I'm a huge fan of hiking (Wendy and I actually talked about it a bit in the episode of The Ghoulish Gallery we recorded - link below), so I was already excited to read this story. However, I was NOT prepared for the level of "ouch" Wendy packed into this story. To be fair, she didn't know I used to be great at avoiding dealing with things, and packing up to hike the AT is exactly the kind of thing I would do to try and escape.
"Barb", as she decides to call herself on the trail, has experienced some pretty awful things. Her fiancé is gone, along with the entire life she'd imagined for the two of them, under incredibly messy circumstances. In an effort to put it all behind her, she takes off for the Appalachian Trail. For anyone who doesn't know what that is, it's a 2000+ mile hike that extends from Georgia to Maine, and hikers plan for ages to prepare for a thru-hike (hiking the entire thing in one go).
The biggest hole in her plan doesn't come down to gear or supplies though. As all of us who have practiced avoidance learn at some point, you can never outrun the ghosts that are after you. One way or another, they'll find every single opportunity to make themselves known, and until you stop and confront them, you'll be on the run. Unfortunately for Barb, that means literally and figuratively, and what should be a chance to escape from everything, turns into chaos with deadly implications.
Find Wendy here:
Twitter: @wendy_dalrymple
Instagram: @wendy.dalrymple.author
Website: www.wendydalrymple.com