In the quaint town of Stanardsville, Virginia, my mother and I awakened from a well-rested night in our mountain house getaway. The cabin was quite picturesque with a large hearth and a balcony offering a spectacular forest view. It was decorated with typical cabin décor and a unique music theme; old records and instruments donned the shelves. Upon cooking ourselves a meager breakfast and welcoming my brother to our humble abode, the three of us set out on our day’s journey. It wasn’t long before we realized Verizon appeared to not have coverage out in rural Virginia, so we were going unplugged! It was about a thirty minute drive to Shenandoah National Park, plus another several miles within the park to our destination (Loft Mountain). However,…show more content… I believe that home is not necessarily the place where one resides, but rather, a location or state of being that brings comfort and belonging. Personally, home is most certainly being submerged in nature and breathing the mountain air. That being said, it is not hard to believe that my dream is to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail (the AT). This feat entails hiking the trail in its entirety. Stretching from Georgia to Maine and covering almost 2,200 miles, the AT crosses through 14 states and amounts to over 5,000,000 steps! Facts aside, my reasons for why I wish to accomplish this exploit are complicated and a bit spontaneous with no concrete reasoning. My attendance of Nature Camp, an educational summer camp in the George Washington National Forest, is what sparked my love for the environment and nature, but becoming a thru-hiker is a bit extreme. This bright June day, however, was about to force me to explore this question for some…show more content… As my mom and the couple casually exchanged brands of hiking sticks, a tattered looking man emerged onto the rocks. He wore an orange bandana and carried a substantial pack that was stacked up to his head with some glamorous crocs dangling from its sides. He greeted us with a wave and sweaty grin. It was clear by his dirt-ridden shoes and socks that he had been hiking for much longer than we had been. We engaged in some small talk until the older women prompted him if he was, in fact, a thru-hiker, as we were hiking along a stretch of the AT. He affirmed her question, and he immediately had my attention. By being in the presence of a thru-hiker, I realized the attainability of my goal, as this man right here was doing it, so why couldn’t I?! I was aware that thousands of people complete the thru-hike each year, but I had only read numbers and seen photos. Being completely aware of something takes more than just having a secondhand account, and this barrier had been broken by meeting Quasibird, as that was his trail name. This moment was not entirely magical and uplifting, however, as the harsh reality of the trail became apparent as well. Quasibird said he was on mile 850 or so- not even halfway there! It is easy to envision a goal by its finished product and to forget about all the steps, in this case literally, it takes to get there. For whatever reason, the idea of hiking the entire 2,200 miles of
