How and when did you get the hiking bug?

[BuckeyeBill]

In an attempt to lighten the mood, tell us how, when, or what gave you to hiking bug.:D

[FarmerChef]

In an attempt to lighten the mood, tell us how, when, or what gave you to hiking bug.:D

When I was but a wee grasshopper I had a teacher who hiked the Appalachian Trail every summer. He would talk about it every now and then after school (my mom was a teacher so I got to spend extra time...) To this day I don't know if they were sectioning the whole thing or what but it intrigued me. I credit my desire to hike the AT to Mr. Nicholls. :)

[Wise Old Owl]

Back when I was a fledgling https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRGJPVUl5MyvqL_ndKH3JZMkl9QSoLFk 3cbcVtACjs0t43SamagyA my brothers and I would work our wings and stretch our legs on the AT near the Pulpit as we were wee boys and needed to get our hiking legs... most of teh time we slept... but at night we could cover great distances ... my first was a 10 mile... I was so sore...


As for the bugs... we ate them... as we got bigger ...shelter mice... today I am in pest control solutions.

[PR Man]

As a boy scout hiking at "Philmont Scout Ranch" in New Mexico !:)

[moytoy]

My dad was a deer and bear hunter after WWII. I started going with him when I was 10. Lots of walking hunting bear with dogs. When I was 12 I hiked all the AT in the GSMNP.

[hobbs]

As a boy Scout.Went to Philmont scout ranch, then the Army.Have had a pack on my back since..

[Meriadoc]

I grew up in urban New Jersey. Sometime around 10th grade my grandfather took me on a hike in High Point State Park. I did not take to it - there was nothing to see!

Fast forward a few years to college at Rutgers U and my friend hailing from New Mexico said: "hey, let's hike the grand canyon. Want to head out west after finals?"
Eight years later I hiked the AT :).

[atj_Hiker]

My dad tried for about 5 years to get me and my boys to go day hiking in the Smoky Mountains. I finally gave in so I could get him off my back. While hiking for a day, I saw a couple guys with large backpacks hiking up the mountain. I stopped them and asked a lot of questions. We also gave another hiker a Gatorade since he was out of fluids and Double Spring was dry. My boys were at an age that I needed to spend a little more time with so it was the perfect solution. I'm always planning for the next trip

[fredmugs]

I hiked GA with my wife's boss and his best friend. During the hike I decided to get divorced. Thanks AT!

[Hill Ape]

i was a kid, probably 8 or 9. my family used to do regular dayhikes. oh man the schoolboy crush i had on dorothy hansen. i would run up blood, run back down to meet my family walking up, finish the hike back up with them, then run back down and stay under dorothy's feet until they made it down. i became enamoured with the CCC because of those two buildings, its turned into a lifelong research project, trips to the national archives to search locations of old camps, including the one in my town, locations of existing projects and buildings. old photos of the boys decorate my home. i'm fascinated by their construction techniques. what they did for this country has rarely been matched. i've wrote countless letters to my congressmen urging them to reactivate the CCC. my heroes had names like bartram, mackaye, muir, lewis, clark. then it happened, i learned that little stretch of trail, wasn't so little. that i could walk it all the way to maine. i was hooked and never let it go. i soloed the summer i was 13, made it into virginia before i ran out of lawn mowing money. my dad could have cared less, my mother had a dozen different conniptions. i was a hard kid to raise, never wanted help, cringed at authority, always came home too late, disappeared for days. she didn't deserve all that. i've put off countless thru attempts, always the responsible choice, always grit my teeth about it. since then i've hiked all over the world, but i still love "the trail"

so, theres my sharing quota for the month

[QuabbinHiker]

I obtained the hiker bug after my 2008 Mississippi River "thru paddle' End to end on the river of dreams.

I know that sounds odd but it stoked my adventure spirit.

[Teacher & Snacktime]

My father was a Boy Scout Exec in RI and CT, so I grew up with wonderful memories of summers spent at Yawgoog and Sequassin. Once we even lived on a Scout Reservation for a couple of months. Thus, traipsing in the woods with the dirt and the bugs and the rocks and streams and skunk cabbage and fungii and.....well you get it....was second nature to me. Everywhere I lived, city or suburb, I'd be sure to find whatever postage stamp of woodland I could to explore and make my playroom.

As I got older, I camped....hitchhiked to the Barrens on weekends to Parvin SP or Wharton SP and wandered through the woods of Mullica (all of this in NJ) with friends and/or my boyfriend - future husband (we started dating after a weekend spent on a group camp). When the first couple of kids came, we brought them along....even tagged the third along once. But there came a time when it was all too much work and we left the woods behind, as too often happens I imagine, for the sake of the struggles of day to day life. Ho Hum.

I started homeschooling my oldest grandson (Eddie/Snacktime) 3 years ago, and each year we've included some form of travel adventure as sort of an extended field trip to make his studies more interesting. The year before last, we decided to take an adventure walk across our home state of RI. Of course, at that time he wasn't Snacktime, but Ed, of Eddie's Challenge (the facebook page for the fundraiser we tied into our walk). It was a 5 day trek, 51 miles, on city streets and bikepaths through the suburbs. The final day we decided to take a wilderness "shortcut" of 14 miles from Coventry to the CT border on the Trestle Trail. On this path we encountered several challenges like crossing brooks and fording a river. The greatest of these was escaping a mud/bog by scaling a 15ft cliff using roots and outthrusting trees ...and each other...for handholds. Rising victorious (and somewhat smug) from this trial, an adrenalin-filled Ed burst out with "We just scaled a cliff! I feel like Spiderman!" We both knew at that point that wilderness hikes would have to play a part in our next big adventure.

Grandma went to work and assessed the AT as the most likely path toward wilderness hiking fun and educational opportunity. Our new FB page Eddie's Challenge II - An Appalachian Adventure was established, trail lore and customs were studied, and Teacher and Snacktime were created. The rest is legend.......

[BuckeyeBill]

I first saw the AT in 1968 when on vacation with my parents. We visited Clingman's Dome and walked the trail for a few hunderd yards. Then I got into scouting with the old framed canvas pack that weighed more than its contents. In 1975 I took part in a school trip to the Grand Canyon, Walking rim to rim to rim. It was really neat as we were standing above stop signs in snow and a few hours later we were in shorts and t-shirts at the bottom of the canyon. I am just getting back into hiking and planning a 2018 thru attempt. I have been reading WB and any book I can get my hands on to earn the new ways of equipment and hiking styles. :)

[Mrs Baggins]

In a nutshell.......9/11 and the Lord of the Rings movies. The rest of the story can be found in "Lembas for the Soul" on Amazon.com. I have the last story in the book.

[illabelle]

For our 20th anniversary in 2010 we discussed where to go .... the Bahamas? Puerto Rico? the Virgin Islands? All sounded so exotic and beautiful, but we're not that crazy about the beach. Maybe one day at the beach, then the rest of the time in the mountains... One beach is the same as every other beach, it seemed. So we rejected the ocean and instead opted for a week on the AT in Shenandoah National Park. We covered all of 28 miles!!!!! I don't know what the AT bug looks like, but it bit us. Since then we've done over 500 miles! :)

[Sugarfoot]

I was the one always laughed at in Phys Ed and chosen last for every team. To have found a sport that I can actually do, do alone, and enjoy has been a pleasure for decades now. Why the AT? Childhood memories of mid-Atlantic woods that in my imagination went on forever.

[hikerboy57]

when i was a kid, my grandpa used to take me mushroom picking in the woods of pa.with his brothers, saw my first bobcat when i was 8 yrs old.went to summer camp in the catskills when i was 12 where we did overnight hikes once a week.my real love for backpacking and the at began in 76 with my first real backpacking trip to the whites, first time on franconia ridge, and i was forever smitten.

[Sunshine82]

From the first time I set foot on the AT nine years ago,I have been hooked.Once you are out there and experience that peace and serenity and the commarodrie of complete strangers that are the nicest people ever,it's hard to accept how things are off the trail.At the end of a long day all the blisters and tiredness a person can feel is a small price to pay for the huge rewards that being out there gives you!

[johnnybgood]

How and when did you get the hiking bug ?

It's been a progression over a period of time. As a kid with parents who car camped up and down the east coast, a love of the great outdoors and walking trails was born.

This in turn spurred the desire to explore further , hiking day trails away from the campsite.

[HikerMom58]

OK so here's another thread that I love...:) This is my story...

I grew up in NH. My parents weren't into hiking but we spent a lot of time outside exploring in NH. I didn't know/never heard about the AT until I had moved down south to Virginia.:sun

My husband and I loved to hike. We took out kids out hiking with us from the time they could walk and before. When their little legs became tired- we carried them.

I never really payed much attention to what trails we hiked, I just loved being in the woods.

One day out hiking, when our kids were older, one of them asked their daddy where the trail ended. We were on the AT apparently b/c their daddy answered them by saying- if you continuing hiking "this way" the trail won't stop until you get to Maine. If you hike "that way" you will end up in GA. Their eyes got big as saucers. Mine did too.. LOL!

Years later... my daughter read A Walk in the Woods. She was bitten by the AT bug after reading that book. The rest is history... she has hiked over 1/2 the trail. I went out with her to pick up sections.. got bit too. ;)

[BirdBrain]

I have lived in Maine all my life. I grew up hunting, fishing, and trapping. It was very natural to be in the woods. The 1st "hike" I went on was on a 8th grade class trip to Spruce Mountain. It felt a little weird following a path in the woods. I never considered myself a hiker. I am not sure I am one now. I enjoy the views and the convenience of the trail. However, every time I walk a trail, I feel like I am somehow cheating. I am very thankful for those who have created and maintain these trails. They enable me to see things and go places I could not without said trails.

In short, I have always loved the woods. Once in a while a walk through an organized section of it.

[Edro]

My Dad was the Scoutmaster in our small town. and we hiked all over the foothills nearby and camped a lot. As a family we took our vacations in the North Carolina Mountains and we always camped. usually for a couple of weeks at a time.. I owe my love for hiking and the outdoors to my parents. I feel they gave me something very special..

[DandT40]

My first backpacking trip was up to a 14er in colorado with my brother when I was younger. It was a one night trip but we had a great time and that defiantly planted the seed. It didn't really hatch till I had kids and car camping and day hiking became our thing. We took tons of trips and logged a lot of miles when they were young. Every trip I would limit more and more gear (just cause we had too much crap and I was more into roughing it than moving the entire house to the woods for a weekend) till eventually I got sick of taking long day trip hikes only to walk all the way back to really nothing more than what I could carry. We setup a trip to go visit my brother out in Colorado and planned on doing a backpacking trip out there. Figured we probably needed some practice before just buying all our gear and heading out to CO so we planned a trip to GSMNP as a "practice" trip for all our gear - and more importantly for us! It was just me and my two daughters and it was our first trip. It snowed like CRAZY. We had planned to do a big loop, get some miles in on the AT, even had a shuttle lined up and all that. None of that really happened. We made it as far as we could in the conditions. Got stuck at a swollen stream crossing in a pounding blizzard and cut our losses and back tracked down to lower elevation. Even though we didn't make our shelters or complete our loop it was still a great trip. From that point on I have been bit hard by the backpacking bug. It's been a constant string of trips since then - with two in the works right now! My daughter always agrees with me when I'm taking the gear out - It's always a good day when we're taking the packs out. :)

I don't know if my life will ever allow me to through hike the AT (at least before retirement), but I'm sure I'll get the JMT in at some point as it has now become a goal of mine. I'm working on sectioning the Ice Age Trail which is another national scenic trail that is a lot closer to home. That has been much better than expected so far and I'm really enjoying the challenges and the joys of hiking a 1000+ miles trail. Even if it is section by section.

[Mr. Bumpy]

I grew up in suburban Maryland and my parents took us to Harper's Ferry, Great Falls C&O Canal, and parks in western Md. On time in particular, I must have been around 8 or 10 we went to the Washington Monument and met some hikers--this would have been in the mid '70's. I also remember being amazed reading over and over again an illustrated camping book.

Fast forward to the mid '90's. After I got out of the service I got into bicycle touring and did several 1000 mile +, self supported tours. In 97 a friend invited me to do the Art Loeb. I had a 60 lb pack, we did it in two nights when we should have done it in three, it rained, and it was cold, and my friend thought that was it for me. That summer when I was cycle touring on the Blue Ridge Parkway all I could think about was, "I wish I were backpacking in the woods." When I got back from that trip I sold my cycle touring gear and started in on the backpacking. Since then I get anywhere between 20-30 bag nights per year.

[mak1277]

Awesome thread.

The first time I went camping was when I was 7 or 8 yrs. old with my dad. There was an unexpected cold snap and my kiddie flannel sleeping bag wasn't much use in freezing weather. I swore I'd never camp again...and it was a promise I kept for close to 3 decades.

I always *thought* I preferred beach vacations. Sitting on the beach, reading, drinking...that was vacation for me. Until last summer, when my wife and I decided to go to Switzerland for 10 days. The last 4 days we spend in the mountains...and that's what hooked me. I literally couldn't believe how beautiful and amazing it was. All I wanted to do was be outside and walk on the trails and see more and more.

When we got back from vacation, we started day hiking in Northern VA and realize that it had some pretty amazing spots as well. Day hiking translated to overnights and long weekend trips (with a better sleeping bag), and now I'm thoroughly hooked.

Vacation this year? Not a beach...7 days in the Tetons and Yellowstone coming up in less than two weeks. I'm beyond excited.

[RED-DOG]

I was about 9 years old, on my summer breaks from school my father took me on a trail maintenance trip in the NC section and i meet several Thru-Hikers and thats when i caught the Hiking Bug.

[-SEEKER-]

When I was a teenager my Sunday school teacher got me started hiking. Later in life I did my first backpacking with our County Park District. Next I discovered The Great Smokey Mountains Institute At Tremont. Backpacked with them a few times then decided I was ready to go out on my own. Chose the AT because of Bryson's book. Now I've done the AT from Springer to Carter Notch.

[Ewok11]

I can't remember a time in my life when there wasn't camping/backpacking/hiking involved. I was fortunate to grow up with outdoorsy parents and in a very outdoor activity friendly area, in the North GA mountains. It wasn't until adulthood that I fully realized I find my zen in the woods. The convenience of the city is nice but the bug gets to me after months away and I have to find my way back to a trail so I can get my fix.

[jimmyjam]

I got the bug when I was a freshman at Va Tech. Some guys on the hall invited me to go with them to Pearisburg and go camping. We hiked north up the mountain and stayed at the shelter at the top. I was intrigued by the all the journal entries. It was early April and we made a huge fire in the pit and decided to cowboy camp around the fire. We woke up the next morning with 1" of snow on us!! I was hooked. Next it was hikes to Wind Rock, then Dragon's tooth.......

[Harrison Bergeron]

I first caught the backpacking bug during my hippy period back in the 70's when I spent a lot of time hitchhiking Route 66 and generally partaking of the groovy vibe of the Woodstock era. I loved that feeling of total freedom where home was wherever you "crashed" (not to mention the dope and "free-love" aspect!).


On one particular trip through Sante Fe, I was picked up by a girl in a flat-bed Ford (just like the song!), and wound up spending some time with the "People of the Dome" commune north of Albuquerque. I got all into the "back to the land" movement, and discovered that hiking/backpacking was even more fun when you didn't have to worry about axe murderers (or rednecks).


After that, there were a few years where it seemed like all my hippy friends were dying or going to prison, but I caught the Harley bug instead. The only job I could get that paid well enough to keep me in bike parts was the military, where I discovered the G.I. bill, and became educated, married, Republican, and eventually a grandpa.


So a few years ago when the movie came out, my daughter asked if there was anything on my "bucket list" I still hadn't done. The first thing that came to mind was the AT. I still haven't figured out how to get the time, but I've been rediscovering that old freedom, just the same. Texas has some great trails.

[Doctari]

Mom & Dad took me camping for the first time just before age 2, NO I don't remember that trip, but my earliest memories are hiking & camping. I ALWAYS was upset when we had to go home, no matter how "Horrible" the trip Or how long the hike!
I have never really stopped, I turn 59 in September. So my history is over 57 years hiking.

Saw the AT for the first time at Clingman's dome in 1964, wanted to hike it then & there! It was love at first sight & it only gets "worse" as the years pass.

[Symba]

back in 2000 I had the same trail name as now and back then we all got a bug right before uncle johnnies in Erwin Tenn. I was one of the first reported; Aswha named it the Symba Strain. UGH!

[Meriadoc]

I have lived in Maine all my life. I grew up hunting, fishing, and trapping. It was very natural to be in the woods. The 1st "hike" I went on was on a 8th grade class trip to Spruce Mountain. It felt a little weird following a path in the woods. I never considered myself a hiker. I am not sure I am one now. I enjoy the views and the convenience of the trail. However, every time I walk a trail, I feel like I am somehow cheating. I am very thankful for those who have created and maintain these trails. They enable me to see things and go places I could not without said trails.

In short, I have always loved the woods. Once in a while a walk through an organized section of it.

Wonderfully said. (Having built trails, I have an inkling of how much human goes into them. But that hasn't diminished the allure of the trail one bit for me.)

[MuddyWaters]

In an attempt to lighten the mood, tell us how, when, or what gave you to hiking bug.:D

I grew up spending a lot of time in the woods.
I like being in the woods, but really always struggled to find reasons to be out there.

Did a lot of hunting, but was many years before I discovered I really enjoy taking pictures of wildlife with trail cameras I build, more than hunting them. Hunting them with a camera that way you see things you would never see othewise. Like deer mating, coyote with a fawns leg in its mouth, 12 little piglets all sleeping in a straight row, an emu on top of a feeder, deer wearing collars, etc.

I always associated backpacking with a short walk in to a lake, then stay a few days, then hike out. Didnt really interest me at all. It was just camping. Ive never been into camping without a reason, just to camp. Seems ....odd. And the excessive crap people were taking..oh my.

Then one day I stumbled upon people that were hiking a hundred miles between re-supplies, and carrying tiny packs. THAT interested me, the ability to go places in the wilderness, over distances unfathomable to me before, with only a small pack on your back. Not 10-20 miles , but 100-200. Allowing someone to access places never thought accessible on foot. You might say that ultralight backpacking, is what stoked my interest in really hiking.

[SkeeterL]

I am the father of three boys who love the outdoors. We became involved in Boy Scouts and I eventually became the Troop Scoutmaster. I heard the other oldtimers talking about going to PHILMONT SCOUT RANCH. I decided to take a group of 12 to Philmont back in 2005. We hiked 85 miles, went over Mt Baldy (12,441 elevation) climbed the Tooth of time and it was awesome. I was hooked. I since have gone back three more times. Each time I took one or two of my sons along with 6-7 other boys. I watched them become young men on these trips. They all learned so much about themselves on the trail. My boys all eventually became Eagle Scouts and I turned over my roll as Scoutmaster to the next generation.

I really miss all the hiking we did so now I'm planning my first trip to the AT for next year. I can't wait to step on the trail.

[texas&fla]

Growing up, my grandparents had a farm in west Texas that was about 15 acres. The back 10 acres contained the 'the mountain'. My mom would kick us out of the house and tell us to go play. I would spend hours hiking and scrambling all over that thing.

Then I got caught up with other things for a really long time. About 6 years ago, I went on a spur of the moment trip to Yellowstone in October. I went to every pull out and walkway in the park. I also bought a hiking book from the store and needed up doing day hikes in different sections of the park. I distinctly remember standing out near Hell Roaring Creek and looking over that vast landscape and just having an enormous craving to just start walking and exploring. It was an epiphany. It felt wonderful to be out there. I ended up with bad blisters that week because of bad shoes....but still loved it.

i have went to Africa, Nepal, Yosemite, Grand Canyon, SEKI, and a few others since then. I really want to do a thru hike...just waiting for money and work issues to resolve themselves.. But when I am out in nature putting one foot in front of the other...it is truly magical.

[big moose]

when i wasakidi day hikes with my uncle. i rember my uncle geting ready to go on a trip i could beleve how haveispack was then in 2002 i decide to go buy backpacking gear and the rest is history i hike the long trail 2006 and evey year i do aweek or so on At. and when im not working im hiking somewhere

[McPick]

1966: Two bus loads of boy scouts from Devon, PA (near Philly) traveling to Hawk Mt, PA. I was 14.

On Saturday we scrambled all over the park and learned about the amazing history of this spectacular and historic bird sanctuary. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary was established in 1934 and became the world's first refuge for birds of prey and an international center for raptor conservation. The refuge was created to stop the killing of countless thousands of migrating raptors.

The AT crosses the road several miles below Hawk Mt. On Sunday, the troop leaders put all the scouts on the AT for a 3 to 5 mile hike. I dreamed of the day I might start a thru hike since then. My dream came true on my 54th birthday in 2006. It took me 40 years to get back.

When I got to the Hawk Mt road, I hitched up to the park just to have a look around. Got a ride with one of the sanctuary's veterinarians. Great stories.

Check it out here... http://www.hawkmountain.org/

[twilight]

As a child, my friends and I would spend the whole day in the woods. Building forts, climbing trees, catching crayfish, riding bikes on the trails, having campfires. It just seemed a natural place for me to be. I was a part of Boy Scouts and we usually had a organized camping trip almost once a month. And I car camped alot with my parents. On a car camping trip(and many trips to visit relatives), we passed a AT road crossing sign on RT 309 in PA and my mom told me what that meant. I think that was when the bug started to grow in me because I remember on all those car trips to visit relatives and to car camp I would look at those mountains from the back seat of the car and want to be on top of them. They enticed me.

Today, I am very close to having around 2/3rds of the trail done. Just have the SNP to finish(will do that in Sept and Oct this year) and I'll be done from the CT/MA border to GA. I started hiking the AT 01 and I'm always planning for the next section hike(I usually have about 3 or 4 planned out). I hike with a friend of mine, we hike about 5 to 6 days at a time. Hiking the AT takes me back to my childhood when I spent so much time in the woods.


Twilight:)

[Malto]

Growing up our vacations generally involved camping. During college I did a bit of backpacking at Red River Gorge and in my late 30s I spent many weekends camping and hiking in SNP. But I really wasn't bitten by the bug.

if you are an old fart like me you may remember a show called Sierra. Used to love that program and the beautiful scenery. So when I was 40 I went to Ca on an interview and took an extra day to hit Yosemite. I climbed up the Yosemite Falls Trail and soon could see the snow capped mountains that is the Sierra Backcountry. It was that moment, seeing that incredible sight, that got me seriously into hiking. I took that job, travelled to Ca about once a month and started backpacking, first Yosemite then later Kings Canyon. Because I had limited windows to hike and there was always even cooler terrain a bit further, I gradually started doing what some would call speed hiking. That led to the JMT, SHR, TRT and finally the PCT. It was that trip that permenantly changed me and made hiking an incurable pursuit.

[Silent Stroll]

I don't know when I first heard of the entire AT hike, but when I did, I wanted to hike it. I have not yet.
I started day hiking 8 years ago after a hip replacement allowed me to hike all day. Before that it hurt to take almost every step of my life.

[Dogwood]

In an attempt to lighten the mood, tell us how, when, or what gave you to hiking bug.:D

About 4 yrs old playing inside the fenced backyard I had to know what was in the woods. Climbed over the fence and have been doing it since ever since then.

[Kerosene]

I've posted this before on earlier threads...

I started in Scouting as a Cub Scout and eventually progressed to an Eagle Scout, but most of our outdoor experience was with camping or very short hikes. The 20-mile hike needed for my Hiking merit badge was along roads in central Jersey.

One of my scouting buddies learned about the AT from Ed Garvey's 1971 book titled Appalachian Hiker: Adventure of a Lifetime (http://www.amazon.com/Appalachian-Hiker-Adventure-Edward-Garvey/dp/0912660015/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1376151825&sr=8-2&keywords=ed+garvey+the+appalachian+hiker), which became our bible in preparing for a 52-mile section hike from Delaware Water Gap to Unionville during our spring break of our sophomore year of high school in April 1973. We did central Pennsylvania in April 1974, and then southern New England in late March 1975 as seniors. However, I was the only one of the 3 of us that has continued backpacking, although I had one hike between 1980 and 1998 as my career and family took off.

I could use my increasingly achy knees as an excuse to stop, but there's no way that I'm not going to cover those last 220 miles in Maine to finish this life goal.

[capehiker]

I was 13 on a three day backpacking trip with my church. We hiked by a shelter and the trip leader explained the shelter was part of the AT. There were 2 hikers hanging their clothes up and I became fascinated with the AT. Into my later teens, my friends and I would head on the AT (a stones throw from our town) and do weekend jaunts up and down the same 10 mile portion. It wasn't until I got a career that moved me by other sections of the Trail did I truly make a commitment that I would attempt a Thru.

[Symba]

Joking aside, I grew up in NW NJ. NOT PAVED!! I lived on a dirt road with grass going down the middle. I swung from trees and tried to get as high up as possible when I was a kid. Fast forward to the year 1999 when a friend asked me if i'd do a Thru Hike on the AT. I pushed to get my BA done in school and read a lot about backpacking...the bug began! Since thru hiking in 2000 I have been part of the trail. I love the AT trail community. I'm not a fan of populated areas. The trail became my escape; and again it will be my place to sort out life after another long time spent in school. I'm done with school. I educated myself enough and now need to do a mental 'flush' on the AT for at least two months. I leave in two weeks, hopefully with a friend. Let the flushing begin! :D

[Rasty]

Growing up with woods behind the house in NY we were always in the woods all day. Then came BSA with small hikes in lower NY. The first big hike was in the Adirondacks hitting Marcy, Algonquin, Gothics, Big Slide, Armstrong, etc. Then I moved to NC and did a trip with the Parks and rec department from Max Patch to Hot Springs which was cool. The leader of the outdoor program and I became friends and he taught me to surf kayak. That summer I volunteered as a camp counselor for a canoe or hiking camp. The kids would choose hiking or canoeing and we would take them. Intro on Monday, Ropes Course on Tuesday, Games on Wednesday and the "Big" trip to Raven Rock State Park on Thursday and Friday. I would either hike or canoe based on the number of kids canoeing. Work and stuff got in the way for about 18 years with only a couple of trips. Then my daughters turned 10ish and we started camping again. In the last four years I've tried to hike as much as possible without getting fired from my job.

[Just Bill]

I've been family camping since five, more out of lack of funds on family vacations than having Daniel and Lucy Boone for parents. Despite massive protests on my part, my parents signed me up for scouts- which was the best thing they ever did for me. I made Eagle, and even though it's not exactly Kosher- I was made an Assistant Scoutmaster and got to plan our high adventures to Porkies, and lead a 32 person trip to Boundary Waters at age 17. Did grown up life for a bit then got a break in the action and got to attempt a thru-hike. I broke my leg halfway through and learned more from my failure than I would ever have from success. I went to work for real, built a career, and a family. I eventually got laid off during the recession and my wife sent me back to the AT. I was "out of the game" for over ten years, but that trip restored the bug. Like many I heard about JPD, and I caught a new bug. I was UL when Ray's first book came out, and the ten year break let me start all over from scratch. Jen's speed didn't reinvigorate me, her love of the trail and celebrating that love by moving freely did. My bug seems inborn and it's always been with me. But what was always a caterpillar, is sitting in a cocoon now. Not sure what will happen but thanks to Jen for turning a low fire into a passion. And thanks to Matt and Anish for busting out and showing the way. Some folks ask if speedy folks have fun. Seems to me if finding joy in your motion, connection to the trail, freedom in your movement, a deep kinship with all the beings you meet along the way, and a close relationship with the fella who owns the place is your idea of fun- there's no better way to do it.

[Double Wide]

Stolen from my upcoming Trail Journal:

Why? Why walk 2000+ miles in the rain, wind, snow, heat, humidity, bugs, over huge mountains, spending six months eschewing personal hygiene, comfort, and the real world?


Well, like somebody once said, "Because it's there!". Actually, the reasons are much more complicated than that. When I was a young lad in Boy Scouts, I did some hiking, but never really liked it. I was the fat kid, and any fat kid will tell you, walking sucks. Oh, I loved camping, canoeing, swimming, building fires, sleeping in tents, all that cool stuff, but hiking seemed pointless to me. And it was hard. Why walk five or ten or even more miles when you didn't have to? So yeah, the Hiking and Backpacking merit badges? Forget it--never earned 'em. Guess that's why I was never an Eagle Scout.

But that fat kid went off to college, on the Tommy Boy plan, and eventually started working behind a desk. Fast forward twenty years later, and I weighed over 500 lbs, had to buy my clothes from the loan sharks of the textile world, the Big & Tall, and couldn't really do much of anything as far as physical activities were concerned. After the brokerage jobs dried up in the first recession of the past decade, I spent another five-plus years sitting on my ass at a poker table in Las Vegas, either dealing it or playing it. While it was an enjoyable lifestyle, it wasn't healthy at at all.

When the second recession hit, and the money in Vegas started to dry up, I decided to head back to Tennessee and be near my family. I hadn't had a holiday or weekend off in over five years, and was missing the comedy that comes from being around my large and goofy family, most of whom were located in and around Nashville.

I wasn't home two weeks when my world, as I knew it, came crashing down around me. I suddenly had no strength. I couldn't breath. After two days it got so bad that my sister and brother-in-law rushed me to Williamson Medical Center in Franklin. The folks in the ER thought I was having a heart attack, and went to work on me. When it became obvious that it wasn't a heart attack, they spent they day doing a battery of tests on me. I thought it was pneumonia at first, but then a cat-scan came back and I got the bad news--it was much worse, and they couldn't help me there. I was immediately evacuated to Vanderbilt Medical Center, and the prognosis was not good.

I had a huge 'saddle' embolism. A blood clot, the size of a fist, went through my heart and lodged in the aorta, right at the junction where it splits off and goes to each of my lungs. I had a huge blockage, and the doctors and nurses said it was a miracle that I'd made it that far--most people just immediately drop dead.

The only option was an extremely high-risk surgery, which I was told was highly unlikely that I'd survive. And it had to be done NOW. The doctor even told me to call my family in to 'say what you need to say, including goodbye'.

It was an awkward thing, lying there in the Intensive Care Unit,with a team of a dozen nurses and specialists working on me at 3:00 in the morning, prepping me for surgery, with my family gathered around me to say a final goodbye. As bad as I felt physically, a profound despair settled over me as I thought how unfair it was that after all the effort I'd made to get back home after so many years away, I only got to spend a week with everyone.

Dying sucks. Especially when you know it's happening within the next hour or so and all you can do is think about it.

All I remember was being so cold in the operating room, staring at the bright lights on the ceiling and thinking, 'Well, this is where they bring people to die. I guess it's my turn. At least I'll get to go in my sleep...'

They had me count backward from a hundred, and I think I got to 97.

The surgery lasted almost three-and-a-half hours, and by some miracle, I woke up about four hours after they sewed me back up. I was a wreck. I had more tubes and bags attached to me than you could possibly imagine, the worst being the breathing tube that they had to leave in for a couple more hours. It was the most painful and humbling thing one could endure, and luckily the staff at Vanderbilt was top notch--it was impossible to rest, and although I was miserable, at least I was alive.

The next day, I got out of bed and stood up. Two days later, I walked thirty feet. Eight days later, I walked out of the ICU, still an invalid, but a one-in-a-million survivor, which everyone wanted to remind me of. I was on about a dozen prescriptions and completely restricted, and I had to come back twice a week for the foreseeable future. I couldn't lift anything, I couldn't carry anything, I couldn't drive, I couldn't shave, and I could barely eat.

But I could walk.

That was my only task each day, besides taking medicine and sleeping--I had to get up and walk. I started by going to the end of the driveway, and then made it around the back yard. After a week, I could make it around the cul-de-sac, and after a month, I could walk almost a quarter of a mile.
For the next few months, my life was an endless parade of doctor and hospital visits, needles and drugs, tests and more tests. The only thing that gave me an escape was getting outside and walking for a few minutes before the overwhelming fatigue would set in and I'd collapse in bed, unable to move for hours at a time.

Eventually, I was able to walk a mile without supervision and without stopping. I hadn't done that in YEARS. (It's tough to motor around when you weigh 500+ lbs). As a gift to myself, I bought the '60 Hikes Within 60 Miles of Nashville' book, and decided that I'd work my way through them.

A real breakthrough came a few months later, once I was able to drive again, I slipped away and walked the 1-mile Old Mill Loop at Henry Horton State Park. It took me almost an hour, but I did it.

That's when I knew I'd be ok.

About the same time, my brother, the aforementioned Reverend Dave, decided that he wanted to get into backpacking. So he started buying up gear and planning hikes. There was no way I could do that, but at least we had something in common to talk about. I was all-in on hiking--I was basically disabled and not working, and so it was all I could really afford to do, and he was all-in on backpacking.

Eventually, I'd healed well enough that I got clearance from my doctor to go back to work. As much as I hate the job I got, I'm thankful for it because it was well-paying enough, but it had excellent health insurance. And while I was losing a little bit of weight with my regular walks and a commitment to getting healthy, I was still morbidly obese, and backpacking was not in the cards for me, intrigued as I was about my brother's new hobby.

One day, while at another one of my endless doctor's appointments, I picked up a card for the medical weight-loss clinic. One thing led to another, and about a year later, I had gastric sleeve surgery, and thanks to my awesome health insurance at my not-so-awesome job, my total out-of-pocket cost was right around a thousand bucks.

It's the best thing I've ever done. A year has passed, and I'm healthier than I've ever been. I no longer have to shop at the Big & Tall, and walking five miles is a piece of cake. Ten miles, not exactly a piece of cake, yet. More like a plate of vegetables.

During that process, I decided that having gone through what I did, and survived, I should make a commitment to do something amazing and ridiculous, and that's where the idea of hiking the Appalachian Trail (the AT from here on out) came from. Actually, Reverend Dave put the idea in my head, but I own it now, and once I announced my intentions, he agreed that he too would quit his job and join me on the Trail.

Anyhow, I'm still a long ways from being healthy enough to really do this--I've still got some weight to lose, but the difference is amazing. I have so much energy now, and I love stepping on the scales now. My old leather 64-inch belt goes around me one-and-a-half times now, and I'm amazed at the changes, as are those who see me every day.

Two years ago, I would've been the absolute LAST person you'd ever see attempting a thru-hike of the AT. A dude fatter than Santa Claus huffing and puffing his way though the woods? No way. I would've died of a heart attack somewhere on Sassafras Mountain, not even twenty miles up the trail.

But life has given me a second chance, and I'm going to make the most of it.

That's why I'm hiking the Appalachian Trail.

[Kerosene]

Cool post, Double Wide!

[HikerMom58]

Cool post, Double Wide!

I agree!! :)

[Deer Hunter]

Cool post, Double Wide!


Yes! I wish you only the best on your upcoming hike.

[hikerboy57]

double wide, you've already made it halfway to katahdin.
great job.

[BuckeyeBill]

Great job Double Wide Your story is inspiring.

[Teacher & Snacktime]

Wow....I'm really, really happy for you.

[illabelle]

I'm really enjoying this thread. The stories are wonderful, so I've hesitated to clutter the thread up with comments, but I can't hold back here. Your story, Doublewide, deserves its own thread. What you're doing is astounding! Please post a link to your journal when you're ready.

It's amazing how the AT inspires people.

[Symba]

Double Wide, You're awesome, now your single wide!!! Your story made this manly man shed tears. I wish for more people like yourself would learn to take small steps and get out into nature. Congratulations to you and your future Thru-hike. Leaving soon? I'll have to check out your journal. ~with brotherly love, your friend Rye (AKA: Symba).

[Drybones]

First...thanks to those who responded to DW's post making me curious enough to read it, normally dont read anything over 5 lines.
Second....awsome story DW, thanks for sharing, sure would like to sit around the fire and chew the fat with you some day.

[Double Wide]

Thanks all, for the kind words.

I'm not ready, physically, yet. I mean, I can do it--I did a section from Springer a couple months back, but that just served to let me know that I'm not ready quite yet. My planned departure date is March 11th, 2014, seven months from today. I may push it back a week, however, just because of the work situation. I really wanted to bail on March 1st, but I may have to wait till like the 12th or 13th. Anyhow, I'm working on a Trail Journal, and I really enjoy writing, so I'm hoping that it's interesting enough for people to follow. I've got 12 entries so far, but I really don't want to be *that guy* who has like 50 'prep' entries and then pusses out before Hot Springs.

You can find me at http://www.trailjournals.com/blueberry2014

[rocketsocks]

Thanks all, for the kind words.

I'm not ready, physically, yet. I mean, I can do it--I did a section from Springer a couple months back, but that just served to let me know that I'm not ready quite yet. My planned departure date is March 11th, 2014, seven months from today. I may push it back a week, however, just because of the work situation. I really wanted to bail on March 1st, but I may have to wait till like the 12th or 13th. Anyhow, I'm working on a Trail Journal, and I really enjoy writing, so I'm hoping that it's interesting enough for people to follow. I've got 12 entries so far, but I really don't want to be *that guy* who has like 50 'prep' entries and then pusses out before Hot Springs.

You can find me at http://www.trailjournals.com/blueberry2014

Double wide, I just put your journal on my list, enjoyed your story very much, it's real posts like these that keep me comin back...good stuff for the soul, just do the best you can, no one can expect more than you are able to give. Cheers dude!

[A/B]

How did I get the "hiking bug"? My story is a bit different; for me, it's all about the CHALLENGE of through hiking the AT.

I was NOT a hiker until I turned 60. I did enjoy camping, the occasional vacation hike, and for years tent camped from the bags of my motorcycle or out of my car's trunk. What got me the "bug" was a second go at A Walk in the Woods. I read the book 20 years ago, and enjoyed it as a novel. A year ago, I listened to the novel on CD while driving back and forth to work. Hmmmm..... I have been very blessed in life. I retire at the end of the year, and for years had been thinking about my life after. I feel there is still a fire burning, a desire to challenge myself one more time before cigars and Scotch on the back porch.

I had non-Hodgkins lymphoma 15 years ago, and like most cancer survivors, I try to live a bit more in the present. I faced my mortality once, and who knows what tomorrow will bring? I started day hiking, with a backpack, to see if I even enjoyed it. Well, except for a little exertion, how can you not like hiking?! This CHALLENGE is something I really want to do. It is personal, spiritual, and selfish. My wife is kind enough to give me a 6 month pass. I have the aches and pains of a 60 year old body, and need to work hard to get in shape. But I am motivated! Most of all, I want to be that person who, on his deathbed, knows that he LIVED his life, and did not take it for granted.

I start my hike at the end of March 2014. See you on the trail!

[WorldPeaceAndStuff]

Double Wide your story is inspirational for sure. I was in the opposite position that you were in and while no where near as severe, it took me years to overcome what happened.

I let myself party too hard in college and grad school and while I managed to finish all three degrees I left a total mess of habits and weighing only 115lbs at 5'10". No exercise and bad nutrition. I could barely climb five stories of stairs I was so lethargic.

Then a health issue hit that made all my body tense up like I was flexed. I couldn't even open doors or turn my car on. It spread all over my body and within four months of it starting I was barely able to walk. It took another two years and a supplement regimen of osteobioflex, fish oil and vitamin C to get back on track. I also had to give up sitting in a chair for my main income. Much doctors and tests later and all they can come up with is that my joints are hyper-mobile so much that I've been asked have I dislocated them before and I must have fibromyalgia. Then they wanted to do a muscle biopsy to see what kind of connective tissue disorder I have. I neglected that since treatment was the same, supplements plus walking, swimming or biking. I was up to 185lbs by this point.

Fast forward five years and I now weigh 135lbs and 100% clean and healthy. I lost a series of people my age that I was super close to and thankful I didn't lose my job too. Really lucky I wasn't killed myself. Instead of firing me for my behavior and handling of grief, my boss at the time who has hiked the AT and lived in the mountains sent me here so I could repair myself. I hit the trails and immediately knew that's where I belong. I'm very shy and introverted in the real world but on the trails I'm totally opposite. IDK why but it's like I feel blessed to be out there. I owe my life to her and another coworker for helping me through it all.

So now I go out all the time when I can. And somehow I was washed into raging flood waters and nearly died again. But that story is worth it's own thread. While I won't be able to thru hike without quitting my job, I do get 5 weeks of paid time off soon so I will be able to do large sections at a time. Or maybe the whole thing in a record attempt!

[Plodderman]

A small boy scout backpack and two peanut butter sandwiches and a sunny afternoon when I was 11. Been hiking ever since.

[CoffeeCooler]

Nice thread by the way;
Well I got the hiking bug way back in 1987 while stationed with the U.S Army in Ansbach Germany. Now I had done some hiking somewhat before that (Volksmarches and generally exploring the countryside). The AT bug bit me one rainy day while I was sitting in front of the 1SG's office answering the phones. My Battery commander walked over and handed me a pile of recent National Geographics, and as you know where I'm heading with this dear reader, one of the issues was about the AT. I was completely engrossed in that particular issue! My Commander noticed I was intensley reading that issue and asked me if I hiked; I said a little, but after reading that magazine I was already imagining myself on a Thru hike. He told me, "Well PFC Adams maybe thats something you should pursue in the future." I would have to say: it was Capt. Bailey (excellent officer by the way) and National Geographic that inspired me.
I've been away from hiking/long distance backpacking for about 15 years and recently returned. Planning a long section trip on the AT in 2014. My thru hike will have to wait till I retire.

CoffeeCooler