Take the job. Chances are good wherever you work will fold anyway before the hike, it's going to get bad.
There is only one person that can make the decision for you. From your post I am not sure how strong the desire is to hike the AT. Is it a really strong burn or is it "Hey that would be a fun adventure to do" ?Originally Posted by CrashnburnBiker
If it is a strong burn I would openly discuss with your employer the fact that this is a "goal" you have set in your life to accomplish. That this determination and goal setting will carry-over into your job performance when you return to the company in the fall after completing your hike. If it is a "strong" company they will be there when you get back.
If it is not a strong burn take the job - no use being out there on a cold rainy day kicking yourself in the butt for not sitting in a warm office drawing a paycheck. Also like posted earlier the trail will still be there!
"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed, is more important than any other one thing." Abraham Lincoln (1855)
Heres the only question that comes to my mind. How easy is it to find jobs right now, in your particular field. I know that I am a fine dining waiter and can work in any restaurant you put in front of me (Providing they hire me) so for me the prospect of taking 6 months off is not that scary. On the contrary, Marje is an office manager type and it is increasingly hard to find work in this field.
Have you thought of asking the supervisor what they would do if you took 6 months off? Or maybe 3? Try and do it in 2 section hikes if you have to.
On the one hand, you have to consider the financial implications. If you have a lot of debt from school, it could influence your analysis.
But if you don't have "grown-up" bills to pay yet, now might be a good time to try your hike. The freedom of being young and single should not be wasted. You will have plenty of time for jobs.
In the old days, when you took a job with a company and stayed with them your entire career, the argument to take the job was stronger. Nowadays, you are not likely to stay with the same company anyhow. You could make the argument there is a good chance you could have an opportunity to hike in the future when your company sends your job offseas. But then you might have obligations and responsibilities that keep you on a shorter leash by then.
Besides, it's not like this is your dream job you are passing on. It isn't even in your field.
I say take the job, build your resume for a few years, and respectfully and responsibly leave and take your hike. When you come back you'll have solid work experience and maybe even the hike to put on your resume. Not to mention that you'll have some money in your pocket. Maybe your boss would even give you some time off to complete the hike. If the job sucks, just leave ASAP and start walking.
At 22, I'd say get a higher degree! A masters or PhD will open doors you never thought were there. But only if you know what you want to do it in.
However, that said, I'd take the job and work for a few years. Then, when the time comes, tell them you want to take a leave of absence. Both my wife and I did that. Both companies said, yes, both even took us back when we were done. My wife declined as she wanted to do something else, but I'm super happy being back at my job.
Gotta work!
I'm inclined to say take the job. There is a good chance it won't be forever and you will get a chance to do your thru-hike very soon, and you can start doing it in sections now. Try and work your long distance hiking into your lifestyle. The experience of this job will give you something to reflect on as you hike through nature. It is perhaps the antithesis of your plans for a thru-hike, therefore I think they will go well together, in the grand scheme of things.
What do fulltime working hikers do? Tell your job, wife I going hiking for six-months see you when I returned. Wife would understand but I don’t think the job would? Do we (who are established in our career) wait until retirement and head to the hills? Yes all my vacation time I spend on the trails and I guess I could hop skip and jump my way along the AT till I finish it. Any suggestions or anyone besides (winning the lottery) has thoughts on this please let the rest of us know.
Would you be offended if I told you to
TAKE A HIKE!
CowHead
"If at first you don't succeed......Skydiving is not for you" Zen Isms
I once was lost, then I hike the trail
As you are considering your options in order to make this choice, remember that most people who start a thru hike don't finish it. If they ever go back and finish the trail they are then section hikers. Why not just plan to be a section hiker right from the start and work on hiking the AT during time off from the job?
Thats what I planned to do. Sections at a time, for the AT... except I did tell the wife when I'm 80 I'm going to the thru-hike the PCT
Would you be offended if I told you to
TAKE A HIKE!
CowHead
"If at first you don't succeed......Skydiving is not for you" Zen Isms
I once was lost, then I hike the trail
If you have no wife, no kids, and no student loan debt, take the hike...you may be sorry in latter life if you had the opportunity now and passed it up. Once the wife, kids, etc. comes along, you'll find yourself in middle age wishing you took the hike way back in '09.
Seek ye first the Kingdom of Heaven
huh?
Do the hike! You don't want to get to age 50 and be filled with regrets. Do it while you have no one but yourself to be accountable/responsible for. When you get back work on a Masters degree.
Haha, I didnt say I was gonna go starve to death in Alaska. I just meant that I can always find some kind of job, I don't need a career tying me down.
Hopefully being OVER 50 doesn't mean I can't do my thru next year
And as far as regrets I am having more fun and doing more stuff than when I was younger
"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed, is more important than any other one thing." Abraham Lincoln (1855)
Freelance.... is that an option in your industry??? I kinda make my own schedule, and choose how busy or not busy I want to be... but really the biggest benefit is slow season... which will be my hiking time
Gaiter
homepage.mac.com/thickredhair
web.mac.com/thickredhair/AT_Fall_07
you live in the united states. 'economic problems' are when the rich can't quite stuff their pockets as fast as they are used to.
what means more to you in life? going on adventures? or going on jobs?
I'm in a similar situation. I graduate in May and am wondering what to do about getting a job, should I look for one now and say I can't work until after my hike or do I just start working on say I'll hike later in life.
I know for ME, if I don't through hike now I probably won't ever. I'm with a girl that I'm going to marry some day soon, I don't have any debt, and if I don't do it now then soon I'm going to have a career (hopefully), kids, and all those other responsibilties in life. I would have to wait unitl retirement most likely and while I understand a lot of people do that, SOME people don't live until retirement, or possibly I could have bad knees or something.
The list is endless. For me, I don't care what others say. The time to do a thru is now. I understand that when I come back I'll have to answer to employers as to what I did for the last 6 months, but honestly I don't care b/c everyone is entitled to take time out of their life to do something they truly want to.
Thats the decison you have to make, is this something you truly want to do. As others have said, if you are young, have no debt, just go for it.
Hike now, jobs will be there. You may get tied down later in life and regret the missed opportunity. I guarantee a 6 month hike will be way more memorable than the first 6 months of a job.
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