Bluffton resident Dennis Sheidler completed a 14-year section hike of the Appalachian Trail (2194.3 miles) on July 5, 2022.

Sheidler passed along this photo and his "thanks to all the people who supported me along the way and friends who showed interest in my journey."

He notes that the northern trail ends atop Mt. Katahdin, which is just shy of 1 mile high. His hiking pole tips just reach that height. 

During the 14 years of hiking on the trail, Sheidler only missed adding to his mileage in 2020, when the trail was closed for COVID. There were eight years when he took two trips and five years when he made one trip. Only one bear incident--when a bear "huffed" at him--was part of the adventure.

Sheidler's wife Pat sometimes dropped him off on the trail to do "slack packing," which is when you don't carry your food and gear. They would then go on side trips including kayaking. 

An interactive map of the Appalachian Trail--which runs from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine--can be found at https://appalachiantrail.org/explore/hike-the-a-t/interactive-map

If this photo looks familiar, you may remember the September 19 Icon story about Sam Crisp's through-hike of the Appalachain Trail.