“You’re gonna do what?” – The Trek

I am going to start my blog on The Trek by going old school (and in the process showing my age) by sharing a quote from Top Gun. In the climatic final dog fight scene, Maverik decides to try something unorthodox in the heat of battle. He decides he is going to hit the breaks.

The exchange between Maverick and Merlin goes like this:

Merlin: “What are you doing? You’re slowing down, you’re slowing down!”

Maverick: “I’m bringing him in closer, Merlin.”

Merlin: “You’re gonna do what?”

‘You’re gonna what?’ is a phrase that I am sure almost all thru-hikers have heard from someone – a friend, a family member, a colleague, a stranger in line at the coffee shop. Someone.

Moving Past the Shock Value

When I think back to the initial responses I heard from people when I shared that I was planning to hike the PCT in 2025, I certainly had my own Merlin moment once or twice.  More often than not, however, the initial reaction from people on the receiving end of my announcement was one of delight, surprise, awe, jealousy, envy, and of course even a little bit of concern.

In the movie, right after Merlin’s question, Maverick answers Merlin by responding “I’m gonna hit the brakes, he’ll fly right by”.

I figured it was time for me to answer the proverbial “you’re gonna do what” question. So here is why I am hiking the PCT in 2025…

So Why?

For the last several months, I have sat in and pondered on my own “why” for wanting to hike the PCT in 2025. All thru-hikers I am sure can relate to this process of self-reflection and contemplation.

For me, the answer to the proverbial ‘why’ revealed itself in stages over a few months. Initially I decided to research the PCT because of a perfect convergence of work and relationship events. As an entrepreneur and co-owner of a software company, I had spent the last 14 years focused on my business. In the last year, however, I found myself feeling burned out and mentally fatigued.

Unfortunately as I was accepting the reality of mental fatigue and burnout at work, I was also deciding to end a long term relationship.

On the surface, deciding to do the PCT seemed like an obvious decision to me and many of the people that knew of my decision – get away from the challenges of real life, take a break, ignore the big decisions in life, get back into nature, see the world, etc.

I cannot deny that upon looking back, deciding to hike the PCT was certainly a respite from my day to day; but like many things in life, as I reflected on my decision, it became obvious that there was a more soulful truth and dare I say ‘need’ to wanting to hike the PCT.

Paging Dr Nature 

I have always loved being in nature. And when I say being in nature, I mean doing ‘type-2 fun’ type of activities: car to car summits of Mt Baker via the North Ridge or of the Grand in the Tetons, doing sub 24 hour Rim2Rim2Rim’s in the Grand Canyon 20 times, etc. But I also love taking my yellow lab Halo for walks twice a day, and skinning up at Winter Park before the lifts open, and doing multi day back packing trips, or bagging 14er’s in Colorado with friends.

At the end of the day, what I have realized is that my ‘why’ for doing the PCT in 2025 is that mother nature is my pharmacist, my therapist, my friend, and one of the great loves of my life. I need to do The PCT because my soul needs to reconnect with a dear friend.

On a more serious note, another reason I am hiking the PCT in 2025 is that mental health is important to me personally, to my family, and to many of the people in my industry (healthcare). While at work, I have described my time off to hike the PCT as a sabbatical; but over a beer or coffee, we can call it a mental health break.

Pay It Forward

And in the spirit of staying true to the mental health nature of my hike, I want to add that I am hiking to raise money for mental health awareness and support here in America. If you want to make a donation, I am personally supporting the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Their donation page on their website is: https://www.nami.org/get-involved/donate-to-nami/

I hope that while I am hiking the PCT (my start date in less than 2 weeks away), I am able to work on my on mental health, and if possible I can share a bit of happiness and joy with others along the trail. I have always believed that the shortest distance between two people is a smile. So if I can challenge you with one thing after reading this blog, share a smile with someone tomorrow. You just might be the highlight of their day.

As I wrap up this blog post and turn my attention to the pile of gear that is calling my name, I want to thank you for reading my blog. I invite you to follow along as I start my walkabout. I hope to share some funny and heartwarming stories of what I know will be an amazing journey. Who knows, I might hear “you’re gonna do what?” again when I tell people I have another thru hike in me after the PCT. But that is a story that will unfold later.

Allow me to leave you with a thought from John Muir – “In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.”

Best as always – Brandon

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