Frolicking Fool

Familiar waves of emotion wash over me. One minute I’m drowning and the next I’m floating. The pre-trail jitters are real leading up to a multiple month long journey in the wilderness, but this time it’s different. I’m attempting to thru hike the 2650 mile Pacific Crest Trail through California, Oregon and Washington. The west coast suffers from ravaging forest fires on a yearly basis. This year an epic snowpack hit California over the winter. A shift from La Niña to El Niño has meteorologists predicting a heat wave for California.

All of this makes me miss the relative predictability of the AT: it’s going to rain, rain and rain some more and you’re going to go up, down, up, down and up some more but if you have the heart and a bit of luck you’ll make it. I did the Arizona trail last year and fell in love with the desert but I was wrapping it up around this time not starting into the oppressive heat of a desert summer. I played in the mountains along the Colorado Trail last July and was battered by hail and thunderstorms but not a historic snowpack like in the Sierra Nevada this year. To top it off you gotta make it to Canada before real winter hits. The clock is ticking. If I said I wasn’t intimidated I’d be lying.

My mind is in a different place this year than the last two. Instead of a burning desire to leave home and find peace and fulfillment through adventure, I’m leaving a life full of amazing people and good times. My heart is full from recent events and connections and that makes it harder to leave. So much so that I was severely unprepared to leave and had a whirlwind of a transition from home to Southern California. Thank you to all those who were there for me throughout it. I love y’all.

Amidst all these challenges, I know I will adapt. One thing is for sure this trail will be unpredictable, challenging and dangerous at times. Audibles will be called. I’m optimistic but also realistic. This one’s going to be hard. A reoccurring theme in life is to step into fear. One day at a time I’ll figure this out, try my hardest and leave it all out there. I revived this blog because I think it’ll be an interesting year and I’m feeling inspired. I’ll take this thing one post at a time too. I look forward to being a thru hiker again and living in these wild places. We must go on.

Between town, the shuttle ride and the campsite at the southern terminus of the trail I have met the group of hikers that I’ll be starting with tomorrow. A group with a myriad of previous thru hikes, we traded trail stories and had good conversations. A campfire and a few words of wisdom from our experienced hosts at the campground to send us off. Things that warm my soul.

“just a pack of stray dogs who found headspace together… it’s good to have friends.” -My lagunitas beer can on the airplane

It all starts tomorrow.