With numerous Fastest Known Times (FKTs) to her credit, this account of Heather Anderson’s 2018 record-setting thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail (AT), Continental Divide Trail (CDT) and Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is an inspiration to anyone interested in endurance sports. This is Anderson’s third memoir detailing the progression of her hiking career, although it is not necessary to read the first two books prior to following her journey to becoming the first female thru-hiker to complete a calendar-year Triple Crown.
For hikers and backpackers, this book provides a means of living vicariously through all of the ups and downs entailed in undertaking such a massive hike: the literal mountains climbed and descended, the physical and interpersonal struggles of being on trail for so many months, and the logistical nightmare of bookending a hike with the last of one winter into the first of the following winter, with an intense fire season threatening to derail the middle.
Anderson tackles day after day of massive mileage, hiking through injuries that would sideline most. The main antagonists of the book became Anderson’s own mind and body, along with Mother Nature. This hike was supported by friends and loved ones, at times adding to the tension, but very necessary due to the logistical juggling act: hiking as much of the southern AT as possible in the early season, skipping to desert portions of the CDT before they became too hot, the entirety of the PCT once the Sierras became accessible, then alternating between long sections of the CDT and AT to complete the remaining high points before fall snow cut off access. It’s a tremendous athletic undertaking and an inspirational read.
