Anticipating the PCT: Navigating Pre-Hike Blues

Lots of people talk about life after the trail and how it can be difficult to re-integrate after those few months in nature. Apparently, it is common for thru-hikers to struggle with “post-trail depression.” While everybody talks about how you might feel after, I’ll start my thru-hike in a few months, and I find myself struggling with an overflow of excitement and extreme impatience to hit the trail. It’s a weird struggle. I have to admit that it is a luxury problem because not everyone has the possibility to go on a thru-hike. I am grateful, but still, this feeling kind of sucks.

Deciding to go on a thru-hike is not something you decide to do at the last minute. Logistically, it would be very difficult. Thru-hiking is a big commitment in time and money, and so it requires some preparation. Just getting the permits and the visa (if you are a foreigner) takes some planning. (Here is what I wish I had known before)

I’ve been on a lot of crazy adventures but never done a 5-month hike before. It was February 2023 when my wife and I decided to do the PCT. After some research into the optimal hiking season, we landed on the plan to kick off our journey, NOBO, in spring 2024. That gave us a little over a year to plan and organize.

Things got real; I started in-depth research about the PCT, and my excitement levels shot through the roof. I fell into the rabbit hole; I read hundreds of blogs, checked gazillions of gear lists, compared the weight of every single item, read thousands of reviews, watched hours of YouTube videos, etc. I dreamed about it at night and thought about it during the day. Yes, it became quite an obsession. 

Waiting for the PCT

I was very excited and happy, but every time, at the peak of my excitement, I got slapped in the face while counting the months left before getting on the trail. Waiting was brutal! It felt like being a kid eagerly waiting for Christmas in the middle of January. The anticipation is stretching time, and impatience is real.

I went on this cycle of excitement and sadness. The desire to hit the trail was so intense that my current goals started to feel less compelling. I was confused because I love my nomadic life, and I am very fulfilled with my business and in my relationship. But somehow, I unconsciously started creating the belief that “my life will be better once I’m hiking.”

Aliveness is a commitment I made to myself after nearly dying a few years ago in a deadly tsunami (yeah, as crazy as it sounds!). And for sure, during a thru-hike, you feel alive! But the anticipation of walking the PCT took over the joy of living in the moment.

It becomes dangerous when you think, “Life will be better when .” Constantly living with the hope of a better life makes you never truly content and in constant lack.

The problem is that when you live in lack, you never allow yourself to fully enjoy because you always think that there is more. It makes you less appreciative and, ultimately, less happy.

Unpacking the obsession

During those eight years of traveling around the world, lots of people asked me if I was trying to leave something behind or escape something. I never really felt that way. I don’t run away from anything; I am running toward experiencing life to the fullest.

Still, I had to ask myself: Why am I becoming obsessed with the PCT? Am I running away from something? 

I mean, we all have issues and challenges we are dealing with. That’s just part of life. And isolating yourself in the mountains for a while can feel like a relief. Don’t tell me that thought never crossed your mind! Five months of pure freedom, no obligations, doing what the heck you want, wearing what you want, eating whatever you want, and basically being the unapologetic version of yourself. It’s like a sabbatical from adulthood!

Although those reasons are very appealing, hiking doesn’t solve the problems in our lives; it just puts them on pause for a while. We might be better equipped to face them afterward with the transformation that we go through while thru-hiking, but no matter what, our problems will be waiting for us at the terminus.

Overcoming pre-hike blues

Feeling sad or purposeless before undertaking a potentially life-changing adventure is normal, I guess. The period between making the decision to embark on a thru-hike and actually hitting the trail seems like a long transition. The trail, in essence, is a transition. Just like life itself.

The last thing I want is to experience sadness on three fronts: the anticipation before starting, the realization that it’s nearly over during the hike, and the melancholy that it’s already in the past after reaching the terminus. That would be a pity!

The countdown to the PCT has been a rollercoaster of excitement, impatience, and some introspection. We can always use our feelings as a reminder:  whether waiting for the trail or hiking it, we should focus on being fully present because that’s the only thing we truly have.

The trail awaits, and so does the joy of living in the moment!

PS: …I’m still counting the days!