The World We Left Behind: A Journey From Georgia To Maine

John R. Morris, aka Morris the Cat, was at a crossroads in his life. He had a boring job, a place of his own, and a predictable life splayed out before him. By all rights, he should have been happy, no matter the tedious nature of a paycheck to paycheck lifestyle. Set adrift into the world, he began to feel more alone as life went on around him while he day dreamt of places far away and languished at the monotony of his foreseeable future.

Disillusioned by depression, he turned to alcohol to numb his feelings of worthlessness. When that didn't work out for him, he knew he needed to evolve.

John came to the realization that not only did something have to change, everything had to change. So he deconstructed. After quitting his job, he sold everything he owned and bid adieu to his friends and family, setting out on the most famous hiking trail in the country—the Appalachian Trail. From Georgia to Maine, this trail featured some of the toughest and ever-changing terrain, and John with his friend Torry in tow would take on the challenge head first.

Though the path would challenge them both in every way, "Morris the Cat" persisted. And with each challenge came adaptation. John’s encounters with life existing as a drifter for 8 months detail not only his initial blind naïveté but his unyielding determination to give meaning and understanding to a world he no longer felt a part of.

The World We Left Behind: Book One is an almost day-to-day account of the adventures and near death scenarios John and Torry would both face on and off the Appalachian Trail. Split into a three part series, the first book takes the reader to two weeks and 140+ miles into his 2013 adventure to Stecoah Gap. The second book chronicles the 700+ miles they carried on and off the Appalachian Trail, finding various means to reach their ultimate destination. The third and final book in the series chronicles the last 1,400+ miles, the lifelong friendships he made, and the incredible trail angels, dangerous and sometimes sticky situations he found himself getting into along the way.

The World We Left Behind: Book One — Now Available

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The World We Left Behind: Book Two — Now Available

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The World We Came To Find — Early 2017