Adventures in Thru Hiking on the Pacific Crest Trail

My first thru hike was the Pacific Crest Trail which goes from Mexico to Canada through California, Oregon and Washington.  The trail is roughly 2,700 miles through the Southern California Desert, the Sierra Nevada mountain range and the Northern Cascades.  I often get asked why I thru hike.  The answer, thru hiking is the definition of true freedom in my mind.  It is a million different smiles and a million different tears, it is hiking to the top of a mountain and seeing the most incredible sunset, absorbing all that is ahead of you, but never forgetting what is behind you.   I completed the trail with my husband in 2007.  It was a physical, mental and emotional test that was truly life altering.  I published a book called Light Hearts and Heavy Packs, a reflection of our journey across the country.

Thru hiking challenged me physically, mentally and emotionally and allowed me create a deeper connection with nature, myself and my husband. I fell in love with the trail and all that it entails. The scenery, the people, the places, getting lost, the stories, the laughs, waking each morning to a new day, setting up a new home each night and sleeping beneath a blanket of the most incredible stars...never wishing to be anywhere else but right there in that moment.

To tell you it was all great and there were never any tears would be a lie but when it s all said and done, I would pack my things tomorrow and head right back out there. It is a sense of freedom that not many experience, it is being one with the things around you and realizing that we are a very tiny part of this incredibly large world. It gets in your blood and makes you thirst for more. It is freedom and beauty in every sense of the word. It is hiking to the highest peak and looking at what s before you but never forgetting what s behind. It is a million different smiles and a million different tears, blisters and mosquitoes and the most unimaginable sunsets, raging rivers and desert skies. It is the trail; it will live in me forever. I cannot honestly say that there is a single day that goes by that I don t think about being on the trail. It is a feeling you cannot fully understand until you've been there.

There are many important elements that make up a hike whether it be long distance trails, day trips, camping trips, etc.  I choose to go into each adventure with an open mind and a willingness to learn and accept those things you cannot change, such as Mother Nature!  

Lesli has extensive outdoor experience. She has been a guide in Yosemite National Park and has hiked from Mexico to Canada twice! She is eager to share her love and knowledge of backpacking, thru hiking, camping, proper gear, navigation and more.

You can find out more by visiting http://thruhikes.blogspot.com/