Bill King has had his mind on an Appalachian Trail thru-hike since he listened to a presentation from another thru-hiker. He is a retired school teacher and has found the inspiration to start his flip flop hike in April 2018. Despite a diagnosis of neuropathy in his feet, Bill has simply battled through the pain, taken the appropriate medication and kept moving forward.

Bill has an abiding love of nature and expects to be smelling the roses on his way up the trail. He also anticipates the occasional chase after the perfect butterfly picture.

His students–several now in their 30s and 40s–have been following Bill's preparations on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/bill.king.5454 and his blog at billkingfieldtrip.weebly.com. Now you can follow him as well. We wish him the best of luck for his hike this year.

I recently saw a great little post on Facebook that showed a backpack / bivy tent combination that weighs in at just over one pound! The BivyPack is the idea of Ken Flannery, who has been on the road for the past ten years. I invited Ken on the show to tell us how he invented it. Click on his Kickstarter link to see the video. He also has a personal blog and a podcast. Click on the links to access either or both of these.

Last, but definitely not least, Jack Masters, or Vagabond Jack, checked in and we had a chat about the progress he's made on his thru-hike so far. If you'd like to follow Jack, his blog is at Trail Journals.

Don't forget to listen to our companion show, Returning to Katahdin. You can also visit Bruce's blog at rtkchallenge.com, where you will also be able to hear our podcast and contribute to his fundraising for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy. While you’re online, we’d also be delighted if you’d check out Trailtopia.com and consider the wonderful food choices that they have for your next hike