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A Fool of a Took
Hey, y’all! My name is Elizabeth, but my favorite people call me Pippin. I’m a thru-hiker and forester from Louisiana (cue the “flatlander” comments). In 2021, I completed my thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail that I began in 2020. This year, I am attempting a northbound thru-hike of the Pacific Crest Trail.
Ziplock pancakes courtesy of Fresh Ground. The height of luxury!
I first heard of thru-hiking as a college student when a buddy of mine set out for the AT. I’d never backpacked a single night in my life, but I knew it was for me. As graduation neared, excitement built, but a year before I was to start my attempt, I was rear-ended on my way to class. The accident left me with neck and shoulder injuries that jeopardized not only my ability to backpack, but to work in my chosen field, natural resources. Naturally, I was devastated. Through a frankly staggering amount of rehabilitation and surgical procedures, I was “better,” but my doctors warned against “strenuous activity” for the foreseeable future. Yeah, okay. Perfect.
I’m not the type who accepts when I’m told I can’t do something, so I went ahead with my plans for a 2020 thru-hike. I took a few trips before The Big One to test out my back. Smooth(ish) sailing. Sick. Let’s do this!
I think y’all know where this is going.
I was out there for less than 2 weeks before shit hit the fan. I was already scared out of my mind from the thru-hike itself, and then came the covid rumors. The rumors flying up and down the trail were terrifying. “Did you hear? They’re going to close the borders of the states.” “They’re going to arrest thru-hikers if they go through towns.” “The National Guard is being deployed!” Et cetera. Finally, the ATC advised we get off trail. This was a hard enough endeavor without this new variable. It was time to go home.
“You gotta know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em.” – Kenny Rogers
Why Pippin?
“Do you really mean to start before the break of day?” – Pippin, The Fellowship of the Ring
It’s called fashion sweetie, look it up.
During those first hundred or so miles in 2020, I distinguished myself by making amusing mistakes, much like Pippin from the Lord of the Rings. My dear friend and fellow hiker, Tintin, gave me the name that I would carry for the rest of the Appalachian Trail after a day of eating “tortilla burritos” (read: a tortilla rolled up inside another tortilla) after I ran out of fillings prematurely and a mystery allergic reaction that left me with a puffy face. Picture that scene in Hitch (2005).
Once back out there in 2021, I considered making a name change. But, like clockwork, each time that thought crept into my head, karmic justice would kick in and I’d do something foolish. About 700 miles in, I woke up in the middle of the night frantic because my sleeping pad deflated. I woke up my friend crying “It’s popped! What do I do?!” Well, reader, it wasn’t popped. I just hadn’t closed the valve.
Plus, I truly love a good pint. Pippin is here to stay.
Typical.
An Ordinary Dirtbag
I want to be clear from the start: I am not superhuman. I don’t make a habit of waking up before the sun. I don’t push consecutive 30s. I’m not ultralight. I love zeros. I still take breaks when going uphill. Hell, I’ll hide from the rain in my tent ‘til the cows come home! The reason I’m a successful thru-hiker is because I wanted to complete the trail in front of me more than I wanted to quit. That’s it!
Tallboys on tall mountains!
Zero City, Population: Pippin.
By now, you’ve probably guessed I’m a proud “smiles before miles” type. If town has beer in it, I’m going. If Trail Days is happening, I’ll get there (even if it means driving 8 hours from Delaware Water Gap). Packing in (out?) the fun is what life’s all about, so let’s get after it, shall we?
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Comments 10
You are going to freak out/love Etna CA. And you’ll be tired with a great need for a break. 2 breweries and a distillary. It’s very informative watching the thru hikers coming down and losing all that altitude in varying degrees of disrepair and neediness but facing great promise.
No, I’m not from there, but I’m in the PNW and hiking has been important to my culture and my friends. Yep, you’ll be a flatlander no more after the PCT! Any long thru hike is a test but the PCT will reward you in so many ways.
Careful of the PNW because it can snag you and change your life. Especially if you branch out and experience the Wallowas, the Selkirks and the Great Wildernesses of the Selway/Bitterroot, Bob Marshal, Selkirk and don’t even touch Utah, or Idaho Sawtooth, White Cloud, Cabineys, or Olympics – to name a few.
Mark
Hi Mark! I very much look forward to the PNW. I’ve spent a minuscule amount of time up there in the past few years and it’s only left me hungry for more. 🙂
Hi, You’re amazing! I live in South Lake Tahoe. Would love to hike some of the trail with you when you come through. Hit me up!
Great piece. Thank you and good luck.
“I want to be clear from the start: I am not superhuman. I don’t make a habit of waking up before the sun. I don’t push consecutive 30s. I’m not ultralight. I love zeros. I still take breaks when going uphill. Hell, I’ll hide from the rain in my tent ‘til the cows come home! The reason I’m a successful thru-hiker is because I wanted to complete the trail in front of me more than I wanted to quit. That’s it!”
And I love that bit above.
Cheers,
Congrats on your attitude and keep on stepping.
Bend Oregon has a whole slew of breweries that offer a beer to thru hikers. Best place to catch a ride to town is from Elk lake.
I can act the “Angel” for ya in the Jefferson, Washington, or Sisters wilderness area if I’m home when you walk through.
Best of luck
Hi Barefoot! I’m really really looking forward to Bend! I can already tell from the talk surrounding it that I will be the victim of a vortex.
I always welcome angels! Stay in touch! 🙂
Go for it, you fool of a Took!
I’ve been “pearwood” ever since I signed up on https://pearwood.deviantArt.com seventeen years ago. So pearwood I will be on the AT. (:-{D}
Blessings on your way,
Steve / pearwood
https://thetrek.co/author/steven-tryon/
Hey Pearwood! Have a blast out there. I’m rooting for ya!
Hi, Pippin. Trying to figure out whether my gf and I met you on your thru AT hike. We met a thru hiker who was from Louisiana and looked like you. We were day hiking in Connecticut on the first weekend in October at Rand’s View in Falls Village. The hiker said she had begun the day in the ravine (Sage Ravine) just over the Massachusetts line and crossed Bear Mountain. She said she would reach 700 miles that day. She wished to reach a certain restaurant in Falls Village by 330 for a hamburger. Then she put her earbuds back in and headed for that burger. Was that you? She was traveling from north to south. If it was, how did it go the rest of the way. We thought about how VA and NC could get pretty cold before she’d be done!
Hi Norman! Though your description sounds strikingly like me, I was not the hiker you met. I finished the AT in July and was hiking northbound. I hope she made it the whole way!