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George Steffanos

🧵1/7
October 3, 1983: Except for one incident, which was only bad for a few moments, the climb up Hunt spur was fun.

Beneath a clear pale blue sky, we are standing on a plateau covered with many large gray boulders, a golden brown alpine plant that looks like grass, and a low ground hugging plant with small bright red leaves. Ahead a very rocky steep slope with swaths of gold and green alpine vegetation rises to a summit ridge several hundred feet above the plateau, culminating in a rocky peak.
#backpacking#hiking#landscapephotography
Feb 04, 2025, 02:01 PM·Public·Web
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George Steffanos

🧵2/7
It was maniacally steep, it had many tricky parts, and it was strenuous as hell. I rather enjoyed it. It was the last big climb.

We are high up a mountainside, standing on gray rock ledges covered with dark and light green lichen. Across a valley, another lofty peak rises. Its flanks are wooded, but the side facing us has extensive naked rock cliffs. Below the cliffs is a mixed forest of evergreens and hardwoods sporting gold or red leaves. Beyond this mountain is another wide, densely wooded valley. A lofty mountain range runs along the horizon, with several prominent peaks sporting open alpine crests. The sky is a pale blue with hazy clouds.
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George Steffanos

🧵3/7
There were awesome views along the entire ascent. From the south, Katahdin is an enormous massif, rising abruptly from the lake country. There are a number of less lofty, but still impressive mountains stretching out to the northeast and northwest.

Beneath a clear pale blue sky, we are standing on a ledge of lichen-covered gray rock, Looking down hundreds of feet into a valley far below. The valley is covered with a dense mixed forest of evergreens and hardwoods turned gold for autumn. Several lakes are scattered around it. A more distant lofty mountain rises from the far end of the valley. Its wooded flanks are in shade.
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George Steffanos

🧵4/7
The northwest range was especially majestic, a long chain of rocky heights eventually curving in an arc towards due north and disappearing into the lingering haze. I took my time, rising slowly and steadily. I never actually sat down for a rest — I did not need one. I did pause a few times to take photos and enjoy the views, but mostly I climbed.

Beneath a pale blue sky with hazy clouds, we are high atop a naked rock cliff on a mountain with a few patches of golden brown grass-like plants. We are looking out across two other lofty, mostly naked rock ridges on our left and a sprawling valley on our right filled with a forest of dusky green conifers with swaths of hardwoods turned gold and yellow. Beyond that, more distant mountains are mere ghosts in the haze.
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George Steffanos

🧵5/7
I finally reached “The Gateway” and broke out onto “The Tableland.” I pulled myself up to the top of a final large boulder and a span of much flatter trail unfurled before me. The plateau was strewn with rocks and large lichen-covered boulders jutting out of the ground and covered with a short, golden-brown grass-like vegetation.

Beneath a clear pale blue sky, we are standing on a plateau covered with many large gray boulders, a golden brown alpine plant that looks like grass, and a low ground hugging plant with small bright red leaves. Across a ridge covered with dwarf spruce and fir a rocky, open summit ridge rises several hundred feet above the plateau.
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George Steffanos

🧵6/7
The stunted flora included alpine mosses, a fiery red ground-hugging plant with small leaves and a handful of spiky low bushes that looked barely alive. I had survived the last great test and Baxter Peak was in sight.

Beneath a clear pale blue sky, we are standing on a plateau covered with many large gray boulders, a golden brown alpine plant that looks like grass, and a low ground hugging plant with small bright red leaves. Ahead a very rocky steep slope rises to a summit ridge several hundred feet above the plateau, culminating in a rocky peak.
Public
George Steffanos

🧵7/7
There were 1.6 miles to go.

More of My 1983 Appalachian Trail Hike in Photos at georgesteffanos.com/places-i-v

Note: I planned to celebrate the 42nd anniversary of my hike with a sequel Appalachian Trail hike in 2025 and a new book, but Hurricane Helene had other plans. March 2026 now seems much more likely as my start date. The new plan for 2025 is a two-part hike from Harpers Ferry, West Virginia to the Vermont-Canada border along the Appalachian Trail and Vermont's Long Trail.

Beneath a pale blue sky with hazy clouds, we are standing on a summit plateau covered with gray naked rock with a few scattered tufts of a golden brown alpine plant that looks like grass. Ahead the summit ridge continues to climb gradually, culminating in a rocky peak with sheer rock flanks. Beyond that, more distant mountains are mere ghosts in the haze.
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George Steffanos

Part 1 begins mid-April in Harpers Ferry.

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