The Shoes. Part 2

Everyone is different, and so are their feet. Most thru-hikers would agree that a solid grasp of the intricacies that make up your feet and ankles can be incredibly beneficial. Some might say that it's absolutely necessary. Either way, as I started out on my thru-hike, I generally ignored the benefits of this wisdom.

That avoidance, or just plain ignorance, was now costing me dearly. I lost nearly an entire month on the trail, which led to a much smaller window for finishing before lousy weather and park closures ended the journey for me.

I also fell pretty far behind the group of hikers I'd grown friendly and familiar with up until this point. This one was harder than I expected because it placed me back in that awkward social territory reminiscent of my first few days on the trail. This is one of those little-known comforts that you don't really think about until you experience it, too.

I'd put myself through all of this, the pain and the frustration, mostly because I ignored a small thing. The difference between my old shoes, which had lots of cushions, and my new ones, and their lack of cushion, made a tiny mistake, a nearly catastrophic one. Again, the little things make all the difference.

For the next four weeks, I sat at home, icing my feet and ankles and staying off them as much as possible. I wore this crazy contraption my dad picked up from Amazon, specifically designed to stretch the plantar ligaments in the soles of my feet. I even went to have my feet scanned and sized for an expensive pair of insoles at the Good Feet store.

I found that I had extremely flat feet, which accounted for many of the issues I had on the trail. The thick-soled shoes I started with masked the problem with my arches and did what they were supposed to do, but pair number two unmasked the problem and nearly ended my trip. Had I paid attention to this in the beginning and known how important this was, I'd have been better prepared and could have avoided this altogether.

Getting back on Trail finally.. the new shoe inserts really made a huge difference, not sure I needed them, but I'm glad that I had them... The second pair of Altras were still brand new, so I used them with new inserts... I actually didn't finish the trail with Altras though this was my last pair, switched to Merrells, then finished with Topos my dad sent me...Topo's are still in good shape too - 4 pairs of shoes in all... Merrell's were good shoes... might write on this later for those interested in shoes.

I might add, those nice Oakley sunglasses were great, but alas, they'll too grew some trail legs and found a new home somewhere in the woods, or maybe a hostel... I can't remember.

we welcomed a new dog while I was on trial, coming home those 4 weeks I got to spend a lot of time with her... Soda! And I spent a lot of time doing this, not as awesome as you might think! I also found that I was a coffee drinker, for the first time... new habit that I still start the day with.

My dad took this photo when dropping me back off on trail. He reminded me several times not to lose anything... and as you can see from the next photo, I did not forget my trekking poles this time.

First day back on trail after nearly 4 weeks off... I was excited now because I had time and I was feeling re-energized, home is great, but I needed this.

After nearly 4 weeks off the trail and feeling almost no pain or stiffness, I was able to get back on the trail where I got off in Virginia. That time off really worked, too, and even though I was now going to have to really push to make it to the end, I was back.

Hindsight is always 20/20, and now that the thru-hike is behind me, when I think about how close this experience came to ending the A.T. journey, I'm both humbled and grateful for all of it. God had his hand on me more than I realized at the time.

I shared something related to this in a previous post where I talked about some examples of how my lack of discipline and focus led to me losing important things, like tent poles. Again, this was a recurring theme for me on the trail. In this specific instance, because I didn't know what to look for in a pair of shoes, I just bought something I thought would be good enough, which was a mistake.

However, not doing the appropriate research only further illustrates that my lack of discipline wasn't just about what I did or didn't do on trail, but a window into the way that I generally did things off trail, both in preperation for it, but also, in how I did life in general. The trail became a crucible for exposing things like this. These are the lasting lessons that the A.T. teaches.

I didn't take the time to care for my body by stretching every night, which I later found necessary for managing the stress I was putting on my body every day. In Damascus, I was more concerned about buying the tent than I was with the lack of cushion my new shoes had. I made the hike more challenging then it already was, because of a lack of discipline and preperation.

The A.T. is, in many ways, an analog to life. When we ignore the small details, don't prepare, or just put off responsibility, these inactions result in significant problems that we cannot predict the outcome of. These problems are only compounded by the frustration of knowing that they could have been avoided. I thought a lot about this during those 4 weeks off trail, and I still think about it now. It's a lesson that stays with me.

On the trail, I learned the importance of preparation and discipline--the hard way. But it's not just good wisdom for the A.T.; I think that it's vital wisdom for living your life in general.

My challenge to you would be this: prepare, prepare, and prepare some more. And, of course, always understand the essential part discipline plays in everything you do.

Big Ramen