PITTSFIELD ‹ Four pairs
of shoes, 5 million steps, 14 states and 2,175 miles.
Just a few numbers to contemplate
at the end of the beautifully exhausting journey known as the Appalachian
Trail.
Those stats were just a
few of the details described yesterday at the Berkshire Athenaeum by thru-hiker
Michael Innes, 40, an outdoor activities guide at Canyon Ranch in Lenox and
the 40th person to complete the AT last year. He was joined by his wife, Lori
Innes, an English teacher at Taconic High School, who hiked the last 800 miles
with him.
Their talk launched the
start of the city's literacy program Pittsfield READS! an initiative that has
made more than 200 copies of Bill Bryson's book, "A Walk in the Woods:
Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail," available to adults and
children through schools, libraries and book groups.
A $7,500 federal grant
awarded to Taconic High School fueled the plan, and Taconic librarian Meredith
Cochran said the four-month program will include talks on the AT, discussion
groups and a guided trail walk, which will be led by the couple.
Yesterday, the couple
explained what drives someone to spend four to six months walking in the woods.
"Ever since I saw
these people called thru-hikers, I remember being fascinated," Mike Innes
said. "I wanted to be one them."
On the trail, which runs
from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine, Innes read
Bryson's book on down times, which he took when he suffered injuries, including
a pulled leg muscle early in the trip.
Innes purified his own
water and slept next to strangers. He snapped photos of rattlesnakes, of lean-tos
and of mountain vistas. He constructed a stove out of two soda cans and learned
that foil is your friend, especially when you need to protect a flame from wind.
Instant foods were on
the menu nightly, and a mélange of mashed potatoes with olive oil and
Italian seasonings was his favorite dish.
Following a tradition
born in the 1970s, Innes traveled under the trail name "Bobcat"
because he had seen one of the felines on a trail in Dalton. His mud-loving
dog, Romeo, was "Swamp Monster," and Lori Innes took on
"Sunshine," because of her bubbly spirit.
Along the way, Mike
Innes shed winter gear and opted for light trail shoes over hiking boots. He
became the master of what to store in his 35-pound pack.
"You really learn
how little you need to live with," he said.
His best day was 35
miles, his worst 12. Temperatures ranged from the 10s to the 90s. There was
snow, rain and heat. The most grueling part of the trip came at the end, a
100-mile swath of Maine wilderness.
"It was rugged
beauty," he said. "Vast tracks of undeveloped land."
On July 27, 2007,
slightly more than four months after he took the first of his "5
million" steps, Innes summitted Mount Katahdin with his wife. The journey
was over.
"It was a bonding
experience," he said. "An incredible hike."
The couple urge people who are thinking about hiking the AT to start small. With 90 miles of the trail in Berkshire County, Mike Innes said that easy day hikes abound, with access from several roads in the county. The two will be leading a day hike in the spring when the weather improves.
Questions:
Essay: Write a journal entry Mike might have
written after a day on the trail.