Day 1: Conquering Katahdin

Miles to Katahdin summit: 5.2

Appalachian Trail miles: 5.2

"Man is born to die. His works are short lived. Buildings crumble, monuments decay, wealth vanishes but Katahdin in all its glory forever shall remain the mountain of the people of Maine." -P.P.B. (plaque at the start of the Hunt Trail)

So it is now officially official. Today marked the start of my Southbound Appalachian Trail hike! I have been a little apprehensive about really acknowledging the start of it because I really wanted to make sure I was able to complete the hike today, which is commonly depicted as the most difficult climb of the entire trail, and what a climb it was! So far, the recent injuries I've dealt with have remained at bay, so tomorrow I will be continuing on to the 100 Mile Wilderness. I was able to share the experience with my brother, who drove me the long 7 hours to summit Katahdin with me. I'm so glad he was able to be there to appreciate how incredible it really was. It was certainly a challenging 10.4 miles of hiking today (really more of a climb, honestly). The amount of rocks we had to scale was unbelievable and seemingly neverending. My palms are raw, my knees are bruised, my feet are sore, and the good majority of my body aches. We had such a beautiful day to hike, which I couldn't be more thankful for since it has done nothing but rain the last few days. The view was indescribable. So I will continue tomorrow and see how well the hike out of the park goes. Here's to hoping I will be able to complete the remaining 2181 miles! I will be happy to accept any distance that I am able to complete, but making it to Springer Mountain in Georgia, the southern terminus of the AT, would be such an amazing achievement. Happy hiking!