I decided the other day that since I’ve spent decades donating blood, I should see what it’s like to receive some blood. I was near Great Barrington, Massachusetts on 3 August, and there was a hospital nearby, so I figured “What the heck!”

Tranfusion bag in hospital

That, and I was pretty severely anemic (hemoglobin level of 6.5) so I really needed the 2 units of blood they transfused into me. Turns out I have “a few superficial ulcers” that were sneaking blood out of my circulatory system without my permission.

Well, no wonder I was having trouble hiking up hills the last couple weeks!

The whole story is more complicated than that, of course, but I give my wife full credit for basically saving my life. If she hadn’t convinced me to get checked out at a hospital, I would likely have kept on keeping on until I collapsed by the side of the Trail someplace.

And so, though the blood bag is no longer suspended over me, the hike has been suspended for the time being. We are home. I will be in my doctor’s office on Monday morning. After we figure out what the recovery trajectory is, we will figure out how and when to continue and finish my hike.

At this point, I’ve hiked roughly 1,522 miles and have about 667 left to walk. Piece of cake!

13 thoughts on “Suspended”

  4. Hopefully, you’re on the mend. The Trail isn’t going anywhere so I’m sure you’ll finish your hike sometime. Get well soon!

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  6. Alright Ann!!! And yeah Kurt for listening to her! Hope you get better soon! There have been some developments at work, so if you’d like to come back early, I’m sure that would be fine. I also like Mike’s idea (above) about starting to work on your photo essay or book.

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  7. Kurt,

    Glad you got treated before it got worse. Rest and get better. Sorry I missed you when you passed thru Duncannon.

    Rosemary

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  8. Kurt,
    Your frequent updates are often the highlight of my mornings. I did wonder at some point last week why we hadn’t gotten any updates and hoped everything was okay…and I’m glad to hear that all is well! I hope you continue to recover and are back on the Trail soon.

    Dawn

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    1. As someone who has had experience with “sneaky” medical problems, and who has a medically astute wife, I sympathize with your situation and hope you recover soon. You appear to be ahead in the hike for a September or early October finish if you can and want to finish. I hear there are laggards still passing through Harper’s Ferry. Also heard that the record time is 41 days or so by a trail runner (which seems impossible; I need to verify!). Take care, John G.

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      1. Some marathoner-trail-running dude did it in 46 days, 8 hours, 7 minutes. Take care, John G.

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  10. Sorry to hear about your “delay”, Kurt–and just as you were getting near my neighborhood! Great Barrington is a “short” half hour drive south of where I am in Pittsfield, OR, at least a full day’s hike, if you’re going by Trail. But very glad you listened to Ann and got the medical attention you needed! Speedy recovery to you, and you’ll want to get back to it before the snow starts flying…or wait ’til spring. Godspeed!

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  11. If your schedule (and recovery) permit, you could flip-flop and hike south from Mt. Katahdin to Great Barrington; that way, you could avoid the weather closing deadline for Mt. Katahdin in October and still complete the through-hike. Just a reminder. I’m pretty sure you’ve thought of this option. Like Moby Dick, the White Mountains beckon.

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