Imagine putting everything aside for 20 days — your job, your friends, even your closest relatives. Now imagine escaping to the sheer wilderness, across miles and miles of woodlands and mountains. It’s a time just for you; time to reflect on who you are, where you are going in life, what lies ahead for you tomorrow. It’s a time to clear your mind of all the stress and tension that typically fills your day from sun up to sun down.
Coastal Point • SUBMITTED
Hunter Spiegel shows the progress made by himself and Fletcher Garrison.
OK, so maybe most of us don’t have the time, luxury or willingness to drop everything, but Dagsboro natives Hunter Spiegel and Fletcher Garrison, best friends since kindergarten, did just that, spanning 230 miles in the great outdoors, for most of July, roughing it through the Appalachian Trail.
Garrison started along the trail at Harper’s Ferry, W.Va., with his father, who decided after the first day that hiking 20 miles through Maryland was more than he cared to accomplish.
“He changed his mind about the hike, but I wanted to keep going,” said Garrison. He received a call from Spiegel, who, when asked to come along on the journey, obliged, admitting he had nothing better to do.
“It was a very spur-of-the-moment thing,” recalled Spiegel. “It sounded like a fun adventure, so I said yes.” The two met up in Pennsylvania on July 3, and returned the weekend of July 21, after what Garrison describes as a life-changing experience.
“There’s something for everyone on that hike,” said Garrison. “There’s so much to take away. You have all the time to think by yourself and let your mind wander.”
Garrison and Spiegel, both 19, would hike an average of 12 to 15 miles a day, stopping at shelters at night to sleep, but enduring the environment more than anything else.
“You were right there with nature,” Garrison said. “There’s no TV, no Internet, but it was actually really nice. You don’t realize how much you don’t miss those things until you get out there and actually do it.”
Neither Garrison nor Spiegel had ever taken on such an adventure before. “I had camped out in the yard when I was younger, now and then, but nothing ever like this,” said Garrison.
Equipped with food, water, sleeping bag and mat, and a small stove, and several other “survival tools,” the journey was all but a walk in the park for the two friends.
Rattlesnakes, though, were among the primary concern of hikers and campers throughout the area. “We saw seven or eight on the trip,” said Spiegel. “It really kept you on your toes.”
Natural springs spot the trail as well, though a lengthy walk can seem much further when these springs dry up. “There were three springs in a row that had dried up one day,” recalled Garrison. “It’s pretty annoying when you’ve hiked for hours and really just want a drink.”
Loose rocks at their feet, especially through the Pennsylvania regions, made for potential injury and caused the two to take extra precaution at times. “You found yourself doing what I call the ‘three-two’ walk,” Garrison said. “You look down at your feet for three seconds to see where you’re going, and then you have two seconds to look up and look around you.”
But, as difficult as the trip may have appeared at times, the glass was still half full.
Ramen noodles made up the hikers’ primary diet for the trip, but a snack was never too far off. “There were blueberries, raspberries, blackberries growing in the wild,” said Spiegel. “If you ran out of food, you had that assurance. The worst thing is you may be picking for a while, but at least there was something to eat.”
Even though the two hiked together, it was still a journey for the individual.
“You really just escape from everything,” said Garrison. “There were times when we were 100 feet apart from each other. It’s nice to have the friend there to talk to, but the trip was really for ourselves.”
While the opportunity to get away for one’s self was always prevalent, encounters with other hikers was what made most of the trip tolerable and enjoyable.
“Hiking along the Appalachian Trail was more than just getting exercise,” said Garrison. “It’s a social aspect. A lot of it’s all about the different people you meet.”
The two encountered hikers and campers of almost every caliber, from a variety of places. From the die-hard hiker to those just taking a break from it all, the two crossed paths with people from Georgia, Texas, Michigan, Wisconsin and South Carolina.
“There was one guy who had quit his job just days before, and told them, ‘I’m done, and now I’m going to hike the Appalachian Trail,’” said Spiegel. “It’s pretty crazy what people will do to get out here.”
The pair said most hikers on the trail have nickname, a way to sort of detach them from the rest of the world. The gentleman who quit his job was known as “Snake Charmer,” due to his fascination with the slithering reptiles.
“Some people pick their own names,” noted Garrison, “and sometimes, people don’t have any idea, and a name is assigned to you.”
One girl on the trip happened to be wearing a peach-colored shirt, and acquired the nickname “Peach.”
“I decided just to go with an ordinary name,” Garrison said. “My nickname was ‘Dean.’” Spiegel went by “C.H.,” a play on words of his own name.
Upon returning, Garrison considered doing it all again, just a few days later.
“I was really tempted to go right back out and do it again,” he said. “There are no words to describe this experience. I’d recommend it for anyone who has something on their mind that they need more time to explore. It’s a great way to just get away from everything.”
The two expect to take on similar trips in the future, though, for now, they’re done reflecting. Garrison will return to the University of Delaware to continue studying art. Spiegel, home-schooled now, said he hopes to turn to boating, a career that has been in his family for generations. If either ever feel a need to get away, though, both admitted their bags will be packed.