Michael Duncan completed his thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2017. Since the time he touched the brown sign on the top of Katahdin, the sadness of that moment has never left him. By that, he means that he knew his journey was over and he has yearned for that feeling again.

He has always been comfortable in the outdoors, with the AT a target for several years. He prepared assiduously, watching YouTube videos of Dixie and Darwin to work out the logistics of thru-hiking, then finding a buddy, Austin, to start the trail with. As every hiker discovers, relationships are fluid on the trail and when his buddy had to quit, Michael saw it as an opportunity to discover more about himself as a hiker, finding a new "tramily" in the process.

You can follow Michael through his Instagram account at adventureswithduncan.

We also met another young man–a member of the Mighty Blue Class of 2019–Matthew Ansart. Matthew possesses a strong streak of determination to complete his hike and I'm looking forward to catching up with him on the trail next year.

Finally, we'll finish with a shot of Michael and his girlfriend (now wife), Cameron, together at the top of Katahdin.