Can we be like Betty Kellenberger when we grow up? The 80-year-old from Michigan just became the oldest woman to complete the famous 2,200 mile Appalachian Trail!
She accomplished the incredible feat this past September. Betty tried to conquer the trail a couple times before, but those attempts were cut short due to Lyme disease and dehydration in 2022 and a fall in 2023. Hurricane Helene delivered another setback in 2024. Because of the storm, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy told hikers to leave and come back in 2025 with the 2024 mileage counted toward their ongoing trek.
Betty finished her adventure in segments over time, and she more than earned the trail name a Boy Scout troop gave her in Pennsylvania: “Legend.”
“This life is a journey. And it may be a series of little journeys,” she told WOODTV.com. “Or maybe just the whole life is a journey. And the bigger your efforts, the greater the reward.”
NATIONAL PARK NEWS
