Since getting off trail, it’s been a whirlwind of activity. My brother picked me up at the airport at 5am, and I slept on his couch until 10 am trying to get caught up to sleep. The delicious coffee my sister-in-law brought me in the morning gave me life as we headed to meet my parents at Top Golf. My dad turned 60 while I was on trail, so we went to swing some clubs to celebrate and catch up. It felt so good to see my parents in person after so many days (and oh so many more miles).

We topped off the celebration with ice cream at a local joint in Indy, and then my parents and I headed back to my hometown of Liberty, IN. The three of us headed to my high school best friend’s house, Tate, where we hung out awhile. My other close friend, Jenn, met us there. Jenn started the hike with me and it felt like full circle to see her.

The next morning I headed straight up to Fort Wayne, IN to meet with a company I’d be doing consulting work for. I’d quickly have to retire “Backpack Brad” and bring out of retirement “Business Brad”. It was fun to get back into that mode of thinking and I am excited for the opportunity.

The rest of my first week back into “normal life” was spent seeing friends, doing a lot of yoga, and trying to let my body recover from the hike.

So what’s next?

Well, I’ll have a dedicated post sharing my next adventure but for now, I am switching to a more generic blog to keep the Great Western Loop blog focused solely on the trip. I’ll use this blog to share reflections & short stories from my trip, upcoming travel experiences, and other topics.

I’ll be posting less frequently so be sure to subscribe using the form at the top of the blog.