Date: 2011-01-27
To: What I learned from the trail
Miles today: 0.0

I'm re-posting my Trailjournal entry from March 27, 2007. I was reflecting back on my 2006 thru hike and the effects it had on me. I attempted a second thru hike with my wife in 2009, we hiked from Georgia to Massachusetts 1520 miles. I had assumed that with my experience of being a 2000 miler thru hiker we would make it to Katahdin. Now that I look back at my own words in this entry I realize the old saying "It's the journey that counts, not the destination." We made so many new lifelong friends while we were hiking. We had really great times with many memories. The trail has been good to us. Incidentally I still have Springer Fever. March 27, 2007I just read the book "A Walk in the Woods", Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail by Bill Bryson. This is the second time I've read it but the first since completing my thru-hike.This time I could identify with some of the places described in the book and remember my own experiences at those places. As they say everyones hike is different and you have to make the best of whatever comes your way.On one of my bear encounters I walked upon a bear sitting in the middle of the trail. I swore it was the same bear that posed for the cover of this book by the way it was sitting. Now that I look at this cover I realized the only similarity was how close the I got to that bear and how close the picture is of it.I guess the thing that stuck with me with this reading is the feeling Bryson took away with him at the end of the book. The final paragraph reads "We didn't walk 2,200 miles, but here's the thing: we tried. So Katz was right after all, and I don't care what anybody says. We hiked the Appalachian Trail".There is something about having your feet on the Appalachian Trail. It doesn't take very long before it becomes a part of you, you become part of it and it becomes part of you.The more time spent, the stronger the bond. With that said I don't mean you have to hike the entire 2,175 miles in order to find it. I think some people can achieve it by spending only a few days and nights on it and feel the same thing. The change comes more like a Vision Quest, your mind opens and you find yourself looking at things differently.I for one found an inner strength in myself on the AT, as a shy introvert I under state my abilities and hold back from doing things. Intellectually I know I have the abilities to do things but find my inner scared child holding me back. I pass on opportunities from fear of failure and take the safe route.When I starterd at Springer Mountain last March I was embarking on a huge quest to find out who I really was. I doubt if I would have done this had I not been an experienced backpacker and loved being in the outdoors. What I didn't know about myself was how I would handle being alone for many hours. I didn't know what component might break me down and cause me to quit.What I discovered was I had the desire and knowledge to overcome adversity. I used all my resources and I allowed myself to come out of my shell. I reached beyond the boundries of my comfort circle and really accomplished something.I think I know what was unsaid in that last chapter of A Walk in the Woods. Bill Bryson found somehting in himself while he was out on the AT. I don't think he described it in the book, maybe he hadn't even realized it when he wrote the book. He changed while he was hiking the Appalachian Trail as did I. The AT migrates into your soul while you are out there. One of my sayings I used while hiking was "Take whatever the trail gives you." I was referring to the terraine and challanges, I didn't realize I was also becoming a part of it.We concentrate on having a strong body and good equipment when we set out on a hike. We need an open mind and a strong spirit also. I guess that is why I am doomed to suffering Springer Fever the rest of my life.