Date: 2011-05-26
From: Partnership Shelter

To: home
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: broken clouds

I came to the conclusion yesterday that my foot would take several weeks to heal sufficiently for hiking with a pack, rather than days, and I climbed on a Greyound out of Marion, heading for home. It was sad seeing my hiking friends head north without me, but I choose to look on the positive side. This is not the end of my AT adventure, but rather a temporary detour. It's obvious that I will not make it to Maine this season, but I believe I will make it eventually. My wife even suggested on the phone before I left the trail that I could try again next year, and it was a relief to me that she's already thinking that way. I may return to Marion in the fall to complete the Virginia stretch, or I may just start there next spring to go as far north as I can go. I prefered the challege of being a thru-hiker rather than a section hiker, but I'll take whatever life brings.In retrospect, I suspect it was that 26 mile day into Damascus that became my Waterloo. My left foot never recovered from that. I think my problem was a mild recurrence of a foot sprain from several years ago which took months to heal. One of the lessons I picked up on the trail is that many of the folks hiking the big distances seemed more prone to injury. Shin splints, knee problems, muscle cramps, foot infections and such were more apparent among those who were really cranking out the miles, regardless of their age. It doesn't happen to everybody, but I saw a lot of those injuries among my younger friends. In our eagerness to make the next town or simply cover a lot of ground, it's easy to think the body can take more abuse than it can bear. Usually, the trail wins when we test ourselves against it. There are many thoughts I may want to share with all of you about my 540 miles on the AT this year, but I've been home only a few hours and would like a day or two to reflect before moving this journal to the "off the trail" column. I did not come close to achieving my desired distance this year, but I definitely do not consider the effort a complete failure. On the contrary, I took so much away from the adventure that I will cherish these initial miles as one of the best things I have ever done for myself. As many have said previously, it's not about the destination, but rather about the journey. I enjoyed a fine journey over the last two months! I did my best, and I feel good about the effort. This trip is not over; it's simply going to take more time than I originally anticipated.One of the unfortunate aspects of AT hiking is that, on the trail, we have so little resting time and/or access to computers for writing about our experiences. Most of us are just too exhausted and busy after a long day to put our thoughts on paper. The first priorities in nearly everyone's mind are getting water, making dinner, and crawling into that sleeping bag before the chill sets in. When you stop hiking at the end of the day, often the body cools very rapidly, and hikers don't carry a lot of clothes. On the trail, journals and notes quickly become an afterthought, and the days and distances, and locations, and individual experiences can quickly become blurred memories left behind. Nevertheless, there are many lingering memories I'd like to share, if you care to read them. Stay tuned.