By Jordan A. Bowman
TheTrek.co
July 21, 2015
One year ago today, I took the final steps of my thru-hike.
After 136 days, 2,185.3 miles, four pairs of boots, approximately five-million steps, approximately five-hundred face-plants, and dozens of lifelong friendships forged in sweat and blood, I touched the sign marking the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail, perched on the summit of Maine’s tallest mountain, Katahdin.
And then it was all over.
At the time, I was anxious to return home and see the family and friends I had left behind—and this little thing called a marriage, which has its moments. Yet as I touched that wooden sign smoothed by so many caresses, I knew that I would be leaving a piece of myself behind on Baxter Peak. Some of the best (and worst) days of my life occurred in those four and a half months, and within the brevity of a few photographs with fellow thru-hikers (it was official now!) and a few melancholy farewells, I descended back below tree line and became just another day hiker.