If there is anything special about Brian Barnhart, junior in materials engineering, it is not that he is finally living his dream, but that he is walking it … alone.
Barnhart is among a brave few who attempt to conquer the Appalachian Trail, a 2,168-mile-long, continuously marked footpath from Katahdin, Maine, to Springer Mountain, Georgia. He has already completed 1,900 of those miles and is making his way down the home stretch.
“Two to 3,000 people start the trail every year,” Barnhart said. “Only 10 to 15 percent of those people finish it. If I were to break a leg, I probably wouldn’t finish. But other than that, I would be very reluctant to quit.”
Barnhart’s mother, Lynda Heyl said she is used to his adventurous ways, but still worries at times.
“I’m concerned, but at the same time, I’m used to it,” Heyl said. “He climbed Mount St. Helen’s at age eight. He’s been doing things like this all his life, but usually it’s with his dad or I.”
“Everyone has been very supportive. Especially my parents, but most of all my girlfriend,” Barnhart stated. “She is more confident in my abilities than anyone else. One thing that would make this trip better would be having her along.”
Barnhart will soon head into the Smoky Mountains in his third pair of hiking boots, each pair lasting about 900 miles. He initially started the hike by himself, hoping to join a group later, but has found his fast pace too much for trail friends.
“I’m the only hiker who has a football game as their goal,” Barnhart said. “My original goal was to make it home in time for the Michigan game. It looks like I’m going to blow that out of the water. I should be back around the 28th or 29th of this month.”
After hiking back country trails in the Smoky Mountains, Barnhart had the inspiration to go big. He decided over spring break to hike the Appalachian Trail and gave himself spring quarter to plan.
“I was with Brian when he made the choice to do AT,” said Joe Shultz, a friend, fellow Alpha Tau Zeta brother and Ohio Staters member. “I never thought of doing it with him, however. We did 25 miles in the Smokies, and I about died.” Shultz, along with some of Barnhart’s friends and girlfriend, joined him on the trail for a weekend.
Barnhart said he thought he would walk 10 to 12 miles a day, but boasts an average of 20 to 25 miles a day. In fact, he said the only bad experiences he has had are steep uphills and insects. The towns and people’s hospitality are wonderful, Barnhart said.
“I haven’t had any bad experiences, except the bugs and mice. Everyone I’ve met has been so nice. People buy me dinner. I’ve slept in people’s houses, barns and churches. Most towns are pretty used to hikers coming through. I count down the days until I get to towns mostly because of food.”
On average, Barnhart comes into town about once a week to re-supply. He said it is strange to come into civilization after seven days of solitude.
“If the town is more than a mile away from the trail I have to hitchhike, which has actually been kind of fun,” Barnhart said. “Usually other hikers or older people pick me up.”
Word spreads quickly along the trail, especially if it has anything to do with food, Barnhart said.
“AYCE (All You Can Eat) is one of my most loved hiker terms,” he said. “I usually know about upcoming restaurants that have buffets at least 100 miles before I reach them. Word of these dining establishments travels very quickly up and down the trail through hiker interactions. I have almost made myself ill in the past three towns I have come to as a result of overeating when I come to town.”
“The second term (I love) is ‘Trail Magic,’ ” he said. “Trail magic usually comes in many different forms, and is some unexpected wonderful gift or event, usually as a result of someone’s generosity. I have had an amazing amount of trail magic so far. ‘Trail Angels,’ the ones responsible for trail magic, seem to surround the trail and make the experience so much better. Sometimes trail magic is as simple as someone leaving a cooler of cold soda pop on the trail for people to enjoy.”
But Barnhart said the solitude has not gotten to him, and as long as he doesn’t focus on walking it isn’t that bad.
“Most of the time I don’t even think about it,” he said. “I think about baking and woodworking. There’s a lot of random thoughts … sometimes I have deep thoughts.”
“He’s obviously had a long time to think,” said Barnhart’s father, Lester Barnhart. “He starts every sentence with ‘While I was walking …’ “
Barnhart said the hardest part of the trail came at the beginning, with the roughest terrain and lack of water. The drought through New York and New Jersey caused him to slow down.
“Traditionally that area is a little dry. However, this year, according to one National Park employee, is particularly bad,” Barnhart said. “Nearly all the springs and streams that usually provide water have been dry. I must carry a gallon or more of water just to make sure I can make it to my next source of water. This really weighs down my pack.”
Barnhart’s pack weighs on average 35 pounds. He carries his sleeping bag, a tent, a portable gas stove and at least one to two pounds of food for every day he is out on the trail. Hikers lose an average of 6,000 calories a day and need to eat a high calorie and carbohydrate diet in order to maintain energy.
“I eat a lot of noodles, rice, peanut butter and Snickers bars,” he said. “I eat about a pound and a half of peanut butter every week. I’ve lost 10 pounds already.”
Barnhart said he is looking forward to coming home, but said finishing up the last miles will be hard since he knows the end is near.
“I’ve heard from other hikers that it takes around three weeks to adjust to society after finishing the AT,” Barnhart said.
Barnhart is ecstatic about how far he has come already. He can now tell the day hikers from the “Thru” hikers (those doing the whole trail in a single time block) because he can smell the soap on them.
He says the most important thing he has overcome isn’t necessarily the actual mountain climbing.
“Before I started I had no idea how important the mental component of this trip would be,” Barnhart said. “The physical challenges of climbing mountains are, of course, always great. But I think that being able to climb the ‘mental mountains’ has been what has allowed me to get this far. Many people end up dropping off the trail not because of serious injury, but because they became too bogged down mentally and emotionally.”
