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Congrats to These 2021 Appalachian Trail Thru-Hikers: Week of October 4
Look at all these beautiful people! It warms the heart to see so many intrepid hikers braving every torrential thunderstorm, hand-over-foot climb, and national park crowd to finish the AT.
Whether this is your first thru-hike or you’ve added another notch to your long-distance backpacking belt, your accomplishment deserves to be celebrated. Because remember: despite its length, the Appalachian Trail still boasts more elevation gain and loss than either of America’s other two long trails. Show those calves off. You earned it.
Did you thru-hike the AT this year? Follow this link to submit your terminus photo, finishing date, and any other relevant information and we will be sure to include it in our next roundup.
Submit Your AT Summit Photo to The Trek
Enigma
@Fulltimevagabond
Finish Date: August 3
Beetle
@Corn.on.the.schaub
Finish Date: August 28
French Press
@Tomiller22
Finish Date: September 16
Howdy
@justinp33
Finish Date: September 10
Goosebump
@mtnmik
Finish Date: August 21
No Trail Name
Finish Date: September 11
Night Cap
@that_muy_bien_boy
Finish Date: September 10
Ladybug
@Kat_the_peach
Finish Date: September 5
Engine
@Adeerinthewoods
Finish Date: September 20
El Jefe
@el.hefe
Finish Date: September 3
Masochist
@mattonamtn
Finish Date: September 5
Starfish
@_kaseydrake
Finish Date: August 12
Sprout
@anjaconlon
Finish Date: September 23
Giggles
@_adventureswithsyd
Finish Date: August 10
Hocus Pocus
@morganhiglet
Finish Date: September 18
Congrats to all these finishers! And don’t forget: if you’ve also completed a thru-hike on the AT this year and would like to share your completion photo, all you’ve got to do is follow this link and fill out the form.
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Comments 2
Congratulations to all these AT thru-hikers. Incredible accomplishment and well deserved recognition.
My question is to The Trek. Last year (2020), The Trek did not recognize AT or PCT thru-hikers. The company’s reasoning to ignore these folks’ accomplishments was because The Trek wanted to respect the wishes of the ATC and PCTA. Last year, both organizations did not want hikers on the trails and, accordingly, did not recognize thru-hikers who completed in 2020.
This year, the ATC is not recognizing thru hikes that started prior to 11 May,. However, this post is obviously recognizing AT thru hikers that started prior to 11 May. Indeed, unlike previous years, this year The Trek has conspicuously removed the start date of each hiker, so as not draw too much attention to this discrepancy.
I did not care for The Trek’s decision to not recognize last year’s hikers, but I respected the company’s reasoning. But The Trek is now contradicting itself by recognizing this year’s AT thru hikers. Why?
It cannot be due to the reduced number of COVID-19 cases. More Americans have died of the virus during this year’s hiking season compared to last year’s hiking season, even with the vaccine readily available. Additionally, last year, The Trek specifically told hikers not to hike last in order to protect the people in the small AT/PCT towns. It has not gone unnoticed that the counties along the PCT and AT now have some of the lowest vaccination rates in their respective states. In other words, these folks are now not willing to protect themselves.
So, what caused The Trek to go against its earlier reasoning, go against the ATC, and recognize this year’s AT finishers? It’s the right choice. But does that mean The Trek made the wrong choice last year?
Mike “Energizer” Current, aka “Old Man and the PCT,” thru-hiker class of 2020