This is an I-Heart podcast.

And we continue with our American stories.

Up next, Carter Mumson Hudson from Hillsborough, North Carolina,

started walking the Appalachian Trail, not knowing if he could actually finish the 2000-mile

trek. His journey took several months and included scenic beauty, encounters with the kindness of

strangers, and one fairly

serious injury. The encounters he had along the way spawned a spiritual journey that would

take him to a place he would have never imagined.

My name is Carter McLean, Momson Hudson. I'm 22 years old. I'm a resident of North Carolina.

I just completed the Appalachian Trail. Walked from Georgia to Maine, took me roughly four months.

I started in the middle of my college semester, which would have been March 1st, and I finished July 8th. The entire Appalachian Trail

is 2,193 miles this year. It often changes. I walked about 2,000. I am in college studying religion to become a preacher.

I'm into the outdoor world especially, biking and running and hiking, climbing, and boating.

I had a good, diverse childhood.

I was surrounded by people who had rural backgrounds and a more difficult life, right?

A lot of them went to the army or became mechanics, this kind of story.

Played a lot of basketball, played baseball, you know, just regular high school stuff.

Wasn't the best student, but managed to make it to college, so that was a success.

The reason that I wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail was simply because it was there.

There was no goal I had in mind. I never would have wanted to do something like this if the Appalachian Trail didn't exist.

The idea from walking from Georgia to Maine just sounds silly.

But my college had a program where I was offered credits.

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