Im a 48 year old male from Georgia and although I have some day hiking experience when I was younger (hiked half dome twice when I was in my mid 20's) I have caught the bug of wanting to start backpacking. I remember stories that my father told me when I was younger hiking in Yosemite and how exciting it was. I have read and watched videos about hiking AT and would love someday to complete the entire trip in sections. This new idea has come as a complete shock I think to my wife, and has gone from not understanding why anybody would want to spend weeks at a time in the woods, to slowly talking about getting into shape and sharing some of the experiences.

Im positive im not the only person who has gone through this and would like to hear of some of the experiences other had when they caught the "bug"...