I first thru-hiked the Long Trail in 2020. The original plan was the Appalachian Trail. I’d quit my job and lined everything up — but then COVID hit, and the AT’s infrastructure shut down. Hostels, shuttles, resupply points — all off the table. So, I pivoted.

I was living in New Hampshire and working at Planned Parenthood in White River Junction. The LT was right in my backyard. I figured I’d give it a shot, even though I’d never camped more than a night. It was the hardest thing I’d ever done, but I finished. At Puffer Shelter, I met someone chasing a Fastest Known Time record (FKT). That blew my mind. I didn’t even know people did that.

A year later, I hiked the Appalachian Trail. Then the Pacific Crest Trail. I started trail running, did a few ultra marathons and eventually went to nursing school. Time got tighter, so I found ways to keep trail in my life: shorter hikes, longer runs. That’s when the idea came back: Could I really do an FKT? Unsupported?

An unsupported FKT means no outside help. No pacers, no rides, no food drops. You carry everything yourself, filter your own water and hike every mile solo.

I trained for six months and returned to the trail that started it all. I didn’t feel ready, but I knew I never would. On day three, I ran out of water for 15 miles and nearly quit. On day five, I hiked through the night, sleep-deprived and limping. But I kept going.

When I reached the southern terminus, I collapsed. I’d broken the women’s unsupported record by 16 hours.

Unsupported doesn’t mean alone. I had the voices of my trail family in my head, cheering me on. They believed I could do it — long before I did.

And really, you don’t have to believe it every second. But at some point, you have to decide to believe you can do the hard thing. That was the difference for me.

Tori Constantine is a medical-surgical nurse at UVM Medical Center. She has been with us since 2025.