Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail Quotes

“The Kennebec River was the largest river we had to cross without a bridge. The stories of peril and even death as a result of wading across haunted the Trail registers. Not to worry . . . the wonderful state of Maine provided a “ferry service” for Appalachian Trail hikers. It was a low-budget program featuring a scruffy guy and his trusty canoe. According to rumours, he would be there twice a day to perform his service. A bunch of hikers hung out patiently on the south bank to wait.”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“My menu for this trip was pretty simple, mirroring the multi-day menu I typically use on longer backpacking trips. For dinner: ramen noodles cooked in miso soup with a 1 oz shot of olive oil for extra calories and fat (700-1400 calories.) Breakfast: pound cake or other quick bread, smashed flat to save space, and packed in plastic bags (1000 calories.) 3 snacks per day consisting of Snickers, cookies, salami and crackers, Cliff bars, nuts, or licorice (1000-1500 calories.)”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“When I arrived at the river, I sat on the bank for a while just looking at the water level and considering my options. I could camp on the riverbank and wait for the level to drop, which would take a least one day; I could walk down to the highway and back up to the opposite bank—a 15-mile detour; or I could find another place to cross. I scouted up and down the river for a while, looking for a better place to cross, and secondarily, for a nice campsite. In the end, I came back to the crossing and sat there for a while, looking at the beaver dam which people normally walk on to cross this river. One third of the dam had washed out completely and the river was pouring through here faster than the section that was overflowing the dam outright. None of this was good.”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“Truth be told, I don’t think most thru-hikers hike the 3.5 miles of trail outside of Monson. Shaw’s, the famous hiker hostel in town, runs a morning shuttle right to the 100-Mile Wilderness trailhead on Route 15, and it’s easy to miss these miles unless you’re an AT purist and make a point to hike every step from Georgie to Maine.”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“I sat down in a patch of large, perfectly ripe fruit growing in cluster of four to six berries and just kept filling my hand and pushing them into my mouth. In half an hour or so I ate what seemed like a quart (at least) and finally had to give up when I could eat no more (imagine that on the AT!).”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“I even talked my way into staying at a pay campsite when I was on my own. I asked him if he had a work-for-stay option. The only one he had was for in the morning and they make you do an hour of work. I was not interested in working in the morning when I could be hiking (and catching the group–which, of course, was actually behind me). I told him this and asked him if he knew of any stealth sites further on the trail. It was 7:30 or so at this point and he did what I was hoping he would do and said I could just stay there.”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail

“Starting with the Whites, the mountains after a certain height are huge slabs of rock, so you might have trees and vegetation on both sides but the trail itself is just rock. The real challenge though is that they tend to always be wet and I do not do well on wet rocks. I didn’t fall too many times, though this was mostly because my pace slowed so much. I did enjoy some of the whites, though—Mt. Washington, the Wildcats, and Mt Lafayette. For the most part I was not a fan. Along with the tough climbs there were the crowds, the lack of camping options, and the harsh weather above tree line.”
― Kathryn Fulton, Hikers' Stories from the Appalachian Trail