Appalachian Trail
Daily blog entries from my 2023 thru-hike of the 2,190 mile Appalachian Trail
In 2023, I left my job, sold or stored all of my worldly possessions, and hopped on a one-way flight to Atlanta, Georgia, to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. I officially started the trail on March 5th, and completed it on August 5th after an incredible 5 month journey. Along the way, I made lifelong friends, saw a side of new side of life in America, and fell in love. I also did my best to keep a daily journal, which I have transformed into the blog you see below. Enjoy, and I hope it inspires you to get out there and explore our incredible public lands!
AT Days 0 to 9 - Getting Started on the Right Foot
Day 0 Little to no drama for the first part! My hometown had its marathon the morning of my flight, but we were able to plan around that to get me to the airport. I hardly fit in my seat with Spirit, but at 6’2”, that’s hardly noteworthy.
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 10 to 19 - Side Quests and Snow in the Smokies
Day 10 Today was meh. I started the day sick as hell to my stomach. The sketchy quesadilla I had in town was my undoing... Because of this, I slept poorly, and I wasn’t really able to enjoy my town bed or breakfast this morning. After breakfast, we checked
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 20 to 29 - High Winds and New Friends
Day 20 The group started the day with a hot, muggy, slow climb out of Standing Bear. We saw a trail crew at work, which was cool to experience, and we thanked them profusely for making this possible. Over time, our group split up a bit with DB and Gone-zo
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 30 to 39 - Through Damascus and Beyond: Ponies, Pizza, and a Partner in Crime
Day 30 Today went fairly smoothly, until the final climb, which absolutely killed us. Will (The Masochist) left early in the night to run to town to grab a box. The rest of us slowly chugged along as we were still banged up from the Roan Highlands, and suffering due
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 40 to 49 - White Claws, Wild Goats, and the Road to McAfee Knob
Day 40 We woke up today feeling refreshed and ready to go after our comfortable night in the Wytheville La Quinta! After wrapping up a few chores, we scarfed down the continental breakfast before heading over to the Food Lion for a resupply. Unfortunately, we didn’t plan it very
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 50 to 59 - Benadryl, Big Climbs, and the Big Gay Disco: Trail Life Through Virginia
Day 50 I woke up, finally not in pain, but just a bit sore. I made the call to Anna that I was good to roll, so after our sad Super 8 breakfast, we packed up our things and hit the trail. Right off the bat, the trail was absolutely
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 60 to 69 - Hiking Shenandoah and Beyond: Weather Woes, Illness, and the Journey to Harpers Ferry
Day 60 Due to the constant wind blowing ash and smoke into the shelter and the noise of a crowded shelter, I woke up quite tired and with a bit of a sore throat. Despite that, we packed up camp fairly quickly and hustled over to the nearby picnic area
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 70 to 79 - Through Rain, Rocks, and Ice Cream: Crossing Four States into the Heart of Pennsylvania
Day 70 Due to the close air and nocturnal wildlife activity, I didn’t sleep much, unfortunately. When we woke up at 2:00 am for our 4-state attempt, I was already mentally dead. Once we started at 2:40 am, Masochist launched off, and we didn’t see him
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 80 to 89 - From Rock Hell to City Lights: Escaping Pennsylvania’s Pain and Finding Rest in New York
Day 80 We’re getting quite good at this early start thing! We once again hit the ever-so-rocky Pennsylvania trail a hair after 6:30 am this morning with the plan to have some extra time to negotiate the tricky PA rocks. The trail was a bit friendlier than we
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 90 to 99 - Bagels, Bears, and Boardwalks: Hiking Through New York and into New England
Day 90 After our late night, we all slept in until it became too hot to keep sleeping. Once awake, we promptly left to seek out air conditioning and Brooklyn bagel sandwiches at a local bakery. We then returned to the stifling apartment to do laundry, repair gear, and tackle
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 100 to 109 - Through Mud, Storms, and Magic: A Soaked but Smiling Journey Across Massachusetts and Into Vermont
Day 100 Fearing potential bad weather and wanting not to feel rushed, Instigator and I awoke fairly early, in an attempt to summit the two peaks of the day, before the forecasted rain blew in. The morning was ridiculously humid, and unfortunately, we couldn’t see a thing from the
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 110 to 119 - From Stratton Pond to New Hampshire: A Muddy March Through Vermont’s Green Mountains
Day 110 When I awoke in the morning, I noticed that someone else had come into the shelter at some point in the night, so for the first time in days, we shared a shelter with someone. We weren’t the only crazy people out in this weather! As usual,
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 120 to 129 - From Moosilauke to Wildcat: Surviving Floods, Peaks, and the Power of the Whites
Day 120 Most of the shelter (Tortoise, Instigator, Cruise Control, Hi-Fi, and me) awoke fairly early due to the early night from the thunderstorm, combined with the bright sunrise shining right into the shelter. Eager to knock out morning miles and beat the weather again, Instigator and I hit the
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 130 to 139 - From the Whites to Western Maine: Thunderstorms, Trail Magic, and the Final State
Day 130 We woke up early to try and make the most of the day, but stopped in at the Hut to check the weather forecast. Heavy thunderstorms were expected early in the afternoon... Not wanting to get caught in a repeat of the flooding event a few days ago,
Ryan Gallagher
AT Days 140 to 149 - From Bigelow to Abol Bridge: The Final Push Through Maine’s Mountains and the 100 Mile Wilderness
Day 140 Knowing that it was hot and that we had some climbing ahead of us, we took the 9 am ride out of the Maine Roadhouse instead of staying until 11 like we normally do. We had an outstanding breakfast cooked by Jen, and we were excited to hit
Ryan Gallagher
AT Day 150 - Katahdin. One Peak, Endless Memories
Day 150 We woke up at 3 am from the Abol Pines Campground to have enough time to summit and find a ride into town. I’m not sure how much either of us slept, given our excitement for the day. We broke camp quickly and quietly and started up
Ryan Gallagher