173 days total (5 months and 21 days), 145 days of hiking
2,072 miles through 14 states from Georgia to Maine (see list at end)
26 town stops (see list at end)
427,351 feet of elevation gain, equivalent to 14.7 Everest ascents from sea level, equivalent to climbing a ladder 81 miles high
10 pairs of shoes (5 each)
50+ lbs weight loss (Shiz alone)
18 bottles of Advil
580 packets of oatmeal
43,387 mosquito bites and 6 million lbs of M&Ms :-)
We're done!!! It's unbelievable that this adventure is drawing to a close, but here I am, writing this post from my parent's house in Middlebury, VT. My reaction to being finished is completely bipolar - on one hand, I'm ready to head back to the woods in a day or two; on the other, both Shiz and I wake in the middle of the night thinking gleefully, "We don't have to hike tomorrow!!" It may take a couple of weeks to be sufficiently removed that I can accurately gauge my emotions.
My reward! I promised myself these since TN.
In the stats above, you may notice that our 2,072 miles is shy of the full AT mileage. On Tuesday 8/29 we decided to end our journey in Monson, ME - 117 miles before the northern terminus at Mt Katahdin. We realized that we would be hiking the last miles only to say that we did, and that's not what this trip has been about. We were both suffering from mental and physical fatigue; and after a stretch of perfect weather and increasingly flat trail, we decided to finish on a high note rather than the head-down, short-tempered slog that the final miles might well have been. Someday we may return to hike those miles, but neither of us feels that we need to in order for this adventure to be complete.
From Monson we took a shuttle to Bangor, ME, then the Greyhound bus to my brother's house in Portland, ME. My parents were fantastic to drive out to Portland to collect us and we enjoyed a lovely evening with the whole family before returning to VT. Shiz and I will spend the next weeks at his family's camp in central VT. The quiet lakeside location will be the perfect transition back to civilization - the good (easy transportation, daily clean underwear, fresh foods) and the bad (demanding technology, too many choices!).
Thank you so much for following along with our adventure. Your comments have been a lifeline for us and we have so appreciated your interest and support. Thank you!
Love, Sweet Pea and Shiz
In our opinion, Maine was the most beautiful state on the trail. Many new pictures and videos in the Google album: https://goo.gl/photos/yVaQgu5Xce88YoVb8
States: Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine
Town stops: Helen GA, Franklin NC, Fontana Dam NC, Gatlinburg TN, Hot Springs NC, Roan Mountain TN, Damascus VA, Marion VA, Pearisburg VA, Daleville VA, Buena Vista VA, Waynesboro VA, Harpers Ferry WV, Boiling Springs PA, Lickdale PA, Hamburg PA, Delaware Water Gap PA, Peekskill NY, Kent CT, Lee MA, Bennington VT, Middletown Springs VT, North Woodstock, NH, Gorham NH, Andover ME, Stratton ME
The rugged beauty in Maine was unparalleled
Miles and miles of untouched wilderness
Crossing the 2,000 mile mark before Stratton, ME
So many tough high peaks, but they were worth it
Ponds and lakes at every turn. We hoped to see moose near one, but the closest we came was fresh tracks and moose poop.
The sign for Monson, ME where we left the trail. What an incredible journey together! We couldn't have done it without each other and wouldn't have wanted to do it with anyone else.
Celebrating no more hiking in our hotel room in Bangor, ME. All my shirts were in the laundry because they smelled terrible!
Our last tent night...in the Chris's backyard. In their defense, they did offer us the guest room but we wanted one more night outside.