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When the path stops feeling magical

Por

julio 15, 2025

Something that is not spoken enough in the world of those who rise is routine. That moment when magic fades and you stay with blisters, fatigue and difficult questions. Many hikers begin their trips with a heart full of emotion: a new path, a new adventure, an explosion of freedom. You know strangers who quickly feel like a family. You wake up with sunrises in wild places and fall asleep under star skies.

But finally, the honeymoon ends. So.

Reality hits hard and fast along with the rains of the monsoon, the relentless sun and the pain of an endless elevation gain. Your skin burns, your stomach rotates, your ampoules heels. The land roars, the water sources become scarce, and the silence of the desert begins to echo more strong doubts than the song of the birds.

You start asking the quiet questions:

«Does something happen to me?»

«Do I like to walk more?»

«Wasn’t this supposed to be fun?»

The truth about the fun of type II

For me, hiking is absolutely something I enjoy, but I enjoy it better in moderation. I can handle a hard stretch, maybe even several days in a row of suffering. But when everything is blocked at the same time (weather, land, physical pain, emotional fatigue) I have to pause and reassess.

Hitting the wall

In early Colorado, on the outskirts of Payosa Springs near Wolf Creek Pass, we hit that wall. The storms rolled while we walked above 10,000 feet. After just a few miles, soaked and discouraged, we launched our tent with frustration and simply … we stopped.

We had service. I checked without thinking about the PCTA website to obtain southern permits on the PCT «just to see,» I told Neapolitan. We request, half shine. The next day, we were approved.

Beauty and Brutality in Colorado

Colorado gave us amazing views, but they were not easy. The State has a brutal beauty type: endless fall of the death of beetles, steep ascents, exposed ridges, sudden climate changes. It was impressive and exhausting.

We try to balance the hardness of the path with the charm of the cities. In Creede, a peculiar mining city, we find a moment of relief. In Pagosa Springs, we go to a slow river and soak in thermal waters. Between isolation sections, we give ourselves to the community.

Even so, the routine did not yield. By the time we got through barbed wire and a thick brush near exit just to get to a road before the weekend of July 4, it was clear: the CDT did not give us what we needed at this time.

Napolitan and I looked at each other and said it out loud: this feels like a job.

And that was not the goal.

So we make a decision quickly and intentionally. We will redirect the packages, the rescheduled flights and organize a walk in Harts Pass. Only in this way, we looked like west. Back where it all started for me: the Pacific Crest Trail.

CDT statistics: It finished more than 1,000 miles of 3,100.

Starting again in a family place

We spent one day resting in Seattle before heading to Harts Pass. I met the place well since 2023: The Las Lions den, the banner to be signed, the ranger that verified our permits. Everything was flooded again. But this time, I wasn’t doing it alone. I was seeing everything again, through Napolitan’s eyes.

The Ridgeline de Harts Pass offered such impressive views that they stopped my thoughts. Irregular snow peaks. Endless wild flowers. The soft and drifting fog between valleys. He felt unreal. Even with 4,000 feet of elevation gain, I forgot that I was going up. It was beauty in the overload. Family tents sites returned as Déjà Vu. And this time, I had the miles and muscle to really enjoy it.

I wasn’t crawling forward. I was flying.

And at that time, I remembered:

I am through a trip.

I love walking.

I just needed to find the correct trail, for this version of me at this time.

THE MOTIVATION MANUAL

So what keeps a hiker when the path becomes difficult? The truth is that motivation is not magical. It is choice. It is clarity. And sometimes it is correction of the course.

Ask the right questions:

Does this experience serve me at this time?
Am I doing this by pressure or passion?
Is this the growth I need this season of life?
What would my old me do? And what could my wise self do?

Along the way, you learn that the sand matters. But joy does so. So does alignment. It is good to change your route, your rhythm, your purpose. That does not mean that you have failed. It means you are listening.

For me, the CDT asked me a future version of myself. A version that is ready for only raw, resistant and solo resilience. But this year, my goal is different. I want to have fun. I want to share the trip with my partner. I want astonishment without overwhelming.

This is our path. From beginning to end.

Permission to pivot

Changing mind is not a weakness, it is a skill. Either a path, a job, a relationship or a belief system, sometimes the bravest thing you can do is choose differently.

So I know bold enough to ask: