[pct-l] Long distance hikers and $

Thu Oct 6 00:43:19 CDT 2011

Your story is so encouraging to me.  I am also 54 - and took the married
with family route.  My limitations with hiking have to do with family needs
rather than job/money issues.

I tried to hike the PCT this year - only made 1000 miles of it mostly due to
the snow conditions I didn't want to deal with.  My husband graciously had
said to go for it this year-he wants me to live out my passions best as I
can.  He has life-time injuries and chronic pain that keep him from any kind
of hiking.  It was very hard for him to have me gone for 3 months, so I
doubt I can talk him into another try at it for another few years.  After
all, I was the one out having fun and he's staying in life routine and goes
to bed alone at night. When you have a mate with different life needs and
ambitions - it is very difficult if you want to stay married, which I do.  

We married at 21 - far to young for me since I did not even know I had a
backpacking and adventure passion then.  Marriage of 33 years, 4 adult
children and 3 grandchildren, I have to/want to work within the system of
family obligations, needs and desires. I told them all last year - "there
will be no marriages, no babies, and no surgeries this year because it is
going to be the summer of Sue...please."  I must say that all of my family
was totally behind me and cheering me on the whole time.  2 of my daughters
came for several weeks - one for almost the whole time.  She intended to go
for 1 week and loved it so much, she just stayed.  Isn't that cool?

I envy your freedom.   I'm making due the best I can with compromise. 

But it can work if you make it work.  Whatever your "challenge" is - if you
want it, you will do it.

I am very happy that you get to do the PCT next year - YOU WILL LOVE IT!!  I
had the time of my life. 

And somehow, I will be back, because my desire just won't go away.

Sue (Sister Sue/Hatchet Jack)

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
On Behalf Of Charles Doersch
Sent: Wednesday, October 05, 2011 6:13 PM
To: Scott Williams
Cc: pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: Re: [pct-l] Long distance hikers and $

Although I'm now 54, I began out of college making money & living choices
that maximized freedom, and minimized obligation. I lived cheaply and worked
ambitiously -- (working smart). I knew I wanted to enjoy my life all along
the way, and not wait until the end. The last two lines from the Emily
Dickenson poem had stuck with me:
"So instead of going to Heaven at last
I'm going all along."

I focused my purchasing power on verbs, not nouns; I bought what would bring
me experience rather than buying what would weigh me down. Camping gear,
scuba gear, etc. -- that got me going, got me out. Luckily, as a gay man
living back in the day, most of the societal obligations and opportunities
(marriage, kids, career) were denied me. So I leveraged that into
opportunities. If I'm not going to find acceptance by obeying all their
rules, woooooey, I guess I don't have to agree to those obligations.

Over 30 years now I have had adventures all over the planet -- and yet I'm
not living hand-to-mouth. Lived on six continents and traveled in 59
countries. For example, Sean and I got paid very well in Taiwan as English
instructor s-- and that funded four months in Africa and three months on a
scientific survey in the South Pacific. We worked as volunteers at an
archeological site in Australia that paid for our room & board for as long
as we wanted to stay in Oz.

Now I'm a university professor who gets summers off -- and I've just gotten
an unpaid leave-of-absence to be able to do the PCT in 2012. Of course, it
helps having a family that burns with the same level of passion you do. My
household of great guys have always been willing to work like crazy
(overtime, long hours, weekends, etc.) at jobs that will nevertheless let
them get time off. Then we get the time off and go.
And go.
And go.

The old addages certainly have proven true for us: If you want a secure
life, you must give up the dream of freedom. If you want a life of some
freedom, you'll have to give up some security -- if you want a life of great
freedom you will have to give up great security. But we're okay with that,
because we believe security to be often a dangerous illusion in day-to-day
life.

But we are under no illusions about how powerful the experience of the PCT
will be for us. We traveled 5000 miles village-to-village across Africa ...
we traveled 8000 miles from Colorado to the far end of Panama and back ...
we traveled about the same from Istanbul to Arctic Norway ... we lived
abroad working our way around the planet for a year and a half ... and it's
always a wrestling with titanic middle-class forces that wish to draw you
back into settled, sedentary life (usually whispering fears & worries into
our ears). The PCT will be a greater challenge than any we've faced -- and
therefore a game changer.

When we talk about plans for beyond the PCT, we generally stop, grin, shrug,
and say: "I guess we'll have to let the PCT-Chuck, PCT-Sean, PCT-Matt, and
PCT-Chris decide that later. They'll have the better perspective."

Can't wait.

~C

PS. Another gift the PCT has given us a year ahead of time, is that for the
past five months we have been hiking every day in the Colorado mountains
getting stronger, fitter, harder-bodied, and lighter-on-our-feet --- all
while working extra jobs to pay for next year. How awesome is that?

Cheers!

On Wed, Oct 5, 2011 at 3:34 PM, Scott Williams <baidarker at gmail.com> wrote:

> Congratulations Shelly!!!  And good advice to folks who just can't wait
> till
> their old like me to hike long trails.
>
> Shroomer
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