janaonthepct

[janaonthepct]

The Aftermath

*for all my German friends that had to endure endless English writing, this time German comes first and English is below*

So ihr lieben,

lange ist’s her. Gefühlt schon wieder eine halbe Ewigkeit um ehrlich zu sein. Jetzt bin ich schon weit über zwei Monate wieder in Deutschland. Länger als ich überhaupt weg war :))

London war klasse. Ein gelungener Wiedereinstieg. Aber ich war auch sehr froh nach dem Trail erstmal etwas Zeit vor der Großstadt gehabt zu haben, all die Menschenmassen, der Lärmpegel und die Schnelllebigkeit der Stadt waren doch etwas anderes im Vergleich zu Tagen an denen man nur damit beschäftigt ist einen Schritt vor den anderen zu setzen. Nach einer knappen Woche Sightseeing, Freunde treffen und Jetlag auskurieren bin ich dann auch wieder gut in Deutschland angekommen.

Der Einstieg hier war spannend (ein besseres Wort finde ich nicht). Wie ihr mich kennt, habe ich natürlich gleich wieder ein paar kleinere Ausflüge gestartet. Ich war ein paar Tage im Schwarzwald und habe die Ruhe genossen, dann sind wir als Familie für ein Wochenende als ein Geburtstagsgeschenk an den Bodensee gefahren und haben bei eisigen Temperaturen natürlich trotzdem einen Sprung in den See gewagt und auch sonst gab es die letzten Wochen immer wieder kleine, tolle Programmpunkte. Aber abgesehen davon war das Ankommen irgendwie anders als erwartet. Oder eben nicht erwartet. Ich weiß auch nicht wie ich das besser beschreiben kann. Ich habe mich direkt arbeitssuchend gemeldet und war dann aber erstmal einige Zeit ganz schön überfordert. Überfordert mit den Möglichkeiten, überfordert mit was ich überhaupt will und überfordert mit der aktuellen Situation. Es ist gar nicht so einfach relativ ungebunden zu sein. Weder groß an Orte, noch an bestimmte Berufsprofile gebunden zu sein, macht die Suche nach etwas Passendem auch nicht leichter.

Ich habe den Trail bewusst aufgehört und bin auch immer noch sehr zufrieden mit der Entscheidung. Ich wusste, dass der nächste Schritt nicht unbedingt einfach wird, aber ich war bereit ihn zu gehen. Nur was das konkret bedeuten würde war mir nicht klar. Aber ich glaube schon, dass es für mich durchaus wichtig war diese Zeit auch auszuhalten und mir dessen bewusst zu werden. So hatte ich die letzten Wochen viel Zeit. Zeit um Innezuhalten und zu reflektieren, Zeit um tausende Bewerbungsanzeigen durchzulesen und trotzdem nicht wirklich weiter zu wissen, Zeit um Freunde zu kontaktieren und mit meiner Familie zu sein. Und ganz viel Zeit zum Joggen :D. Aber es war wirklich auch keine einfache Zeit für mich. Ich habe den Trail verlassen mit dem Wunsch irgendwo anzukommen und hier saß ich nun in meinem alten Kinderzimmer bei meinen Eltern immer mit dem Gedanken im Hinterkopf, dass all das nur „temporär“ ist. So ein undefinierter Zwischenstatus ist echt nicht cool. Man fühlt sich selbst ausgeliefert, traut sich kaum irgendetwas anzufangen und ist dann aber gefrustet, dass es nichts zu tun gibt.  

Aber mit der Zeit wurde das auch wieder besser. Der Frust ist der Akzeptanz gewichen und langsam aber sicher habe ich das Ganze auch wieder als Chance sehen können. Wer hat heutzutage schon so viel Zeit sich mit sich selbst und seiner Perspektive auseinanderzusetzen? Und so clichehaft das jetzt auch klingen mag aber für mich hat sich wieder einmal das Prinzip bewährt: „je weniger du suchst, desto mehr wirst du finden“...

Nach meiner absoluten Orientierungslosigkeit bin ich irgendwann auf Bildungsträger in der Sozialen Arbeit gestoßen. Einrichtungen, die mit Menschen allen Alters arbeiten, sich für Chancengleichheit und Potentialförderung einsetzen und die wie ich davon überzeugt sind, dass Bildung ein Schlüssel zum Erfolg ist. So bin ich bei der Deutschen Angestellten Akademie gelandet, einem der größten Weiterbildungs- und Rehabilitationsträger in Deutschland. Ich habe mich an einigen Standorten beworben und auch direkt sehr positive Rückmeldungen bekommen. Nach ein paar Bewerbungsgesprächen habe ich mich dann direkt für eine Stelle als Sozialpädagogin in den ausbildungsbeleitenden Hilfen in Ludwigshafen am Rhein entschieden.

Das Bewerbungsgespräch ist aktuell noch nicht mal drei Wochen her und in dieser Zeit hat sich schon so viel getan, das könnt ihr euch kaum vorstellen. Ich war schon drei weitere Male in Mannheim und Umgebung, hatte direkt eine Übergangswohnung und ein weiteres Sofa zum Crashen gefunden, falls ich selber noch nichts passendes gefunden hätte (DANKE Fanny und Julian!), habe dann aber beim zweiten Besuch direkt eine absolute Traumwohnung gefunden, die ab 01.09. mit zwei Freundinnen zu einer genialen WG wird, bin dann vorletztes Wochenende ein 10km Stadtlauf gerannt bei verrückter Hitze und habe dann auch noch die letzten Tage komplett den Umzug mit allen Möbliar und sonstigem Hab und Gut aus Marbach nach Ludwigshafen vollzogen (Danke Simon für deine Hilfe, ohne dich hätte ich das nicht geschafft!) (Hoffentlich der letzte Umzug in nächster Zeit). Und letzte Woche Donnerstag (zum 01.08.) habe ich dann direkt meinen neuen Job begonnen.

Ich kann nur WOW sagen. Ich bin selber immer noch völlig baff, wie sich das alles so schnell ergeben hat. Und ich bin so dankbar für alles, was ich die letzten Monate erleben durfte. All die Begegnungen, die wunderschönen Momente und die gemeinsame Zeit, all die verschiedenen Orte, Eindrücke und Landschaften. Ich freue mich jetzt sehr und bin gespannt auf die kommende Zeit. Besuche sind jederzeit willkommen und sehr gern gesehen! Vielen Dank für euer Interesse an mir und meinen Erlebnissen. Ich freue mich natürlich auch sehr über ein ausführliches Update von euch. Bis wir uns hoffentlich bald auch mal wieder in Person antreffen wünsche ich euch allen alles alles Liebe, oder wie man auf dem PCT sagt: HAPPY TRAILS :)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WOW guys, what a long update this is turning out to be. But it’s been a while and many things have happened. By now I’ve been back longer then I was gone. But let’s start where we last left off:

London was super fun. A good way to reenter Europe. Had the opportunity to sleep out most of my jet lag, see some dear friends and wander around. I was super glad though that I had some days between the trail and the city, it is such a vibrant, dynamic and crazy place, definitely a big change after days of just focusing on your feet and your surroundings.

Coming back to Germany was strange and interesting at the same time (not very specific words I know). I left the trail with clear intentions and the goal to arrive at a place and commit to something at least for a while. But getting back to my hometown and moving back in with my parents I realized that I didn’t really know where or what that was going to be. I was willing to figure it out and work on it though. I just didn’t know where to start exactly.

I spent the first couple weeks moving around without any clear purpose. I did some small fun trips like a weekend in the black forest and another one at the lake of Constance, went to some cultural events and had some reunions with friends but apart from that I kind of got stuck in a “this is only super temporary, I can’t commit to anything” state, which was super tough and unnerving. It’s really hard to live in such a mode, especially when you don’t have any clue when it’s going to be over again. I felt lost in this endless pond of possibilities and opportunities and couldn’t even really start applying for anything specific, because I myself couldn’t really describe the things I wanted to accomplish. I was still content with my decision to leave the trail, I knew this was something I had to deal with eventually. Eventually the frustration changed into more of an acceptance of the circumstances and with that new ideas and opportunities arose.

I started looking more into educational companies in social work, because that was one of the only areas of social work that really interested me straight away. Through this I found the German Employee Academy, one of the biggest educational companies in Germany doing anything from reschooling and coaching programs to youth counselling and tutoring. I ended up having a couple interviews with them at different locations in Germany and received some pretty nice job offers. Within less then 2 weeks I signed a contract with them, found a lovely flat to live in, moved all my stuff, unpacked and even started working there already from the 1stof August! It’s been a whirlwind, I can tell you! In between I managed to run a 10k city race and get a bunch of bureaucratical stuff done also. The job is in Ludwigshafen, a city on the Rhine right next to Mannheim between Frankfurt and Karlsruhe. It is a big cultural meeting point (three state borders meet here) and very diverse and layered. And my job is mentoring young adults doing apprenticeships.

All I can really say is WOW. I still am baffled about how fast all this came to be. Somehow it seems that yet again, the phrase: “The less you seek, the more you find” worked out pretty well for me. I am so grateful for all the beautiful moments and encounters that have led up to this and am also very grateful for your interest in my journey. If you want, I’d love to hear what you are up to as well J

Of course my new flat welcomes all of you as visitors!!! I hope to see you soon again and am sending tons of love! Until then, in old PCT manner – happy trails!

[janaonthepct]

Why I’m leaving the trail...

Wow. What a way to start off a blog post guys, am I right? To keep the story arch intact and to possibly annoy you a bit longer with the question of whether the headline actually means what you think it means, let's start where we left off last time:

Day - I don't really know what day it was - at mile 152 sitting at the Paradise Valley Cafe devouring a typical American breakfast: pancakes, eggs and bacon. We had left camp pretty early in the morning to cruise down the last 10ish miles to the Cafe fast enough to have breakfast at an appropriate time because everyone told us it's definitely worth the 1 mile detour off of the trail and because we were craving a proper breakfast. Let's say this: they didn't lie ;)

We were going so fast that I even missed the 150-mile marker of the trail. Oh well, technically these little markers aren't supposed to be there anyways. A big principle on the trail is the LNT - leave no trace - principle and apparently even rearranging stones to form a number is too much of a trace to have. But the big milestones usually still have them anyways. We arrived at the Cafe where we met a ton of other PCT hikers that had started that day with the same idea as us. Talking to them we heard a lot of rumors and reports of the upcoming miles being decently sketchy and snowy enough to be needing micro spikes and possibly even an ice axe. Stories were going around of people having fallen off of ridges, getting injured and helicopter rescues and everyone was starting to worry and having to estimate the personal risk they were willing to take.

Every time we got out of the mountains and off of the trail at least for me it has been a very overwhelming experience. On the trail I barely used my phone, for one because I didn't really have that much cell service anyways and also because I enjoyed being fully out there without all the noise and distractions of modern technology. Some people enjoy hiking with music or podcasts, I literally only used my phone to take pictures and to locate myself with GPS to keep track of the trail and where to get water and such. So whenever we'd end up in a "more civilized" place, meaning a town or a restaurant, immediately many things would happen at once and in a very condensed time: While trying to get some proper food into your system, you are also faced with figuring out the next steps (whether that means where to hike to further that day, booking a room in a town or figuring out all the things you need to resupply on), your phone is going insane with a ton of messages, there is a lot of noise and people around you (more then you usually experience in one or two full days on trail), you’re probably also contemplating whether you already smell so bad that a shower and a laundry are needed and at the same time you are socializing with all the other hikers you haven't seen in a couple days exchanging stories of things you've seen or heard or comparing gear and food choices.

Back at Paradise Valley Cafe I was still chewing on my bacon and pancakes while Zack had already decided with Paul and Alex to hitch into Idyllwild quickly to grab some new micro spikes to tackle the upcoming section that afternoon, Nadine had already organized a ride from an amazing trail angel Jodie (we had met her at the barbecue before Warner springs) to get back to San Diego, where she was going to rent a car for the last couple days she'd be in the US before heading back the UK (she had only intended to hike the first two weeks with Paul and had done so amazingly covering over 150 miles!) and I was left with a difficult decision: I could either continue hiking with the boys, either having to buy new micro spikes in Idyllwild as well or not going with any spikes and risking injuries and sliding off or I could take the ride to San Diego with Nadine and wait for my micro spikes. I thought I wouldn't need them until the Sierras (the big mountains in Central California) and had left them in my friend's car and Olive had left the US to go to Mexico for a couple days so I had to wait for her to get back before getting to the car... (it's a long story I know)

Since Zack was already on his way to Idyllwild and I also didn't fully see a point in getting new micro spikes since mine were so close and perfectly fine also (yes, this is my German side speaking), I decided to join Nadine for the ride back to San Diego and luckily had an amazing friend there which was spontaneous and kind enough to let me stay at her place for another two nights after only getting notified literally 10 minutes before I was planning to leave the Cafe (you are the best Allison!). So here I was, back at the starting point in San Diego, two weeks and 150 miles later. I was kind of glad Olive was still in Mexico because that gave me three days off of the trail to get some perspective and to figure some things out.

Let me preface this by saying two things: 1. I absolutely LOVED every minute and every step of the trail! 2. None of what I'm writing here has to make any sense to anybody else, it's just some truths I have found to be fitting at the current time and place for me.

Ever since I stepped foot on the trail I was having a wonderful time. Being out there, living simply, being active and challenging your body, meeting like-minded people and having space for yourself, it just all made perfect sense to me. I realized I'm great at doing these things too and enjoy them a lot. I also realized some other things though. But since I don’t want to turn this blogpost into a novel (it’s getting there I know) here’s the short summary: - Although I’ve been having a grand time on the trail I just realized that I am currently in a point of my life where I want to commit to something, get working and stay somewhere for a while. I realized finishing the trail might not get me any further in knowing what a next step could be and instead of avoiding this decision, I knew I wanted to take action now. - I want to give back rather then receive. The trail is so much based around receiving help and kindness, which makes it very special. I feel like I am at a place in my life right now where I am capable of giving and I want to use that knowledge and spread joy. I guess I want to be on the giving end. - As much as this might be a once in a lifetime experience or chance I don’t feel like it has to be and I know that this isn’t going to be my last time going to the US and seeing all my amazing friends here again. So, I didn’t feel like this chapter really needed closure or a full stop. Instead I just absolutely rejoiced in reuniting with friends here, exploring new places and remembering old ones.

Anyways. Here I was having found these truths but also still really enjoying the trail and my hiking group. After Olive got back from Mexico we talked some more about it and came to the conclusion that I was going to reunite with my hiking group for a couple more days and then leave the trail from Big Bear Lake, a small hiker town in the mountains just off of the trail. The boys had successfully conquered San Jacinto in those days so I joined them about 50 miles later in Cabazon and did another 70-80 miles with them. And what a beautiful and rewarding 4 days those were. The landscape was absolutely gorgeous, we had super-hot desert, river crossings, snow and below freezing temperatures all within 24 hours. Lots of elevation gain and loss, lots of wind, lots of beautiful valleys and outlooks, lots of flowers and lizards. We got to Big Bear and had another full Zero day together. It was a wonderful way for me to come to an (at least temporary) end of the trail. I never wanted to leave on a bad note hating the experience, getting injured or feeling homesick or whatever. The trail and everything it entails has been nothing but outstanding and I am very grateful for this! It was hard to say goodbye to the boys but I hope it’s more of a “see you again very soon”. I am now their personal cheering squad.

(Some impressions from the last days on trail and saying goodbye to the boys)

I’ve been off of the trail for about 10 days now. Me and Olive had a super fun week together driving a little bit of the distance back north, meeting friends and also having a couple days just as the two of us roadtripping. We went to Santa Barbara, back to Monterey and then had two days in San Francisco and Point Reyes (a super cool national park right across San Francisco over the Golden Gate bridge). I then took the train back north to Portland where I had two days exploring a bit more and spending time with special and beautiful people and now I’ve been back in Port Townsend. I’m leaving the US next Monday, flying to London (because there were no good straight flights to Germany but also mainly because that means I get to see Nadine again, see London for the first time and even meet some other dear friends who live there). I will have another week there and then I am BAAAACK.

Super stoked to see you all again and to get started. The adventure definitely isn’t over. More steps coming. Let me know if you want me to keep the blog running though.

(Photos from the days after the trail)

Ihr lieben, der Blogpost ist definitiv zu lang geworden um hier eine komplette Übersetzung zu schreiben. Die zentrale Aussage: Ich komme zurück nach Deutschland :) Nicht weil mir das Wandern keinen Spaß macht, oder weil etwas Schlimmes passiert ist, sondern einfach weil ich gemerkt habe dass ich aktuell lieber einen nächsten Schritt in meinem Leben gehen will und an einem Ort ankommen will. Ich erzähle euch gerne mehr dazu, wenn wir uns mal wieder in Person treffen. Bin ab Anfang Mai wieder in Deutschland, nach einem kurzen Zwischenstopp in London. Freue mich euch wiederzusehen!!! Cheers, Jana

[janaonthepct]

More pictures

10 pictures definitely aren't enough so here are 10 more :)

[janaonthepct]

First days on the trail

Wow you guys. And here we are almost 2 full weeks into the hike. Days are already merging with each other in my mind, it's hard to keep all the stories in place.

I am writing you this after already having walked more than 150 miles on trail. And what a journey it has been.

I started the trail Sunday the 24th super early, after having spent a wonderful evening at Scout and Frodo's place, two amazing so called "trail angels", who dedicate their lives to making the start into this big adventure as smooth as possible by providing a place to stay in San Diego, offering all sorts of advice, food and encouragement and even giving you a shuttle to the trailhead early in the morning of your starting date. A trail angel is a person who provides any form of kindness to hikers without expecting anything in return. Whether that's a ride into town, a water cache to rehydrate after a steep climb, some food or snacks or even just a phone number to call in case anything happens. This support culture is one of the major contributing factors, which make thru hiking in the US a very special, wonderful, and unique experience. I have been more than amazed by the generosity and kindness that was shared with me over the past weeks.

The first couple days on trail were both intense and super rewarding at the same time. Of course, I had to do the first 20 miles in the first day. Everyone advises not to do this because the last 5 miles of that section are up a steep canyon and to do that in the afternoon in the hot sun causes many people to quit or faint or both. Luckily for me, since I was starting early in the season, there were plenty of water sources to refill my bottles and the sun wasn't too intense that day, so I was able to get to Lake Morena (the first camping town on trail, with a little restaurant and actual bathrooms and such) without fainting or dying or whatever.

Walking felt super great, actually. After this long process of preparing and it feeling so surreal, finally taking the first steps felt amazing. The first miles just flew by. The desert also turned out to be way different than what I had expected. The landscape kept changing, from big rocks, to sandy pathways, even green areas with bushes and trees, lots of flowers and cacti, big mountains and long valleys and then again small streams and tiny hidden hangout spots in the shade. This year the desert is experiencing something called the "superbloom," a rare phenomenon where due to the rain lots of plants bloom and the wildflowers are just super amazing.

The next couple days were filled with, guess what, a lot more walking :) It was all about figuring out a proper routine, knowing how to pack your stuff in your backpack, what to use when, which foods you were craving and when to take breaks, how to filter your water and use the "outdoor" toilet, when to get up and how far to walk. Lots of listening to your body's demands in a very simplistic manner.

Day two, I took a shorter day because I could definitely feel the miles of the day before and ended up staying at this beautiful little creek, where I met two wonderful people: Paul and Nadine a lovely couple from London. Paul is thru hiking the full trail while Nadine joined him for the first two weeks to share the start of the experience. We got along super well and kind of unconsciously decided to walk together for a while after day three where we met again in Mount Laguna, the next sort of known stop for hikers to get a proper meal and potentially resupply.

Since then, us three and Zack and Alex, two wonderful guys who also randomly met on trail, have formed this little crew because we all kind of hiked similar paces, enjoy each other's company, and have somehow ended up at the same campgrounds for a couple days in a row. Walking together, or at least deciding to meet up again for a break or to camp together has been something that I really enjoy. It's so much more fun to share the experiences you are having with people and to support each other when there are struggles.

After Laguna, we camped on this beautiful ridge where I finally started to understand why the PCT is called the "crest" trail. Basically, most of the way is following mountain ridges, which constantly spoils you with gorgeous photogenic mountain views and scenery. We reached the 50 mile milestone, spend a Nearo (a day where you walk close to nothing on the trail, close to zero miles) in Julian, the first "real" hiker-town, I did my first night cowboy camping (sleeping without a tent) and loved it. We reached 100 miles, had the most amazing barbecue provided by trail angels, and I got a trail name (it's easier for people to remember a sort of nickname then your actual name on trail because after a couple days everyone starts looking very similar) - shotgun (because I like walking in front and because I learned how to shotgun a beer - you poke a hole in the bottom and then drink it in one turn). We saw eagle rock, had another nearo in Warner springs, where we got to do laundry and shower for the first time on the trail, spent a night at Mike's place, a paradise for long distance hikers, where we made a crazy amount of pizza, reached the 150 mile milestone, and ended up at Paradise Valley Cafe, another highly recommended food place just a mile off of the trail, on Wednesday morning.

The trail has been super impressive. Beautiful scenery, thankfully for now most of the time enough water sources (I really don't know how people do this any time later in the season) and most importantly wonderful people to spend time with.

I am taking some time off of the trail, because just after Paradise Valley Cafe the trail goes higher into the mountains than before and there is still a bunch of snow. So I am taking some time to get my snow equipment together and also to reflect on the time so far and to figure what's to come next.

I've been having an absolute blast on the trail. Here are some impressions:

Ihr Lieben,

Mir geht es super. Die ersten Tage auf dem Trail waren sehr intensiv und schön! Aktuell mache ich eine kleine Auszeit in San Diego, weil der Schnee doch schneller als gedacht gekommen ist und ich noch nicht alles Material parat hatte, bzw. weil ich die Zeit auch gut nutzen kann um ein bisschen zu reflektieren, was ich schon alles erlebt habe. Das Wandern macht super viel Spaß, die Wüste ist unglaublich vielseitig und blüht nach besonders viel Regen dieses Jahr wunderschön (hier nennt man es den superbloom, der nur sehr selten stattfindet) und ich habe jede Menge tolle Leute kennengelernt. Die letzten Tage sind wir als Fünfergruppe gelaufen: Zack, Alex, Nadine, Paul und ich. Oben sind einige Fotos mit ein paar Eindrücken.

Ganz liebe Grüße, Jana

[janaonthepct]

And off we goooo

First day on the trail. Some impressions. Feels wonderful. The landscape is super diverse and keeps changing.

Hope life is good! Hugs to you all :)

Erster Tag geschafft, fühlt sich klasse an. Ganz liebe Grüße, Jana

[janaonthepct]

Last days before the trail

When I said that there was only one other major partner in crime when it comes to this upcoming journey, I have to admit I straight up lied.

To pull of a big adventure like this there are many contributing factors: people who I couldn't do it without, gear that will have a big weight (hahha, get it?) in the success of this hike, logistics that need to be figured out.

And since we started this blog with introductions let's just keep this going. I don't know if you will meet all my gear and all their names but a must have introduction goes out to my dear friend: Olive. Also know as the answer to my parents prayers, the longterm best buddy throughout high-school, the queen of literally almost anything, the extra-analog badass.

Olive and me

When I told her about me wanting to do the trail literally 2 hours before the registration for the permit took place she immediately was down to join and signed up with me :) super stoked to have a real partner in crime along and to share both the ups and the downs of this journey together.

We are currently driving down the Westcoast which has been absolutely wonderful because we get to take a bunch of stops along the way and see many dear friends again and also just to get a sense of the distance that we are intending to hike back. Olive is dropping me off in Campo in less then a week and will meet with me on the trail a couple times until Mojave, a town 550 miles north of the border, where she can leave her car and then fully get into hiking mode.

I've been back in the US for just over a week now. Managed to get here through some struggles because of Sturmtief Eberhard (a big storm) which caused almost all trains to be canceled. After over an hour of trying to figure things out I had to cramm into a way too overcrowded train and eventually managed to get to the airport with a ton of delay but luckily it was still just the right amount of time left to go through all the airport stuff. After that the rest of the journey was super smooth. One straight flight to Seattle, getting picked up by Olive and then heading into the city for some dinner (which was more like a 4 am night snack for me). Met up with Juhi, another very dear friend from my time in PT almost 10 years ago. And since then the reunions just have kept happening.

Spent 4 amazing days back home in Port Townsend strolling around, taking walks on the beach, eating Elevated Ice cream, Waterfront pizza and Rose popcorn (all the foods I've been missing for years), finally being able to go into bars and spending time with amazing people catching up and reminiscing. Also prepared some more for the trail. Olive got to borrow this cool dehydrator and we stocked up on fruits and fruit leather. Saturday we took the ferry and drove to Bellingham to see two of our friends race in a 50k (yes, they are awesome). Later I finally bought my hiking shoes for the trail, we spent some time in the city with Juhi and after that drove to Portland in Oregon. One state down, two more to go :)

View of Port Townsend from the ferry

Portland treated us with beautiful weather and even more beautiful people. Super fun to spend time with you guys!!! :) We went to a soccer game, got an exclusive tour of the brewery where Daniel, my cool cousin (I said that on purpose), works, hiked to gorgeous waterfalls with Ethan, also my cool cousin, enjoyed the food stands and did some more trail errands of getting the last gear together. Also hung out at this really sweet soaking pool in a backyard of an old school, probably the last warm bath in months haha.

Hiking Wakeena falls and the crew :)

We left Portland yesterday and are currently on the way to Monterey, where Olive went to college. Beautiful scenery on the way and I am still in denial that I will be hiking back through these areas in a couple months. We will spend about two more days in Monterey before driving the last stretch to San Diego where I will start my hike Sunday morning. IT'S REALLY HAPPENING GUYS :)

That's about it for news. Super fun days, super full, super happy. Don't get too used to these crazy long updates though. Probably more pictures and less words in the future. Miss you all and hope you are having a grand time. Cheers, Jana

Deutsch:

Ihr Lieben, mir geht es sehr gut. Nach einer recht turbulenten Reise durch die starken Winde letzte Woche bin ich zum Glück trotzdem wohlbehalten in Amerika angekommen. Ich bin jetzt seit ca. einer Woche wieder hier und hatte fantastische, prappelvoll gepackte, wunderschöne Tage. Ich war für 4 Tage in Port Townsend, meiner alten Heimat von vor fast 10 Jahren, Samstag sind wir mit der Fähre nach Bellingham gefahren und dann abends weiter nach Portland. Montag Abend ging es weiter nach Corvallis und heute sind wir 12 Stunden im Auto unterwegs um nach Monterey, California zu fahren.

Wir werden noch ca. 2 Tage in Monterey bleiben, bevor es dann Freitag nach San Diego geht. Und Sonntag geht es los. Freue mich über jeden der mit dran denkt und mir was nettes schreibt.

Die letzten Tage waren gefüllt mit herzlichen Begegnungen und Wiedersehen, kleinen Wanderungen, letzten Erledigung und Vorbereitungen für den Trail, jeder Menge gutem Essen und vielen tollen Gesprächen.

Hoffe es geht euch gut. Ganz liebe Grüße, Jana

[janaonthepct]

Preparing. Planning. Panicking.

*German afterwards – Deutsch unterhalb*

Months of preparations have been leading up to this. I am less than three days away from flying back to the US and less than three weeks away from standing at the southern terminus of the Pacific Crest Trail. Up until now all the planning, the countless hours of staring at my laptop comparing gear, listening to advice from fellow hikers, looking at the maps trying to figure out logistics, watching documentaries and tutorials, all of it seemed so surreal and far away.

First off, let’s do a little introduction. Me you should all know pretty well by now if you found your way to this website (Jana, 24 after tomorrow :), crazy outdoor enthusiast and adventurer) but maybe you aren’t as familiar with the other major contributing partner in crime: The Pacific Crest Trail (in short PCT). A (very) long distance hiking trail of 2650 miles (4250km) along the Westcoast of the US. It starts right at the Mexican border and leads all the way into Canada. As a comparison for my European friends: that is like walking from Lisbon to Istanbul and still not covering the entire distance of the PCT. A LOT OF WALKING!!! People attempting the walk the entire distance are called thru-hikers, you can either walk north or south which will change the timeframe in which you start and should finish, average timeframe for the trail is about 5 months.

An Overview of the PCT

I am attempting to thru-hike the PCT going northbound starting late March. I am starting pretty early in the season to have enough time so I don’t have to rush, to hopefully have enough water sources in the desert (which are roughly the first 700 miles) and because I’ve been talking SO MUCH about this for months now that I just can’t wait any longer :))

Some of you may be asking: Why? And my simple answer is: Why not?

I am not trying to prove anything here. This trail is just a wonderful possibility for me to grow, to live simply, to have a goal to strive towards, to be outside, healthy and free, to form easy routines and to enjoy it as much as I can.

I have been preparing for months now. Comparing gear, buying gear, asking a whole ton of questions and still feeling like I probably forgot to ask the most important ones, walking a lot, loading up my old backpack with a bunch of books and weights and hiking around my neighbourhood and telling everyone that was kind enough to listen about this adventure.

Some of the gear I am taking along

A training hike with my backpack filled with books :))

This website will hopefully function as an update tool for the journey. I can’t and won’t guarantee any kind of regularity but I will try to post a picture or a life signal as much as possible without interfering with the hike itself.

I do encourage you all to send me some positive messages for motivation, any questions you might have, or an update on what’s happening in your life and how things are going.  

For now that’s enough updates I think.

This is a test post, let me know what you think!

Happy trails and all the best,

Jana

Ihr Lieben,

meine Berichte werde ich hauptsächlich in Englisch schreiben. Wer aber etwas nicht versteht oder noch zusätzliche Fragen hat, der darf mir wirklich gerne einfach schreiben. Hier habe ich einfach einen kleinen Einstieg geschrieben, was der Pacific Crest Trail ist und dass ich hier auf dieser Website in unregelmäßigen, aber hoffentlich ausreichenden Abständen ein paar Bilder und Lebenszeichen von mir geben werde. Ich bin auf jeden Fall schon wahnsinnig gespannt und freue mich riesig, dass es jetzt bald losgeht!

Ganz liebe Grüße, Jana