LOCALadk Magazine

LOCALadk 34 There are few things in life we can ever know with certainty, but I truly believe you would be hard- pressed to find an experience as fulfilling as thru-hik- ing.. It's the ultimate feeling of freedom while having one tangible goal, a purpose, and to simply put one foot in front of the other. It is a connection with na- ture so intimate you'll wonder why you ever (or still do) live in the city. You'll develop a closeness to yourself in a raw and primal way, exposing all of your sharp edges and al- lowing them to exist just as they are. Moving our bod- ies like we were intended and witnessing the change that happens within as you keep going, no matter how exhausted you are. No mirrors around to reflect the unnecessary image we place so much importance on. Living in awe of the natural world we live in yet get to experience so little of. The obligations, the standards, the shackles, and the expectations of society all seem to fall away into the abyss. Life out there is simple, and that's something we can often forget: how to exist, simply. For a middle school English teacher worn out at the end of June, I have routinely followed these feelings into the backcountry, ready to empty my mind and fill it with cycles of mornings and evenings, living by the ebb and flow of the natural world. In the summer of 2022 this yearning brought me to the John Muir Trail. Considered one of the most iconic backpacking trails in the US, the "JMT" is a 211-mile trail that stretches along the Sierra Nevada mountain range from the soaring granite walls of Yosemite Valley to Mount Whitney, the highest mountain in the contiguous Unit- ed States. The route travels through the Ansel Adams Wilderness, the John Muir Wilderness, and Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks along the way. It is simply one of the most beautiful trails in the country. Traveling alone from New York to California was an arduous journey, catching four flights over the course of two days. The thing no one tells you about traveling for a backpacking trip involves walking around air- ports in short shorts and a big backpack. It's quite the scene. From the airport, I jumped on a YARTS bus en route to Yosemite, where I sat with a middle-aged French man named Marc. We were the only two on the bus lugging around big backpacks—a giant target to each other screaming, "Come hang out with me dude!" We quickly learned that we were both heading to Happy Isles southbound on the JMT. Marc and I spent the night together in the backpack- er campground in Yosemite Valley, home to El Capitan, Half Dome, and many other stunning walls of granite. It is a sight to behold no matter the season. The JMT climbs over five thousand feet directly out of Yosemi- te Valley, with little to no reprieve until Cathedral Pass at mile eighteen.

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