A Real Appalachian Trail Story: Gorgi Rigby's Comeback

In 2021, Gorgi Rigby set out to hike the Appalachian Trail again — this time with her sister Melanie, on Melanie's first trip to the trail. For Gorgi, though, this wasn't her first attempt.

Where It Started: 2016

Gorgi's first try was in June 2016, hiking with her son. They started in Maine, aiming to through-hike all the way to Georgia and finish by Thanksgiving. Her son planned to hike the first few weeks with her before she continued on alone.

The Injury

Just 10 days into the hike, Gorgi tripped over a large root and broke her leg in two places — five miles from the nearest dirt logging road. She splinted the break with duct tape, and her son carried her pack the rest of the way. It took 11 hours of hiking in what she described as pure agony to reach the road, and another full day after that to reach a hospital.

Getting Back on the Trail

A broken leg didn't end Gorgi's dream of finishing the trail. Once she'd recovered, she returned for section hikes in 2017, 2018, and 2019, steadily working through more of the route. By the time she and Melanie set out together in 2021, she had completed 400 of the trail's 2,200 miles — with their shared goal for that trip being to finish the Maine section, packs full of freeze-dried food for the journey.

More on This Story and Hiking With a Freeze Dryer

Getting ready for the Appalachian Trail covers how Gorgi and Melanie prepared for this same 2021 hike, and why every hiker needs a home freeze dryer explains more of what makes freeze-dried food work so well for long-distance trips like theirs.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much of the Appalachian Trail did Gorgi Rigby complete?
As of her 2021 hike with her sister Melanie, Gorgi had completed 400 of the Appalachian Trail's roughly 2,200 miles, hiked in sections across multiple years after recovering from a broken leg on her first attempt.

What happened on Gorgi's first Appalachian Trail attempt?
In 2016, ten days into a planned through-hike, she broke her leg in two places after tripping over a root, five miles from the nearest road. She splinted it with duct tape and hiked out over 11 hours before reaching medical care the following day.

Did the injury stop her from hiking the trail?
No — after recovering, she returned for section hikes in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and continued working toward finishing the trail in the years that followed.