Photo provided by George Throop.
In September 2009, George Throop quit his job and, with the little savings he had, began to walk across America. He didn’t plan to take four years doing it, but by the time he arrived in Washington D.C. he had walked farther and learned more about himself and others than he originally envisioned.
His route began in Washington State, went south through Oregon and California, then turning east and heading across the warmer southern states. He originally planned to walk 20 miles per day, six days per week, but quickly found that this amount of daily effort was neither sustainable nor practical. He almost gave up on the project before he left the state of Oregon where blisters, rain, and wind, dogged him for days. A group of bikers saved him, so-to-speak, by offering some tips on the route to take.
When he started out, he knew his savings would not take him the entire way. He had planned to camp out most of the time but spent 95% of the trip in the pleasant company of strangers. Although he never asked for money, people gave him a few bucks here and there, offered him a meal or two or more, and took him into their homes. He would amble into a town, a curiosity to the locals who wanted to know why he was doing it.
His desire to live a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness about the importance of a good diet, exercise, and stress management had its roots in family. At the age of 9, he had lost his 33-year-old mother to cancer. The saying, “genes load the gun but lifestyle pulls the trigger” came true. His walk was a form of activism.
Early in his journey, George came home to Washington State twice to attend the funerals of his grandparents. After some time off, he headed back to pick up the route. He spent a memorable 11 days with a ranching family in Gulfway, Texas where he learned that people are more similar than one might think. “Humanity is the common denominator,” he remarked thoughtfully. “We sometimes inflate our differences.”
When asked if he had a favorite place, Mr. Throop said the Redwoods were it. He loved every place and every part of the trip with the exception of walking past smoky oil refineries in Texas.
He got some publicity along the way and was interviewed by the CNN affiliate in Atlanta. The interview and more of his story can be seen on his Web site, www.enjoythewalk.org.