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Right Click on the Appalachian Trail

Phillip believed he had it all together. He loved his work in the recovery field and felt deeply grateful for his family. Then a few “pesky” lumps in his neck turned into a life‑shattering diagnosis: Stage 4 oropharyngeal cancer, a tumor at the back of his tongue. Treatment saved his life—but left him exhausted, hollowed out, and wondering what came next. In the middle of that darkness, Phillip sensed a startling invitation: walk the Appalachian Trail.

Phillip was not a seasoned long‑distance hiker. His only backpacking experience was a single week in the Adirondacks as a teenager. So the idea of spending more than six months and 2,000 miles on a rugged mountain trail felt reckless and exhilarating all at once. Four years of training still could not fully prepare a 55‑year‑old body—or heart—for what awaited him. The brutal terrain, wild weather, and complicated people all pushed him to his limits, but his greatest battle was with his own emotions.

As he logs the miles, shelters, and summit views, Phillip also shares what decades in a program of recovery taught him about monitoring and resetting his attitude—skills that proved just as essential as boots and backpack. With honesty and humor, he writes about:

The emotional highs and lows of starting over after serious illness.

The “crew” of family, friends, and fellow hikers who encouraged, challenged, and sometimes aggravated him—but never stopped believing in him.

The quiet, insistent power of choosing your outlook, one day and one step at a time.

Continue: Right Click on the Appalachian Trail is more than a hiking memoir. It is a story about relationships—with each other, with the natural world, and with a power greater than ourselves that meets us on the trail and in everyday life.

For anyone facing cancer, walking a recovery path, dreaming of the Appalachian Trail, or simply wondering how to keep going when life falls apart, this book offers one clear message: you can pause, reset, and continue. And a triumphant ending certainly helps.