Gene Butcher

A Hiker's Pathway to the Triple Crown Gene Butcher

This book explains the physical challenges of the author, a retired US Army veteran, who teamed up with his friend, a retired US Marine veteran, to help raise a million dollars for following organizations: Shriners Crippled Children's Hospital in Hawaii, www. SunshineFoundation.org, www. SemperFiFund .org, www. WoundedWarriorProject.org, www. ChallengedAthletes.org, www. Rotary.org, www. JimmyV.org, www/TeamBT.org, www. DowntownHonoluluRotary.org and the Pancreatic Cancer Fund. The author raised funds for these worthy endeavors by hiking the Appalachian Trail, the Pacific Crest Trail and the Continental Divide Trail that started in 1990 and finished in 2012. While the author was hiking these trails, his marine friend was running hundreds of marathons and ultra marathons and ran across America, first east to west, then, west to east, and finally south to north. Between the two veterans, the miles they accumulated would have circled the globe. The first fundraiser was for the author was the Shriners' Crippled Children's Hospital in Hawaii. The second fundraiser was for the Sunshine Foundation, a non-profit organization that grants dreams and wishes for chronically and terminally ill, physically challenged and abused children. This book primarily describes the physical, mental and emotional challenges of hiking the three major National Scenic Trails listed above. The author began the 8,000 plus miles of hiking at the age of 47 and completed the last trail at the age of 69. The reader will learn how persistence helped him achieve his goal despite extreme weather conditions, elevations as high as 14,494 feet, a hospital stay, many muscle strains, beginning with a 70 plus pound back pack, tragedy on the trail, and a death in his family. This is a book for serious hikers to make aware of many perils they too could encounter hiking these three National Scenic Trails, and other long distance trails.