So, what’s next?

T minus: 133 days

I hope the holidays have treated all of you well!

The new year will mark five months and 10 days until I begin my thru hike. I have been working on collecting gear and saving money for almost two years now, and we are finally getting down to the end.

I post a lot about new gear, and this is really making some people wonder what I have left to do for this hike. I have made my gear list available through AppalachianTrials.com and you should be able to view that on the side right panel of this post! I will be adding to and taking things off this list regularly until I finally figure out the perfect balance of what I am going to be bringing with me.

For these final few months, I am going to be really focusing on savings. I want to make sure that a lack of spending money does not become a problem on the trail. I am also going to be cracking down on my workout routine, and exercising with my fully loaded pack on whenever possible.

As for gear, I need to really nail down food for the trail. I have a pretty good idea of what I will be packing and mail dropping to myself, but I would like to have a finalized plan figured out sooner rather than later. For everything else, it’s really just a matter of tying down loose ends and little things that I still need to get. All of the major gear items (aside from a photography set up) are already purchased, tested out, and ready for the trail.

We’re really coming down to the wire, and everything seems to be falling into place. I would like to just take a moment to thank my absolutely amazing family, friends, and followers for being so unbelievably supportive through this whole experience — I couldn’t ask for a better support system. I am truly blessed and beyond grateful for your support.

Happy Hiking!