Sometimes shit happens. I retired in 2022 and was well on my way to completing the number one item on my bucket list: an end-to-end hike of the Long Trail in Vermont. I was more than 100 miles in, kicking ass, and blogging about it here on the Trek when that goal was cut short. I was struck by a car at a trail crossing. After a long recovery, I’m determined to complete my journey. The next steps I take on the LT will be following in my father's footsteps. He backpacked a long section of the LT in 1937 after graduating from high school in Barre, VT. I heard his stories while growing up, and recently stumbled on his 1937 guidebook and journal from that trip. Ironically, his starting point was right where my accident occurred. I had hoped to honor his legacy by hiking the entire LT. Completing this journey now, carries even more meaning for me.