Reflexions

About six months ago, I began planning a hiking trip…more of a mission actually…to complete a series of day-hikes on the Appalachian Trail (AT) that Lisa and started in 2015.

Back then, Lisa was courageously battling cancer, and her battle plan included grabbing life by the ba…um…horns and doing those things we long wanted to do.  We decided on day-hikes since we didn’t want to get too far from medical facilities, and since we had a penchant for daily, hot showers, happy hours, and nice breakfasts and dinners.  We decided to select a well-known and/or picturesque hike in each of the southern seven states that are traversed by the AT. We hiked places like Harper’s Ferry (West Virginia), the pony-infested Grayson Highlands (Virginia), Charlie’s Bunion (North Carolina), the southern terminus — that’s fancy talk for “end/beginning” — on Springer Mountain (Georgia), and other pretty places in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Tennessee.

It was a wonderful way to spend a week, and we talked about doing the northern seven states at some point in the future.  We also learned that the AT Conservancy had devised a thing called the “14 State Challenge,” and that we were already half-way to achieving it. Sadly, it eventually became evident to us that we wouldn’t complete the challenge, but we committed to each other that I would. Ultimately, Lisa became my spiritual guide and motivator in putting the plan in place.

Fast-forward to today. I landed in Scranton, Pennsylvania (much prettier than the producers of “The Office” would have you believe), and will begin my seven northern day-hikes in New Jersey tomorrow. Hikes in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and the grand-daddy of them all, the northern terminus — Mt. Katahdin in Maine — will quickly follow.

For a couple of the hikes, very dear friends will join me. For all of the hikes, my spiritual guide will keep me company.

Check back for updates in the coming days.