Smart bets: Grandma Gatewood’s Walk

“I did it,” said Emma Gatewood on Sept. 25, 1955.  “I said I’d do it, and I’ve done it.” The 67-year-old mother of 11 and grandmother of 23 stood on top of Mount Katahdin, the 5,267-foot peak at the northern terminus of the more than 2,000-mile Appalachian Trail. Journalist Ben Montgomery’s Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail is the first and only biography dedicated to Gatewood, the grandma who walked the route three times — bringing national attention to the Appalachian Trail and spurring vital preservation efforts. Montgomery will discuss the book at Malaprop’s on Saturday, May 31, at 7 p.m. malaprops.com. Photo courtesy of the author

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About Lea McLellan
Lea McLellan is a freelance writer who likes to write stories about music, art, food, wellness and interesting locals doing interesting things.

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