[ad_1]
What’s the secret to living a long life? We live in an era obsessed with longevity. We seek out advice from doctors, nutritionists, personal trainers, and therapists all drawing from an ever-growing well of research to tell us what to eat, how to move, and who to be. Every few years, a new theory, superfood, or morning routine promises us a few more years. We test hypotheses, seek data, and chase answers.
Among all the findings, there are places known as Blue Zones, which are regions where people routinely live past 90 or even 100, with vibrant energy well into old age. On paper, it’s not complicated: strong community ties, clean diets, regular movement, a slower pace of life. But from my own lens, having reviewed these places with curiosity and admiration, I’ve come to see that their magic isn’t so much in the broccoli or bike rides. It’s in something harder to define.
It’s in how they live, not just how long.
Living Fully vs Living Long
Out here on trail, it becomes clear quickly, the standard longevity formula doesn’t apply. The Mediterranean diet doesn’t travel well in your pack. There are no ergonomic chairs or recovery saunas. Self-care routines look a little different than what you might routinely do at home. Creature comforts fade into the background. The body is constantly engaged from sunrise to sundown. You’re either walking, filtering water, setting camp, or tending to blisters. Rest, when it comes, is total and often brief.
Image source: Chris Harvey “Sunrise Hike,” April 2025.
If I were to measure my choices against traditional longevity advice, I’d assume I was shortening my lifespan combined with poor sleep, high stress, risk of injury, and caloric deficits. However I’ve never felt more alive. So maybe the question shouldn’t be “How do I live longer?” Maybe it should be “How do I live meaningfully with the years I have?”
Image source: Paige Combs, “100 Mile Marker,” April 2025.
Dispatch to Silver City
Injuries are not a matter of “if,” but “when” on trail. When one of our group members tweaked their achilles, we hitched a ride to Silver City to rest and recover. Our ride? A former 2024 PCT thru-hiker. Classic trail magic.
Image Source: Jared Biciolis, “CDT Hitch to Silver City,” April 2025.
We swapped stories about our journeys, favorite sections, hardest climbs, and weird trail foods. Even though our hikes were in different years, our emotions and memories lined up as if we’d walked them together. There’s something timeless about trail stories. It’s as though the terrain itself imprints on us in the same way, no matter when we pass through. I was genuinely sad to end the conversation, but we had arrived in Silver City.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Silver City Signage,” April 2025.
Trail Days in Silver City
The plan was to rest, but CDTC Trail Days quickly drew us in with open arms. Before we knew it, we were pulled into the buzz: dinners with new friends, early morning coffees, gear talk, unexpected snow flurries, spontaneous meetups, and sessions learning more about the CDT.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Coffee and Postcards,” April 2025.
Image Source: Kelly, “Hiker Mexican Food Outing,” April 2025.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Silver City Trail Days at The Toad,” April 2025.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Chef and Goose at Sunrise Espresso,” April 2025.
We laughed hard, lingered in town longer than intended, and filled our packs with lighter gear and heavier hearts. My favorite part? Sitting quietly with friends over coffee, not rushing, just being. Those moments reminded me of what makes the trail so magical. It slows time down just enough to notice things you otherwise wouldn’t.
As Trail Days ended, goodbyes came too quickly. There’s a unique sadness in saying farewell to trail friends. You know the odds of reconnecting are uncertain, but you hold on to the hope. On the trail, paths cross again more often than you’d expect.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Back to The Trail,” April 2025.
Back to the Trail
Returning to trail felt like waking up inside a dream. I ran into the desert outside of Lordsburg, spinning around like a kid, dancing next to a CDT sign with music in my ears. I peed behind a small shrub, smiled at the absurdity of this lifestyle, and pressed on. Aquaman and Neapolitan were grinning too. We were back.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Hiking in the Desert,” April 2025.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Cactus Bloom,” April 2025.
A few miles in, we bumped into familiar faces from Trail Days, people who felt like old friends after just a few days. That’s the thing about the trail. It compresses time. What would take months to form in the “real world” happens in hours or days out here.
Mountains & Valleys
About twenty miles in, the landscape shifted dramatically. The open shrubs gave way to trees, the soft dirt hardened into stone, then became jagged rock, then gave way to inclines. We met wildlife including skunks, javelinas, birds. All of our neighbors on the trail who wandered the mountains just like we did.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Hiking in the Sand Valley,” April 2025.
The trail led us past gates and switchbacks, winding up Burro Mountain trailhead, our first real climb. It was challenging but manageable. There was a shared silence as we reached the top, a quiet acknowledgment of what it took to get there and what still lay ahead.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Burro Mountain Peak,” April 2025.
We kept meeting hikers and trail angels. Some we knew, others who knew people we’d hiked with in past years. Names became stories. The trail has this uncanny ability to shrink the world while simultaneously reminding you of its vastness.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Trail Angel Kitty,” April 2025.
The Real World Secret to Longevity
So, what do thru-hikers know about living longer? Maybe not much in the conventional sense. But we know something about living well. We know how to embrace discomfort, how to find joy in the mundane, how to build community from nothing. Out here, there are no politics, no labels, no curated identities. We don’t talk about jobs or titles unless we have to. We talk about water carries and foot pain and sunsets and how lucky we are to be doing this at all.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “CDTC Gathering in Silver City,” April 2025.
Despite what you might think, the trail often feels like the safest place I’ve ever been. Yes, dangers exist like wildlife, weather, the occasional sketchy situation. However they pale in comparison to the daily risks of urban life. Out here, trust and kindness are the norm, not the exception.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Trail Days Gathering,” April 2025.
Learnings
- A full life is found in the hearts of others.
- Connection is currency.
- Longevity might be overrated, but meaning never is.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Abear and Daydreamer on Trail Days,” April 2025.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Fomo and Rocky on Trail Days,” April 2025.
Image Source: Paige Combs, “Neapolitan Hiking Joy,” April 2025.
Stats in the Wilderness:
Temperature Range: Low 37° – High 85°
General Location: Lordsburg to Silver City, Trail Days Silver City
Indigenous Land: Chiricahua Apache
Whose land am I on? Learn why it’s important to respect the land we travel on.
[ad_2]
Source link
