Why I’m Hiking the Appalachian Trail – Part 1

At 95% complete, perhaps it’s time to mention why I’m doing this? It occurred to me that I’ve said that it’s been a lifelong dream of mine, but never really talked about why.

Better late than never I suppose.

Solvitur Ambulando

The Latin phrase solvitur ambulando roughly translates to “It is solved by walking.” There’s something about going for a walk that clears the head. The brain is able to process information and create solutions. The longer the walk, the more space you give your mind to sort things out. A very long walk, 2,200 miles for example, is an exceptional opportunity to “solve by walking.”

The AT was completed in 1937, but at that time it was inconceivable that someone would hike the entire trail in one go. The first known thru-hike was completed in 1948 by a World War II veteran named Earl Schaffer.

Schaffer was stationed in the Pacific during the war as a radio operator. He wrote that hiking the AT was his way to “walk the war out of my system.” He needed a way to distance himself from the horrors of the war, including witnessing the death of his close friend at Iwo Jima. The AT must have been a beneficial experience for him because he thru-hiked the AT three more times in subsequent years.

In the 75 years since Schaffer paved the way, thousands of aspiring thru-hiker pilgrims have flocked to the AT to experience their own version solvitur ambulando.

I have met hundreds of other hikers on the AT and their reasons for attempting the journey are diverse. Many are trying to find themselves in one way or another. Some people describe being lost since COVID and wanted time to think through what to do next with their lives. Some people are processing a significant life change such as a divorce, death of a loved one, or job loss. Others are more in it for the physical challenge, to find their physical limits, or to lose weight. Some are here to make new meaningful friendships or to experience the unique close knit community that surrounds the AT.

What’s my reason?

I’ve struggled a little bit to verbalize what brought me to the trail. Mostly it was just a gut feeling. I don’t have a particular problem I want to solve, (at least not consciously), I just want to. I’ve always wanted to.

That drive didn’t materialize out of thin air though, so I will attempt to describe the influences brought me here.

Hiking the AT is the bucket list item that has nagged me the most. But more than that, being a thru-hiker felt like part of my identity, just waiting to be fulfilled.

The seed was planted early. As a child I was not much of a reader and school’s summer reading list was always a chore that cut into my outdoor playtime. At the end of 6th grade however, there was one book that peaked my interest. Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods (a brand new book at the time) chronicled his attempt to thru-hike the AT. I believe had some vague awareness of the AT before that, but reading that book brought the idea of a thru-hike into my consciousness. Though Bryson failed miserably, completing much less than half of the trail, it taught me that it was something people attempt to do. It’s difficult to pinpoint exactly, but I suspect that reading this book as a twelve year old may have been when my desire to thru-hike originated.

I know it would make childhood-me me very proud to know that someday I would actually do it.

My relationship with the trail grew over the years. My first backpacking trip on the AT was in the White Mountains of New Hampshire as a teenager with my dad. The three day trip was a good introduction to the challenges of the trail: steep climbs, rugged trail, relentless rain, and near-hypothermic conditions in July. What’s not to love?

I learned more about the AT when I moved to Virginia as a young adult. I went on frequent weekend backpacking trips on and around the AT. I routinely met thru-hikers passing through Virginia in the summer months. I realized then that thru-hikers were real people. The challenge wasn’t just for extreme athletes, wild mountain men, or famous authors. The idea of thru-hiking evolved from a pipe dream to something that seemed like a real possibility to me. I could do this, if I had the chance.

A decade later when I returned to Virginia, I knew I’d want to spend more time on the AT. As an active-duty soldier in the Army, I didn’t dream that I’d have the chance to complete a thru-hike any time soon, but I could at least spend time on trail when I had the time. I completed several long section hikes in Virginia. The more miles I hiked, the more I wanted to do. I wouldn’t be satisfied until every mile was completed.

Last summer I learned that I had been approved for a sabbatical from the Army and I couldn’t imagine spending it any other way. It was a no-brainer.

My love for this trail has developed over many years now and it is part of me. The thru-hike was the natural next step in the progression of my relationship with the trail. After one final dance with the trail in Vermont last summer – to dial in my gear, mindset, and legs – it was time for the real deal.