Pre-Trail Angels

Planning a thru-hike is hard. At some points it has seemed like the hike itself can only be easier than the planning (I mean, it’s just walking). And, in my experience, planning for a thru-hike takes huge effort and a whole village. There is an African proverb that says: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” The beginning of the PCT is inherently far from the end and I could not have even gotten to the start alone – this is really just a list of people to whom I owe immense gratitude for the ways they have made getting my feet to the trail possible.

• My partner! Planning for this adventure would not have been possible without the unending support of my partner who not only bore the brunt of moving out of our beloved home, tetris-ing our treasured “can’t let go of” items into a storage unit, and listening to my incessant sleeve-tugging “have you seen this snow report?!” pleas. Years and years ago on a day hike in CA, we crossed a PCT trail sign and Matti said: “One day, I’m going to hike the whole thing.” Well, here we are.
• Our dear, dear friends who have done so much in the way of temporarily adopting our cat (now, Caribou Rodriguez-Mejia-Roberts), re-homing our various household items, providing emotional support, planning re-supply treasures without even being asked, taking us to/from REI, feeding us, loving us, offering us places for respite before/during/and after our hike. We are blessed to have a community of friends to have made this trek away from society possible and have given us so very much to miss while we’re away.
• Our loving families who have accepted packages on our behalf, given us places to rest our dirty selves, helped us plan for gear and resupplies and what-if’s, and have generously agreed to be trail angels in so many ways along our journey. Including, my very kind Uncle and Aunt who will be shuttling us to the Southern Terminus.
• Dear colleagues who not only celebrated our departure announcements but empowered us with resources and kind words and advice for our journey. Not to mention, so many cupcakes, treats, and goodies to enjoy before we survive off of Mountain House meals for months.
• The loveliest neighbors who helped us move the large pieces of furniture when we should have already been on the way to the airport.
• The kindness of strangers, including the whole staff at REI in Conshohocken, PA who not only helped us with countless gear fittings but answered inane question after inane question and at some point became true friends offering reliable advice with a vested interest in our journey.
• Previous thru-hikers who have given so much in terms of informational resources, inspiration, and support.

I am so grateful to the community that has made our PCT 2023 trip possible. We could not have made this possible without the abundant generosity, kindness, and love we have been blessed with. So, here we go – onwards, but very much not alone.