December 2010 - Allegheny West Magazine

Jennifer Britton’s boots really were made for walking, andwalk she did, from Philadelphia to North Fayette township.But she wasn’t the only one wearing boots on the 466-miletrek. Geronimo, an American mustang who accompaniedher on the journey, also wore boots made just for horses. Why walkacross the state with a horse, you wonder?“I wanted to do some kind of nutty walk and I thought taking ahorse along would make it more of an adventure,” says Jen, a formerNorth Fayette resident and a 1987 graduate of Bishop Canevin HighSchoolIt all started with a pesky little knee injury that doctors just couldn’tdiagnose. Jen, a lifelong outdoors enthusiast, began walking severalmiles a day to test whether new therapies were working. She hiked upto 30 miles at a time and discovered a love for photography. After adiagnosis of arthritis and a temporary cure of synthetic joint fluidinjections, an old idea to bike across the state evolved into a foot-trekTHIS PAGE: Jen Britton, Geronimo, friends andfamily make their way down Steubenville Pike to herparent’s home; family and friends with Jen andGeronimo; Wilson Elementary students Ben Reno,front, and Bobby Zysk, back, get acquainted; Jenand Geronimo in front of the historic Wilson LogHouse.62 Allegheny West Magazine December 2010