He hiked a little as a kid and adult, but now, he's a beat-up 48-year-old, who's had numerous surgeries on his knees, shoulders and neck.

He's also called got diabetes, but John Robb is not letting any of that stop him.

“The total game plan includes all eight National Scenic trails,” John said. “That's more than 15,000 miles and I become the first guy to do it all for charity.”

John's potentially historic trekking sojourn begins at the south end of the Appalachian trail in Georgia

He hopes to traipse northward through 14 states and 2,179 miles all the way to Katahdin, Maine, which is the tallest mountain in the Pine Tree State.

One step at a time, John intends to raise money for Gilda's Club North Texas---a refuge for cancer patients and their families, and how it's helped a friend named Ruth, who is battling brain cancer.

“I kind of felt helpless, just watching and seeing all she has to go through, and so I wanted to do something to honor her,” he said.

If all goes as planned, John should emerge from the top end of the Appalachian Trail around the first of October.

If --that is-- his diabetes, five knee surgeries, two shoulder surgeries, an elbow reconstruction and two cervical neck fusions hold up.

“I'm ready,” John said eagerly. “Let's just get started and go hike.”