Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: My Thoughts So Far

“The long distance hiker, a breed set apart,
From the likes of the usual pack.
He’ll shoulder his gear, be hittin’ the trail;
Long gone, long ‘fore he’ll be back.” ~ M J Eberhart

If you’ve been following along you know my Appalachian Trail (AT) prep has not gone as expected.  The good news, if you haven’t been following along, I’m in a bit of a lazy mood tonight and I’ll be providing links to my recent posts below.  My mom, who has been ill, is doing much better, she’s home and getting stronger every day.

Of course a combination of her illness, god awful amounts of snow, some brutal cold and now my second cold in 5 weeks has beat the hell out of my preparation physically, mentally, emotionally and even equipment wise.  I thought I would be well ahead, seriously prepared and in great shape, well that hasn’t happened.  Somehow I doubt I’m unique in this aspect.  However, I do believe I finally have all of my gear, my travel reservations are in place, hell I even registered my thru-hike with the Appalachian Trail Conservancy.

There are a couple of things though that I’m woefully behind on, I have yet to set up and dial in my winter set up with my hammock.  Hell, what could go wrong, just a little hypothermia and death  I’m resolved to get to that in the next couple of days, also I have yet to take a single step with my full, trail ready pack set up.  This one will also hopefully be resolved in the next week, but with even more snow coming and my start date a little over three weeks away, it will be 45 days without going uphill with weight on my back.  The first few days on the AT might be hell, but I’m trying to keep a positive attitude.

Just preparing for this adventure has brought on some changes in me that I hope to document in a post in the next day or so.  But for tonight, below are the AT pieces I’ve posted up to this point, give a read, drop a comment and have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

My Appalachian Trail Posts So Far…

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: It’s Official

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Three Important Questions

Web Resources for Appalachian Trail (AT) & Other Hikers

Teaching An Old Dog New Tricks

Happiness, the minimalist mind and hiking the Appalachian Trail

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Official Freakout Day!!!

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Fear and Loathing on the AT

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Walking the Line

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: This was NOT the plan!

Some Thoughts on Happiness, a Why to my Appalachian Trail (AT) Walk

Happiness is the Desert

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness – Walking in the Rain

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Second Test Hike

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: First Test Hike

And so it begins, Appalachian Trail (AT) or bust!

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Getting Started, Reading & Research

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: Beginnings

Appalachian Trail (AT) Happiness: A Start