HIKE DIARY
Backpacking & thru-hiking
is not always blissful
Joy is a Practice
Joy is not about the absence of difficulties. It’s a practice to keep our eyes open to the many small miracles that happen all around us, all the time.
NM: Water Cache #5 to Lordsburg, 6 miles
It’s a short six miles to Lordsburg climbing down an escarpment towards food and a shower.
NM: Hwy 113 to past Water Cache #5, 22 miles
The day is mostly flat with cows following me. At the end, I climb up to a high saddle with views of the surrounding desert and set my camp.
NM: Big Hatchett Road to random camp near Water Cache #3, 27 miles
It’s a long day through fields of California Poppies and numerous water sources, up to a high desert overlook and finally a perfect campsite in a wash.
NM: Thompson Canyon to random camp near Little Hatchett Mountains Road, 15 miles
It’s an unseasonably and dangerously hot day, so I make it a shorter one, taking a siesta under a sign before cowgirl camping with a view of the Hatchett Mountains.
NM: Crazy Cook to Thomson Canyon, 17 miles
The start of the Continental Divide requires a permit, plus a long shuttle ride to the border then easy hiking through desert wildflowers and in a wash ending with a magical night in the open.
Florida Panhandle East: Hillcrest Baptist Church to US 319, 66 miles
The most difficult mile of the Florida Trail is Bradwell Bay, a low-lying Titi Swamp in the Apilachicola Forest. Water can get chest-high with mud pits that won’t let go.
Florida Panhandle East: DeFuniak Springs to Hillcrest Baptist Church, 51 miles
This section takes the hiker through beautiful Nokuse Plantation and the Econfina Wildlife Management Area, with excellent water sources and lovely forests.
Florida Panhandle West: Navarre to DeFuniak Springs, 39 miles
The trail enters a forest of turkey oak and long-needled pine after Navarre Beach. The creeks run clear and flowers begin to bloom in early spring.
Gulf Islands National Seashore: Northern Terminus to Navarre Beach, 27 miles
The first 30-ish miles of the Florida Trail heading east from the terminus is on pristine and protected white sand beach with a few excellent restaurants and accommodation in between.
Great Himalaya Trail
This fall, I’ll begin walking a section of the Great Himalayan Trail which follows “the highest feasible route” through Nepal.
Canada’s Great Divide Trail
Thru-hiking the Great Divide Trail was one of the singular experiences of my life. Brutally difficult but deeply satisfying.