Getting over Wild
Oh you’re hiking like that chick, Reese Witherspoon ?
The PCT is mainly known in France thanks to the Reese Witherspoon movie or Cheryl Strayed's book. A beautiful story of redemption, grief, and battling addiction through hiking the pacific crest trail. Part of the pacific crest trail.
Cheryl Strayed's experience, where she hiked about a quarter of the trail, skipping some of the most beautiful sections, and making multiple mistakes, has little to do with the PCT. She was very lucky, which allowed her to survive and find peace and happiness, bless her heart, and the book is a great story, but for the vast majority of PCT hikers, or at least for me, I wasn't seeking and didn't have a great revelation, redemption or even a frank evolution of my temper (yeah sorry, i’m still the stubborn, quick tempered guy)
The PCT is also not Into the Wild. Of course, it's in nature and far from civilization, but every 8-9 days at most, we come across a town, resupply food, take a shower, and wash our clothes in a washing machine. Every day, with only a few exceptions, we're with friends, hikers. We don't return to a wild state, we don't hunt squirrels for food. We don't have the time for that. We're not fleeing civilization : we are actively seeking the next pizza place.
I'm proud of what I accomplished, I think I know myself better, but I wasn't fleeing from hard drug addiction or conflicts. During the day I listened to audio books and podcasts, but outside of those moments, my thoughts were repetitive, obsessive, and horribly down to earth.
How many kilometers to the next water source. How many kilometers to lunch, to camp. What will I eat for lunch. Do I have enough snacks. Do I sit on this rock for a break or do I wait until I'm at the top of the climb ? My back hurts. It's time to find a quiet place to dig a cat hole. Can I reach the next town before lunch in two days if I push an extra five kilometers tonight? Where did my team go, I should have caught up to them by now. Are they behind me ? (very often, they were).
And so on.
Walking is the most prosaic activity in the world until you look up and the beauty of the landscape brings tears to your eyes
