Appalachian Trail – Hiking the whole thing

Chris Sheaffer was ready for a journey, ready for something different.

Now he’s on a trip that many would dare never take — 2,167 miles is a long way, especially by foot, particularly when you’re by yourself.

Sheaffer, a 2002 Central York High School grad, is hiking the entire Appalachian Trail, which is one of his life-long goals.

“I’ve always wanted to do this, ever since I was little in Boy Scouts,” Sheaffer said. “I thought it would be a cool idea. I wanted to do it before I got too old.”

The 25-year old calls it a “quarter-life” crisis.

“I wanted to do this before I moved,” Sheaffer said.

The outdoor enthusiast quit his job as a high school physics teacher in Harpers Ferry, Va., to pursue one of his dreams. After he completes his trip through the Appalachian, Sheaffer will move to Portland, Ore., to be with his girlfriend Kristen.

“I always think things will work out, even in a bad economy,” Sheaffer said of quitting his job to go hiking. “Hopefully I won’t have much trouble getting a job when I’m done.”

For those loved ones around him, the announcement of the trip was a bit of a surprise.

“I said, ‘Really? And who is going to do this with you? And you’re going to leave a perfectly good teaching job of three years?’ ” his mom Lorie said of her reaction to the news of Chris’ idea. “Then, I thought, ‘OK, that’s exciting. You might as well do it while you’re young.’ ”

Sheaffer has really made the most of this year — he ran in the

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Boston Marathon in April.

“So we knew he had the will and stamina to accomplish it,” Lorie said of the hike. “We kept telling him if he changed his mind or stopped after a short time, that it was OK.”

The journey began in Maine on June 30, and Sheaffer recently celebrated his 100th day on the trail by treating himself to a night in a hotel room, which doesn’t happen often.

“Like on a video game, for people heading north, Maine is the last level, the hardest part to do,” Sheaffer said of his decision to hike north to south.

So, Sheaffer tackled the most difficult hiking first and is heading south. Earlier this week, he was closing in on Blacksburg, Va.

Going at a clip of about 20 to 28 miles per day, Sheaffer is on target to finish his trip around Thanksgiving in Springer Mountain in Georgia.

Carrying the bare essentials such as his sleeping bag, food and a first aid kit, Sheaffer has met a wide range of people during his journey.

“I hear all these other stories from the other people on the trail, and it seems like they have more interesting stories than me,” he said. “I haven’t been in too many crazy situations.”

The Juniata College graduate has seen his share of wildlife, from almost stepping on a rattlesnake to seeing moose in Maine and even a coyote.

“I have seen one of almost everything,” Sheaffer said.

The sights and sounds Sheaffer has taken in will no doubt make for interesting stories to tell for years to come. Add in the fact his dad plans to hike the final 100 miles with him and the trip becomes overly special for the former Panther.

“We’re going to a Virginia Tech football game too before that,” Sheaffer said of the pair taking in the Hokies’ Saturday game. “It will be a nice break.”

The hiker has treated this journey like a job, normally waking up with the sun and packing up his gear, usually from a shelter on the trail. Sheaffer normally is on his

via Central York grad is tracking the Appalachian Trail – The York Daily Record.