The very next day it was back to work and ‘real’ life. The transition was easy, and likely because I had a few days in Grand Portage to decompress a bit before returning. There were congratulations from people who knew what I was doing, but early on it became clear that few really understood what it was that I did: toe the line of the unknown to push the limits of my capability, and learn more about what I’m really made of. It may sound like I’m waxing poetic, but completing this challenge turned out to be more than miles and time. It was such a personal trial, though, that can only be understood through hindsight of such an event. If you’ve been there, you know. (and by ‘there’ I don’t necessarily mean IF to GP).

    Before embarking on the route, I had made my plans and tracking page public to my family and friends, and I was surprised at how many people followed my progress every day. Thank you all for the prayers, and cheers, and congrats. Despite the above paragraph, I truly appreciate everyone that cheered me on or sent a text or a high five. I didn’t really want a stage or an audience for my half-brained underground adventure challenge, but my hope is that someone has found inspiration from this. Maybe the inspiration is to challenge yourself. Maybe it is to avoid big lakes on stormy days. Maybe it is to just get out there. Whatever the takeaway is, I urge you to dream of grandiose things, because you may not know where your limits actually lie.