Excerpts from our trail reflections

“…We hiked up the trail to 1,200 ft. We got up there and saw a beautiful view…”
- Whitesnake

“…We hiked and had a blast messin’ with each other…”
- Stump finder

“…That hike was so challenging because it was snowing, cold, rocky, and straight up all hills…”
- Solo girl

“…It was a big learning experience for me. I went hiking and got to spend some time with the special kids at the school…”
- Rambo

“…I was walking on the trail encouraging my friend to walk faster so I wasn’t all alone. My group finally got the Washington Monument and we walked up the steps like three times. It was a very dark and scary walkway…”
- Pyro

“…While on the trip, me and some others came to a hill. It was like Mt. Everest, so about every 20 feet, we stopped on a log to take a rest. Then Mrs. Bator told us it got easy, but it just was easy for 10 feet then it was like “Cliffhanger,” the movie…”
- Muncher

“…Even though I may look out of shape, I blasted past everyone – even our guide – to every site, resting area, and the overlook. It’s fun not always being last, but it was even funnier to see everyone come up that hill huffing and wheezing something wicked…”
- Mr. Cope

“(We) hiked the whole trail talking about cars and are jobs and girls and we were the last to get on the bus, and there were no dunk-a-roos left… but it was just a trick! And we made snowballs from the snow on the leaves!”
- Menthol

“…after we got off the bus, we were given a brief presentation of the significance of the area, but not before the weather took a turn for the worse. It snowed so hard that it was difficult to keep our eyes open…”
- Main Man

“…After about 20 minutes staying with the group, I left them in my dust. I was the only one who went ahead; I was the only one who didn’t stop…”
- Jet Li

“…we went up to the Washington monument and looked off of it. We got to eat candy, also; it was pretty tight…”
- Gibson Explorer

“…I was dead-beat tired…”
- Fire Man

“…At the overlook, Jason and I decided to try rock climbing up and down the rocks. We got soaking wet ‘cause the snow on the rocks was melted…”
- Dumbass

“…we were sitting on a log with snow falling all over us and talking about how much further we had to walk. As we hiked up the vertical slope, we had to climb over wet rocks and watch where we place our feet ‘cause we couldn’t see the rocks due to the leaves…”
- Delusion

“…It was very tiring walking up the mountain but very relaxing after we got to the top…”
- Chug-a-log

“…The trips were a great time of fellowship with friends…”
- CB

“…The cold snow hit my ice cold cheeks…”
- Whitesnake

“…I was feeling cold and hot at the same time because the air was so cold, but I had a ridiculous amount of clothes on. I could smell the snow in the air…”
- Stump finder

“…All the tree’s and plants I passed had snow all over them…”
- Solo girl

“…I saw some fairly cool nature and smelled the fresh air…”
- Rambo

“…I heard trees whispering in the wind and letting raindrops drip off the leaves and make a sweet melody that relaxed me. The rocks I stepped on crackled under my feet; it made me think… what if everything had feelings?…”
- Pyro

“…You can see the leaves changing, you can smell the outdoors, and you can also hear people having conversations…”
- Partyhouse

“…there were so many sharp pointy rocks that when I walked on them, it bent the arches of my feet…”
- Muncher

“Seeing the snow falling through the trees just made me relax. Having that slight breeze and me being warm… nothing would make me turn back….”
- Mr. Cope

“…at some points there was flat, soft land. It felt like heaven on my feet!”
- Menthol

“…The rocks were slippery and wet wrapped in a blanket of slimy moss, the trail was covered with soggy leaves like corn flakes in a bowl of milk after ten minutes, and branches on either side of the trail clearly displaced by people before me…”
- Main Man

“…we were hiking in the snow and things were just barely starting to get covered in snow. We walked out into a clearing under a power line and as we walked under (it), you could hear it crackling, and it sounded like your brain cells were exploding in your head…”
- Gibson Explorer

“…Cold, tired, and even frozen. That was how I felt at the end of my vigorous journey, hiking the trail. The only drive I had was the thought of the sweet cream of chocolate flushed over the rich taste of a dunk-a-roo in my mouth…”
- Edge

“…I was freezing because I wore shorts and it was snowing. My toes felt like they were going to fall off…”
- Dumbass

“…We started walking and my sock was making me mad because my boot keep eating it…”
- Diesel Deere

“…while sitting on a very large, brown, wet log that made my pants wet, I was sitting with sunflower seeds in my mouth listening to the rain hit the rocks and leaves all over the ground making a ‘thud’ sound. I felt the cold brisk air blowing down the mountain nipping at my ears like dogs…”
- Delusion

“…we could hear the snow hitting the high voltage lines and sizzling…”
- Blade

“…There was a small tree in the middle of a forest of tall trees. This tree was there before the other trees because of the way that it’s limbs spread out…”
- Stump finder

“…As we were climbing up to the Washington monument, I was thinking about how lucky I was to be there at that time and place and how many lonely nights I had dreamed of the day when I would finally be able to do something like this…”
- Rambo

“…we were coming down the trail on the first hike; we saw a bunch of elementary school kids and we all started talking about those days…”
- Partyhouse

“…(We) sat at every tree that was on the ground even if it was like every 10 feet - ha-ha - and Mr. Kady had to tell us to get up every time we sat down…”
- Menthol

“…When I was younger I was a very outdoors kid, always outside and exploring my environment. I lost the connection with my outdoors self until last week when our class went hiking. The experience brought back more than just old memories…”
- Main Man

“…Before departing to school where the bus to the AT awaited, I dressed in clothes that were light and comfy as I failed to realize the reality of the forecast and temperature…”
- Edge

“…On the trail I have a lot of time to think and it helps me learn about myself…”
- Dumbass

“…It was cool to get to the top because it was the first snow of the season and I love the snow. One, it’s fun to play in and, two, it can make me money…”
- Diesel Deere

“…On the trip to the trail, we walked a total of 8 miles both ways and traveled a total of 1,600 feet up the mountain in altitude. I ate a total of three bags of chips and drank two bottles of water…”
- Delusion

“…If I wouldn’t have gone with my dad, I would never have known that the trail we were hiking on was my dad’s mushroom trail. Every spring he would go up in the woods and pick wild mushrooms for me and my mom to eat…”
- Chug-a-Lug

“…On the second trip I was so miserable because I really hate snow. So I wanted to leave as soon as I could, but that didn’t happen…”
- CB

“…On the second trip I had a lot of fun, but I was also worried at the same time. I had a hockey game after school and I was nervous that I was going to be tired and not play well. We lost our game that evening and afterward I ran right home and fell asleep…”
- Blade

“…I was hiking with the group through the woods for about three miles. The group stopped hiking at Washington Monument. There I was able to see the view…”
- Aaron Carter

“When I was getting tired of hiking and wanted to turn back, Nitro told me to just stick it out. At first I wasn’t going to listen to him, but he talked me into finishing the hike and going to the overlook. When we got there, we had a good time taking pictures and stuff. When we left the overlook and went back to the bus, I was very grateful that Nitro pushed me to “keep on keeping on.” This experience reminds me that although the trail of life can be tiring and may seem impossible, all you need is a friend to help you back on your feet when you’re having trouble finding the courage in yourself to finish. This is true in my life because sometimes being a teen parent seems impossible to accomplish with finesse, but sometimes all I need is a friend to give me a few words of choice for me to “keep on keeping on.”
- Stump finder 2000

“Our second time on the trail was the hardest because you kept going up and up. This journey is just like my life. To reach your goal in life, you usually have to keep climbing higher and higher. So the higher you climb in life, the more successful you can become. It’s just like that on the trail, the higher you climb on the trail, the faster you will reach your destination.”
- Partyhouse

“While I was on this hiking trip, it kind of connected me back to hunting. The reason is that while hunting, it’s tough. You have to hike far to get where you’re hunting. Same goes with hiking the A.T, but you’re just hiking. So I guess hiking the A.T would help me be in better condition to hike longer and farther while I am hunting. This would help me hunt better and maybe even achieve my dream of being a hunting guide because it would better my health and help me take hunters farther and deeper into the woods.”
- Muncher

“On the second trip it started to rain. We got off the bus and it was fun at first till the cold hit me. I had no gloves but Mrs.Bator came to my rescue with gloves. Then we started the hike, but it was so long till we got to the campsite. It turned out we could not help build it, but instead we hiked for like ever. Every time we stopped, Mr. Kady told us, “It’s just a little further,” and he must have told us that about 564,735,634 times. Mr. Kady and my crew ended up hanging behind and it just goes to show that no matter how cold it was or long, we still pushed and kept going and going like I have to do with my job. I have to keep going no matter how hard the test or job is in front of me. If I don’t try, I will never be the best at it, so even though it was cold, I kept going - just like life, though all the hard times I have to keep going.”
- Menthol

“Our second trip on the trail was pretty hard, but we all got through it. This is similar to the journey in my life because it is a lot like my wrestling. Wrestling practice is very hard and I am constantly running to stay in shape. I want it to be over, but in the long run it will be worth it to tough through the pain. On the trail, I wanted to just turn around and go back to the bus, but I kept going and I had a great time.”
- Dumbass

“The second trip was like my trip to and through Wyotech. The hills on the way up are like trying to get in and starting classes. Once at the top, the flat and little hills are like going through the school. The overlook in the end is like me graduating the school. The trip was long and hard, but I did not stop and I made it. It may be a slow trip, but in the end the trip was worth it.”
- Diesel Deere

“I think the trail was a great link between my life and my journey on the trail. On the trail, it was raining, snowing, and it was difficult to hike. This made me relate back to my life and apply this to it. While I was hiking, I saw that life throws problems at you, like on the trail with the conditions. This helped me because it gave me a new approach to handle my problems. I learned to slow down and just take the problems on one at a time and move at your own pace until you are at your goal. On the trail, my goal was making it to the top in the weather and the slippery conditions to see the overlook.”
- Delusion

“The second hiking trip that we took can be compared to my Latin class at school. On the trail, the end was not far away, but I did not want to finish. I was cold and wet and just wanted to relax before my game. I finished walking to the overlook and it felt pretty good that I made it up there when it was snowing out. This relates to Latin class because I am not too good at it and need it to graduate. There have been many times when I wanted to quit, but I haven’t because I realize that the end is in sight and I have to pass. Hopefully, class goes like the hike did and I am happy and satisfied that I passed the class.”
- Blade

“When I did go walking on the trail that weekend it was really cold, but I liked it walking it because there were not many hills and my best friend had went with me. And we got to catch up on all the stories that we have not told each other. I liked to walk across the footbridge the most because you could see the highway below.It was really pretty because it was falls and all the leaves where falling from the trees.”
- Tortoise

“On the second trip I didn’t realize that I had fun on it until the end of the trip when I got on the bus. The whole time I was pretty pissed and then when I sat on the bus and I was just thinking, thank god I cam on this trip and not only did I come on the trip but I hiked the whole way to the end, and in the end it was a lot of fun.”
- Gibson Explorer

“When I was hiking on my trail, I could see nothing but trees. It was spring so I could smell the pollen from the flowers. I could fell the light spring breeze blow against my face. All you could hear was the chirping of birds fluttering around the woods.”
- Chug-a-Lug

“Even though I didn’t get to go on the hike with the class, I will eventually go by myself because it’s a place where you can get away from the people and the places that are around you every day. When I didn’t get to go on the trips, it was kind of upsetting, but when I think about it, there are a lot of things that I don’t get to do in my life. One of the things I want to do is go to a four-year college and my dad says he doesn’t have enough money to send me, but I am going to overcome that and look into different types of loans or scholarships that they have out there. And I will overcome the fact that I wanted to go out on the trail with my class, but there are plenty of opportunities to get out there and hike with many different kinds of people.”
- Echo

“My dad and I had a great connection the day we went hiking. It was great alone time for me and him to spend together. I always wanted to be like my dad and this trip had really helped open my eyes to that. Being like my dad is a great journey. He loves the outdoors. He knew every rock and tree that we passed throughout the whole hike! No matter which way we went, he was never lost. I want to be able to do that. The trail was really close to my dad and you could tell how much time my dad had spent around it. That hike represented the closeness that I have with my dad now. I went on that first hike when I was about 6 years old. My dad and I would hike it a lot over spring and summer. My dad and I are close now to the trail and each other.”
- Chug-a-Lug

I would be outside from the time I got up to the time my mom called me in for dinner. I would eat breakfast and lunch on the porch just so I could be outside and hear the sounds of nature. It took my mother calling my name over and over for me to finally hear it and come inside for dinner.
- Main Man