking from the Carlo Col Shelter south to Pinkham Notch.This was a very busy time as I continued to work full-time and simultaneously pursued a second graduate degree full-time. There was little time for hiking. Following graduate school in 1983, I began pursuing my career in behavioral health. One opportunity led to the next as I moved from the non-profit arena to leadership roles with nationally recognized managed care organizations. The dream of section hiking remained and I would squeeze in hikes as my hectic schedule permitted¢¦Connecticut, short sections in Maine and Massachusetts, pieces of Shenandoah and Smoky Mountain National Parks, day hikes along the North Carolina/Tennessee border.Managing competing priorities, I began to doubt I would be able to complete the Trail. managing competing priorities. I re-focused. I would become a ¢peak bagger¢ and complete all of the 48 4,000 foot peaks in New Hampshire. I completed them in the mid-80s, but I continued to feel the pull of the Trail with no idea how I would or could complete what I had begun in 1981.It is now 2011. Ten years ago, my friends, Bob and Chris Dowding set out to hike the New Hampshire 4,000 footers. I encouraged them, provided suggestions and recommendations. Laura and I accompanied them on some of their early hikes. Bob accepted a new role with his long-standing employer that resulted in a 3-year assignment in Bremerton, Washington. Their pursuit of the 4,000 footers would be on hold. Upon returning from Washington, Bob and Chris were determined to complete their goal. I continued to accompany them and they completed their quest atop Mount Washington on a beautiful afternoon on Saturday, July 3, 2010. Bob had retired and had been talking about the Trail. In late July or August, we agreed he and I would hike the Trail. I would retire after 40 years and become a thru-hiker.After flip-flopping for decades about how I would hike the Trail, we rolled up our sleeves and began to plan. I ordered maps and guides, visited the ATC site and a plan emerged. We would flip-flop the Trail! We would begin our hike in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia and hike south to Springer Mountain. We would then travel north to Katahdin and finish where we began, Harpers Ferry. This alternative would allow us to stretch the season, if necessary, without the need to rush to finish at Katahdin before October 15. We would be able to get into trail shape over some of the more forgiving parts of the Trail through Shenandoah National Park and mitigate the competition for resources as we swam against the tide of northbound hikers. Our plan is¢¦understated; on average we would hike approximately 11 miles/day with weekly zero days. A very leisurely pace by any standard.Preparation and planning continued with a vengeance. We devoured websites and catalogues in the seemingly endless pursuit of gear¢¦Osprey pack, Big Agnes sleeping bag, Thermorest NeoAir Pad, MSR Internationale stove, titanium pot and spork, Marmot tent, Platypus filter, boots, clothing¢¦you get the idea. We packed and repacked, made changes, weighted everything. We ordered a supply of freeze-dried meals and shopped for Lipton sides, ramen noodles, granola bars, gorp, instant oatmeal, etc. for the 13 mail drops we planned to fill the gaps between resupply in towns along the Trail.We continued to hike locally and joined gyms. I continued the diet I began in April 2010 and at this time have shed 45 pounds. With reduced weight, better shape, and various injections into our arthritic knees, we prepare for April 1 in Harpers Ferry.Next weekend we will reassess all our gear and make final adjustments. The infamous itinerary spreadsheet will be tweaked yet again. Mail drops will be organized with the first two slated to go to the post office in under 30 days. The only thing left is what all AT hikers share¢¦taking the first step, regardless of where you begin.Since submitting my letter of retirement and coming out of the closet with my intentions, I am asked a recurring set of similar questions from my friends and colleagues. Their questions trigger vivid memories of similar questions I asked Dick Hudson and other AT hikers I have had the pleasure to meet. Their enthusiasm, advice and encouragement have been invaluable in keeping this dream alive.