In 2011, Liz “Snorkel” Thomas hiked the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine in 80 days and 13 hours, cementing a reputation as a trailblazing woman in the American hiking community. She has completed hiking’s Triple Crown, which in addition to the Appalachian Trail includes the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail. Thomas estimates she has logged some 15,000 miles on long-distance trails.
This summer, she published a book about the art of thru-hiking called Long Trails. She is presently thru-hiking the Pacific Northwest Trail, which spans 1,200 miles from the Continental Divide to the Pacific Ocean. “I like the process of walking and seeing the world at two to three miles per hour,” says Thomas.
She wants more people to experience the same, even those who live in cities, far from a good trail system. The past couple years, Thomas has logged concrete mileage in more places than anyone, hoping to show urban dwellers the ease of recreating, no matter where. Her so-called urban thru-hikes have stitched together landmarks, such as her Denver, Colorado, meander through 65 breweries and a meadery. Thomas called it the Brew Thru.
Thomas is not alone in her cause. Powerful players like Michelle Obama and REI have been trying to get increasingly inert Americans, particularly youth and marginalized communities, into wide-open spaces—for their own physical and mental good. Trouble is, many of the prompts and programs for the back-to-nature movement are complicated and daunting and therefore don’t have much lasting effect.
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I am Jeff Clark, founder of Internet Brothers, producer of this blog, and passionate about hiking. I live in Western NC near the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains. Pisgah and Nantahala National Forests are just out my door, so the content will focus on these areas, but let me know what you would like to see on the site. 
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