The Beginning

Last year, 2012, marked two events. 

First, I trained for and completed in the Duathlon portion of the Portland Triathlon.


Second, a coworker of mine set out on and completed a through hike of the Pacific Crest Trail.

The completion of the 2012 Portland Duathlon was as much of a spirtual/emotional experience as it was physical.  When I set out with a friend to complete the race, it was part of a healing process that goes back almost a decade and the power and energy drawn from that experienced launched me into the next phase of my life. Now, a year later, I'm looking to take that healing experience and move forward with it into a stage of growth.  After a couple of weeks of contemplating I'm ready to announce that I'm back in training again with bigger ambitions in my future. 

My ultimate ambition is to hike the Oregon portion of the PCT in 2015.  I have to admit that when I first read that it's the shortest and easiest portion of the PCT, I was a little pride/hurt, considering how I could incorporate the Washington portion in one trip as well, but the reality is, just as I don't like running marathons; the traversing of the whole of the PCT isn't my journey.

So, for now, the 450+- miles it takes to hike from California to Washington is my goal, but even that is no small feat.  It will involve a lot of training so I can carry everything I need to survive on my own in Oregon's wilderness, it will mean a couple of months off of work meaning some saving of dough, house sitting for my kitties, new and better gear, the commitment of good friends to make sure I don't starve on the way, and more training (yes I said that twice). So, I'm not taking this all in one swoop.

My first step will be working toward and beating my time in the 2014 Portland Duathlon. (I still suck at swimming...don't have to swim much on the PCT so, I'm not too worried about that.)  Several other possible steps include, but are not limited to:

• Hiking the Jackson/Kimball trail...in one day.
• Hiking the Elkhorn Crest Trail
• Participating in several races between now and the PCT.

This isn't something I'll be doing over night and the support of my friends and family as I continue forward will be essential and most appreciated.   A journey begins long before the foot hits the trail so this blog is for the purpose of documenting the whole trip and I invite YOU to join me.