Hiking Through: One Man's Journey to Peace and Freedom on the Appalachian Trail (and my perspective)

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography

I recently finished the audiobook called Hiking Through: One Man’s Journey to Peace and Freedom on the Appalachian Trail. It can be purchased through Amazon here. This post today is a part book review and part insight on why I find the Appalachian Trail so alluring and seductive.

The description on the Amazon site about the book in part states “After Paul Stutzman lost his wife to breast cancer, he sensed a tug on his heart–the call to a challenge, the call to pursue a dream. Paul left his stable career, traveled to Georgia, and took his first steps on the Appalachian Trail. What he learned during the next four and a half months changed his life–and will change readers’ lives as well”.

So let me start with the book. Listening to this I imagined what it would be like to hike this 2176 mile trek through 14 states. Paul experience rain, sleet, snow, high winds, bitter cold, sweltering heat, and even picture-perfect days but he finished. He spoke of trail magic, trail angels and the lifelong friends he met during his quest (you will need to read about those). I am always amazed at what the human body can do, and can only imagine how he felt and what things he saw. I even learned about the online trail journals each hiker kept and was able to find Paul’s (Apostle) logs.

Like any good writer, I felt I was along with him on his journey. I saw the trail through his eyes. I felt the emotions of his trip and understood why he had to do it. I recommend the book quite highly. His book inspired me to read another AT book, which I have already begun.

I know personally, my body would not allow me to do such a trek. Medical issues alone prevent me from doing more than a day hike, but I can dream. I wonder what sights would I see, what valleys, mountain tops, animals, people, weather conditions, etc. What would I write about, or would I even have the energy to put together thoughts? Would I, like Paul, be able to finish a dream and become closer to God as I do on my local hikes alone? I can only hope to go back and do small sections of the AT in the future.

A friend of mine posted a few pictures of some trees on Instagram this week. Nature and specifically trees are a weakness of mine. I love trees. Especially when they shed their leaves and expose their true beauty. Like people, I see trees that are covered with leaves and equate that to what I witness with people. I see people hiding behind walls of their leaves, and not revealing their true thoughts, intentions or true self. Bare trees have nothing to hide and reveal their inner beauty to me. People can learn from trees. Please check out these photos and you might see the beauty I did. While you are there, give Miranda a follow.

Photo by: Tim Bindner Photography

The trees Miranda shot, thinking back about my trip last spring, and finishing this book led me to write this post. I have hiked on the AT, but not hiked the AT. I quickly point that out to anyone I mention this too. My one or two-mile trek on the AT back in April does not even scratch the surface of what Paul and countless others have done. I was introduced to the trail by my buddy Mark as we hiked up to Max Patch Bald. More can read about that here. We hit another part later on our trip to Damascus Virginia.

For most people I assume, they see the AT like any other trail in the woods as some dirt, some rocks, some bushes, and trees but for me, it is a mythical place. The trail cuts through places most humans will never see. Crosses big and small streams, parallels major highways, goes over bridges, cuts through a zoo, through farmland and even snakes straight through towns both large and small. A tiny handful of people (when compared to the human population) have ever completed the entire journey, but when I walked the two small sections I did I felt the energy of the trail. It has been a bucket list to hike on the AT and I did it, and hope to do it again.

In this world, in 2019 there are not many things still pure and untamed. Technology has made us wiser, yet lazier. The AT does not care if you are young or old, a physical specimen or a couch potato, it will take on all types of people and test them to their limits. That is why so many have failed to complete the trail. It is nature at its best, and that is in part why I find it so alluring.

I will leave you with a quote from John Muir “In every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.”

Until next time,

Tim