Kensington, MD, August 27, 2014. — Okay. I admit that I know the rules. People just don’t watch videos longer than two to three minutes.
So… mine is a tiny bit longer – by a multiple of five. Even at that, I have around 3,000 unused still pics and 30 minutes worth of video clips leftover on the cutting room floor. Those who have hiked the AT will recognize just how much I left out.
I don’t claim that longer is better. I just couldn’t figure out what else to cut.
If I ever hike the AT again, I’d do it much differently. Among many changes, I’d schlep a big boy camera and not depend on my phone. I will give Apple some credit tho. The iPhones (4s and 5s) I carried did a decent job considering their limitations.
My next challenge is to chop this thing down to something under three minutes for use when I speak. I’ll save that task for another day.
Click on the video link to watch. It’s 15 minutes long, so it may take some time to upload. It might work best to click on the link and walk away for a few minutes until the transfer is complete.
Thanks for the video Jim. I’m looking forward to watching it. I’m also looking forward to your AAR and your lessons learned.
Sisu/Jim: watched your excellent video with my wife. We both enjoyed it a lot. When I attempt my own solo thru-hike of the AT starting this Fall or next Spring she will remain behind. Your video has given her her first sense of what thru-hiking the AT is like. I think she’s more at ease with the “crazy idea” now. Nice choices of music too. – Colin’s Dad
Mike, My wife was highly involved. She in addition to tracking my progress each day, provided a great deal of logistical support – mailing packages, some transportation and the like. This was particularly applicable during the winter months when I was hiking alone. I’m a recovering control freak who learned to let go and go with the flow over time. It is true that the trail will provide so long as you can pay the bill. As that transition occurred, her direct involvement decreased accordingly. Regarding communication, with Sprint we didn’t always have enough bandwidth to talk, but we nearly always had enough to text which became our preferred means.
I will check this out tomorrow. You probably have a big job to edit it down.
It would be very hard to compact a journey of a lifetime down to just a few minutes!!! Want to share your video with friends so they can see what all the darn adventure is all about!
Couldn’t see it yet, due to high traffic temporarily disabled. Would you mind putting it on You Tube? You could make a second longer version, too. I have actually watched an hour long hiking video by an altitude sick guy on John Muir trail 😉