The first 400 miles – La Caminata

Starting: Doubt and determination

When I first came out in this adventure, I did not think I would do 400 miles. Every time I start a long distance trip, I never know how far I will get. The questions always crawl into:
Will my body remain? Did I train enough? I was too vague during the low season?

Now, here I am, 400 miles inside, and those questions have been answered. My body is enduring so far, but painful. I definitely did not train enough and used the first two weeks to acclimatize my body. I wasn’t too vague during the low season, I should just have stretched more.

The challenge of staying connected

I have been trying to blog in the way, stopping in the cities whenever possible, but it has been difficult. Or I don’t have time or there is no cell service. The cities of the Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) are often small, sometimes just a restaurant and a couple of houses.

Even when I receive service, it has been difficult to find the mental energy to write. But today, 400 miles inside, I can finally share a bit of this experience.

Peoples of trails along the way

Here are the cities that I have passed so far, grouped by the State:

Montana: East Glacier, Polebridge, Eureka, Yaak

Idaho: Bonners Ferry

Washington: Metaline Falls, Northport

Each stop offers a time to restart, replenish and reflect, but they are fleeting, and the path always returns the call.

Isolation in the PNT

The PNT is resistant and remote. All my days on the way so far, I have not found only one through walking walkers. I have only seen names in Trail’s registration books, such as ghosts. I have met four hikers in total, but only in the city. At the time we separate, they fade into nature again.

Path conditions: beauty meets brutality

If the continental divides Trail (CDT) and the path of the Apalaches (AT) had a baby, it would be the PNT.

These first 400 miles have thrown everything: uploads, remote ridges and dense forests. The views swing between green tunnels and covered with trees and impressive mountain views. Everything here feels alive.

Senderos maintenance? Let’s say it is minimal. Fire damage has not yet been an important problem, but excessive growth and lack of definition of paths are real problems. In some sections, there is no way at all, only a vague direction on the map and in its own intuition. Sometimes there is a weak game trace; Other times, it’s a complete bushwhack. And that is part of the adventure.

400 mile magic

Despite the challenges, or perhaps for them, these first 400 miles have been magical. Loneliness, silence, the raw beauty of nature … Everything reminds you of how small we really are.

The PNT embraces the border with Canada and the United States and feels like a secret passage through nature. I know that the hardest land is coming, especially burned areas that will delay me, but for now, I am grateful.

Grateful for the mountains.
Grateful for the stillness.
Grateful to have gone so far.

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