FARMINGTON, Maine —
Farmington resident Briana DeSanctis, who goes by the trail name, Rocky Mountain High, stepped into the Atlantic Ocean on Jan. 1, 2022.
“I remember walking into the Atlantic Ocean just like it was yesterday," DeSanctis said.
Those steps marked the first of many in a 6,800-mile hike along the American Discovery Trail (ADT). The ADT is the longest trail in the U.S., spanning from the coast of Delaware to the coast of California.
“After I hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2015, I felt like it just wasn't enough. I felt like it wasn't long enough, and I wanted more of an experience," DeSanctis said. "I feel like I wasn't alone as much as I wanted to be on the Appalachian Trail. I didn't get that solitary experience that I had been looking for even though I met a lot of great people, and I had a great time and made all kinds of friends."
"I wanted something longer and more difficult. I wanted to be challenged and I wanted something where it was going to maybe mean something to other people,” DeSanctis added.
Now, just over two years later, Rocky Mountain High is nearly complete with her 6,800-mile journey and will be the first woman to solo-hike the American Discovery Trail.
“I'm nervous to finish. It's not what people think it is. For me, it's kind of a sad thing to be finished because I feel like I've been living this way for so long that it's going to come to an abrupt halt and my life is going to wildly change,” DeSanctis said.
Even though DeSanctis said she was looking forward to the solitude of hiking the ADT, she admitted a large part of the journey has been about the amazing people she has met along the way.
Michelle Schmiedeler from Lee Summit, Missouri, met DeSanctis at a grand opening of a coffee shop about 70 miles outside Lee Summit.
“[The owner of the shop] was so excited, she's like ‘I can't believe how many people have turned out for the grand opening.’ I was like, ‘Well I drove all the way from Lee Summit, MO,’ and I hear this voice from behind me say, ‘Well not to one-up ya’ but I walked all the way from Delaware,’ and I turned around and there's Brianna,” Schmiedeler said.
Schmiedeler is a backpacker, and she and DeSanctis become close immediately.
Byron Guy is the Ohio and Kentucky State Coordinator for the ADT and met Briana through her social media page.
“Being in the hiking community and understanding the needs and wants of a long distance through-hiker who are coming through Ohio was how I met Rocky,” Guy said. “She nicknamed me her 'Trail Dad' for helping take care of her in Ohio. We’ve got a large network of 'Trail Angels' throughout the state that help hikers from section to section.”
Nikki Allen, owner of Moondoggie LIVERie in Ohio, also noticed DeSanctis through her social media feed.
“I own a canoe kayak delivery, right... I never canoed or kayaked ever. [Briana was] like, ‘What? How do you do kayak delivery and have never kayaked? You’re going kayaking,’ and I'm like, ‘Alright!’ Yeah, so, Briana was the very first person who I ever kayaked with,” Allen said.
If you’d like to follow DeSanctis as she finishes her journey, you can follow her on her Facebook page.