by Sue-Ann Roades
A hiker since 2006, Sam Fortna, 31, reports that his most memorable hiking experience took place on the Kalalau Trail on the coast of Kauai in Hawaii. In Sam’s words, “The beach where you set up camp at the end is stunning, and there is an even nicer, more private beach with perfect white sand, a waterfall, and dramatic cliff face not very far away if you are willing to swim to it.” Sam’s description sounds picture-postcard perfect!
Sam decided to take the 100-Mile Trail Challenge after realizing he had already been hiking over 100 miles a year since 2012. He wanted to combine his love of hiking with raising money for a good cause. With his friends sponsoring him, he will reach this goal. To meet his objective of hiking at least 100 miles, he plans to do many day hikes, as well as complete the West Rim Trail and the Quehanna Trail and get more familiar with the Standing Stone Trail, the Loyalsock Trail, and the Chuck Keiper Trail.
Sam truly loves the scenic streams and waterfalls in Pennsylvania. His favorite hike is the Waterfall Wonderland in State Game Lands 13, Sullivan County, that Jeff Mitchell describes in his book Hiking the Endless Mountains. Sam equates the scenery there to nearby Ricketts Glen State Park, but he notes that an advantage of the Waterfall Wonderland is that it is secluded and challenging. You’ll likely have the Waterfall Wonderland trails all to yourself.
Sam’s advice to those who are new hikers: “Never stop exploring. Find other people who love to hike. Always treat your feet with love. Ditch heavy boots for trail shoes whenever you can.” For Sam, the 2 most important things to bring on a hike are a good first-aid kit and lots of water.
Though Sam has been hiking for several years, he decided to join the KTA in October 2014 after being curious about how hiking trails were maintained in Pennsylvania. An Internet search of various hiking and trail clubs brought him to the KTA’s site; he joined! He attended a trail maintenance trip this fall and hopes to attend several more in 2015.
Of the many reasons Sam enjoys hiking, the biggest is the spiritual aspect that makes him feel more alive than anything else. Sam says that hiking is both energizing and rejuvenating, adding that “nothing clears my mind and puts things into perspective like a good hike.”
Sam took the Challenge. Will you? Click here to sign up for the 2015 100-Mile Trail Challenge!