Lessons From a Failure: Why I Quit the Appalachian Trail and Why This Time Will Be Different

In 2023, I attempted a thru-hike of the 2,198-mile Appalachian Trail. I failed. Despite doing research and having a strong start, I got injured and was forced to return home. Between hiking 650+ miles and ultimately failing, I learned a couple of key lessons. These key lessons enabled me to thru-hike the Vermont Long Trail. The experience I’ve gained and lessons I’ve learned across both hikes are going to propel me to a successful thru-hike this year.

My AT Story

My name is Nick, but in the mountains, I’m known as Hot Foot. During my AT thru-hike attempt in 2023, I got injured multiple times. I was severely burned, I developed Achilles tendonitis twice, and felt more pain and soreness than I thought was possible. Coming from a running background (successful marathon a few months prior), I felt comfortable being uncomfortable and I felt confident that I could determine what was an injury and what was “regular pain.”

I tried very hard to respect my body and work with the injuries to heal faster instead of working over them. In both cases of tendonitis, I took a day off and slowed down. The pain eventually subsided, and I ramped my speed back up. With the burn, I cared for it as best I could with trail first aid and kept it as clean as possible. But, after being injury free for several weeks, I began to become overconfident. I started thinking I might be invincible and no longer at risk of serious injury.

Because I had started late (May 8^th), I was on a bit of a time crunch from the very beginning. I had also run behind schedule getting from the smokies to Virginia. So, I figured what better way to get back on track than test my newfound immortality and hike through Virginia as fast as possible. I planned to hike the southern section with very high daily mileage and no days off. Naturally, this didn’t pay off.

Halfway through Virginia, I developed extensor tendonitis in the top of my foot and ignored it. I had never heard of anyone getting tendonitis in top of their foot before in my life. Also, I was used to hiking high teens and twenty-mile days; that kind of mileage kept my whole body in a constant state of soreness with sporadic pain. So, I figured it’s nothing I can’t just walk off. The pain will go away soon and I don’t need to adjust my plan at all.

A few days and sixty miles later, I paid for my mistake. Every step I took was excruciating and I ultimately had to return home to recover. My recovery was excruciating in a few ways. Firstly, it was excruciatingly painful- I could barely walk twenty feet before the pain would flare up; secondly, it was excruciatingly long (roughly two months); thirdly, it was mentally excruciating. In what felt like an instant, I went from being capable of walking over a hundred miles a week like it was nothing to not being able to walk to the refrigerator without wincing.

Why I Quit

While recovering, I battled with the flip flop question. Ultimately, I decided not to flip flop because 1) it was already late in the season (September), and I was not sure how my freshly recovered foot would handle rushing through New England to get ahead of the snow and ice and 2) I wanted the northbound experience.

I realized that a decision to flip flop would have been in pursuit of the title “AT thru-hiker” rather than the experience that I wanted (a NOBO hike). In effect, I was not hiking my own hike. So, after two months, I decided to quit the AT (even though I had not set foot on it in weeks). Rather than just give up on all long-distance hiking, and to prove something to myself, I went to Vermont.

I successfully hiked the 270-mile Vermont Long Trail end to end. The lessons I had learned from the AT were pivotal to my success. And it is the lessons from both hikes which I am bringing with me to thru-hike the AT in 2024.

Lessons like

• Hike your own hike (even if your friends are going a little bit faster than you)
• Virginia isn’t flat.
• Packing out one large pizza might not be enough (okay it’s never enough)
• Never expect or hope for trail magic (but always run when you hear someone is making pancakes in a parking lot)
• Town food on the trail > every other food on the trail
• Slow and steady really does win the race
• You’re not above sleeping in a bathroom (especially in a rainstorm)
• Never say no to free
• It is actually okay to take a zero when you’re rushing if you’re in pain because it will absolutely help in the long run
• Less (weight in your pack) is more
• Night hiking exposed peaks in tropical storms = a really bad idea
• Stop sweating the little things (except electrolytes, you don’t really have a choice)
• You need way less to be comfortable than you ever thought possible

How will I apply these lessons?

This time, there will be three main changes. I will be starting earlier; I will be carrying significantly less weight; and, I will be even more focused on caring for my body. I will be following the other lessons along the way too (especially packing out multiple pizzas)!

Join Me?

If you’re interested in seeing more, feel free to follow my journey! You can follow my social media below or subscribe here on the Trek. To subscribe, scroll below the article and enter your email in the “subscribe to Nick Thatcher” box. You can also click on my author page next to it and subscribe from there. By subscribing, you’ll get updated each time I post. Happy Trails and I will see you in Georgia!