Three Reasons Why

Why did you decide to hike the Pacific Crest Trail?

Here are my top three reasons. There’s at least one more, but I’ll leave that for another post.

1. I only became aware of the existence of the PCT in 2018. I’d hiked a few sections over the years and I’d seen trail markers, but I never gave them much thought. The idea of hiking the entire PCT naturally followed, but I dismissed it. Putting normal life on hold for several months seemed impractical due to commitments like having a job, mortgage, etc. Still, I couldn’t resist watching the thru-hiking videos on YouTube. The idea really began to take hold following a conversation with a hitchhiker. She suggested that I might ultimately regret giving up on the idea of hiking the PCT. The “not-practical” rebuttal seemed weak in comparison.
2. Not long after that conversation, and with my standard two-week vacation at an end, I was back at work. My employer announced some structural changes. These changes significantly increased the chance that I would no longer have a job by late 2019. It was almost as if fate had intervened in order to make the “not-practical” argument irrelevant. I decided that by the end of the financial year, August 2019, I would quit. And so I did. I also sold my house.
3. Several years ago, I tore the ACL in my left knee while playing indoor soccer. I had to put all activities on hold: no running, no hiking, no skiing. The program of physical therapy lasted for almost a year. Eventually the knee recovered and normal life resumed. Last year, I noticed that my left knee was making its presence felt once again. Only when I run, and even then, only for the first mile or so. Given that my window of opportunity may be closing, I should thru-hike the PCT sooner rather than later.

Why do you want to be a Trek blogger?

Once I’d made the decision to quit, my motivation at work quickly became an issue. There didn’t seem much point in trying to exceed expectations given that I no longer had a future at the company. Coincidentally, my Google suggestions started to consist of an entirely new set of websites. So you’re interested in thru-hiking? How about the FIRE movement? Tiny houses? Van life? Buried in the deluge of new information were links to The Trek. This discovery would prove to be priceless: pure escapism while I served the remainder of my time.

Every lunchtime, I would sit alone with my eyes glued to my phone while reading another handful of blog posts. I was instantly transported from a cafeteria in corporate America to a bone-dry arroyo or a snowy mountain pass. Dragging myself back to reality and looking around the cafeteria, I made a mental note of all the other solo diners with a phone fixation. How many of them wished to be on trail rather than stuck behind a desk? How many of them were counting down the weeks? My point is this: The Trek bloggers helped me immensely. I’d like to return the favor.