He Hiked The Appalachian Trail And Took A Selfie Every Day. This Is A Timelapse From Start To Finish

October 22, 2015

John, who goes by the trail name "3D" decided to hike the Appalachian Trail. It took the 61 year-old nearly six months to complete, and he took selfies along the way (his son's request) to document the changes in his physical appearance.

After he finished the hike, his son put together this timelapse:

John wrote in his Trail Journal the reasons why he decided to attempt the hike.

"I find the woods spiritual. They have a timelessness and natural order that seem to just pull me in. Even in wind, rain, snow ... whatever, I find peace in the woods. A challenge. I've taken on a handful of large challenges in my life, and this one is certainly a hum-dinger. If nothing else, just the prospect of doing this has really energized me."

Filling a void. When my father passed away three years ago, I think I must have been searching for something to replace the absence of possibly my best friend in the world. I happened upon a National Geographic (I think it was) film about hiking the Appalachian Trail. That thought percolated a month or two and eventually turned into a goal - sort of an obsession, really. I've been preparing ever since.