Saying Goodbye Is Never Easy

Pacific Crest Trail day one is quickly approaching as my checklist becomes smaller with each passing day. A list of items that seemed to grow endlessly for months now dwindles toward zero.

In the past couple of weeks, I have checked off a few of these items:

–Quit my job.

–Had nine inches of my hair cut off.

–Cleaned our entire apartment from top to bottom.

–Donated several boxes of things that we just didn’t need any longer.

–Said goodbye to our family and friends. Many tears. 

–Said goodbye to our cat, Pi. Way too many tears. 

I am more than ready for our hike, but there have been many feelings of nervousness, self-doubt, and anxiety.  I hear these feelings are normal, but it doesn’t seem to end the constant back-and-forth between excitement and nerves

I think part of the difference between pre-PCT and pre-AT is the circumstances of our life back home. Leaving a career vs. quitting a job, leaving our apartment vs. packing up a room in my sister’s house. Really, just more responsibilities vs. less.

It never gets easier leaving behind family and friends no matter how many times you thru-hike.

Looking ahead to Campo, we can only imagine what emotions will flow when we finally see that monument up close. Our packs are ready and our minds are set. We’re ready to head west… and then north for 2,650 miles.

I plan to blog  on The Trek about once a week after we hit the trail. 

If you’re interested in more frequent updates, follow my Instagram @dirigohike and Miles’ @hiking_miles.