September 9, 2004

The Great American Journey comes
to an end for Almaden woman

By Kymberli W. Brady
Staff Writer

Journey’s end. Shown from left, Dellie Chapman, Ronni Schoch, JoAn Thomas, and Dave Hanush celebrating the end of the Great American Journey with original team members Lyn Hanush, Joan Balog, and Cassie.

Exactly one year, two months and 11 days after leaving the Peace Arch in Blaine, Wash., Almaden’s Joan Balog, along with her dog Cassie and longtime friend Lyn Hanush reached their destination in Key West, Fla. on July 23 at 3 p.m.—bringing the Great American Journey to an end. The memories however, will last a lifetime.

“When we reached the end, Lyn and I couldn’t believe we had finished it,” exclaimed 66-year old Balog. “We just stood there pinching ourselves.”

The purpose of the Great American Journey was to pray for the nation—one town at a time. As they ventured from one to the next, the team left behind memorial stones—488 markers—that now dot the country’s landscape from corner to corner as a reminder of their prayers.

Between them, the women logged 8,503,968 steps over 4,026.5 miles during their 438-day journey through 15 states, well documented by the 30,000 pictures they took along the way.

Despite blisters, setbacks, injuries, and equipment failures, the trip, according to Balog, has been an incredible adventure—one filled with great people and even greater stories.

“It was far more difficult than I ever imagined it would be,” she admitted. “But we did it. I wouldn’t have missed it for anything.”

Two books filled with names return home with them—one for those in the military and another for people requesting prayers. Each night, Balog and Hanush would call out the names from a page and pray for them before settling in.

“It was very rewarding in that people were asking me to pray for them,” said Balog. “Although we’ll never know what happened to them, we continue to pray for them every night.”

Along the way, friends would join the team for a week or two, including Balog’s twin brother John, who flew to Miami from England to tackle Florida with them. The former marathon runner lasted nearly 100 miles before heading back home, claiming that the trek was the most difficult thing he had ever done.

During the last two weeks, four more friends joined the journey from as far away as Australia and Canada. Together, they reached the southern most tip of the U.S. just two weeks before it was washed out by the season’s first hurricane.

Although they have logged enough miles to last a lifetime, Balog and Cassie are glad to be back home and settling into the routine they left behind over a year ago, including daily hikes into the Quicksilver hills.

“Sometimes I can’t believe it’s over,” she said. “I’m not sure I’ll ever do it again. And yet, Lyn is now talking about walking from Florida to Maine. Who knows, maybe I might go with her.”

For complete updates on Balog and The Great American Journey, including daily journals, media coverage, and many of the 30,000 pictures taken along the way, log on to http://www.greatamericajourney.com/.