SavageLlama
03-29-2005, 11:11
Article on two '05 thru-hikers from a local paper out of Fort Wayne, Indiana..
Adventure in Appalachia `A few martinis' launch friends' plan for 2,174-mile hike
By Phil Bloom
Journal Gazette
March 27, 2005
Eric Howell is wondering about a lot of things these days.
He's wondering about food, about the baseball season that's about to begin, about keeping up with the news of the day, about his hiking boots, about what he can live with or without.
He's mostly wondering whether he's cut out for what he's about to do with Matt Brodahl, a classmate from high school and college.
On Saturday, the two 23-year-old Homestead High School graduates will leave Springer Mountain in Georgia and beginhiking the Appalachian Trail. If all goes well, they will finish the 2,174- mile hike at Mount Katahdin in Maine in September.
"I honestly have no conception of what it will be like," Howell said.
"It's always been something that sounded like fun," Brodahl said. "Not like smiley, happy kind of fun. It's an intense walk we're subjecting ourselves to, but it'll be rewarding."
The idea took shape after Howell, Brodahl and two other friends spent a night during Christmas break in 2003 at a downtown Fort Wayne bar.
"After a few martinis, we were all going to do it," Howell said. "At that point it just took somebody saying we're going to do it, we're going to do it at this point, and we're going to prepare for it.
"When you're a hiker, it's one of the things you always want to do. Sort of like if you're a climber, you want to go to the Himalayas someday. If you're a fly fisherman, you want to go to Montana someday. It just seemed like this sort of romantic thing to do."
The others eventually backed off their pledge, leaving Brodahl and Howell to spend the past 15 months plotting their adventure while putting their futures on hold.
"I figured this is the only point in my life when I'll be able to do this," said Brodahl, 23, who had reached the second and third round of job interviews after graduating from Indiana with a double major in political science and economics.
Howell, who is a couple of hours short of completing his degree in English and philosophy, has been working at a Fort Wayne bookstore.
"The thing is, I'm 23 and not doing much," he said. "I don't have responsibility to anybody but myself. It's hard for anyone to do it unless you have expendable time and money."
Since the Appalachian Trail was established in 1936, the Appalachian Trail Conference has recorded 8,082 completed hikes.
The success rate has increased dramatically since 1980. Only 801 completed hikes were recorded through 1979, but there were 1,402 in the 1980s, 3,241 in the 1990s, and nearly 2,400 in the past four years.
The ATC estimates that only 20 percent of the hikers who start the trail finish it, with as many as 15 percent quitting in the first week.
Howell and Brodahl realize the odds are not in their favor.
"I think a lot of it is mental," Howell said. "You're hiking virtually every day. That seems almost incomprehensible.
"I'm someone who needs to be doing something different all the time. So, can I just get up and walk eight hours a day every day for five months? I don't know. We'll see."
Brodahl's concern is "little injuries that could thwart this whole thing."
Preparations have included running several days a week along with push-ups, sit-ups and lifting weights.
They have sorted their gear, researched and read as much information and advice as they can find on the trail.
They've made plans to visit former high school friends in Virginia, Washington and New York.
In late June, they will take a one-week hiatus and come home for a friend's wedding before resuming their hike.
"After everything," Howell said, "after all the different advice on how to approach it, after all the unspoken rules about the trail that you're supposed to follow, when it comes down to it, we're going to Springer Mountain and we're going to start off, head north and see what happens."
More to come
Eric Howell and Matt Brodahl of Fort Wayne will embark on a 2,174- mile journey Saturday when they begin hiking the legendary Appalachian Trail. Journal Gazette readers can go along for the walk by reading Howell's accounts of their travels and travails. Howell's postcards from the trail will appear regularly on the Outdoors page as he and Brodahl pass through 14 states on the way from Springer Mountain, Ga., to Maine's Mount Katahdin. The trip is expected to take five months.
Facts and figures
Distance: 2,174 miles between Springer Mountain, Ga., and Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park, Maine
States on the trail: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine
History: Envisioned by forester Benton MacKaye, the AT was developed by volunteers and opened as a continuous trail in 1937.
Visitors: An estimated 3 million to 4 million people hike a portion of the trail each year. Most enjoy day hikes and short backpacking trips.
Finishing the journey: Since 1936, 8,082 hike completions have been recorded by the Appalachian Trail Conference. This includes thru-hikers who completed the trail in the same year as well as multiyear section hikers. All are called "2,000 milers."
Other trail terminology: Thru-hikers - hikers who complete the trail in one trip. Section hikers - hikers who complete the trail in more than one trip, sometimes over several years. Northbounders - travel from Georgia to Maine. Southbounders - travel from Maine to Georgia. Flip-floppers - hikers who complete the trail in one trip by leapfrogging or taking an alternative itinerary.
Oldest thru-hiker: In 2004, Lee Barry, known as "Easy One," became the oldest thru-hiker at age 81 when he completed his fifth hike overall and his second thru-hike.
Youngest thru-hiker: A 6-year-old boy completed a flip-flop thru- hike with his parents in 1980.
Oldest female thru-hiker: Emma Gatewood, better known as Grandma Gatewood, was 67 when she first hiked the AT in 1955. The mother of 11 and grandmother of 23 completed her second thru-hike in 1957 and later became the first person to hike the trail three times when she finished a section hike in 1964.
See 'Facts and figures' box at end of story. See microfilm for Appalachian Trail locator map.
Caption: Photos by Cathie Rowand/The Journal Gazette: Eric Howell, left, and Matt Brodahl with their packs at Fox Island. They will hike the Appalachian Trail starting Saturday, with hopes of finishing it in September. Brodahl and Howell headshots
Adventure in Appalachia `A few martinis' launch friends' plan for 2,174-mile hike
By Phil Bloom
Journal Gazette
March 27, 2005
Eric Howell is wondering about a lot of things these days.
He's wondering about food, about the baseball season that's about to begin, about keeping up with the news of the day, about his hiking boots, about what he can live with or without.
He's mostly wondering whether he's cut out for what he's about to do with Matt Brodahl, a classmate from high school and college.
On Saturday, the two 23-year-old Homestead High School graduates will leave Springer Mountain in Georgia and beginhiking the Appalachian Trail. If all goes well, they will finish the 2,174- mile hike at Mount Katahdin in Maine in September.
"I honestly have no conception of what it will be like," Howell said.
"It's always been something that sounded like fun," Brodahl said. "Not like smiley, happy kind of fun. It's an intense walk we're subjecting ourselves to, but it'll be rewarding."
The idea took shape after Howell, Brodahl and two other friends spent a night during Christmas break in 2003 at a downtown Fort Wayne bar.
"After a few martinis, we were all going to do it," Howell said. "At that point it just took somebody saying we're going to do it, we're going to do it at this point, and we're going to prepare for it.
"When you're a hiker, it's one of the things you always want to do. Sort of like if you're a climber, you want to go to the Himalayas someday. If you're a fly fisherman, you want to go to Montana someday. It just seemed like this sort of romantic thing to do."
The others eventually backed off their pledge, leaving Brodahl and Howell to spend the past 15 months plotting their adventure while putting their futures on hold.
"I figured this is the only point in my life when I'll be able to do this," said Brodahl, 23, who had reached the second and third round of job interviews after graduating from Indiana with a double major in political science and economics.
Howell, who is a couple of hours short of completing his degree in English and philosophy, has been working at a Fort Wayne bookstore.
"The thing is, I'm 23 and not doing much," he said. "I don't have responsibility to anybody but myself. It's hard for anyone to do it unless you have expendable time and money."
Since the Appalachian Trail was established in 1936, the Appalachian Trail Conference has recorded 8,082 completed hikes.
The success rate has increased dramatically since 1980. Only 801 completed hikes were recorded through 1979, but there were 1,402 in the 1980s, 3,241 in the 1990s, and nearly 2,400 in the past four years.
The ATC estimates that only 20 percent of the hikers who start the trail finish it, with as many as 15 percent quitting in the first week.
Howell and Brodahl realize the odds are not in their favor.
"I think a lot of it is mental," Howell said. "You're hiking virtually every day. That seems almost incomprehensible.
"I'm someone who needs to be doing something different all the time. So, can I just get up and walk eight hours a day every day for five months? I don't know. We'll see."
Brodahl's concern is "little injuries that could thwart this whole thing."
Preparations have included running several days a week along with push-ups, sit-ups and lifting weights.
They have sorted their gear, researched and read as much information and advice as they can find on the trail.
They've made plans to visit former high school friends in Virginia, Washington and New York.
In late June, they will take a one-week hiatus and come home for a friend's wedding before resuming their hike.
"After everything," Howell said, "after all the different advice on how to approach it, after all the unspoken rules about the trail that you're supposed to follow, when it comes down to it, we're going to Springer Mountain and we're going to start off, head north and see what happens."
More to come
Eric Howell and Matt Brodahl of Fort Wayne will embark on a 2,174- mile journey Saturday when they begin hiking the legendary Appalachian Trail. Journal Gazette readers can go along for the walk by reading Howell's accounts of their travels and travails. Howell's postcards from the trail will appear regularly on the Outdoors page as he and Brodahl pass through 14 states on the way from Springer Mountain, Ga., to Maine's Mount Katahdin. The trip is expected to take five months.
Facts and figures
Distance: 2,174 miles between Springer Mountain, Ga., and Mount Katahdin in Baxter State Park, Maine
States on the trail: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine
History: Envisioned by forester Benton MacKaye, the AT was developed by volunteers and opened as a continuous trail in 1937.
Visitors: An estimated 3 million to 4 million people hike a portion of the trail each year. Most enjoy day hikes and short backpacking trips.
Finishing the journey: Since 1936, 8,082 hike completions have been recorded by the Appalachian Trail Conference. This includes thru-hikers who completed the trail in the same year as well as multiyear section hikers. All are called "2,000 milers."
Other trail terminology: Thru-hikers - hikers who complete the trail in one trip. Section hikers - hikers who complete the trail in more than one trip, sometimes over several years. Northbounders - travel from Georgia to Maine. Southbounders - travel from Maine to Georgia. Flip-floppers - hikers who complete the trail in one trip by leapfrogging or taking an alternative itinerary.
Oldest thru-hiker: In 2004, Lee Barry, known as "Easy One," became the oldest thru-hiker at age 81 when he completed his fifth hike overall and his second thru-hike.
Youngest thru-hiker: A 6-year-old boy completed a flip-flop thru- hike with his parents in 1980.
Oldest female thru-hiker: Emma Gatewood, better known as Grandma Gatewood, was 67 when she first hiked the AT in 1955. The mother of 11 and grandmother of 23 completed her second thru-hike in 1957 and later became the first person to hike the trail three times when she finished a section hike in 1964.
See 'Facts and figures' box at end of story. See microfilm for Appalachian Trail locator map.
Caption: Photos by Cathie Rowand/The Journal Gazette: Eric Howell, left, and Matt Brodahl with their packs at Fox Island. They will hike the Appalachian Trail starting Saturday, with hopes of finishing it in September. Brodahl and Howell headshots