“Pepperpot”, 1st Guyanese to complete Appalachian Trail

On August 3, 2018, at 09:30h, Gordon Yhap, 59, became the first Guyanese to complete the 3326 kilometre (2190.9 mile) Appalachian Trail.

The Appalachian Trail (AT) is a hiking trail that begins at Springer Mountain in Georgia and extends to Mt Katahdin in Maine. The AT passes through 14 states, almost entirely in wilderness, running along the ridgeline of the Appalachian Mountains.
The trail is very strenuous, gaining and losing over 150,000 metres in elevation and crossing hundreds of mountains, the highest of which is Clingman’s Dome (2026 metres) in Tennessee.
Yhap and his wife, Carolyn, began the hike on February 14, and hiked through severe conditions including snow, hail, sleet, and thunderstorms.
They camped almost every night, only coming off the trail and into a town about once a week to resupply, shower, and wash clothes. Although over 3000 people begin the AT hike each year, approximately only 10 per cent to 20 per cent complete it due to injuries and other issues.
Yhap, whose trail name was “Pepperpot”, said that the hike was worth the effort, “…since we experienced incredible views from the mountains, observed many captivating forest animals and birds, and met interesting people from around the world”.
Yhap and his wife also lost substantial weight during the hike, since long-distance hikers typically burn about 5500 calories per day.
The couple have family on West Coast Demerara, including Yhap’s mother who was born in the Northwest region and now resides with her daughters and grandchildren in De Kendren.
The Yhaps plan to hike the Pacific Crest Trail, which extends from Mexico to Canada, in 2019.