Dedicated trail hikers, from left, Richard Morgan of McArthur, Bruce “Poppy” Purdy of Grove City, and Robert Leon of Elyria, traipse along the Batavia Township portion of the Buckeye Trail.
Despite the unusually cold temperatures for the last day of March, three dedicated hikers pulled gear out of their cars, bundled up and prepared to complete the Batavia to Milford portion of the Buckeye Trail.

The hikers, Bruce “Poppy” Purdy of Grove City, Richard Morgan of McArthur and Robert Leon of Elyria are dedicated. They have all completed almost half, or more than half, of the 1,444 mile Buckeye Trail that loops the state of Ohio and connects its four corners.

“We’ll be out for about three days,” said Morgan about their hike. “We’ll complete a good portion in this area today.”

The trio hiked from Batavia to Milford March 31 where they dropped off Purdy’s car. They drove to the park office in East Fork State Park and then hiked back to Batavia and spent April 1-2 at East Fork State Park. Both Purdy and Morgan are at about the halfway point, and Leon has completed close to three-fourths of the Buckeye Trail.

“I am just doing what I wanted to do when I was young,” said Morgan. “But work and life got in the way.”

Morgan, Purdy and Leon all pursued hiking later in life. Leon retired and hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2004 and Purdy said he started hiking in 2008 and discovered the Buckeye Trail in 2009 with a Boy Scout group.

Morgan also said that hiking the trail was a way of pushing himself, and all three hikers agreed that health benefits were a major reason they pursued the trial.

“I started for health,” Purdy said. “I took a physical test that said I was 72 years old. Now I am 42, and I feel like it.”

All three men have been working toward completing the Buckeye Trail for over two years. The trail, which is the only long distance hiking trail in the state of Ohio, traverses over 40 of Ohio’s 88 counties. Purdy said it is currently the longest loop trail until proven otherwise. Purdy, Morgan and Leon are all members of the Buckeye Trail Association, and became hiking buddies as a result.

“The main purpose, other than personal,” Purdy said about hiking the trail, “Is our association does trail maintenance. Saturday we are meeting up with a group of people to clean up some of the winter damage.”

Other than maintenance, the volunteer-only association provides trail maps and information, hosts events and works to both preserve existing trails and create new trails. Purdy also said the trail gives hikers a taste of Ohio’s history. The trail features caves, gorges, national parks, valleys and other landmarks.

“Plus, what better way to see your country than by hiking it.” Leon said.