This truly has been an excellent and inspiring thread. In reading all the different responses it is very clear as other's have said that we do take a risk (especially when we become older) by continuing to put-off and postpone our dream to thru-hike the trail. As there are no guarantees in life, by putting our dreams continuousley on the back burner, we risk never being able to obtain them. Now I completely understand that some people, who due to their current responsibilities in raising families, etc...are in a position of having to postpone or delay their thru-hike dreams and aspirations(which is currentley my own situation), but it definately is true that life is a mysterious thing in that it doesn't wait for anyone, and life is fast. If at all possible, we all need to realize that if we really want to do a thru-hike of the AT, we need to set a time and date and have a plan and make it happen. Otherwise, we may find ourselves too old, injured, broke, or simply unable to fulfill the dream that we all have desired to complete for such a long period of time.
I agree 100% with Dapper Dan
Richard Angeli
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http://trailjournals.com/tuney
"Life is what happens while you're making other plans." John Lennon
i give up nothing, i embrace
i originated this post just about two years ago, and have yet to hike the trail.
two more years have passed while fears of an unknown and insecure future if i "leave everything behind to hike" have paralyzed me and kept me from trying to achieve a life-long dream. last year i was 52 and i watched as the class of 2010 set out. this year, at 53, i'm watching as the class of 2011 set out.
i have resigned myself that i WILL BE DAMNED IF I AM GOING TO BE WATCHING AGAIN IN 2012. I will not be watching. I will be hiking.
thanks everyone for all their replies and thoughts in this thread. it has provided much inspiration.
Unless life kicks me in the shins and steals my lunch money, then runs away laughing, I'll be out there in 2012 too. I used to say I "might" hike the trail next year, but each time I said that it wasn't what was going to happen. Now I only say when I hike next year, or I will hike next year. Each time a storm passes I stop and think, next year I'll be out in this. That changed my whole outlook on the trail. It went from something that I might do next year, to something that I was going to do. I don't know if that helps at all, but convince yourself that its not a maybe, and it wont be a maybe.
Good point. What I find to really help motivate (besides great threads like this one) is to TELL PEOPLE your goals. Tell your parents you are thru-hiking, tell your wife, teacher, grandfather, friends, your mailman, whoever. What this does is kind of lock you into the situation, if you've been telling people for 6 months that your hiking 2,000 miles up the East Coast you better do it or else you'll look awfully foolish! (been there, done that!) And if you don't do it (like me), you'll just feel ashamed and a awkward when people say 'hey shouldn't you be hiking right now?'. All that does for me though is add drive to set out next year though.
Smile, Smile, Smile.... Mile after Mile