Date: 2014-09-08
To: Phoenix, Arizona
Miles today: 0.0
Weather: overcast clouds

EpilogueI packed up my things and had breakfast at the Appalachian Trail Caf©. I saw Bear Bag and Isn¢t Black who were there with Bear Bag¢s family. They invited me over so I sat and ate with them. I caught the first shuttle to the bus depot in Medway, Maine and bought a ticket to Portland. I took a 2 12 hour ride on a Silver Horse to Portland and then jumped on a Silver Bird to Atlanta near where I started walking over 139 days before, and then finally flew to the land of the Thunderbird in Phoenix, Arizona. It was a long day, but at least I wasn¢t walking. I wore the same clothes that I had hiked in for over 1,100 miles and since my hiking shoes were completely trashed, I wore my camp shoes because they were the only things I had. It was really good to see my wife and kids when I got home. My dog barked and then growled at me until she heard my voice and then she melted in my arms and my cat jumped and then napped in my lap.It has been over a week since I have been back and I still wake in the morning with dreams of the trail still fresh in my mind. It takes a few minutes, but I soon realize that I am no longer out in the woods, but back in the comforts of my home. My feet are still swollen in the morning, just like they were out on the trail, but at least on the trail, the swelling would usually go away once I started hiking. Now that I am home, I will need to get back into shape, which is a curious thing to say after having walked over 2,200 miles with a pack on my back. The truth of the matter is that my body is only good for one thing right now; walking and climbing steep hills. I have developed what is referred to as a ¢T-Rex¢ body, where my arms and upper body have diminished in strength. I also need to rework my diet to something more realistic since I will no longer be burning upwards of 4,000 calories per day.   I¢m also back at work and am trying to get back into the swing of things. Fortunately for me, I love what I do and am very fortunate to have the job that I have and the people I work with are of the same quality and caliber of the exceptional people I hiked with.I will not miss the black-flies, mosquitos, and deer flies and I won¢t miss the rain, heat, cold, and humidity. I will certainly not miss climbing all of the hills and mountains, and I won¢t miss trying to hike on blocks of uneven rocks and tree roots. There are certainly many things that I will miss about no longer being on the trail; I will miss the freedom of being out on your own with no real schedule to keep; I will miss breathing clean air and drinking the purest of spring water. Most of all, I will miss the people that make up the Hiker Community. The quality of the people that I was fortunate enough to associate with for 139 days was exceptional and many of those people, I hope will become lifelong friends. It was amazing to me that I did not meet some of those people until the last few weeks, or even days of my journey, which makes me wonder how many exceptional people that make up the Appalachian Trail Class of 2014 that I did not get to meet. The great thing about the trail was that it would take only a couple of days of spending time with someone before a friendship could be kindled. On the trail, it didn¢t matter what you looked like, what your social status was, how old you were, whether you were a thru-hiker, section hiker, weekender, or even what nationality you were. If you were generally a good person, you would be accepted by the Hiker Community.I wish to thank many people who helped make this awesome journey possible. I want to thank my wife and family for putting up with the fact that I was not around for almost 5 months and for keeping it together while I was gone. I want to thank my awesome employer who allowed me to take leave of my duties for an extended period.   I want to thank all of the Trail Angels along the way who extended a helping hand whether it be from food and drinks provided on the trail, a place to stay, a ride into town, or even just words of encouragement.   The incredible generosity of these people helped to restore my faith in humanity, and hopefully make me a better person, which were some of my stated goals for hiking the Appalachian Trail. Lastly, I want to thank all of the people that I hiked with for 139 days. The people that make up the Hiker Community were simply amazing and each hiker that I met was a link in a 2,185 mile chain that took me from Springer Mountain, Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine.