{Book Review} Awol on the Appalachian Trail
Great book. Easy read. However.
This book actually turned me away from wanting to hike the AT. My father-in-law brought it up a couple weeks ago, and apparently had informed Chris that it made him feel the same way. It's fun to read and hard to put down, but it showed me a reality to the trail that I didn't know. I had always expected that when we did the AT that we would literally be hiking and camping the entire way up - minimal civilization. I was quite disappointed to find out that Awol (and apparently most thru-hikers) stayed in shelters and hotels just about every night and ate fast food the whole way up. It made the AT seem not worth it to me. I'm not sure if people do rough it on the AT or if we just need to find another trail to pursue when the time comes.
Anyhow - great read, disappointing reality.
This book actually turned me away from wanting to hike the AT. My father-in-law brought it up a couple weeks ago, and apparently had informed Chris that it made him feel the same way. It's fun to read and hard to put down, but it showed me a reality to the trail that I didn't know. I had always expected that when we did the AT that we would literally be hiking and camping the entire way up - minimal civilization. I was quite disappointed to find out that Awol (and apparently most thru-hikers) stayed in shelters and hotels just about every night and ate fast food the whole way up. It made the AT seem not worth it to me. I'm not sure if people do rough it on the AT or if we just need to find another trail to pursue when the time comes.Anyhow - great read, disappointing reality.
I'm not sure it's always like that. The one friend I know that hiked it two years ago stayed in shelters some but mostly slept outdoors (to my knowledge). & I'm fairly certain he ate food more along your line of thought. So don't give up hope yet! ;)
ReplyDeleteNot related to your post, but thanks for the lovely thank-you. I think the written thank-you is becoming a lost art. You do it well!
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