Motivation for your thru?
What's everyone's main reason, or motivation for doing the trail next year? And what are you looking forward to the most?
No matter what. My worse day on the trail is going to be better than my best day at work!
I will be graduating from UVM in may 2015, and I don't want to grow up and get a real job yet. I have always thought it would be cool to do a hike and thought, what the heck, I'll just go for it!
building off of what contrast said... I'm graduating in December 2014, I don't want to grow up yet and I want to experience something that few others get to truly experience.
I also have another reason though... I was in a 3 year relationship and last summer, I was planning to propose when I found out the girl I was dating at the time was sleeping with one of my friends...and had been for a few months. SO...after getting to know myself again and going through the healing stages of that, I want to get out of the area and explore the world a bit more and meet new people, make new friends and challenge myself.
I figure that life is all about ups and downs...if I'm going to go through them emotionally, I might as well go through them physically and walk up and down mountains for a while.
That is a really sucky thing to have happen to you wtrenda, but I am glad to hear that you have found a way to get something positive out of it
Retiring and leaving Corporate Life Behind Forever
For the first time in my life since I came of age, I will be free to go where I want to go, wake up when I want to, and not be on the clock. Permanent Vacation.
What shall I do? Follow the white blazes of course. Then I'll have some time to figure it out.
Has been in my heart to do it since I started camping and doing short hikes up in the Blue Ridge about 15 years ago. Let life get in the way of it until now. Decided if I was going to do it that I needed to get going. Those close to me know. Work does not. The things I am looking forward to most: snuggling into my tent after a hard days hike. Listening to the wind in the trees. Walking in the silence of the forest. Hearing running water. Seeing a ridge line in the distance. Blue haze. Drinking fresh cold water. Fires!! But most of all meeting some amazing people and hoping I will be one in return.
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““Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees....” ― John Muir
I've known for a long time that I wanted to take some time off and live close to nature after I finish school, but I couldn't figure out a feasible way to do that until I read about the AT and started to learn about thru-hiking. I never feel as peaceful at home as I do while hiking or camping, so I want to make my thru-hike last as long as possible and I can't imagine anything better than spending half a year in the woods. Wtrenda, I'm sorry to hear that something so painful is part of what lead you to the AT, but I hope you find some of that peace nature always seems to provide.
The main reason for my hike next year is to learn how to feed my soul instead of my mouth. I will graduate with my Mastes of Public Administration degree about a week before I start. My career goals are to operate a non-profit organization and doing so means that I will never be the idea of wealth. What I am looking forward to the most is the relationships I will build and the things I will learn from the people I will meet.
Welcome to WB CaityJ
Dahoyt, you haven't told us your motivation yet and I am curious to know what it is.
My motivation is mainly to escape everyday life for a little while. I have had. Lot of ups and downs this past few years and feel like life is flying by me at an alarming rate. I want to take this to slow things down, to push myself to new levels, and to learn new things about myself. I am using this as a big learning experience, a way to clear the bad energy from my head, and to find some inner peace. Also, I was in a committed relationship, and got engaged early last year, after a lot of bad things happening, the engagement came to an end, and this is all part of my healing process... May sound corny, but it's the truth.
I am a military brat and have moved around my whole life. I have lived a lot of places and met a lot of people, but I have never found a place that felt like home. My perspective on life and priorities have changed a lot in the last few years, and I just feel like this is the perfect thing for me to be doing right now. It gives me something to work toward physically and financially and mentally, and hopefully it will give the most important people in my life a better understanding of what I want in life.
I'm not an athlete. I'll never be an Olympian. I'll never be a famous rock star. I'll never be a CEO of a major corporation. There are many thing that I just am not capable of doing in my lifetime. But, I CAN walk and hike! I want to be able to look back 20 years from now and say, "I hiked the Appalachian trail from Georgia to Maine!" Not too many people can say that.
Last July I went to Amicolola Falls with my sister during her vacation. I saw signs for the trail. I saw stuff in the gift shop about the "AT." I knew right then that this was something I had to do! When I got home, I started researching the trail and was hooked.
To prove i'm not a failure.
I hike because I like hiking, and I'm looking forward to hiking.
Just plain tired and I need a good physical challenge to get my butt back in gear. Bring it on!
Simple is good.
Along with Contrast and Wtrenda, i will be graduating college this year and I feel that this is my only opportunity to do the AT before starting a career job. I always tend to other peoples problems and try to help them the best I can and never really put myself first. Ive been through a similar situation as Wtrenda, dated a girl for 5 years just to find out shes been hooking up with someone else. It really broke me down and put me into a cocoon. I avoided going out and meeting new people because i was so distraught. I recently met someone new who pulled me out of my slump and really opened up my eyes. Ive been hiking for a few years but never really saw myself doing the whole AT. With that being said, after a week or two of section hiking i realized that this is perfect for me. It helps me escape reality, but puts me into reality (if that makes sense). In other words I escape the common day problems of traffic, drama, household chores, WORK, and other things that come with everyday living. Im in no means of perfect shape and the trail pushes me to the point where it helps me find my inner self. I love being in nature, and i need to prove to myself i can do this. I need to put all problems aside and i feel that this will help me work out my kinks and help me overlook the petty bull**** that would get the normal person flustered. Plus it would probably be one of my biggest accomplishments of my life to walk from GA to ME. To everyone debating whether or not they want to do it, just do it! Just doing a few weeks of sections hikes here and there made me realize that this needs to be done! happy hiking everyone and keep the motivation going! (inspirational quote) "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived."
I'm retired. I hate people. I'm getting fat. What else am I gonna do?
I haven't been everywhere, but it's on my list.
PTSD & addiction recovery, dedicating my hike to my Fallen Military Friends... & to find out just who I am after 18 years of hard drinking & 19 of mental anguish.
US Army 1994-2004 19K - 1-72 AR, 3-8 Cav 67T/15T - 9-101st, 1-52 AVN - SOBER HIKER
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