In 1986, a few days after running the Boston Marathon, and following a year of touring the US and Canada in a campervan, I set off by train to realise a dream to walk the Appalachian Trail. I first heard about the Trail from the American wife of a work colleague in Melbourne a few years earlier and had since read widely about the trail. The Trail follows the crest of the Appalachian Mountains for more than 2,200 miles along the eastern side of the US. Starting in mid-spring, I followed the trail northwards from Springer Mountain in Georgia to its northern terminus at Mount Katahdin in Maine, finishing in the late summer. It remains one of the most meaningful experiences of my life, fostering an ambition for more such experiences and inspiring me to retire from work early enough follow through on that ambition. In 1986, only about 80 people each year completed the whole trail, but during that year National Geographic did a feature article on the Trail and its popularity increased dramatically.

Appalachian Trail - Day 053

Day:  053
Date:  Tuesday, 24 June 1986
Daily AT Miles:  24.9
Daily Other Miles:  0.6 (shelters)
Total AT Miles:  1024.8
Total All Miles:  1058.2
Weather:  Warm, humid, rain in the morning, mostly cloudy.
Nutrition:
  Breakfast:  Muesli, health drink.
  Lunch:  Biscuits and peanut butter.
  Dinner:  Noodles, pop tarts.
Aches:  Sore behind right knee.
Animals Seen:  Chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits.
People Seen:  6 AT Thru-hikers, 20 overnight hikers, some others.

Journal:
Got up at 6am to steady rain and packed up slowly.  Chainsaw, who had joined us during the night’s thunderstorm, left in the rain at 7am.  I left at 7:30am just as it stopped.  The Trail followed a broad ridge which didn’t offer views but was basically easy going, though wet weeds and brambles and some rocky bits made life unpleasant.  Paul caught and passed me though I passed him again later.  The Trail passed by the Dahlgren Campground for hikers only (free hot showers), but I didn’t stop.  I met Melissa there, who was hiking most of the AT.  She was with T-Turf when I met them later (they took a short-cut) at the Washington Monument (1827’) which gave good views over the countryside.  Chainsaw was also there.  I walked steadily for the remainder of the day, stopping for a 2:30pm lunch.  The Trail continued to follow a ridge – dropping down to cross roads in passes every so often.  My feet weren’t so bad today.  I reached Devils Racecourse Shelter at 6:25pm and found 4 AT Thru-hikers already in residence – the Connecticut Connection (3 guys) and Kid Charlemagne.  They squeezed up to make room for me.  I got a fire going despite damp wood, had dinner, caught up the diary, and got into bed by about 9pm.  The boys told me about the “flasher” they had met on the Trail before Harpers Ferry and how the guy had been arrested.  I’d heard about it in Harpers ferry too.
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