What?

I will be attempting a thru-hike of the PCT, from Campo to Manning Park, starting in late March.

Who?

Hi everyone! I am Lucia Kalkman, currently a 20-year-old student living in Eindhoven in the Netherlands. I just finished my bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering and will continue with my Master’s when I return. I will be hiking the trail together with my mom.

Why?

This is the question everyone asks when I tell them about my plan. The answer to this question starts a couple of years ago when reading a book for teenagers about a girl hiking the AT. I had never heard of long-distance trails and started to google them. I soon made up my mind that I wanted to hike such a trail, and the AT seemed nice. After some time, I told my parents about it, and surprisingly, my mom told me she would maybe like to join me. She did some googling as well and told me she would prefer the PCT over the AT.

However, I was still 16 and thought it would be a good idea to start with my study first. After that, a knee injury and Covid were in the way of hiking the PCT. This year it will finally happen! A few years back the main reason was just that it seemed like something fun to do, and I already knew I didn’t want my life to consist completely of studying and working and wanted to plan some cool thin as well. Right now, another reason is that I am looking forward to taking a break from my hectic life and slowing down for a minute (or actually half a year).

Me with my parents.