The wheels are up on my flight from Chicago, Illinois to Palm Springs, California and the first leg of my summer of adventure is under way. I’m calm, likely too calm, and exceedingly ready to reaquaint myself with the rhythm of thru-hiking. In 3 hours and 50 minutes when I land in California, I’ll be meeting fellow mid-westerners, dear friends, and former roommates Nikki and Sabastian for a week of hiking on the 2,600 mile Pacific Crest Trail.

After of week or so of comraderie in the SoCal desert, I’ll make my way to New Mexico and begin my own walk from border to border on the Continental Divide Trail. The ~2,800 mile trail from Mexico to Canada should take me 4-5 months to complete. Barring (or perhaps on spite of) bears, blisters, back aches, and bad weather I aim to reach the northern terminus in mid-September, preferably before the first snow falls in Glacier.

"It's a dangerous business, going out your door. You step onto the road, and if you don't keep your feet, there's no knowing where you might be swept off to." - B. Baggins, LOTR