<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: everything but the hiker smell....
Review: i had first heard of this documentary last october (at the Gathering), and couldn't wait to see it! like many people, i've been bitten with the hiking bug...and enjoy sharing the perspectives of other hikers. this movie did not dissappoint! it gave a concise history of the appalachian trail, and those individuals that attempt to 'thru-hike' it in one season. the film maker introduced us to several hikers, each with different mind sets, and expectations of trail life. it does not take long to realize the magnitude of the appalachian experience, and the importance of the people you meet along the way. ultimately this film maker captured the essence of any long distance hiking experience: there will always be (pointless) 'ups and downs,' sometimes there will be rain, and most importantly you have to feel fortunate to simply experience this adventure.
Rating:
Summary: This engaging DVD has the ring of authenticity
Review: I played it through three times in two days to fully get the flavor of it. I haven't walked the Appalachian Trail, but after reading White Blaze Fever, I thought I had a feel for it. Maybe, but the visual really drives it home. The opening music of this DVD got me in a good frame of mind for the trials and triumphs of these Appalachian Trail thru-hikers. The photographer and interviewer start in Georgia at Springer Mountain, the AT beginning, interviewing starting hikers. The hikers look unseasoned; some think they will make it but we are not so sure. The filming jumps ahead from point to point on the trail, showing other hikers and some of the initial ones. This must have been a wet year (2002). There are a lot of scenes with fog thru the trees. One scene I remember vividly where my first impression was the sound of rain, then the rustle of wet ponchos. Some of the hikers you see again and again, initially at some low points, and then getting more and more confident - "feeling bulletproof" as one hiker put it. The stories within stories capture your attention i.e. Will and his dog. How wide the Kennebeck River is. The segment where Jessie talks about the trees and she rolls her eyes. The interactions at the shelters. At the end, as hikers are reaching Mt. Katahdin, I am feeling suspiciously sentimental. To wrap it up, I would recommend this to any long distance hiker, and particularly AT hikers or their friends. This reminds me of the PCT documentary WALK - if you like one, you will like the other.
<< 1 >>
| 
