The Challenges And Rewards Of Hiking The Appalachian Trail

11:18

August 31, 2015

A hiker climbs up Mount Katahdin with the wilderness of Baxter State Park in Maine in the background, Aug. 27, 2014. Katahdin is nearly a mile high, the tallest mountain in Maine, and its peak is the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. (Beth J. Harpaz/AP)

This week, "A Walk in the Woods," opens in theaters around the country. The movie is based on the 1998 memoir "A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail" by Bill Bryson, who attempted to walk the trail along with an old friend.

The release of the movie got us thinking about what it's really like to hike all 2,189 miles of the trail. Here & Now's Lisa Mullins talks with Warren Doyle, an experienced Appalachian Trail hiker, about the challenges and rewards of hiking the trail.

Guest

Warren Doyle, director of the Appalachian Trail Institute.

This segment aired on August 31, 2015.