March 1 is an important holiday for me. It’s the day I took that first step towards accomplishing my biggest dream. More than 5,000 people will attempt to conquer the Appalachian Trail this season, with visions of summiting Springer, Katahdin, and every pointless up and down in-between. It’s hard to believe 8 years have passed since I sat under that arch in Amicalola Falls, and I thought I’d use the occasion to offer some advice to this season’s thru-hike adventure seekers. And you know what? It just so happens this advice works for anything big in your life too…

As the saying goes, nothing can prepare you for a thru-hike except a thru-hike, but there are a few tricks to keep in mind if you want to make it further than 50% of the others that fail to see Virginia.

1. Anchor Your Why. The idea of hiking 2,000 miles is magical. It’s mystical. And it’s romantic in its grandeur. But regardless of your motives for following the path, in the end its just walking. One foot after another, 5,000,000 times until you reach the end. Some days the walk is good, and some days it isn’t. But those motives are key to your success. Like with me, stubbornness can get you through a lot, but even that will test your limits. Zach Davis wrote a great psychological and emotional guide to the AT called Appalachian Trials, and one of his suggestions is the best trick you have. Ask yourself why you are doing this. Who is it for? What do you want to achieve? Don’t lie to yourself, and don’t let it be a passing thought. Write it down on a piece of paper and pack it in your gear, because there will be days you desperately need it to keep moving forward. A love letter to yourself, if you will, because only you know why you should keep going. My packing strategy said if I don’t use something within a week, I send it home. And I was glad I had this note on a weekly basis.
2. Don’t Go Cold Turkey. When’s the last time you succeeded at something without any practice? When it comes to something big like hiking across America, don’t take experience for granted. I recently watched an interview clip of Steve Martin, where he was asked how to make it in show business. His answer was simple: it isn’t about getting lucky or getting discovered… it’s about being so good they can’t ignore you. It’s a great message, because succeeding at anything takes your 150% effort. No one else will do it for you. On my recent Podcast with Mighty Blue, we joked about how I had 15 years of preparations, while others decided the week prior with a quick trip to REI. And although we both had the same chance of finishing, knowing what you’ve got and can do in advance will give you that something extra during the hardest times. Field-test your gear, taste-test your recipes, and make sure you have the tools you need to wake up each day and keep walking. Because, although you can figure it out on the fly, the best chance of success comes from being prepared.
3. Learn From Others. Maybe you are setting out to accomplish your goals today, as I did all those years ago. Or maybe still have dreams of doing it in the future – don’t waste the opportunity (and excitement) of following someone else’s journey now. Before I hiked the AT, I read journals, listened to podcasts, watched movies, and tracked social channels about others’ thru-hike experience. I picked a hiker to follow each season, reading their daily stories of what came to be. By reading what happened to others in real time, I felt prepared for what would come. You may not have the same obsession with preparation that I did, but learning can be fun as well as educational. I love a good book, and recommended some great ones for the AT before. I’m happy to add my own novel to that list now, and hope it can help a few more get excited and prepared for the thru-hike of their dreams as well.

You can take this as verbatim advice for a 2026 thru-hike, or a metaphor for any aspirations in your own life. But I will leave you with one more piece of advice that may be most important of all. Growing up, I sometimes struggled in school. Not because I wasn’t smart enough or motivated enough. But because shortcuts felt easy and helped avoid harder work I didn’t always see necessary. My dad saw that and one day taped a sign to my bedroom wall:

If you have a job to do it the best you can, even if it takes more time.

Or in other words, nothing in life is worth doing half-assed. Those words (and that sign) have stayed with me ever since, whenever I need a reminder to get through tough tasks. Know why you want it and let that drive your success. Be so good at it that failure isn’t an option. And learn as much as you can from others to fill your own experience gaps. Do all that, and you’ll find yourself atop life’s Mount Katahdin in no time.

And if not, just read Hello My Name is Sharkbait, and you’ll get the same feeling of accomplishment.

Hello Neiman!