Hi, I’m Sage. – The walk

This will be a more basic introduction to the hiker behind this blog without all the psychoanalysis from my first post here.

My biography

Hi, I’m Sage. I have been wandering around this country and soaking up the experiences that Mother Nature has to offer. I’ve hiked a variety of long trails (PCT ’18, CT ’21, WT ’22, and AZT ’24), as well as hundreds of miles (maybe over 1,000?) around Washington State. As I walked long trails, I learned to listen, not just to the wild landscapes, but to the part of me that has been trying to tell a story. I want to share the stark reality of what it means to rebuild a body and spirit through trekking, and remind others that the trail can be a powerful place of healing and rebirth. Join me on my hike along the Arizona Trail as I write the story, as I continue to walk it.

In addition to being a hiker and blogger, I’m also a nurse, a former teacher, and someone who has spent much of her adult life balancing structure with curiosity. I love systems and plans, but the journey has taught me that adaptability is equally important. No amount of preparation guarantees comfort, certainty, or success. I love that the trail offers the opportunity to find myself exactly as I am, day after day, without distractions. And I am here to receive all the lessons the path has to teach me.

Blog objectives

I write about long-distance hiking, being a solo backpacker, physical recovery, and mental health. I write honestly about anxiety, panic attacks, and the complicated process of rebuilding my body after an injury. Until now, my writings have been retrospective of past events and descriptive of current training, both physical and mental. This spring, I hope to capture the dynamic, real-time experiences of a solo hiker as I attempt to complete the Arizona Trail.

If you’re here because you love hiking or all things hiker trash, welcome. If you’re here because you’re rebuilding (after injury, burnout, or self-doubt), you’re in the right place. And if you’re here simply because you’re curious about what happens when someone chooses to start over, I’m glad you found your way here.

Washington is one of my favorite places to be.

IN 2013

My backpacking story

Learn to backpack on the AT

I first started backpacking in 2013, when I decided to take a spring break trip to the Appalachian Trail. I was in my fifth year of teaching high school physics and desperately needed a break from reality. A couple of years before that, a coworker asked me if I had ever read Bill Bryson’s book. A walk through the forest and that’s how I first learned that these long trails existed. I became obsessed with the AT and began teaching myself how to pack and gather the necessary gear.

Upon hearing about my planned adventure, another fellow teacher decided to accompany me. We set out on a 3-day trip on the AT in North Carolina and made the most of our inexperience and two days of torrential rain. Despite the soggy misery and overly heavy backpacks, I was hooked. I immediately planned to return for a few weeks during my summer vacation. Those three weeks solidified my love for backpacking and all things hiker trash and I set a goal of one day hiking the AT.

Westward!

Then I read Cheryl Strayed’s book. Wild and immediately fell in love with the idea of ​​the Pacific Crest Trail. If I could only go one long way, it would have to be the PCT. After eight stressful years of teaching, I left the profession for mental health reasons (severe anxiety and panic attacks) and knew I needed a reset and decided to move to the west coast.

I had spent nearly a decade in Chicago and absolutely loved the city, but after exhausting every outdoor opportunity on a five-hour drive, I longed for easier access to truly wild places. I sold almost all my belongings, rented my condo, packed my most important things in the trunk of my Honda Civic, and headed west.

Post-knee surgery, Minnesota 2017

I dabbled in a variety of jobs trying to figure out what was next for a career change. I ran a chainsaw in the Oregon Forest Service, taught about plants at an outdoor science school, and delivered mail for the U.S. Post Office. I was slowly saving money while keeping my life intentionally flexible so I could pass the PCT in 2017 without immediately locking myself into a new career.

About a month before my start date, I tore my ACL playing Ultimate Frisbee. I was devastated. I’m talking about going through the seven stages of grief while navigating some complex emotions of having a body that couldn’t do what I wanted it to do for the first time. My number one goal was to improve the PCT in 2018. My surgeon wasn’t convinced it was realistic, but my physical therapist completely believed in me. With their support, expertise, and my dogged determination, I regained my mobility and strength and was ready to begin the PCT just ten months after my ACL reconstruction surgery.

Running changes and continuous walks

PCT 2018

Leaving my first career and moving west changed my life. Successfully completing my PCT hike in 2018 solidified those new ideas about who I am in this world and the role the outdoors and hiking play in it. While walking, I met many nurses who were travel nurses. I didn’t know such a thing existed. I had dated a nurse and often thought that my scientific skills and passion for helping others would be a good fit for choosing to be a nurse. However, after learning about the flexibility in free time and the ability to move around the country and always have a job available, I felt confident that this was the right career choice for me.

CT 2021

I fell in love with Washington State while on the PCT. After finishing it, I decided to move there and start nursing school. In two and a half years I completed the program, passed the exam, and began working as an ICU nurse. During the summer break after graduating and before my first job, I managed to hike the Colorado Trail in 2021. My plans and dreams were working out perfectly.

After working the recommended two years as a staff nurse to gain experience, knowledge and skills, I became a travel nurse. I completed a contract and then hiked the Arizona Trail in 2024. I then started working on my goal of living in Alaska for an entire year and completed some work there in 2024-2025. More plans and dreams working perfectly… well, almost. While in Alaska last March, I had a major back injury that completely changed my life. (You can read more about my back injury here).

Using the same dogged determination as I searched for multiple physical therapists until I found one who believed in me and had the experience to help me, I spent almost a year trying to rebuild my mobility and strength in my body. The road to healing this injury has been much more complicated than healing my ACL.

For the past year, one of my goals was to be able to walk again. Since Arizona has such a special place in my heart, I made it a goal to hike the Arizona Trail again. At the time of writing this post, I’m sure I’m ready for another AZT hike. This blog will continue that attempt.

Stubborn determination in Washington towards the end of the 2018 PCT

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