Rharold - Pacific Crest Trail Journal - 2011

Life after the PCT

Hey.

So those of you who have read my journal, know that it just stops a week prior to the Canadian border. The rain and exhaustion of the final push was not conducive to journal entries. Well, the good news is I made it! I got to the northern monument on October 2nd with 10 of my wonderful friends I met along the way. It was truly a bittersweet moment, seeing as the trip was over, and the adventure almost completely finished. I still had 450 miles to do in SoCal that I skipped at the beginning due to a late start.

On October 15 I headed back down to Agua Dulce to head SoBo to the Mexican Border. This would solidify my thru hiking status. Thorny the Escalator, and Hot Cheese put me up for a night and drove me to the trailhead. I was glad to see those cats once again. After saying hey to Donna Saufley, I proceeded to walk 30 miles a day for the next 15 days. I was rolling solo, but I had plenty of miles under my belt to not feel too worried about it. I finished my thru hike at the southern terminus on October 30th 2011.

Now it's been about as long of a time off trail as it had been on trail. I must say I think about the trail everyday. The simplicity of life out there can not be matched back in civilization. As I'm back home in Rocklin CA, I've been figuring out what the heck I'm going to do with my life. My time in this homogenous, middle class suburb has made it clear as to what I want in my life...adventure. Life is just too plain and comfortable around here.

In the beginning of May I'm going to drive 3500 miles to Kodiak AK with a couple friends to work on a commercial salmon fishing boat in AK. When I return in September, I'm going to travel Australia/SE Asia until Christmas time. Where I go from there will be decided in time to come.

Coming full circle: I read the first journal entries I wrote almost a year ago. I find it amazing how much my life changed in the last year. I had just ended a 4 year relationship with my ex girlfriend, and was learning to live life on my own. Getting busy planning my trip helped immensely in getting my mind off things. Then getting to spend 5 months in some of the most beautiful places on earth, with some of the greatest people on earth really helped me find a wonderful sense of content with myself. The trail has made it so I can't sit around and do nothing without going crazy. If I don't exercise daily, I go nuts. And I constantly yearn for adventure in my life. I look forward to the next chapters of my life, and I'm forever grateful to experience the wondrous adventure of thru hiking 2652+ miles along the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail.

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