This is a journal of my three section hikes on the Appalachian Trail in 2023. It is written not so much for other hikers, but for friends and other sane people who do not get off to walking for months and months, up and down, mountain to mountain, thru rain and snow, heat and cold, sleeping on the ground, pooping in the woods, eating the same food day after day, seldom if ever wearing clean clothes—all with 30-40 lbs on their backs.

It is early March 2023 and I am packing and repacking my backpack in preparation for my first section hike across Pennsylvania and Maryland. I have problems with my pack—my body groans when I load it up—but in its defense, I admit the problem may be my old bones.

My walk-a-way weight will not be good news. I know this from experience because no matter how economical my brain may plan, invariably too much stuff finds its way into my pack. I have constructed countless spreadsheets with every item weighed to the ounce, and still, I cannot restrain myself from adding another thingy to my pack. I might post an inventory later, but not now; it will be in flux up to the minute my feet hit the trail.

I will be 84 when I take my next step on the A.T. One might ask, why are you embarking on this hike at your age?  My answer: I live with two people and five animals—all female. What else do you need to know?

To be serious, I started something 20 years ago—in my 60’s—and ever since then I’ve had the itch to go back. Simple as that. I may be a slow hiker, but I’m a great procrastinator!

This will be my third time on the A.T. In 2004 and 2005 I hiked 1/2 the trail in two 500+ mile section hikes or 1,095 total miles. I thought I would go back the following year and finish the trail, but life has a way of derailing our dreams. Nevertheless, my earlier A.T. hikes were two of the most exciting and satisfying adventures of my life and the dream never died. And so, here I am, a couple of decades later, embarking on the first of three section hikes, totaling 1,099 miles. My pit boss, Annice thinks I’m loony, but she’s very supportive—and can’t wait to get me out of the house.

This hike is disjointed, and I will skip around up and down the trail to fill in the gaps. My first hike will start in Wind Gap PA where I will hike south thru Pennsylvania and Maryland to Harpers Ferry WVA or 255 miles.

Next, I will skip down to Damascus VA, and hike south to Springer Mountain GA, the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail and the spot where most people start their hikes. That section is 471 miles. 

Lastly, I will head north and pick up where I left off in New Hampshire. The last leg from Mt. Moosilauke NH to Mt. Katahdin Maine is 373 miles and that stretch is the toughest part of the Appalachian Trail.

One may wonder why I am not starting in Georgia at the Southern terminus and proceeding north from section to section instead of whipsawing back and forth.

I am not starting on Springer Mountain, because at this time of year that part of the trail is jam-packed with hikers.  Shelters and campsites will be overcrowded, and an old slow-hiker like me might be in the way. I will stay clear and let others have it. But we slow-walking old-timers have one advantage—time. We do not have to be anywhere and we are not racing the calendar.

Long-distance hikers are lucky to have a supportive partner at home, sending food and other supplies to help manage a months-long hike. I definitely have that. Annice was my quartermaster for my first two A.T. hikes. Still is. She shops, cooks, vacuum-seals my food, pre-packs my meds in easy-to-get-to containers, and helps me with planning my hikes—and critiques my every decision. Just kidding; I could not do this without her support.

I did not prepare my body for my first two hikes on the A.T., but to get ready for this hike, I have been walking for months. At first, I just walked. Later I added a day pack and now I’m walking with the fully loaded backpack I am taking on this hike. But there is one problem with working out in Sarasota FL where we live…there are no hills to climb. Well, to be fair, there is one little hill. It is a very short, but steep hill located in The Celery Fields, a popular spot for runners, dog walkers, and bird-watchers. I go there 5 or 6 times a week to climb that little hill with my pack—over and over. 

And speaking of hills, just know that the Appalachian Trail is not a walk. It is a climb–up and down, up and down for 2,200 miles. Climbing hills should be part of every hiker’s “get ready” plan. I was unprepared for my other two hikes, and both times it took about 3 weeks to walk myself into shape. This time, without serious hills to help me get ready, and because I’m 20 years older, I fear I will need even longer to walk into shape.

Annice will track my progress, manage my inventory, and forward food and other provisions to coincide with my pace and location. On my first two hikes, we lived in Pennsylvania, and she sent my packages from the Regional Post Office in Valley Forge. She was there so often, the employees followed my hikes.  “Where is he now,” they would ask her. Yesterday she returned from the grocery store with new food for me to sample. This is her hike as much as my hike. She’s the pit boss, I’m just the driver.

FYI my trail name is bearmeat. I got it on my first A.T. hike.

How to gauge the time required for this hike? On my first hike, I was a rookie, my pack was grossly overloaded, and I was in pitiful shape. I swapped my boots once and changed my backpack twice. It was a difficult and expensive learning experience.

On my second hike, a year and a half later, I was a tad more knowledgeable, and in a little better shape. Still, I climbed out of Harpers Ferry on September 26, 2005, with my pack once again overloaded. But I finished that hike with the same boots and backpack I started with.

 Today I am 20 years older and still not in shape for this walk. And for a backpack, I chose my old Gregory Robson, a cavernous relic, and a heavy beast to boot. Heavy as it is, it is simply the most comfortable pack I own. I shaved a few pounds by substituting a tarp for my heavier free-standing tent. That leaves me a little more exposed to weather and creepy crawly critters. It is what it is.

I doubt I can walk as fast as I did on my 2005 hike, but I’m using that as a general planning guide anyway. I estimate that walking the three sections combined with traveling between them via public transportation (train, bus, and shuttle) will take 132 days. Laughably slow to my younger trail mates, I’m sure. But they have pistons for legs. Mine are wobbly.

Considering that I am starting in the spring, I have a lot of time to do this. Mt Katahdin will probably be open well into September before the snow shuts it down.

I will post again when I’m on the trail.

bearmeat