The Weight I Carried: Hiking Through Grief and Healing on the Appalachian Trail

The Weight I Carried: Hiking Through Grief and Healing on the Appalachian Trail

“A lifelong outdoorsman, coppersmith, builder, and father, Steven has spent his life shaping metal, wood, and stone. But nothing shaped him more than love and loss. After the death of his beloved wife, Sandy, he turned to the Appalachian Trail—a dream they once shared—as a way to reconcile his loss with his faith. The 2,200-mile journey became more than a hike; it was a desperate reckoning. An abundance of hazards, from animals to broken bones and illness, delayed him. With grief and depression on his back, he dragged his past up and down each mountain, until in those last miles he felt whole again. The Appalachian Trail is a journey that strips bare the soul and forces those that travel upon it to confront their losses, their weaknesses, their strengths, and, most importantly, themselves. In this gripping and raw memoir, we follow Steven into the wilderness, as witnesses to his intimate reflections on a life lived hard and lived well. We see in Steven’s narrative our own struggles with love and loss. We recognize our own wrestling with the seemingly cruel and inscrutable nature of God. Through Steven’s unsparing soul searching, we can find self-forgiveness, and peace.” “Steven Wright has written an entertaining account of his Appalachian Trail thru hike. It is a tale filled with mishaps galore. With a stubborn will he perseveres to finish what he started, one step at a time. It's one hell of a story.” — Steve Prescott , Thru Hiker (AT '99 & '19, PCT '00, CDT '07 & '13, Florida Trail '19, Great Eastern Trail '20) “The trail is the great teacher, and for Steven, it is apparent that the lessons gained on his journey had a profound impact on his quality of life.” — Poet , owner of Shaw’s Hiker Hostel After the passing of his beloved wife, Sandy, Steven Wright – outdoorsman, craftsman, coppersmith, father, and grieving widower – embarked upon one of his lifelong goals: to hike the entirety of the Appalachian Trail. He did this to make peace with his loss, and to reconcile the passing of his wife with his faith. But the Appalachian Trail is a journey that strips bare the soul and forces those that travel upon it to confront their losses, their weaknesses, their strengths, and, most importantly, themselves. In this memoir, gripping and raw, we follow a man as he travels the wilderness and reflects upon a life lived hard and lived well. We see in Steven Wright the journeys of all who have loved, who have lost, who have wrestled with the seemingly cruel and often inscrutable nature of God, and who find in the wild self-reflection, self-forgiveness, and peace.