I do what I do in life in a large part because of hiking the Appalachian Trail.

More than 30 years ago, I hiked the southern quarter of the AT. And came away afterward with a determination to make my life writing related to the outdoors. It took another 15 years, but I made it.

Reminded of the AT again when Tim Hogeboom messaged me on Facebook yesterday.

Being reminded of the AT is a good thing.

It was a defining experience of my life from a life-threatening illness so bad I was hallucinating to weeks alone in the southern woods.

Ice had thickened up finally to safe levels overnight in the coldest weather in 10 or 11 months. I was able to easily walk on the south old pit. I guess the kids and I will be out playing tonight or tomorrow.

Only sign of wildlife was the cackling of the geese swimming open the lake to the west.

Hogeboom spent eight years filming and making his ``North to Katahdin on the Appalachian Trail.'' I helped a little bit in the early years of his filming.

Hiking the AT is about disappearing, then learning to embrace the burying vastness and moving on to reestablish a sense of self.

Whew, that sounds almost profound.

It was 11 degrees when I checked before refilling the bird feeders. Late enough that a gray squirrel hopped away in a neighbor's yard as the meathead and I went into the house.