The more I read accounts of other people on the trail I realize that everyone has their "Why" or is at least seeking a Why for...

The more I read accounts of other people on the trail I realize that everyone has their "Why" or is at least seeking a Why for their hike. As AWOL mentioned in the first pages of his book (AWOL on the Appalachian Trail) it is rare for someone to have a definitive concisely articulate why. So it goes with me. My why is one that I cannot explain. As I have mentioned before, my life is not in a bad place, actually quite the opposite is true. Unlike many I am not at a crossroads in my life having recently graduated, I've not been laid off from a job, I've never been in the military, I'm not recently separated or anything else. My why is not entirely answered but here are a few things that I do know about my why.
  1. I recently had a brush with death and that challenged me to live more in the present and live more free.
  2. The adventure and accomplishment of hiking the Trail has been in my mind for over 10 years.
  3. Looking at today's world of perpetual connectivity with electronics and others, I crave to disconnect and commune with nature, myself and the divine.
  4. I'm a bit of a starter and often not a finisher and I would like to prove to myself that I can and will finish this great task.
  5. If not NOW, then WHEN?
  6. Nature often feels more at home, though not always as comfortable, to me.
  7. The Trail is calling out to me, in my thoughts, my dreams, my goals and aspirations.
  8. While I cannot put my finger on it, I believe there is something to be learned, something specific to my life, something that will change everything about me and help me have a greater Positive Impact on this world and my life that can only come from this venture.
I want to hear from you:
What is/was your why? Do/Did you have one?
If on the trail or having completed the trail, how important is the why in sustaining?
If planning, how much of a role does your why have on your preparations?
If off the trail did you have a why? If so, what was it and how did you deal with your why when getting off the trail?
Also for everyone, does your why still drive you to want to get back on the trail or complete other dreams/goals?

-OmPi (ॐ π)

Ten years ago shortly after college I began looking into hiking the Appalachian Trail. At a crossroads in life I desired to do somethin...

Ten years ago shortly after college I began looking into hiking the Appalachian Trail. At a crossroads in life I desired to do something to help find myself and maybe figure out what I wanted from life. More so than anything I think I desired the trail because it was a time with nature, a prize to be had, a goal to be accomplished. As well, my A personality said, "Now is the time, before you have any additional obligation, things to hold you back, or prevent you from doing so. Now is the right time if ever there is one." My adventure never took off. My hiking partner decided not to join and I attempted a short weekend trip on the FL Trail only to discover less than a mile in that I was entirely uncomfortable with the silence I would be experiencing over 6 months and 2189 miles.

Fast forward 10 years and life has become a much more complicated. I've crossed into my 30's, have a relationship of 6 years, 4 little ones (dogs and cat), a job I love, and we have just bought a house. Nothing is wrong with my life, actually it is pretty amazing, even if it is somewhat mundane. The call of the trail has never left me over the last 10 years, but it has subsided slightly that is until last year when I had a brush with death and much of my life was called into question.

I questioned my friendships, my job, and my direction in life. I was broken down and in my weakness I found strength to begin to change the things that I found less than desirable. In the year to come I eliminated most of my toxic friendship, discovered how much I love my job, and began to change directions in my life. Here I am in the present still not entirely satisfied with life but in a better place than I was one year ago. My health and strength has returned, new friendships have started to be form, and a new path is beginning to be blazed ahead of me. Things are looking up but the soft quite call of the Trail is growing louder and louder and it is not going to be bypassed again.

During the end of May 2014 I was walking some small simple trails in the NC mountains with my partner and a friend. I expressed a thought of hiking the AT which was met with interest from my friend and discouragement from my partner. I can't say that I blame him with all that we have built together over the last 5 years, the obligations that we currently have, the time away and many other things, I can understand where this would seem like the most inopportune time to hike the AT. This is the warning that my A Personality told me 10 years ago that I should do the AT then before obligations piled up. But alas life takes its own path and lessons must be learned in the process. So I began researching, reading and dusting off my old information from years ago and found my inspiration stronger than ever.

So with this post I breath life into this journey much like the divine I manifest the first vibration of this adventure which burst forth from within. All posts until my last will be about the my perseverance and preservation of this adventure until I complete it and experience the transformation that it will no doubt have on me and the world around me.

-OmPi (ॐ π)

About me

about me

My name is Joshua on the trails I go by OmPi and this a chronicle of my life's adventures.

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