HAWKINS COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — A Hawkins County man is back home after hiking the entire Appalachian Trail.
Charles Grubb finished the amazing feat on his 56th birthday and started his journey in 2012.
The trail is about 2,200 miles and spans up and down the East Coast.
“Everyone, usually when I left work would think I was just crazy for wanting to spend a week hiking in the woods,” Grubb said. “I don’t know what my family thought. They thought, you know, they all thought I was probably crazy too. But I met all kinds of people on the trail that were pretty cool.”
Grubb told News Channel 11 he was a section hiker, meaning he would hike sections of the trail one week at a time. Grubb planned ahead in case the weather would impact part of the trail.
“I think if I was advising another section hiker, I would say move to the north faster,” Grubb said. “I think I could have finished the [trail] in five years had I done that. And I was trying to finish it in ten years and was able to do it in 11 because of COVID.”
Other Appalachian Trail hikers gave Grubb the nickname “Grubb-Worm” while he was on the hike.
