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I'm finishing up my week at Summerkeys now - having a great time. Then my wife will drop me off at Mount Katahdin and I will walk back to Georgia - I hope!

Follow my adventure here:
http://www.trailjournals.com/forrest14/

I will miss playing the piano - hopefully I can get back up to speed fairly quickly when I get home in 5 or 6 months.

There probably won't be anything profound in my journal, but if I know people are watching, I won't be as likely to give up and go home!

Sam

could you not get a hiking piano lol

5 to 6 months is a long time, are you wild camping along the way?

You mean, from Mount Katahdin in Maine to middle of Georgia?? That's about 2000 miles? Wow, you took half a year off from work?

What kind of route do you take? Hills or mainly flat?

Good luck with that hike!

@@>>>>> @Sam S

Sam you have my profound admiration in doing this, repeatedly no less. Looking forward to your journal. I once hiked (really just walked) 185 miles and thought it was a big deal. Of course this was 20 or so years ago. Now I do 3-4 miles per day.

Sorry, I should have given a little more info. It's the Appalachian Trail, 2185 miles. I'm going southbound, Maine to Georgia. Hope to done by Christmas. I hike and camp, but get off the trail every 5-7 days to resupply.

Sam

Have a great thru-hike, Sam. I have always wanted to do it, having hiked bits and pieces of the AT many years ago. What trail name are you adopting?

Who knows, maybe you'll encounter a "trail angel" with a piano!!

Awesome, Sam S. Best wishes for a great hike!

I took two weeks off this summer for fishing in Montana. When I got back, I was very rusty at the piano. The first three days were very rough and I was disheartened. But my fingers started coming back first, then my memory. In a little over a week, I was back to where I was before the trip.

Enjoy the adventure!

Maybe you can keep posting an occasional photo here

I bookmarked you, Sam, and put it right next to my "walking tour" dream site so you'll keep me up for doing it!

I love reading journals, so I'm so glad you're doing it. A friend of mine, before there were online journals, did a long walk in middle America and then published her journal and I read it avidly. Then another friend more recently did a car/camp tour and I followed her for awhile. When I did my long trip in '89 I kept a journal, and sent friends post cards from every stop. One family posted them on a map of the US so their 4-year-old could keep track At some point I should finish collating the stuff from that journal. Online seems like a great way to keep it simple but regularly.

Have a great adventure! And thanks so much for letting us share it with the link.

Cathy

I know a professional cellist who hiked the Pacific Crest Trail (2600 miles from Mexico to Canadian border). Some of his internet cello friends (including me) took our cellos to him at various points where the trail nears roadways so he could play. I drove over an hour to meet him near Santa Clarita in Agua Dulce. For my trouble I got a hamburger and a fascinating look into trail culture and the support system that aids the hikers of which I am an official "Trail Angel".

Have a safe trip Sam. Know that your piano friends are with you. Personally I look forward to following your blog.

Kurt

Good luck, Sam. It'll be fun. Never been on the AT, but have backpacked and peakbagged in the Sierra and along the PCT for a long time.

Don't worry about piano, though. You'll be amazed at the places you'll find one just sitting around. When doing the John Muir Trail a couple of years ago I spent some time on one in Red's Meadow. Last year, I played Bach on a piano in a Death Valley ghost town that probably hadn't been tuned, or regulated, in over a century. The action was a little rough.

What are you using for a pack? My girlfriend and I really like the ULA Circuit. Light, but rugged enough and carries really well. Are you going alcohol, canister, or stoveless?

I wits you the best on your 6 month journey - hopefully there isn't much snow and ice this year on the toughest mile part in NH. That's a wonderful picture with your brother on the journal.

There are a lot of magical places on the AT. I always loved the part in Hanover, NH, where you'd slip around the back corner of a baseball field, and suddenly were in a completely different world.

If you still need any PW computer volunteers for anything, I'd be happy to help.

Sam, this is fantastic!

My father was a devoted hiker, and some of my fondest memories are of the hikes we took when I was a kid. He always dreamed of walking the AT, talked about it all the time. Sadly, he passed away in 1954, dream unfulfilled. In fact, I don't think he ever got more than 100 miles from home in his whole life. Different world, then.

It is inspiring to realize that after all these years, someone is living out his dream!

Good luck to you!

Ed

What an adventure!!!! I am in awe. Best of luck to you, Sam on your journey. I know many people who dream of doing this. Few actually do it. So, Kudos to you!!! Don't worry. Your piano will welcome you home!

Have a great time through-walking the AT. I've got a coworker here who did 30 days on the PCT last September (starting up north and working his way South.) I personally do a lot of hiking/backpacking, but I'm not a long-distance walker.

That would be fun to hear. You should have recorded it.

Sam: Glad to hear you had a great time at SummerKeys! Have a great, safe hiking trip! How wonderful and lucky of you to be able to do that!

(I came back from Lubec with a weekend stay in Boston and arrived home literally a quarter to midnight on Sunday, and had to work the next day--couldn't avoid it, as our office was having a 4-hour training that Monday.)

Sam, This is good news for me, the fellow I was following in Trail Journals had to leave the trail in New York (NBound) last week because of knee problems. Now I'll be able to follow you. Here's a tune to start your journey: http://youtu.be/4rEJmkUmJlE Good luck, have fun Fred

Wow, that's one heck of a walk Sam!

Best wishes - stay safe!

I will look forward to reading you updates - you're in my favourites!

Take care!!!!!

That's a pretty long walk, Sam, but I'm sure you will enjoy the trip!

Be careful, and watch out for snakes, bears and extra terrestrials.

All the best!

Rick