View Full Version : So many trails; so little time!
handlebar
06-15-2016, 21:03
When I retired 11 years ago, I was sure I'd have time to do everything that I'd been putting off during 38 years in the workplace. It turns out that the workplace demands on my time have been partly replaced by family obligations and the responsibility to keep our house and small piece of land in good shape. Nonetheless, I've been able to backpack over 12,000 miles these past 10 years.
While I was hiking the AT in '06, I was feeling super strong and young :sun. I'd learned of the triple crown and resolved to hike the PCT then the CDT on an every-other year schedule. That didn't work out perfectly as it took 3 "chunks" to sew up the CDT in 2010, 2011 and 2012. I had thought my wonderlust would be satisfied, but that's not the case. Part of the reason I'm still "on the trail" is that I want to keep my now "advanced middle age" body functional for another 9 years until my four grandsons are old enough to join me on a reprise of the PCT.
In the meantime, I've put together a spreadsheet entitlled "Long Distance Trail Bucket List". Next up this Sep and Oct is the NY and PA section of the North Country Trail (I feel I should do this as I'm active in a local trail maintainers chapter and have adopted a beautiful 3 mile section about 45 minutes from my home----plus there will be special recognition of 100-mile hikers on this 100th anniversary of the National Parks).
For 2017, there's the Grand Enchantment Trail in the spring and the Pacific Northwest Trail in the fall. I figure these are among the more difficult trails left on the list and I should get them behind me sooner rather than later. Treks for 2018 and beyond: OH and MI lower peninsula chunk of the NCT; MI upper peninsula, WI, MN and ND chunk of the NCT; Great Divide Trail, BMT-AT Figure 8 loop; Oachita Trail; Ice Age Trail; Pyrennes Haute Route; and Buckeye Trail non NCT portions (since I live in OH).
Am I crazy?
MuddyWaters
06-15-2016, 21:08
Stayin ahead of the grim reaper.:) sounds like a plan.
As you alluded to....your house, land, things are a drain on your limited time. Im only 49, and Im trying to get rid of things, Im tired of it.
I want less stuff, simpler life, nothing to care for on weekends, or fix constant!y.
For 2017, there's the Grand Enchantment Trail in the spring and the Pacific Northwest Trail in the fall. I figure these are among the more difficult trails left on the list and I should get them behind me sooner rather than later. Observing my parents and other friends and relatives... there is a huge difference between 73 and 83. There isn't all that much difference between a 35 year old and a 45 year old or even a 55 year old (depending on individuals, of course...). But 80 seems to be a significant birthday.
Take advantage of every year!
Am I crazy? Hard to tell! A list of planned trails is not a great test of mental status... :)
PS.... Holey Moley you have done an impressive and inspirational bucketful of hiking so far!!! Congrats!!!
saltysack
06-15-2016, 21:57
Stayin ahead of the grim reaper.:) sounds like a plan.
As you alluded to....your house, land, things are a drain on your limited time. Im only 49, and Im trying to get rid of things, Im tired of it.
I want less stuff, simpler life, nothing to care for on weekends, or fix constant!y.
Yep....trying to get the wife onboard....we're in early 40's....it's amazing how much crap one acquires.....I want to scale to a tiny house in the mountains......that's my goal by 55....
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Am I crazy?
Only if you don't attempt the Hayduke "Trail." Run a search. This nice thing about it is...everything.
But it's especially attractive because you're really not bound to any one route. There are no signs or blazes! The spirit of adventure lives! See something enticing? Head that way! Pack-raft the Colorado for some of it? Why not!
I must've zig-zagged a few hundred extra miles than the "normal route," just so I could check out slot canyons, pinnacles, hoodoos, grottos, loccoliths, monoliths, balanced rocks, natural bridges and arches. And I still missed most of what there was to see. That's why I moved deep into Abbey Country.
Of the hikers I've met who've hiked the Hayduke, after having done the AT/PCT/CDT/LT/AZT/GET and even the JMT, every single one of them has said it was their favorite.
Go west young man!
Only if you don't attempt the Hayduke "Trail." Run a search. This nice thing about it is...everything.
But it's especially attractive because you're really not bound to any one route. There are no signs or blazes! The spirit of adventure lives! See something enticing? Head that way! Pack-raft the Colorado for some of it? Why not!
I must've zig-zagged a few hundred extra miles than the "normal route," just so I could check out slot canyons, pinnacles, hoodoos, grottos, loccoliths, monoliths, balanced rocks, natural bridges and arches. And I still missed most of what there was to see. That's why I moved deep into Abbey Country.
Of the hikers I've met who've hiked the Hayduke, after having done the AT/PCT/CDT/LT/AZT/GET and even the JMT, every single one of them has said it was their favorite.
Go west young man!
We make of backpacking experiences what we will. There are many many alternates already on each of those trails, an infinite number more waiting to be explored, and infinite possible cases of making one's own hike up of parts of those trails that few to no one will ever know about for those creatively inclined. :)
I let each one of those trails into my soul enjoying every one just as much as the HDT. So, now you've met someone of a different opinion. Easy to say that about another 3 dozen + named routes or trails that some would recognize by acronyms. No signs or blazes on many routes and several trails. I'm to the point where I've shaken off accumulating trail acronyms or basing backpacking choices solely/mainly on named trails and routes. It's too big a beautiful world to explore, a BIG U.S., to relegate backpacking only to named routes and trails.
In the meantime, I've put together a spreadsheet entitlled "Long Distance Trail Bucket List". Next up this Sep and Oct is the NY and PA section of the North Country Trail (I feel I should do this as I'm active in a local trail maintainers chapter and have adopted a beautiful 3 mile section about 45 minutes from my home----plus there will be special recognition of 100-mile hikers on this 100th anniversary of the National Parks).
* * *
Am I crazy?
You are an inspiration, among the very few who carry your Triple Crown around the "other trails."
Do you write about your experiences, other than through trailjournals?
Also, if you are looking for weird wallpaper, if you have a few days here and there you could finish up "MegaMeter Hiker" now, see http://www.hike-mst.org/images/pdfs/2015-10-07_mstplusmmendtoend.pdf :)
BTW, the Mid State Trail certified end-to-ender number is still holding at 7 (though expecting a few this year), so you already have unusual wallpaper...
CamelMan
06-16-2016, 09:22
Hayduke "Trail.".... slot canyons, pinnacles, hoodoos, grottos, loccoliths, monoliths, balanced rocks, natural bridges and arches.... Abbey Country I think I'm going to like AZ if I ever manage to move there.
We make of backpacking experiences what we will. There are many many alternates already on each of those trails, an infinite number more waiting to be explored, and infinite possible cases of making one's own hike up of parts of those trails that few to no one will ever know about for those creatively inclined. :)
I let each one of those trails into my soul enjoying every one just as much as the HDT. So, now you've met someone of a different opinion. Easy to say that about another 3 dozen + named routes or trails that some would recognize by acronyms. No signs or blazes on many routes and several trails. I'm to the point where I've shaken off accumulating trail acronyms or basing backpacking choices solely/mainly on named trails and routes. It's too big a beautiful world to explore, a BIG U.S., to relegate backpacking only to named routes and trails.
The OP's "bucket list" remarks make me think of my own situation, as signs of aging appear.
I only want to get to the most beautiful sections, more and more.
This has always been what hiking and getting into the mountains has been about for me.
Maybe we could have a thread: beautiful hikes.
Where is that section on The North Country Trail?
I was just looking that direction, because of a video that mentioned the proposed Sea-to-Sea trail.
When I retired 11 years ago, I was sure I'd have time to do everything that I'd been putting off during 38 years in the workplace. It turns out that the workplace demands on my time have been partly replaced by family obligations and the responsibility to keep our house and small piece of land in good shape. Nonetheless, I've been able to backpack over 12,000 miles these past 10 years.
While I was hiking the AT in '06, I was feeling super strong and young :sun. I'd learned of the triple crown and resolved to hike the PCT then the CDT on an every-other year schedule. That didn't work out perfectly as it took 3 "chunks" to sew up the CDT in 2010, 2011 and 2012. I had thought my wonderlust would be satisfied, but that's not the case. Part of the reason I'm still "on the trail" is that I want to keep my now "advanced middle age" body functional for another 9 years until my four grandsons are old enough to join me on a reprise of the PCT.
In the meantime, I've put together a spreadsheet entitlled "Long Distance Trail Bucket List". Next up this Sep and Oct is the NY and PA section of the North Country Trail (I feel I should do this as I'm active in a local trail maintainers chapter and have adopted a beautiful 3 mile section about 45 minutes from my home----plus there will be special recognition of 100-mile hikers on this 100th anniversary of the National Parks).
For 2017, there's the Grand Enchantment Trail in the spring and the Pacific Northwest Trail in the fall. I figure these are among the more difficult trails left on the list and I should get them behind me sooner rather than later. Treks for 2018 and beyond: OH and MI lower peninsula chunk of the NCT; MI upper peninsula, WI, MN and ND chunk of the NCT; Great Divide Trail, BMT-AT Figure 8 loop; Oachita Trail; Ice Age Trail; Pyrennes Haute Route; and Buckeye Trail non NCT portions (since I live in OH).
Am I crazy?
Fortunately, yes.
Sarcasm the elf
06-16-2016, 10:16
Sounds like a great problem to have. I can only hope to have similar concerns if and when I make it to 71.
:sun
Oh, and of course you're crazy, almost all of us here are.
Your grandsons will be teenagers in 9 years? I have more faith in your hiking ability in 2025 than in a teenager's motivation to do a long trail (or even a short one... depending on the teen). Wishing you the best that 1 or all of them will pick up your passion!
chknfngrs
06-16-2016, 11:52
Nicely done and inspiring for sure! "Food" to chew on as I grow older
daddytwosticks
06-16-2016, 12:30
Yep....trying to get the wife onboard....we're in early 40's....it's amazing how much crap one acquires.....I want to scale to a tiny house in the mountains......that's my goal by 55....
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DONE! 720 ft sq cabin in the NC mountains on a large rushing creek. Half acre surrounded by rhododendrons which are now blooming! Kids all gone. Material possessions reduced significantly. Just me and the wife...2 1/2 years left for me to retire. Heaven! :) :) :)
Odd Man Out
06-16-2016, 12:40
My goal is to become the first 90 year old to thru hike the AT, but it sounds like you could beat me to it. Way to go. Have you considered any international trails? Trekking in Nepal, the Pamir Mountains of Tajikistan, Kilimanjaro, and the Kungsleden in Sweden are on my bucket list.
rocketsocks
06-16-2016, 12:44
DONE! 720 ft sq cabin in the NC mountains on a large rushing creek. Half acre surrounded by rhododendrons which are now blooming! Kids all gone. Material possessions reduced significantly. Just me and the wife...2 1/2 years left for me to retire. Heaven! :) :) :)i did work in a house that was a little over 900 sq.ft, I wouldn't want to go that small, it's pretty damn small.
Sarcasm the elf
06-16-2016, 12:47
i did work in a house that was a little over 900 sq.ft, I wouldn't want to go that small, it's pretty damn small.
I've got a wife, toddler, three cats and two dogs in a cottage that is between 750 and 800 square feet. It's doable.
So, Handlebar after completing the backpacking bucket list are you going to circumnavigate the globe in a sailboat?, seek to summit each continent's high pt?/oldest to summit Mt Everest?/without oxygen tanks?, paddle the Mississippi? take up sky diving, do pushups while Mrs Handlebar stands on your back like octogenarian Jack LaLanne? ;)
I have land in Hawaii. Want to learn the Kona coffee growing biz? You and Mrs Handlebar can build you own Tiny House in the orchard across from mine in exchange for tending the farm. You can supervise the WOOFers when I'm gone. 6 months on 6 months off to travel, hike, cure cancer, etc. All the avocado, coconut, mango, and coffee you want. We'll even get ya one of those big straw Juan Valdez hats to make you look plantation owner important. :D
saltysack
06-16-2016, 14:40
DONE! 720 ft sq cabin in the NC mountains on a large rushing creek. Half acre surrounded by rhododendrons which are now blooming! Kids all gone. Material possessions reduced significantly. Just me and the wife...2 1/2 years left for me to retire. Heaven! :) :) :)
Glad you got it figured out!!!! Can't wait!
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saltysack
06-16-2016, 14:42
I have land in Hawaii. Want to learn the Kona coffee growing biz? You and Mrs Handlebar can build you own Tiny House in the orchard across from mine in exchange for tending the farm. You can supervise the WOOFers when I'm gone. 6 months on 6 months off to travel, hike, cure cancer, etc. All the avocado, coconut, mango, and coffee you want. We'll even get ya one of those big straw Juan Valdez hats to make you look plantation owner important. :D
Damn!! U truly have it figured out!
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Am I crazy?
"Still crazy after all these years" (in a good way)
I think hiking is like an itch that needs to be scratched. Speaking for myself, the longer I'm away from the trail, the more I yearn for it. Need the "trail time" to stay sane and balanced. In Japan, they have an expression: Shinrin-Yoku (forest bathing (http://www.shinrin-yoku.org/)) that relates to the health benefits of being out there in nature. I can relate. Keep on truckin' I say, as long as the bod is able.
colorado_rob
06-16-2016, 18:19
Only if you don't attempt the Hayduke "Trail." Run a search. This nice thing about it is...everything.
But it's especially attractive because you're really not bound to any one route. There are no signs or blazes! The spirit of adventure lives! See something enticing? Head that way! Pack-raft the Colorado for some of it? Why not!
I must've zig-zagged a few hundred extra miles than the "normal route," just so I could check out slot canyons, pinnacles, hoodoos, grottos, loccoliths, monoliths, balanced rocks, natural bridges and arches. And I still missed most of what there was to see. That's why I moved deep into Abbey Country.
Of the hikers I've met who've hiked the Hayduke, after having done the AT/PCT/CDT/LT/AZT/GET and even the JMT, every single one of them has said it was their favorite.
Go west young man!
Next year for us 60 yearolds (my wife turns 60, i just did) is a heyduke attempt in the spring, followed by a Sierra high route in late summer. We figure we better get those toughies attempted and at least enjoyed thoroughly while we can! We'll hold off on pct untill we get older, no sense wasting our youth on easier trails!
I, too, sure love the free form nature oh the HDT, we've been all over the places the route passes through, now we'll revisit our belived canyon country via another variation.
handlebar
06-16-2016, 20:08
So, Handlebar after completing the backpacking bucket list are you going to circumnavigate the globe in a sailboat?, seek to summit each continent's high pt?/oldest to summit Mt Everest?/without oxygen tanks?, paddle the Mississippi? take up sky diving, do pushups while Mrs Handlebar stands on your back like octogenarian Jack LaLanne? ;) I'll cross those bridges when I get to them, though I do prefer to keep my feed on the ground. As to pushups, I'm lucky I can still do 20 20 without anyone standing on my back.
Odd Man Out
06-16-2016, 21:25
I've got a wife, toddler, three cats and two dogs in a cottage that is between 750 and 800 square feet. It's doable.
Have you seen this? I tend to avoid HGTV as it is usually about 20-somethings buying or renovating 800K$ houses which really annoys me. But they now have a show about tiny houses. I also read The Not So Big House a number of years ago. Very interesting.
http://www.hgtv.com/shows/tiny-house-hunters
http://www.notsobighouse.com/