Why am I hiking the PCT?

For those of you who are reading this to follow my journey specifically – welcome!  I’m so excited to share my story and to inspire others.  This is going to be a long and difficult pilgrimage with so many different types of challenges.  The Pacific Crest Trail goes from Mexico to Canada (or vice versa), is approximately 2650 miles, and traverses many different terrains.  The journey will take 5-6 months assuming I can hike 20-25 miles per day. I will carry about 3-4 days of food at a time and resupply at various towns and stops along the way.  All I need will be in my pack or on my person. 

There are going to be moments when I will want to quit and go home. In preparation for those moments, I have made a list of the “whys” so I can refer to them when I am feeling bereft.

I am thru-hiking the PCT because:

• I want to physically and mentally challenge myself.
• I want to grow as a human being.
• I want to be in the best shape of my life.
• I want to explore other identities other than my identity as a veterinarian.
• I don’t want to wait until retirement to have fun.
• I want to make new cherished friends.
• I have dreamed of this since high school.
• I want to gain additional backpacking experience.
• I want to learn to appreciate life even when it’s not fun.
• I want to be more comfortable with my own silence.
• Life is short.
• This is my chance to be my authentic self.
• I want to see amazing vistas and have memorable experiences.
• I want to lead by example and inspire other women to get outside.

When I successfully hike, the PCT I will:

• Have a badge of honor that I can tattoo on my other calf (my IronWoman tattoo is on the left one)
• Have some great stories to tell.
• Have bragging rights.
• Have made some new friends.
• Be completely comfortable sleeping outside.
• Be more present in the moment.
• Have this amazing sense of accomplishment for having persevered.
• Have more perspective on my current life stressors.

If I give up I will:

• Be really disappointed in myself.
• Have to tell everyone why I quit.
• Probably not have another chance until I retire (and maybe not even then).
• Have wasted all the money I spent on my gear, and wasted all that time in training
• My husband and my coworkers are sacrificing a lot so I can do this, and I owe it to them to finish.

Wish me luck!

I will need luck along with quite a lot of courage and determination to make this happen.  Do you think these reasons are enough to keep me going? Follow along to find out!