Met a guy on the John Muir Trail who changed how I look at mileage

I was pushing for 15 miles a day near Tuolumne Meadows, feeling pretty good about myself. This older hiker at a creek crossing just watched me filter water, then said, 'You know, you're missing half the trail by racing through it.' He pointed to a tiny side path I'd walked right past, leading to a waterfall you couldn't see from the main route. He'd been coming here for 20 years and said his best memories were the unplanned stops, not the big passes. Now I plan one 'zero mile' discovery day for every three days of hiking. Anyone else deliberately build in slow days to find stuff off the main track?

2 comments

2 Comments

richard_kelly543d ago

Sounds like a good way to never finish the trail.

the_lee2d ago

Well that's the whole point, @richard_kelly54. If you're just racing to the end you miss everything. The trail isn't a checklist, it's the thing itself. Some of us actually like being out there.