Pre-hike road trip

We start tomorrow! The anxiety and excitement is high right now, but we’re ready to get going.

The planning for this trip started almost two years ago. We made the first real step back in December 2019 when we tried to get permits. We didn’t get the start date we wanted, but tried again in January 2020 and got decent start dates. Marie quit her job, I almost quit mine, but the pandemic derailed all of the plans we made and we didn’t hike in 2020. So we waited a year, and tried again. Luckily, we got favorable positions in the queue and were able to snag permits for the start date we wanted (tomorrow, 04/20).

With permits secured, we then needed to get all of our gear selected. Most of it was things we already owned, but with a year of waiting before we could start we had plenty of time to find lighter/better options. We tried new packs, tents, clothes, sleeping pads, quilts, etc. All of it was weighed, organized, packed and re-packed. The full list of what I’m starting with is here, if you’re curious.

We still needed to get our lives in order, which, again, we had some great luck. Anna, Marie’s sister, took over watching our apartment for us. My parents are storing my car for me. And, sadly, we had to quit our jobs. Not an easy or quick decision after working for Northwoods for over 15 years. Much love for my coworkers.

But then…we need to get to the trailhead. We left Denver on the 7th, stopped for the night in Topeka, and then continued on to Ohio. A brief stop in Columbus to drop off my laptop with Noah, and then North to Tiffin. Got to spend some time with my family for a couple days, then Marie’s family for a couple days, and then we hit the road.

Leaving on the 14th, we drove to Mammoth Cave National Park. A quick tour of the cave, and then on to Memphis for the night. In the morning, we were treated to breakfast by Marie’s friend, Angie. Drove to Hot Springs National Park, had a couple beers at the brewery, and then continued on to Abilene. Had to switch hotels after finding dog shit behind the chair in our room. I wish I was making that up. After crossing Texas, we found Carlsbad Caverns National Park to be incredible, and Guadalupe Mountains National Park was alright. El Paso was home for the night, and in the morning we headed to Saguaro NP. The cacti were amazing, and we only had a short drive to Phoenix to our hotel. The last day of national parks ended with Joshua Tree, and we were a little underwhelmed at first, but once we got further into the park and saw the huge swaths of trees and piles of boulders, we warmed up to it. We stayed in Indio last night, avoided being murdered when we drove by the Salton Sea in the morning, and finally got to San Diego this afternoon. Six parks, and about 2,700 miles of driving. Oddly enough, that’s about the same amount of miles we’ll be walking.

Now let’s hope I can fall asleep tonight.