ABOUT ROB THE HIKER

Who I Am

So you clicked the link... I guess you want to know more about me. Well, have a seat and I'll tell you.

I was born in 1985 in a small New York town called Oswego.  Obviously, I don't really remember much of  the first few years of my life. The first clear memory I have was when I was 4 and a half years old, my father died. About a year later my mom remarried. My siblings and I then moved onto a 5 acre farm for the next few years of our lives. I could talk about the things I did and learned living on that farm for hours, but I won't bore you with the details.
  Next, my step-father decided to become a chiropractor. I was about 8 years old at the time we moved to Davenport Iowa so he could attend Palmer College of Chiropractics. The next four years of my life were spent in the Quad Cities. I really enjoyed my time there. My brother and I even built a small baking business selling sweet breads at farmers markets in the area. When we left Iowa to move back to NY I left behind many good friends, but the lessons I learned from then will always be with me.
I spent the next year living on the same farm I grew up on while my step-father attempted to build his chiropractic business. Unfortunately it failed and he decided to go back to teaching Spanish. He got a teaching job in South Carolina and we moved once again. It was in Gaffney where my uncle came to visit one Thanksgiving. He mentioned something about hiking the Appalachian Trail at dinner... I was very enthusiastic and before you could say "Bob's your uncle" we were already planning the trip. We started hiking late in February of the very next year... which also happened to be the year 2000. Over the next three months we hiked from Mt. Springer, GA to Troutville, VA. We covered a distance of roughly 700 miles over many mountains. We even completed the 4 state challenge, where you start in Pennsylvania, hike through Maryland, and West Virginia and end in Virginia. It's 42 miles and some change. The challenge was to do it in under 24 hours. We finished in roughly 21. Anyway, we didn't finish our thru hike of the Trail and over the years I always said I wanted to finish it and hike other trails all over the world.
I'm now 31 years old and I still haven't completed my dream.
A few days ago though, I made a decision. I'm going to chase my dream. I've spent too much of my life simply surviving and not actually living. Now I'm going to do what I should have done a decade ago and I invite you all to follow me in my quest. I'll be documenting my learning progress along the way and eventually I'll be sharing the hikes themselves with you. If you wish to support me in my goal please visit my Patreon and consider becoming one of my honored Patrons. (There are Patron perks.) ;-)

Thanks for taking the time to get to know me. I look forward to sharing more with you in the future. Remember life is too short to waste... Chase your dreams!