Brendan Magill, grandson of club member Charlie Magill, spoke with us about his three experiences through hiking Vermont's Long Trail. He first tackled the challenge as a 14 year old, completing the length of the trail from north to south with his dad, Stephen. Going this direction, their toughest stretches were at the beginning. Brendan next solo hiked the trail when he was just 17. And in 2020, during the pandemic, he completed the trail "side by side," hiking all of the side trails that branch off from the Long Trail. This last was not a through hike, but a total of 38 separate days where he covered over 300 miles.
Brendan shared three key challenges in completing the LT:
- Being wet
- Staying motivated
- The physical challenge of hiking so far over so many hours, days and weeks
Some things Brendan believes factored into his success:
- Learning to be outside all of the time
- Taking a measured approach with frequent breaks
- Eating good food, including big, hot lunches
- Knowing you have the ability to face your challenges, you can be responsible for yourself.
Today, Brendan lives in Maine where he works ski and bike patrol at Mt. Abram Ski Area and Bike Park.
To see and hear Brendan's talk with our Rotary club, go to: https://youtu.be/VV3niEKT4Hs