Finish a 10,000+ mile hike in 1 year

It seems like 2025 is officially over, and with it one of the most incredible years of my life has come to an end. Around 7pm on New Year’s Eve I finished my year-long hike. Over 365 days I walked approximately 10,070 miles across this incredible country. What a privilege it was to cross the entire country more than 3 times this year. This feat required an average of 27.5 miles per day. Even counting the 30+ days off I took throughout the year.

Over the past 6 weeks, I’ve somewhat stepped back from social media to be a little more present as I wrap up this year. While I really enjoyed being able to share this journey on my blog and other social media this year, it was a nice break to spend the last month putting editing and writing on the back burner.

When I started in January, I thought walking 8,500 miles a year was pretty ambitious. I figured completing the standard calendar year triple crown was something I could probably do. But adding extra mileage seemed crazy. Although when the year started I went out on a limb. And I was able to maintain a pretty solid daily mileage for the entire first half of the year.

Then, halfway there, I was so injured that I couldn’t walk for over a week. I took 17 continuous zero days in an attempt to heal. And even after more than 2 weeks, I still couldn’t walk without the support of a cane or trekking poles. It did not bode well for the mission that had been presented to me. In the end I accepted my fate. I knew I had to take the time to heal. And I kept faith that the injury was really meant to happen. The time out of the way was intentional. The universe was aligning everything for me perfectly.

Slide and I walking through the ocean at sunset.

Over time I healed and scored even more. After my 17 solid zeros, I followed up with 2 weeks of only averaging 23 miles per day. Enough to know he wasn’t out of the game yet. But there isn’t enough daily mileage to get through Colorado on the CDT before winter hits. By the third week after the injury, I was back to running 30 to 35 miles a day. And in mid-August I walked between 35 and 40 kilometers every day. I did the math and realized I would have to average 37 miles a day for 9-10 weeks straight to get through Colorado on time. Even if I didn’t know if I could physically pull it off or not.

This is a summary of 10,000 miles of hiking! Slide and I rode 10,000 miles for New Year’s Eve.

Those 9 weeks were some of the hardest I have ever experienced in my entire life. I became a hiker I didn’t even know I had in me. My routine was so marked that it was incredible. When you have to walk 37 miles a day, refuel, do housework, write blog posts, edit and upload YouTube videos, and edit and upload Instagram videos, good time management is essential. I am proud of the hiker who emerged from those difficult times. That was the most transformative chapter of my entire walk, and perhaps of my entire life up to that point. They pushed me to the edge. I have never felt so emotionally and spiritually raw. I saw signs everywhere. I felt incredibly close to the living, breathing thing that is this land. It’s hard to put into words how that two and a half month period changed and shaped me.

A congratulatory key lime pie thanks to Sparkle, Jocelyn and Snacks.

Slide and I met again on the PCT in August, before my big effort. We were able to share and relate to the unique journey we were both on. When we met, we had both walked just under 6,000 miles each a year. The timing couldn’t have been better to meet. And being able to talk to him while I struggled and struggled during those 9 weeks was something I needed more than I thought. I never would have imagined that I would end the year walking 1,600 miles with him in Florida. Later, after passing through Colorado, I returned and finished the Pacific Crest Trail. Then I got to see Slide again in October, when I was also out west finishing the PCT. I remember talking about maybe going to do trail magic for him in Florida after he finished the CYTC Border to Border. At that point I still thought I was just going to do the calendar year triple crown from border to border. I didn’t know I was going to decide to do an extra 1,600 miles.

Slide and I when we only had a few more kilometers to go.

When I reached the end of the border-to-border triple crown of the calendar year on November 14, I felt surprisingly rejuvenated and ready to move on. That was one of the main reasons I wanted to continue and try to hit 10,000 miles during the year. But being able to do it in Florida walking with Slide was an offer I couldn’t refuse. He had already done all the calculations to make sure he could cover 10,000 miles by New Year’s Eve. And we happened to be within 70 miles of each other when I met him in Pensacola. Even though we had to average 38 miles a day for 6 weeks straight to finish, I still had a great time. It wasn’t until the last week that I began to fully feel the effects of the mileage and subsequent exhaustion.

Over the past 44 days, Slide and I walked 1,600 miles across Florida. That’s the highest mileage I’ve ever done consistently! Even more mileage than my 9-week effort of 37 miles per day. And I’ve done the most mileage I’ve ever done with anyone else. I really can’t say for sure that I would have attempted 10,000 miles if I hadn’t been able to connect with Slide down in Pensacola. And somehow, even though we’ve been putting in incredible mileage every day, these last 6 weeks were some of my favorites of the entire year. Which is saying a lot, because this was an absolutely fantastic year. I feel very lucky for every up and down. Everyone congratulated each other very well. This year taught me more lessons than I ever expected. This year was a testament to us trusting the process and not stressing over the details. The universe never failed to provide me with exactly what I needed. Even if I didn’t fully understand it at the time, and especially in the difficult moments.

It was an absolutely perfect last day of the year on the road.

Although I spent most of the year alone, thanks to the immense kindness of those who followed me online, trail angels, friends and family, I never felt alone. Thank you very much to everyone who sent me words of motivation and love during the year. There were days when I needed that more than I could express. At times I got so caught up in the mission and hitting huge mileage that I lost sight of how hard I was pushing. It took someone else telling me they were proud of me for me to realize how proud I was of myself. So thank you very much to everyone who shared that support with me.

I guess this means we can both finally rest. Slide spent the last 363 days walking and I spent the last 365.

Over the next 3 or 4 weeks I will be completely up to date with all the blogs from the last 1300 kilometers of the year. I will do a detailed daily blog post with photos from each day until the posts are updated during the new year. There will also be daily shorts and full YouTube videos that correspond with each blog. They can all be found at @madisonblagden on all social media platforms.

Finally at the finish line!

I’m hoping to catch up on writing and video so I have the time and energy to share more content with all of you. You can expect lots of videos and blogs to keep coming after I catch up too! There have been a lot of creative ideas that had to take a backseat while I walked this year. And I’m excited to share what’s next with all of you!

If you enjoyed this blog and would like to support my hike by buying me a soda or snack along the way, there is a «Tip the Author» button below! It links directly to my Venmo. All support is incredibly appreciated!

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