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Trail Moments: An Appalachian Trail Journey

By: Laura Stark
February 1, 2025

Hiking on the C&O Canal Towpath | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Hiking on the C&O Canal Towpath | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

Pastel colored dawns, trees silhouetted on mountain peaks, birds perched and watching … one look at Mary Lynn Munro’s watercolor sketches from the trail and you feel the emotional tug to be on that journey with her.

Watercolor painting of a bluejay by Mary Lynn Munro | Courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Watercolor painting of a bluejay by Mary Lynn Munro | Courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Watercolor painting by Mary Lynn Munro based on her Appalachian Trail experiences | Courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Watercolor painting by Mary Lynn Munro based on her Appalachian Trail experiences | Courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

“My love for the outdoors probably came from my growing up in Maryland just outside of Washington, D.C., where I was born,” Munro shared. “In sixth grade, my teacher, Mrs. Allen, had a bird feeder on the classroom window and we were encouraged to keep records of all the birds we saw come to the feeder. As extra credit, my father would drive my sister and I into Washington to birdwatch in Rock Creek Park. I still carry on that love of birds.”

For the past 50 years, Munro has lived in another outdoor wonderland, Aspen, nestled in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. With her husband Sandy, she raised two children and dotes on four grandchildren. “Like everybody else, we came here to ski,” she chuckled. “But then we decided to stay and raise a family.”

Preparing for Adventure

Mary Lynn Munro and her daughter, Natasha Goedert, summiting Maine's Mt. Katahdin on the Appalachian Trail | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Mary Lynn Munro and her daughter, Natasha Goedert, summiting Maine’s Mt. Katahdin on the Appalachian Trail | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

Munro says walking several miles a day keeps her a healthy 81 years young, and she loves being outdoors practicing qigong (a meditative method of movements and breathing) or creating her watercolor sketches in the quiet moments along her local trail.

At times, she reflects on her experience hiking the Appalachian Trail, which stretches nearly 2,200 miles through 14 states in the eastern United States. “I decided when I turned 65 that I wanted to do something that would get me out,” said Munro. “I’ve always loved the outdoors, but I had never done anything that would require 6 1/2 months to do! The Rio Grande Trail here really helped me say, ‘Okay, if you’re gonna do this, you’re gonna have to get in shape.’”

Colorado's Rio Grande Trail | Photo by Scott Stark
Colorado’s Rio Grande Trail | Photo by Scott Stark

In addition to her physical preparations on Colorado’s Rio Grande Trail, which winds 42 miles through the pine forests and ranchlands between Aspen and Glenwood Springs, she mentally planned for the journey a year in advance, reading everything she could about what to expect and following the online writings of others who had completed the trail. Notes from her own journey—written on a BlackBerry during her 2008 trip—can still be found on her online journal page.

“The Appalachian Trail is called the ‘long green tunnel’ because a lot of it does go through the woods, but as you go farther north, you start to get up above and get these spectacular views in places like New Hampshire and Maine—you’re literally climbing up mountains,” Munro explained. “You also go through towns, where you get to interact with the local people. It really inspires you, and you realize that we are more alike than we are different—and that’s a neat feeling.”

A Passion for the Outdoors

Mary Lynn Munro and her husband Sandy near the C&O Canal Towpath | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Mary Lynn Munro and her husband Sandy near the C&O Canal Towpath | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

When asked about any wildlife encounters she had on the trail, Munro gives a long, hearty laugh. “There were probably about six rattlesnakes that I almost stepped on. And a bear once stole my food bag!”

Among other mishaps, she also recalls a time when she stumbled and had what thru-hikers call a ‘kiss the trail’ moment. “I had put a huge gash in my upper lip, and the day I met up with my son on the trail, he took one look at me and said, ‘Mom, we gotta go get you fixed up.’ So we did, and they glued my lip back together—and then I was back on the trail.”

While most who attempt the Appalachian Trail will not finish it, Munro would not give up, undertaking the journey in March 2008 and completing it that September. “I think everybody on the trail has said, ‘What am I doing out here? I could be home.’ Everybody’s had those feelings, but you knew once you started on this trail, you wanted to finish. I think they said for the year that I hiked that there was a little over 2,000 thru-hikers—meaning people that wanted to do the whole route from Georgia to Maine—and only about 10% of those finished.”

Mary Lynn Munro and her son Alex hiking the White Mountains of New Hampshire | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Mary Lynn Munro and her son Alex hiking the White Mountains of New Hampshire | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

This robust enthusiasm and passion for the outdoors spans generations of her family. Munro recalls her father taking her family on camping road trips to national parks, and her own children and grandchildren have always loved being active outdoors.

“My son would jump out the front door, ski down the hill and hitchhike to the mountains to ski,” she laughed. “And my daughter works for the U.S. Forest Service. She came out to the Appalachian Trail to hike to the top of Mount Katahdin with me.”

Today, Munro enjoys watching the birds that come to her feeders and the deer that stroll through the yard, but her experience on the Appalachian Trail has a deep place in her heart that hasn’t faded in the nearly two decades since. “Every day I think about the trail in one way or another.”

Mary Lynn Munro (center) surrounded by family celebrating her completion of the Appalachian Trail at the Moose Lodge in Millinocket, Maine | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro
Mary Lynn Munro (center) surrounded by family celebrating her completion of the Appalachian Trail at the Moose Lodge in Millinocket, Maine | Photo courtesy Mary Lynn Munro

This article is part of Rails to Trails Conservancy’s Trail Moments initiative—to elevate new and tried-and-true trail voices around the country, and how trails impact the lives of Americans. Learn more at trailmoments.org, and use #TrailMoments on social media to share your story.

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Laura Stark

Laura Stark is the senior editor for Rails to Trails magazine, responsible for highlighting trails and the people working hard to support them across America.

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