A review by jeffmauch
AWOL on the Appalachian Trail by David Miller

5.0

I'm infinitely fascinated with anybody that finds themselves isolated in nature for long periods of time whether by their own choice or by accident. In this case David Miller was making sacrifices to do something he just felt he had to do. I'm incredibly attracted to the idea of hiking the Appalachian Trail or really any of the big three trails, especially as a thru-hike. For now it will continue to be a bucket list item for me, thankfully there are a number of wonderful first hand accounts that I can read about and get lost in in the mean time. David's book is one of the better accounts of the day to day of a thru-hike of this magnitude. I think he does a good job of informing us of his plan and approach both physically and mentally. More than anything I think he excels at expressing the isolation of his adventure. He is constantly fighting between getting in miles to keep going and stopping to see the scenery and enjoy his time with the acquaintances he meets along the way. His journey is one of the more unique that I've read in that he's older (40s), married, has kids, and quit his job to make this happen and because of this he is constantly toying with what it all means and how it's affecting those he's left at home. These conflicts make for good reading and add an element not found in most books of this type, making it somewhat unique in the genre. I found this one hard to put down at times, at other I found myself avoiding picking it back up because I wanted to savor it and make it last. It's a great, modern account of the trail and it's special perspective makes it better than most of it's type.