[pct-l] Thru-hikers' 12 step program

[abiegen at cox.net]

Give yourself up to the higher power of the trail.

   1. We admitted that we were powerless over the quest of a trek -- that our lives had become unmanageable.
   2. We came to believe that a trail longer than the one we are currently hiking could restore us to sanity.
   3. Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of ibuprofen, trail angels and water cache patrons.
   4. Made a searching and fearless inventory of backpack contents.
   5. Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our excess pack weight.
   6. Were entirely ready to have God remove all the defects of our hiking boots.
   7. Humbly asked Him to minimize our hiker funk in polite company.
   8. Made a list of all the trail angels we had stiffed, and became willing to make amends to them all.
   9. Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would force us to get off the trail to visit an ATM.
  10. Continued to take personal inventory and when we were improperly attired/outfitted promptly admitted it.
  11. Sought through hiking and camping to improve our conscious contact with nature, praying only for knowledge of the trail’s plan for us and the power  to carry out our trek.
  12. Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of our treks, we tried to carry this message to thru-hikers, and to practice these principles in all of our affairs. 


TrailHacker

"I can't think straight when my feet hurt.'
Abraham Lincoln