by Joe O'Donnell. I #hikeOctober because in nature, there isn’t stigma, the need to covering up mental illness and emotional pain. Nature itself provides some healing, but so do the people you meet walking and reflections and insights you have along the way. This was my experience in 2015, when I completed an Appalachian Trail thru-hike fundraising for HIKE for Mental Health. I haven’t done anything nearly as big since, but I carry with me the lessons I learned from that experience.