Thanks for checking out this site.  It is intended to track the preparation, execution and culmination of the greatest adventure I will likely ever have in my life.  It is something I’ve yearned to do for about 20 years and, now that the first step is just over two months away, I am buying gear, exercising, reading and, hopefully, writing something that will be a record of the trip.

Even though I’m British, I’d heard vaguely of the Appalachian Trail, yet Bill Bryson’s “Walk in the Woods” was the first book I’d read on the subject.  That really sparked my initial interest, but it was moving to America in 2005 that really brought it into focus and my Kindle now has about 20 other books, some good, some awful, that cover the same subject.  It is something about the physical and mental challenge that really appeals, though I feel sure that I’ll be more than a little nervous on my first night in the open and will look to camp relatively near to others.  However, when I started to research the equipment, I received some really good advice which, taken in conjunction with the hiker’s adage of “hike your own hike,” made me convinced that I am ready to take on the challenge.  The guy in the camping shop told me that 90% of the hike is your mental attitude and, now that I’m in my early sixties, I feel that I have plenty of that to make it all the way to Mt Katahdin.

So, please check back in to see what, if any progress I make in the coming weeks.  I’ll be adding pictures of my gear choices, along with the reasons that I chose those items and why I think they will work well for me.

Cheers!!!