It was a trip he has envisioned since the age of 6, a journey that would mold him into a new man.

Jared Haradon, 24, of Ball Ground, recently completed the Appalachian Trail, hiking more than 2,100 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mt. Katahdin in Maine.

“I actually planned this trip when I was 6 years old; I wrote it on a goal sheet in kindergarten,” he said.

Haradon, a 2005 graduate of Cherokee High School, said after completing college and starting his career, he quickly watched as his dream faded.

“I didn’t think I would be able to do it,” he said, noting that things changed roughly eight months ago when future plans took a turn in a different direction. “I was supposed to get married, but that didn’t happen, so I took my money and planned (the hike) in pretty much two months.”

Special Jared Haradon, 24, of Ball Ground, stands along the Appalachian Trail in the early part of his hike. He hiked more than 2,100 miles between April 9 and Oct. 8, and lost 70 pounds along the way.

Haradon said he quit his job and headed for the Appalachian Trail. His journey began April 9 and ended Oct. 8.

“For people my age, sometimes there isn’t a lot of hope for the future because if people aren’t retiring there isn’t a way to move up in a career,” he said. “When I was out there, it was like a huge reset for me, and that’s what I needed. It was like starting life all over again.”

During his six-month hike along the Appalachian Trail, Haradon toted supplies and slept where he could find shelter.

“I did sleep in a tent for a majority of the trip, but there was a period where I actually did not have it,” he said. “My tent flooded and ripped wide open.”

Instead of turning around or seeking shelter in a resting area, Haradon said he purchased a tarp and converted it into a tent. While the makeshift tent worked, the flooding was not Haradon’s first run-in with extreme weather.

“I was in Hurricane Irene; actually, the eye passed right over me,” he said, adding that he had made it to New York by the time the storm made landfall. “It flooded everywhere up there.”

Haradon said due to the rain, he had to walk barefoot through a two-mile stretch in Connecticut.

“There was a group of us by that time. We had to walk the entire stretch with water up to our waste,” he said. “We were right next to the river the whole way, and it was just flooded.”

He also experienced the earthquake that rumbled parts of Virginia, as well as the recent tornados that came across North Georgia through Tuscaloosa, Ala.

“There was another batch of tornados that hit when I was in Virginia,” he added. “I was a little bit away from that, but it was still horrible weather.”

Inclement weather was not the only risky element to the trip, as Haradon said he encountered wild boars, rattlesnakes and many bears.

“I was in the Shenandoah Mountains watching a cub shimming up a tree. I heard the people behind me yell my name and when I looked up, the mama bear was charging me,” he said, adding that he froze. “I didn’t know what to do. She got within 10 feet of me, stood on her hind legs and bolted the other way.”

In addition to battling nature, Haradon suffered from illnesses, including heat exhaustion, hypothermia and walking pneumonia.

“It was non-stop hiking except for 14 days because I got walking pneumonia in Harrisonburg (Va.),” he said. “I got into town, and the guy that brought me in told me about a doctor.”

It was then Haradon said he encountered compassion.

“I was actually staying across town, and she (the doctor) came and picked me up, brought me to her office, treated me and took me back to the hotel,” he said. “I thought that was pretty amazing because she was busy.”

Although Haradon contemplated heading back to Ball Ground because he was so sick, he persevered through the illness and continued his hike.

“I had only 1,600 more miles to go,” he said, noting that a childhood friend pushed him forward in his journey. “He inspired me to keep going, and I stayed with it.”

Haradon said he was able to keep in touch with his loved ones through a cell phone he carried, but he only could charge it every so often, limiting the time he was able to call home.

After accomplishing his childhood goal, Haradon said he hopes to plan another trip.

“I am saving up for the next big adventure,” he said. “I either want to do this again or go on a rafting trip down the Mississippi River, starting in Canada.”

He hopes to complete future trips with three friends he met during the Appalachian Trail hike.

“We became real close. We took care of each other, watched out for each other and made sure everyone had enough to eat,” he said of the bond they formed.