Date: 2015-10-27
To: Beating the Post Trail Blues
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: light rain

The Post Trail Blues is real and common for people who have lived on the trail for months and face the challenge of re-acclimation. For good reason. First, there is a big culture shock and a time of pure recovery.   When I came back home rather suddenly after getting off trail on a gravel road between Caratunk and Stratton, ME and then arranging travel home, I was exhausted, the dining table was still covered in trail food (thanks Mom for taking on sending me mail drops once I decided I liked that better than grocery shopping in towns!) and it took me several weeks before I could clean my gear (see my photos for a gnarly shot of my bathtub after I cleaned my pack...three times).   It's a big adjustment to get used to the noise of phones, TVs, cars, etc.; a completely different sense of time-- on the trail the days of the week lose meaning but now I have to keep a calendar and think about my "schedule" again; and fill a lot of time that used to be spent hiking all day every day in addition to building back adequate nutrition, physical rest, and joint function.   Then there is rebuilding the large components of life: work to make money, where to live, finding others with common interests and worldview. Many people (me included) go to the trail because they are seeking a large change in their lives, find that the trail does change them for the better, and face the challenge of implementing these new changes once they get off the trail. In my case, I am also returning to my hometown to live after being away 10 years. So all of this can be quite overwhelming and depressing. But just like my first day on the trail when I hiked 8 miles to Hawk Mountain Shelter, knowing that I would eventually hike A Long Ways as the months progressed, I'm focusing on one day at a time right now, at most a week. The rest is Trail Magic. I had to come to terms with my Big Hike this year as its manifestation didn't ultimately sync with the thru-hike I thought I was setting out to do. I realized that the constant forward motion required for thru-hiking wasn't jiving with my intention to truly experience the trail, honor my dad's memory, also to take care of myself with proper rest and food. It look a plane to Maine for this realization to truly sink in. I see now that what I really wanted/needed to do this year was to walk home, and once was enough. Adjusting my thinking to see my trip to Maine as my first section in the North (and the best Katahdin Day I could have ever had!) rather than a strange tag on the southern section was helpful. I proudly joined the AT Section Hikers and the Post Trail Blues Facebook groups.Here are some other things that have helped:   --I joined the Potomac Appalachian Trail Club, the volunteer group that maintains the AT from Pine Grove Furnace State Park, Pennsylvania to Rockfish Gap at the Southern entrance to Shenandoah National Park, Virginia plus many other local trails. I'm looking forward to learning about trail maintenance and participating in a "get the trail ready for winter" work day in a few weeks.--While I'm working on getting certified to be a Zumba instructor (I had a fabulous day at Zumba's intensive teacher training and am studying now for a general group fitness instructor certification) and pondering other possible fulfilling work directions, I'm volunteering at the SPCA several times a week.-- Just in the last week, I've reached out more to people that I connected with and made friends with on the trail. This one really made a big difference. I am especially grateful that I was able to join my friend Fiddle for a day hike in Shenandoah National Park as she is section hiking in Virginia this fall. I first met her as my bunkmate at Mountain Crossings Hostel at Neil's Gap about 30 miles from Springer Mountain and I hadn't seen her since Franklin, NC. -- I am practicing gratitude and looking for beauty even though it may seem harder to find in streets full of cars than on the trail.   I still have mountain views though! Feeling grateful for things that I couldn't have on the trail but can have now is especially helpful: my cat Pepper, a nice warm house especially when the weather is cold and wet like today, an oven and microwave to cook real food and a refrigerator to store heavy fresh produce!   -- I am savoring positive trail memories, focusing on the many gains I got from the trail, and looking forward to future sections.--- I am trying hard to stay active. Even though walking in the neighborhood isn't as fulfilling as waking up and having the trail right there (although sometimes the PUDs-- Pointless Ups and Downs, high points with no view-- weren't that fulfilling either, to be honest), it's better than sitting on the couch. I am grateful that I live close to Shenandoah National Park and can easily access the 500 miles of trails there, the closest trails ascending from the park boundary are only a 20 minute drive. I'm also getting my groove on participating in Zumba classes and practicing my choreography for my own future classes.-- I am keeping this blog going! Thanks everyone for reading.