Where's Karl? ...at the other end!!!

After 2,174 miles of punishing Appalachian Trail, Karl Meltzer has reached the other end. I have tremendous respect for him following through, even after realizing that setbacks due to debilitating injuries and monsoonal rains had dashed his shot at the record. And props to Backcountry.com for staying committed to the project until the very end...truly a class act!

I am proud to say I know the man, Karl Meltzer, and I was privileged to be able to spend a day with him running the NH section of the trail back in August (Day 10). Here's a picture of us together that day (Karl is the skinny dude).



The website www.whereskarl.com did a fantastic job of covering the event. Here are a few stats I pulled out:

Official Finish: Monday, September 29, 4:20 a.m.

Official Start: Tuesday, August 5, 2008, 7:08 a.m.

Official Finish: Monday, September 29, 2008, 4:20 a.m.

...a total of 54 days 21 hours and 12 minutes.

Unofficially, Karl's is the fourth fastest thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail.

In order, the fastest finishers:

Andrew Thompson: 47 days 13 hours 31 minutes (2005)

Pete Palmer: 48 days 20 hours 11 minutes (1999)

David Horton: 52 days 9 hours (1991)

Karl Meltzer: 54 days 21 hours 12 minutes