She began sobbing as she hiked, almost turning back twice. Then she encountered trail magic, a tradition on the trail where good Samaritans drive to where the trail crosses a road, and offer free water, soft drinks and fresh fruit to hikers. This couple had set up a camp kitchen and served her bacon, eggs and everything else you could find on a breakfast buffet.

After some conversation and a little weeping, LeAnn continued hiking. “Somebody watched over me. Every time I got low, something would happen. I would meet another hiker or see a patch of flowers, something to distract me from my pain.” Mail from family and friends helped. She was amazed at the dozens of encouraging notes she received from Elwood residents she hadn’t met.

Severe leg pain in her right shin almost defeated LeAnn at the end of June. X-rays showed no sign of a stress fracture, so after a couple of days’ rest, she continued. “I told myself I could quit, and it wouldn’t be my fault,” she says with a smile, “but then I realized I didn’t want to quit. I just wanted it to be easier to hike and easier to be away from my family.” She decided to pace herself, and the pain never returned.

FINAL DESTINATION

LeAnn reached the halfway point alone on July 11, in Pennsylvania, and reconnected with two women she had hiked with in Georgia, “Trapper Lee” and “Grayson.” They continued together for three weeks.

When LeAnn reached the base of Mount Katahdin in Maine in October, her daughter Cara had flown out to surprise her and her husband and son Greg Jr. were waiting to hike the last stretch with her, as planned.

Her former hiking buddies “Syracuse Pete,” “Big Red” and “Jagged” arrived at the same time, so on Oct. 6, the six hiked 10 miles, the last part over rugged piled rocks above the tree line, to the peak of Mount Katahdin.

Since her trek, LeAnn has met up with some hiking buddies and done one-week hikes on the trail. “I’d do the whole trail again tomorrow,” she said. Each April since 2002, she and Greg observe their anniversary by traveling to the trail crossing near Gatlinburg to offer trail magic refreshments to hikers.

There are two other hiking trails that make up the through hikers’ Triple Crown.

One is the Pacific Crest Trail, 2,600 miles along the Sierra Nevadas from California to Canada, and the other is the Continental Divide Trail, which winds 3,100 miles through the Rockies. LeAnn is looking into them, but neither calls to her like the Appalachian Trail.

One thing LeAnn says she learned along the trail: “You might believe you’re alone, but you really aren’t.”

Since her trip, LeAnn has shared her experiences with many groups in the area. To contact her, call 552-2304. As she likes to say, “The next best thing to hiking the Appalachian Trail is talking about it!”