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Into the Mood · Apr 5, 12:06 PM

Paul Magnanti thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 1998, and put his journal online. I fell in love with his writing, and was happily reading over his more recent Long Walk:

Friday, February 22 — Boulder, CO — Mileage 0.0

Why give up half a year’s salary to get sunburned, become thirsty, get rained and snowed on?


Why walk day after day with chafing and sore muscles?


Why be hungry all the time, only to have yet another mass of a soggy noodle dish for dinner?


Because the body heals. The pain is forgotten. The stomach eventually has its fill of food. But the memories linger on: A sunset at Greenleaf Hut at the base of Franconia Ridge. A quiet campsite at the shores of a lake in Maine. Seeing ponies graze in the Grayson Highlands after a snowstorm.

Saturday, June 1 — Sanford Campground — 604.7 miles

Not much to write tonight. The hiking was through shaded groves of trees all day, plenty of water and easy climbs. Just feeling content in the knowledge that life is just the way I want it. Should be a clear night to look at the stars before I sleep.

Saturday, Sept. 7 — Stehekin, WA — 2569.4 miles

It is difficult to sum up the experiences of four and half months of hiking.

Tuesday, Sept. 10 — Campsite near ridge — 2613.9 miles

Sharp, jagged peaks and a landscape that made me feel uplifted as I became tired and sore myself.

Thursday, Sept. 12 — Castle Creek — 2651.7 miles

“Oh sh*t. We’re here.”’


. . .


When am I getting back to the real word? For me these long treks ARE the real world. Mountains, rivers, deserts and snow are more real to me after two extended treks in the mountains than a world consisting of six years of car payments, rising to the top of the business ladder and whatever else is generally defined as being successful.

I’m ready now, but I have to wait 24 days. That’s just about 400 hours of consciousness, and 180 of sleep.

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