I was living a comfy-but-unfulfilling life in 2015 when I met my first thru-hikers, my heralds, my calls to action. They said it was "never too late," and even though I didn't think I was too close to death's door, I saw they had a point. So nine months later I quit my job, put my furniture in my parents' basement, and started my NOBO thru-hike, which, when a stress fracture grounded me 675 miles later, turned into a LASH. But the trail taught me what I needed to know about myself, which is that although I will never like lashing rainstorms on mountainsides, I can survive them. This fact gave me the courage to start a freelance life, one that is breathtakingly more authentic than the one I had before. If you're on the fence, leap. If you want to read more of my writing, check out www.mathinacalliope.com Hugs, Notebook. Twitter: @mathinacalliope IG: mathinacalliope
Posts
There Are No Solutions, Only Trade-Offs
To be effective, you have to say no to good opportunities.
How to Be an Internet Hiker: Free Tips for Pajama Blazers
Step 1: Have some backpacking experience. That one time, when you were 12? And went with your scout group? That oughta do it. No need to actually
I Love(d) Not Camping
We arrive at our decisions to thru-hike in all sorts of ways. Some of us get there in a more roundabout manner than others. When I decided in 2015
Four Ugly Truths and Four Beautiful Realities About the Suck
The suck is an inescapable aspect of long-distance backpacking; no one eludes it. It is savage and unrelenting. It also, if you manage not to flee
Sharing Thru-Hiking’s Power with a Nonhiking Audience
Sometimes it takes a long time to make meaning from dramatic events in our lives. I got off the trail fifteen months ago with a broken foot, not
6 Ways a Thru-Hike Is a Hero’s Journey
Maybe you dont feel heroic out there, but make no mistake, a thru-hike is as epic an undertaking as any ancient tale. Joseph Campbell, the
The Single Thing I Wish I’d Known Before My Thru-Hike That Nobody Told Me
One evening, damp and full of anguish, I arrive at a shelter and basically fall apart. I can't believeI'm, like, refusing to acceptthat there is no
Sleeping with Strangers: Part 1
Oh, hi, class of 2018! Notebook here. Congratulations on your decision to take the plunge and make a thru-hike attempt! That took a lot of
Timing Quitting Failing Winning?
A few days before I was set to run the Marine Corps Marathon in 2011, my cousin, Ken, flew out to D.C from Chicago to join me for the race. All
On Purity
We had finished dinner at a restaurant in my hometown, my girlfriend and I, and she was listening with wide eyes to my trail talesthe bear ones