We did it! While it has purposefully taken us a little over six months to complete this planned for and prepared for journey of a lifetime, this particular leg… trek… section… and thru-hike of The Appalachian Trail has been completed by our summit of Mount Katahdin.
MOUNT KATAHDIN… THE FINISH OR IS IT JUST THE BEGINNING?
We selected the northbound attempt to thru-hike The Appalachian Trail because we wanted the summit of Mount Katahdin to be the ultimate and awesome finish of the trip. The question is: MOUNT KATAHDIN… THE FINISH OR IS IT JUST THE BEGINNING?
This excursion has solidified the truth that “Life” (itself) is a journey, and being that we have the opportunity to inhabit planet earth for only a short number of years, we should live these years of our life (on this planet) to the fullest!
While I happen to be one who believes that we are eternal beings temporarily living within the flesh, bone, muscle and vital organs necessary to sustain life here, our purpose should be to continually mature… grow… evolve… and become all that we can be (ultimately to the One in who’s image we are created in).
This backpacking venture has been a part of such purpose!
With that said, MOUNT KATAHDIN… THE FINISH OR IS IT JUST THE BEGINNING?
In a recent Blog (“OVER THE RIVER AND THRU THE WOODS”), I share many of the “Life Lessons” that this trail has taught us. As we travel back home to Georgia, we now have the amazing opportunity to begin putting these “Life Lessons” into daily action. “For what purpose?”, you might ask. For the purpose of maturing… growing… evolving… and becoming all that we can be!
While Slipper and I have enjoyed this entire thru-hike, we have hiked it a bit different than most (and obviously a bit slower than most). This type of thru-hiking is why we started on Valentine Day (February 14, 2016) and have completed it on August 19, 2016. My goal is to write four books from this thru-hike experience (one of which explains the style in which we have successfully thru-hiked the trail, a Relational Book, an Inspirational/ Motivational Book and a Children’s Book). I have no idea how long it will take to write and publish these books, but it leads us back to the question: MOUNT KATAHDIN,,, THE FINISH OR IS IT JUST THE BEGINNING?
I must say, that after all the solitude, the stealth camping, the silent walking, the ongoing sights of nature, the self-schedule of each day, the spiritual enrichment, the serenity of creation, the sincerity of expression and the simplicity of living… it will be quite the challenge to assimilate ourselves back into a different pattern of living.
So the question is: Does a person who has successfully thru-hiked The Appalachian Trail “go back” or “go forward” from their summit of Mount Katahdin or Springer Mountain?
MOUNT KATAHDIN… THE FINISH OR IS IT JUST THE BEGINNING?
