A Walk In The Woods

A Walk In The Woods tells the interesting story of the adventures Bill Bryson and Stephen Katz had while walking the beautiful, rugged, and historic Appalachian Trail.

After a move to New Hampshire, author Bill Bryson decided he wanted to hike the nearby Appalachian Trail. But he had to do his research first. Including learning a few things about the history and terrain of the path.

Possibly the most famous hiking route in the United States, the Appalachian Trail runs from Georgia clear up to Maine. Its creation wasn’t the result of colonist or Native American activities. The behemoth path began as the vision of a man by the name of Benton MacKaye.

The inspiration to create it began in 1921 with a plan to make a trail just 1,200 miles long. After years of refining, the work began when Myron Avery began helping by mapping out the route. The entire thing was born with the help of volunteers to walk the planned path on the ground. In the end, the finished trail was 2,100 miles long.

Volunteers still run the trail today, but finishing the entire thing is no easy feat. Even hikers with the most experience who are in the greatest shape must prepare well. The landscape varies between gentle and peaks that are almost 7,000 feet high. Bears are also a problem, but Bryson’s research had him ready for anything.

If you’ve ever gone backpacking, you know how life-altering the silence of the woods can be. Although it’s usually not entirely quiet with the chirping birds and other wildlife. But when Bryson and his friend Stephen Katz who came along began their journey, it was still too early in the year even for birds and bugs. As Katz struggled with the pace, Bryson walked quite a ways ahead of him. They would go hours without seeing a soul.

After getting to North Carolina, the weather turned terrible. Upon arrival at Big Butt Mountain, they began seeing snowflakes fall from the sky. Hiking is hard enough, but doing so in the cold, wet, slippery snow is even tougher. To make matters worse, the wind picked up, more snow followed, and the trail grew narrower.

Although the trail wasn’t up the mountain into colder, more snowy summits, it did go around along a tiny path. One side was the mountain and the other was an 80-foot drop. I’ve hiked a trail like this before and it’s terrifying and difficult to do without poor weather.

It took them two hours to cover just over a half-mile, but Bryson and Katz persevered. It was a relief to reach their campsite for the night, which was the appropriately named Big Spring Shelter.