A long walk for reflection and joy

The man on the radio told me — and you — we need to find “joy” in our lives.

Most of us, I hope, find that with family and/or friends.

  Buy Photo

But there also are things that we do that should give us joy, too — work and play, from a hobby to moving our bodies (aka exercise).

I find great joy in my morning treks with my two dogs, walking mostly but, when my knee cooperates, jogging. It’s a great time to not only work on my health, but also clear my mind, mediate and just enjoy being and seeing outside.

  Buy Photo

Jenny Seydel of Iowa City took my daily routine to the extreme recently. She hiked more than 2,000 miles along the Appalachian Trail, an adventure that took her parts of seven months to finish.

“It was a little bit of a walk,” Seydel with a laugh. “My mantra was ‘slow, steady and safe.’”

The “official” length of the trail is 2,197.4 miles. The trail, first proposed in 1921, was completed in 1937. “Thru-hikers” walk the entire trail and more than 800 complete it each year.

Seydel, who turned 69 while on the trail, didn’t take the south-to-north Point A to Point B “thru-hiker” route. She started in Damascus, Va., and even skipped a 50-mile stretch at one point.

“I had done that in the past so I counted it,” she said with a laugh.

She took breaks, too — once for a wedding in Chicago, once for a funeral and once for physical therapy.

“When you’re older, you’re wiser,” she said.

While some may not find that joyful, it was bliss for Seydel. Being outside, moving and enjoying the beauty of where you take your steps can do that to a person.

“It wasn’t put your backpack on and put your nose to the trail,” she said. “It was let’s celebrate life.”

It also was a bit of a personal celebration. Seydel and her husband, Mark Heininger, both Iowa City natives and City High School graduates, were scheduled to do the hike in 2021. But Mark died unexpectedly before they could add that to their “bucket list.”

“The dream did not die with him,” she said. “There was some emotion in the early stages ...”

Seydel loves extreme endurance sports, including Ironman distance triathlons. She describe herself as a bit of a “wild horse.”

“I’ve always had this wanderlust ... I needed to be nurtured,” she said.

And, because of that, she realized at some point along the trail Mark “would probably had said ‘I’ve done enough’ and I would have kept going,” she said with a laugh.

She said it was a beautiful journey, the scenery and the people she met along the way. She said it was a bit daunting at times — “there were times in certain climbs ... you could fall” — and some places you had to watch out for others on the trail. Rangers and other hikers would warn others of any impending danger.

“There is a community on the trail,” she said. “I was not expecting that.

“You end up with a group of people ... you may hike with for a while.”

But there were times “I didn’t see a single person.”

“I met lifelong friends,” she said. One woman even came back after completing her hike and “hiked with me the last two days.”

Those “communities” also give you a trail name. Seydel was known as “Potter,” which she said was a “perfect” match. Potter can refer to someone who enjoys pottery and she has a studio in her home in Iowa City. It also refers to “not rushing and taking a more gradual, careful approach to progress.”

“It had a double meaning that was perfect to me.”

She also noted there are “so many different ways to do this ... and still find pleasure.” Some do the “thru-hike” and never venture off the trail. Some do “slackpacking” where they get off the trail at night to stay in a hotel or hostel, then head back and pick up the hike the next day.

Seydel said she did about half the trail with her “full-pack” and half using the “slackpacking” technique.

“I don’t want to damage my body,” she said, figuring she averaged about 18-20 miles a day slackpacking and 12-15 with her full pack.

One regret is she didn’t slow down enough. She said she will do parts of the Appalachian Trail again, but will take her time.

“It was gorgeous,” she said. “The mountains up in Maine were just amazing, and New Hampshire.

“I think I would go back and hike them again if I was able to ramble instead of pushing through.”

Now that the Appalachian part is done, she’s been asked if she will do the “triple crown” — adding the Pacific Crest Trail and Continental Divide Trail.

“I will go and hike sections of all those trails,” she said. “The journey and the mediative process was important, but I’d like to stay in place longer. There’s an energy and a peace when you’re in a place.”

Her adventures are not done and shouldn’t be. You, too, can find joy in your next adventure, be it a 5K, marathon or a walk around your neighborhood or local trail system — or even a stroll through a “tiny town on the mighty Mississippi.”

“My next adventure is to ride my bike across the country,” she said.

And I bet it will be full of joy.

Comments: jr.ogden@thegazette.com