Thru-hiking the PCT: Leaving the Wilderness

As golden hour turned to dusk and dusk to dusk, I prepared to enter a new dimension of what I call “The PCT Portal.” Only this time, instead of fearing the unknown, I choose to trust it. As I began to process the emotions surrounding leaving the desert, something special happened. I resisted the temptation to lament the end of this chapter and instead, Dr. Suess’s words echoed in my head as I walked the last 30 miles: «Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened. Kennedy Meadows and the open Sierra were now within reach.

I walked along Ridgeline, turned a corner, and got my first look at the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range. Suddenly tears ran down my cheeks. A kind of gratitude came over me that I had never felt before. They were nothing short of majestic looming through the sky beckoning me forward. That’s when I realized I would be less than 10 miles away from completing The Desert at Dusk. He had almost made it. It was an emotional depth I wasn’t expecting. That day every step seemed deeply spiritual to me. The landscape was beautiful again. The long hauls of water and heat seemed like a distant memory. Everything around me was a radiant tapestry of color woven through the canyon and trees, as if I were seeing it for the first time and gazing at it in awe. In all its mystery and glory, the desert seems to bow, guiding me north. I stopped halfway, leaned over my trekking poles, and cried like a baby. I apologized to God for the anger I felt about the difficulties I had faced over the years. I was amazed at the magnitude of Mother Nature. Time seemed to stand still as I became completely consumed by the presence of that moment. That’s when it became clear that I would leave the desert in a different way. woman than the one who entered him. Your generous gift to me after walking 703 miles. It changed in a way I can’t put into words. I am a better version of myself, I am softer, simpler, more humble in the most meaningful way. I had 3 miles to camp and started walking again. My mind was flooded with memories of my experience. I pulled out my phone and started writing in my notes app before I forgot.

Gratitude

“My cup is full, gthe ratio overflows; While I look towards the Sierra to discover what it contains.

Of the butterflies, the bees and the birds in the trees; to the rocks, the sand and the warm, gentle breeze.

Beetles, bedbugs, snakes and flies; hummingbirds, cactus flowers, sunsets and sunrises;

Thank you for the heat that warmed my body under the sun and for the cold air that refreshed me when I finished my walk.

There is magic in the wind and secret lessons that you keep; So many moments made me You are deep.

I leave a different woman than the one who entered, it is a change that I did not expect from deep inside.

I will cherish these gifts and the lessons you gave me; bbetter because you have touched my soul.

703 miles? I don’t know how; Humbly and lowering my head I also bow.

With everything that I am I thank you for the good step, so I have become someone completely new.

I rise towards La Sierra and its great unknown, with confidence in the lessons I will walk home without fear.

Smile

I’m not a poet, but the fact that I was so moved to write that on the road meant something to me. I believe in respect for nature, I believe that The Trail has many lessons and all you have to do is open your heart and it will teach you too. It will heal you in ways you didn’t know you needed. It will change you like it changed me. It will restore your faith in the world and remind you that love is truly all there is. I am deeply grateful for this experience and will never forget that my walk is a privilege. In fact, I’m smiling because it happened.

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