On July first I completed my thru hike of the Appalachian Trail, on the summit of Mount Katahdin. This is also the day I became a Triple Crown thru hiker, having also hiked the Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail. That’s over 7,300+ miles!!
I’m struggling to find words to represent how I’m feeling. Long distance backpacking has changed my life in such dramatic ways and I will continue to work on taking all of the life lessons I’ve learned on trail and applying them to the rest of my life.
I wanted to push myself on the Appalachian Trail. I wanted to see what I could do when I dug deep and worked past every breaking point. This led to a 78 day finish. Some goals are made to be met, others and made to be crushed.
I am more exhausted than I’ve ever been in my life, and also happier. I look forward to deep rest, healing, and reflecting on this journey from here on out.
Here’s to relentless persistence and the courage to push through everything you think you can’t.
#appalachiantrail #triplecrown #thruhiking #thruhike #katahdin
It’s another autumn, a season when I reach for my favorite cliché and feel nostalgic about my existence. Adjusting to life when it’s not going to plan has been my recent rodeo. I recently lost a job I didn’t want to leave and have been dealing with the ensuing loss of regular work life balance. Change is normal, and sometimes painful.
Mentally, I’m still this girl from the early 2000’s. Lost in some daydream and scheming her big plans. That’s all. Happy October etc.
Got some disposable camera photos back from the latter half of the AT. It’s crazy how much time I spent alone on that trail, and I think that shows up in a lot of the photos I took along the way. The woods were dense and quiet, which did in fact drive me insane but also gave me a huge opportunity for reflection and personal growth. Shout out to Ray who helped me through a very mentally (and physically) challenging section through the Whites, and insisted on Fireball shots on Mt. Washington
The last of New England
Thank you to everyone who reached out and gave me words of encouragement and support. It means a lot on a journey that was mostly in solitude.
Hope you enjoyed walking with me :)
New Hampshire is an incredibly difficult state on the AT. The trails are old and poorly maintained, with steep sections of the trail that often require climbing straight up and down wet slick rock. The trail through the White Mountains goes over the summit of Mt. Washington, infamous for its bad weather. Unsurprisingly, I got there in time to experience some insane winds and driving rain. It was quite the adventure in poor conditions, and while I was disappointed that I didn’t get to see the views, it was still cool to be up in an alpine environment above tree line.
Maine is just around the corner, and I can say with certainty that I am thoroughly exhausted, and ready to finish this thing. One more state to go!
#appalachaintrail #thruhike #newhampshire
One of the greatest pleasures of my life is the overwhelming peace and tranquility I’ve found in solitude.
The Pochuck boardwalk in New Jersey was a one mile elevated path through a wildlife refuge. I lucked into passing across this landscape just after sunrise, leading to stunning colors and a cacophony of birdsong. It reminded me so much of the oak savannah landscapes I grew up in, with red winged blackbirds perched on the cattails and beavers swimming slowly through the ponds they created. One of my absolute favorite sections of the AT so far, and a far cry from what the majority of this trail looks and feels like.
