Stories

Our biggest whirlwind adventure yet.

Posted on: Tuesday July 30, 2019 Pacific Crest Trail Travel Canoeing Stories

I finish the AT, I go back to Alaska and I get a job, intending to put my head down and work for a few years until I have the money to go adventure again. Then Shake’nBake comes to visit and everything changes. I never learned how to listen to my body on the trail, but I did learn how to listen to my heart. It’s no secret that I fell in love on the PCT, not just with the wilderness and the mountains, but also with the man walking beside me. There’s so much red tape to keep us apart though, and I find wading through it as I try and get a visa slower and more frustrating than the hardest days on a thru hike.

How I got my trail name - Fun Size

Posted on: Sunday January 24, 2021 Hiking Pacific Crest Trail Stories

Almost every thru-hiker ends up with a trail name. Trail names are little nicknames, normally based on something unique about each hiker. Do something stupid and you’ll find it quickly becomes your trail name. It took me two hundred miles to get mine, but it was worth waiting for. I’ve kept my trail name for all of my thru-hikes, and it’s become as much a part of me as my real name.

Don't Be a Dummy: Do a Dummy Check!

Posted on: Wednesday March 3, 2021 Hiking Tips Stories

It may sound obvious to check behind you for forgotten items, but so many hikers learn the importance of the dummy check the hard way. Learn from our mistakes, and you’ll never have to replace lost gear.

Training Levels

Posted on: Tuesday March 9, 2021 Hiking Stories Winter

It’s dark when we reach the crown land at the edge of Algonquin Park. No worries, we have headlamps. We strap on our snowshoes and head to our summer spot on the edge of a gravel pit. Wind whips the treetops above, and the snow blows up, powder glittering in the beam of my headlamp. It’s only -10c, but the windchill bites through every layer I own. By the time we’ve stamped down our sleeping area, my fingers are numb.

Frontenac

Posted on: Wednesday March 24, 2021 Hiking Stories Winter

It’s a different world in Frontenac from our hike two weeks ago. The snow has melted, leaving a thin sliver of ice running down the trail. Shake’nBake and I swap our snowshoes for microspikes. My bag is full and heavy- not with food for once, but instead with all the layers I’d normally wear over my t-shirt. It’s too warm for even a sweater.

Five Year Anniversary

Posted on: Wednesday April 21, 2021 Hiking Stories Pacific Crest Trail

Five years ago today, I stood at the southern terminus of the Pacific Crest Trail, trying to choke down tears. Getting to a place in your life where you can thru-hike can be as much work as actually completing the trail, and this hike had involved years of dreaming. It didn’t hit me until I was actually at the monument that my dream was about to become a reality. Now all I had to do was walk to Canada. Hiking seemed easy in comparison to putting my life on hold for five months.