In My Boots: A Memoir of Five Million Steps Along the Appalachian Trail

After college, Amanda K. Jaros learns about the 2,160-mile Appalachian Trail and decides to spend six months backpacking alone, walking away from a sheltered life dominated by an angry and volatile father. She expects solitude and reflection in the wilderness, but instead discovers a community of hikers connected through shared experiences. In My Boots recounts both the physical and emotional dimensions of this journey. Jaros hikes across the windy balds of the South, through snowstorms in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and into the alpine zones of the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a twenty-three-year-old, she undergoes a transformation, moving away from the compliant and scared person she had been. Through each step away from her damaged childhood, new friendships, and stops in rural trail towns, she comes to understand that success on the trail—and in life—requires finding her own path.