[pct-l] Long distance hikers and $

[Diarmaid Harmon]

My situation was a series of circumstances and history all coming together to allow me to indulge in my dream of the thru-hike. I was working and raising a family and managing to get several 3 to 5 day trips in a year with many day and overnight hikes thrown in. Then 9/11 hit. As I worked in the aerospace industry I knew the writing was on the wall. Layoffs were coming. My wife and I talked and planned for the layoff we knew it would be deep and would last longer then people were projecting. When the inevitable happened we were ready. We had paid off all our debt, not the house, and knew we would be ok with just one income. So I planned for and commenced my hike north from the Mexican border in 2002. I made it through that year with the support of my wife, family and friends. I have continued to hike and backpack and get out as often as I can. I am just as happy to have completed a 10 mile day hike as I am when I do a 200 to 300 mile backpack trip. 

Hiking Irish.


On Oct 6, 2011, at 10:29 AM, Eric Lee wrote:

> My perspective is somewhat similar to Sue's.  This is just my view on
> things; not one that I ask other people to share.
> 
> For me, long-distance hiking is a life-long passion but it's not the only or
> even the biggest passion in my life.  As important as long-distance hiking
> is, my family is even more important to me.  When I chose to get married and
> have children, I knew that choosing *for* those things necessarily meant I
> was choosing *against* many other things.  It's never possible to have it
> all.  So right now, I enjoy section hiking and trail maintenance and hanging
> out in this email list but I'm not free to wander the trail for six months
> at a time.  That's ok.  At some point in the future my children will be
> grown and my house will be paid off and my menu of choices will grow,
> hopefully to include a full thru-hike.  But right now I'm living out the
> choices I made and I wouldn't have it any other way.
> 
> Other people decide to choose *for* an unfettered live of adventure and
> *against* many other things.  That's fine too.  The people who get into
> trouble are those who try to do everything at the same time and end up doing
> none of it well.  Make your choices, stick with them, and live without
> regrets.
> 
> Eric
> 
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