I’ve always loved the Appalachian Trail. As an outdoor-lover who grew up on the East Coast, the AT was this coveted, magical path that I understood from a very young age meant you could dream big and accomplish bigger than you dreamt. I always wanted to one day hike it and I even thought a thru-hike (walking it non-stop from one end to the other over the course of 4-6 months) was a possible and achievable goal for me.

Let’s pause for some fun facts.
The AT is the longest walking-only footpath in the world, with around 2,190 miles to tackle, climb and move along. It runs through 14 states (I’ve completed two of the smallest ones!) and is maintained almost exclusively by volunteers in different regions. While more than 3 million people hike a small section of the AT each year, there’s only about 3,000 thru-hikers that begin most years and most of them hike south from Georgia to Maine. Of the thru-hikers who begin the trek, only one-third of them will complete it, with some dropping out due to finances, injuries, mental fatigue, etc. Solo women hikers make up about one-third of all thru-hikers and the majority of thru-hikers are in their 20s.

And now back to me.
Despite years of dreaming of this trail, I never put a foot on the ground until this last year. My AT section-hiking journey (piecing the entire length of the trail together in little sections over the course of years) began with a “joke” among two friends one night. We had heard about the Maryland / Four-State Challenge, in which you walk from the Pennsylvania/Maryland line to the West Virginia/Virginia line below Harpers Ferry in one day (around 45 miles) and next thing you know, there were spreadsheets and training hikes and some Amazon hiking purchases.

The three of us started the Maryland Challenge day at 3am on June 1st. Stepping onto that trail and seeing those white blazes brought such joy for me. That day, I walked 36 miles. It was tough — tougher than I thought it would be — made even more mentally frustrating when you find out Maryland is one of the easiest states on the trail. That day definitely reignited my passion for the AT and I decided that night, with aching legs and a swollen knee and all the things going on in my mind, that I would hike all the miles of this trail in any way I could do it.

Since June 1, I’ve completed about 75 total miles on the AT. I obviously have a long way to go, but for only a few months and no overnight travels yet and staying completely local, I’m really happy with this so far. I’ve done about 20 miles into Virginia and the first eight or so miles of Pennsylvania, plus all of Maryland.

I’ve laughed a million times on this trail; I’ve cried quietly when I felt so moved by emotions and nature coming together; I’ve felt pain and lost pain; I’ve dreamt big dreams.

My husband helped me figure out how I could get in a decent amount of hiking and still maintain the kiddos’ schedules, his work schedule, photography and travel.

Next summer will see a one-week hiking adventure at the Maine end of things and then another week the following year in Georgia. In between, I’m dedicating one weekend each month to AT miles. My goal — hold me to it — is to complete all 2,190 miles in eight years.

I’d love motivation, company, ideas and travel buddies!

Happy Trails!