Trail Moments | A Mental and Physical Journey Along the Great American Rail-Trail
I’ve lived my entire life in southeastern Pennsylvania, and it’s shaped my love of the outdoors. Lancaster County is an amazing biking area, where on-road riding is relatively safe and we have multiple rail-trails, like my go-to Northwest Lancaster County River Trail along the Susquehanna River. Being outdoors has helped me deal with my past alcohol abuse and my depression. Biking is a way to balance the turmoil in my life, a way for me to get away and let my problems go temporarily. Thankfully, I can say my last drink was more than 8 years ago, and my life is more enjoyable and manageable today.
At first, I was just doing day rides but then, on one trip, something caught my attention. I started seeing campsites along the trails and thought about how cool it would be to bike and camp. I bought a rear rack and some gear and did my first overnight trip on the Great Allegheny Passage (gaptrail.org). After that, I was hooked and started planning other longer trips.
“One of my favorite aspects of my bike trips is not knowing where I am but not being lost.”
Great American Dreams
One of these adventures was on the Ohio to Erie Trail. I left Cleveland in early May 2023, rode roughly 320 miles to Cincinnati, then turned around and rode back over the course of 10 days. While camping in London, Ohio, I met a group from the Wounded Warrior Project (a charity that provides programs and services to wounded veterans and their families) that was doing a sponsored ride on the Great American Rail-Trail, which stretches more than 3,700 miles across the country. After a recent life-changing event, I had been feeling completely lost and without direction, but talking with a veteran from this group ignited a spark.
The next day, I stopped at a trail bridge called the “Bridge of Dreams.” Something about this bridge is special to me; it’s a spiritual connection to ideas and feelings I can’t describe, like a sacred location. I sat there thinking about my conversation from the previous night and then knew what I needed to do. A month after I returned home from the Ohio trip, I left for a journey along the Great American Rail-Trail.
To prepare for my Great American trip, I would ride about 25 miles on the Northwest Lancaster County River Trail three days a week. On the other two days of the work week, I would run 3 miles. On weekends, I’d go for longer rides of 50–75 miles, either on-road or on my other favorite trail, the Schuylkill River Trail, which finishes up in Philadelphia. I would also load each pannier bag with a 5-pound weight and water bottles to acclimate myself to the way the bike handled with extra mass hanging off the sides.
Special Moments Along the Miles
I started my Great American trip in Washington, D.C., at the end of June 2023 and touched the sands of the Pacific Ocean in La Push, Washington, in early September—62 days of solo riding. For the return trip home, my dad drove from Pennsylvania to scoop me up.
While completing the Great American would be challenging enough physically, riding alone was a mental challenge on its own. Already dealing with a great deal of depression for the majority of my life, I knew I’d need to be strong every day to be successful. I found a tremendous relief journaling every night, sharing a daily Facebook post and making personal video diary entries. When I returned home, I used these notes and reflections to author a book about my adventure and my mental health called American Solitaire: My Exploration of America and My Mind.
Experiencing the West was so different from my native Pennsylvania. In Montana and Idaho, I fell in love with the pine trees coming down the mountain sides and descending into the valleys. I enjoyed the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes (especially along Chatcolet Lake); the Route of the Hiawatha with its nine tunnels, seven trestles and views of the Bitterroot Mountains; and the huge moose I saw right in the middle of the NorPac Trail!
After riding through Seattle, I took the ferry to Bainbridge Island to start what became my favorite trail on the Great American: the Olympic Discovery Trail. Riding into Port Gamble Forest Park, there was lush green foliage everywhere—it was like I was wearing green-tinted glasses. Along the trail were also some of the biggest and tastiest blackberries I’ve ever eaten! But the real crown jewel was Olympic National Forest; everything there was just different shades of green, giving the ride mystical appeal, like I was traveling through some magical fantasy world. There were also beautiful, peaceful campgrounds along or close to the trail. Nothing beats hearing waves crashing on the beach or a flowing stream as I fall asleep.
Reflecting on the Journey
Everything I encountered on this trip, good and bad, all contributed to what this adventure was: absolutely amazing. Being in the West, I’ve never felt as mentally free as I have in my life. There’s a spiritual connection I feel out there, a freedom that I lack back home. One of my favorite aspects of my bike trips is not knowing where I am but not being lost.
I went on this trip needing to do some deep searching inside, hoping to find some answers and clarity in my life. Now, I have to take what I gained and learned and apply that to my life. It’s still a long journey, and I’m continuing to make steps forward, no matter how small. You need to face your fears to experience true mental freedom—and that’s what I want. Although my Great American trip is over, I’ve acquired new tools to help the fight.
My advice to anyone attempting this is simple: just do it and don’t overthink it. Prepare as best you can, have a plan in place, but understand that at some point you’ll have to adjust on the fly and react to a variety of obstacles. Carve out your own path in life, be true to yourself and follow your dreams.
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