Date: 2015-09-29
To: My Conclusions
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

Die deutsche Fassung findet sich unter dem Datum von gestern.These are my conclusions after 907,1 AT miles. Others may have opposite opinions, because there is no absolute truth.¢¢        My book about my AT experience would be entiteled ¢Trail Magic¢, because the beauty of the trail surprised and enchanted me and I was deeply touched by the people I met.¢¢        The AT scenery is extraordinary, walking in the woods, the views, mystic days in fog, the fresh green in spring, flower carpets in the Smokies. Clear streams and waterfalls, rocks and bridges, the refreshing taste of a natural spring. The first rays of sunlight, spectacular skys at sunset. Chipmonks, hummingbirds and screetchy owls. The forests are so different from Europe and they sound different too. ¢¢        I really appreciated the warm friendliness and openness of most hikers. The standard greeting ¢How are you doing¢ always included an opportunity to stop for a chat. I often experienced overwhelming trail magic from strangers and it left me speechless. Meeting so many different people from all walks of life was a great gift.¢¢        Feeling that my skills to cope with life on the trail and to adapt were improving motivated me to take on the next challenge. Realizing how many people dropped out made my feel proud. ¢¢        Life on the trail is tough and simple. My day was filled with essential tasks like eating, finding water, choosing a tentsite, climbing a mountain, stand the heat, cooking or trying not to stumble. I had to make very few decisions, most of the time the AT told me what to do. My daily life at home is not that easy and straight. On the trail my decisions made sense. Here I come across a lot of games, that are incomprehensible, time consuming, ineffective, but cost so much energy. It get¢s on my nerves and I do not want to waste my time like that any more.¢¢        I felt close to many people, I met and talked to strangers about very personal matters. Hiking the AT together created a bond everyone was aware of. It¢s different at home. We are all Germans, Catholics or citizens of Aachen, but that does not really connect us. I now feel drawn to those that hiked with me or experienced something similiar.¢¢        Naturally there were also negative experiences. The AT showed me my physical and surprisingly also my mental limits. Hiking provided me with plenty of time to worry. There is not much distraction and you can easily get absorbed with your fears. Occasionally hikers got on my nerves, especially when they did not respect hiker midnight and I had a hard time to go to sleep. There were others, that were constantly on the look-out for alkohol and partying. But if you are part of that group, this is a highlight you appreciate. At times this got a bit out of hand, but this crowd entually drops out. On other occasions I found hikers unnerving that would talk endlessly without listening.Sometimes I struggled, because life was so unpredictable. Things could change radically any moment. I do love surprises, but I can do without the surprise of a rocky and slanting tentsite after a long and tiring day!¢¢        It helps, if you expect to be in some sort of pain most oft he time. It does not help to feel personally offended by a steep mountain or a rocky section. There is no reason why it rains so much or why the bugs are spoiling your break. It is demoralizing to ask why, because there is no reason. The mountain does not care, whether you climb it or not and the thunderstorm doesn¢t care either. Hiking the AT involves suffering: No rain. No pain. No Maine. However it is really not that bad, if you feel some enthusiasm for the AT.¢¢        For your mental preparation it is absolutely essential that you enjoy hiking in the woods. It sounds simple, but dont hike the AT, if you crave for views. There are fantastic views ¢ at times.¢¢        To prepare your body for the AT, don¢t forget to train your physical mobility, to prevent injuries early on. Balancing helped me to strengthen my ankle joints. My shoulders were a constant source of pain. Since we usually don¢t carry things, we have to suffer when we do. ¢¢        Only after you have agreed on these conditions, you should consider your gear. Natuarlly it should be as light as possible and you should familiarize with it on a practice hike. Find out whether you bag is warm enough next winter. Don¢t trust the label. Remember that your gear does not carry you ¢ you have to carry your gear. You should organize someone, you can mail unnecassary gear to. I was lucky to have my mail angels Erich and Erika in NJ, because in the end 6 packages piled up in their store room.¢¢        I recommend going nothbound, because you start with many, who struggle just as much as you and you get the chance to walk with spring. Crowds were no problem, but it is essential to start with 6 ¢ 8 miles. It took me 5 weeks to get my trail legs. Take your time to prevent early injuries. Feel proud to hang in, while 30% do not even make it out of Georgia.¢¢        If you want to save extra weight, after you got your gear learn early to manage your food bag. Like many others I carried too much food for a long time.¢¢        Orientation is no problem at all. Even though the AT is just a footpath, I found it easy to follow. I carried the AT Guide loose-leaf edition, but never used the PDF. In addition the Guthook App for 60$ was helpful, because it lists many unofficial tentsites Usually the GPS worked, but not always. The town info is rather limited, therefore the app is no alternative to the AT Guide.¢¢        Hiker boxes are great. I always checked and you can find many useful things including food. When you resupply you can leave your extra food there. ¢¢        It is important to start prepared and to gather infos from others. But everyone needs to learn his own lessons and find out what actually works for him or her. Be open to learn from other hikers. After two months it becomes obvious which gear really works for thruhikers. Just look!