In the winter of 2013, filmmaker Chris Gallaway set out to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail starting on Springer Mountain, Georgia and hiking over 2,000 miles to reach Mount Katahdin in Maine. This seven month journey brought Gallaway through many highs and lows, including a blizzard and frost bite in the Great Smoky Mountains, a beautiful Appalachian spring, and horrendous mosquito swarms in a monsoon summer. Through his hike Gallaway encountered major life changes from getting engaged to a close family tragedy. He also formed friendships with fascinating characters met along the trail.
The Long Start to the Journey is an odyssey along America’s greatest long trail. It explores the history and origins of the A.T. while also revealing the pathway through the intimate lens of one man’s journey across it. This is a story of growth through perseverance. It reveals why wilderness is something essential for people in the modern world.