It was surreal as we pulled up to the Jockey’s Ridge trailhead. Less than 10 months earlier, I had just started on the goal to complete the MST 40 Hike Challenge. I had picked up the book, GreatDay Hikes of North Carolina’s Mountains – to – Sea Trail mainly out of curiosity, and while I was driving to do some day hiking at nearby Dupont State Forest, I stumbled onto The Jester Section Hiker Podcast. Her detailed descriptions of each hike stirred within me a hunger for such an adventure.
Cape Hatteras National Seashore was the first National Seashore designated and managed by the National Park Service in 1953. Now there are 10 National Seashores all of which have been set apart to protect their rich and diverse environmental and cultural resources. It is easy to presume that the Hatteras National Seashore just refers to the area around the lighthouse. However, the National Seashore actually encompasses over 70 miles of shoreline including Bodie, Hatteras and Ocracoke Islands. Both Hikes 38 & 39 include portions of the Mountains to Sea Trail within the Hatteras National Seashore.
The Mountains to Sea Trail extends 1175 miles over roads and trails from Clingman’s Dome to Jockey’s Ridge. The MST is broken down into 18 segments, each providing the traveler with a different taste of our diverse state of North Carolina. Segment 17 is a unique experience as it treks through quaint coastal communities and ending with a walk through the Cedar Island National Wildlife Refuge. This segment offers a different element to the MST hiking experience since it consists of only road walking on part of the Outer Banks National Scenic Byway.
The Neusiok Trail traverses 20 miles through the Croatan National Forest, connecting the Neuse River at Pine Cliff to the New Port River at Oyster Point. This is an easy hike through familiar Carolina coast ecosystems such as bogs, cypress swamps and long-leaf pines. The Neusiok Trail runs concurrently with the Mountains to Sea Trail through the National Forest. Hikes 34 & 35 of the 40 Hike Challenge are excellent ways to get a taste of what this diverse area has to offer.
In 2020, Nancy East and her hiking partner Chris Ford set the FKT (fastest known time) for hiking all of the trails in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park – 948 miles. Spoiler alert – they complete the challenge in a record 29 days!
At first glance you may take this book to just be a typical hiking log of an epic adventure, but it is so much more. This book will appeal to hikers of all levels – Thru, Section or Day-Hikers, as well as anyone that loves to hear stories of how ordinary people overcome tremendous obstacles to complete miraculous goals.
Beyond the typical day to day diary of a hiker, Nancy creatively includes the reader in her struggles and doubts – not just during the hike but also her obstacles preparing for the challenge. The author is not afraid to share her personal griefs and this draws the reader into the struggle with her. Even though I knew the end of the story, I found myself anxiously cheering her and Chris on to the end.
The author is obviously an experienced hiker, but she has a multitude of other talents and interests including being actively involved in Search and Rescue. She is able to easily incorporate her past experiences into the book which makes each day’s entry even more interesting. Her passion is for hiker safety and this is apparent throughout the book – she is able to include within her writing important safety information that all of us should practice and promote. These lessons flow naturally in the narrative of her story.
Most importantly, which I have found to be true, Nancy shows how the trail is a therapeutic balm for our souls. From the beginning, Nancy relates one of her inspirations for this challenge – the previous tragic loss of a hiker on the trail. She and Chris were able to use the Smokies 900 Challenge to bring focus to hiker safety and assist with much needed resources.
Nancy has a gift as a writer that draws the reader into the story. You will find yourself not wanting to put this book down until Nancy & Chris successfully reach the end of their journey. I highly recommend this book for you and for anyone else who loves the outdoors, hiking or a challenge of any kind.
You can read more about Nancy East and order her book on her website NancyEast.com
