ASTRAL
Where are you based?
SPARKLE
Denver, CO based since 2017. I did not start backpacking until I moved here, and had never camped alone before my first thru-hike in 2020. Colorado is the best playground!
ASTRAL
How about some background on your thru hiking accomplishments?
SPARKLE
- CO TRAIL 2020, “yo-yo” (hiking it both directions)
- PCT LASH (long ass section hike): 900 miles in 2021
- CT yoyo 2022 again with an (failed) attempt at the FKT nobo, two weeks later hiked the Arizona Trail southbound ~800 miles.
- Eastern Continental Trail 5600 miles 2023
- Key West Heritage Trail, Everglades, Florida Trail, Blackwater, Alabama Roadwalk, Pinhoti Trail, Benton MacKaye Trail, Appalachian Trail, International Appalachian Trail
- PCT LASH 400 miles in 2024
- AZT LASH 400 miles in 2024
- Continental Divide Trail 2024 2700 miles
(In 2026 hopefully the Calendar Year Triple Crown!)
ASTRAL
What is your average daily mileage on a thru hike?
SPARKLE
I consistently hike around 25-30 miles a day. My schedule typically looks like waking up around 5:30am and being on trail by 6am. Hike until around 8pm with breaks at 10am (which I aim to have 10 miles in by), lunch between 12-3pm, another ten minute break and then dinner around 6pm before the sun goes down so I can get the energy to squeeze out a few more miles by 8pm. By the time I hit camp I’ve already eaten so I usually just throw my Tyvek down and pass out pretty quickly!
ASTRAL
What is it like to walk for hundreds of miles?
SPARKLE
Hundreds is fun, but thousands!* is when you get to really transform into a new you, lock in, and find a new rhythm to your life. You really are one with nature at that point, you stop caring about how you look or how you smell, and start leaning into the adventure! You start to shed those societal expectations about status, appearance, and productivity to lean into a more authentic self. You’re too exhausted to act or be like anyone other than your rawest self.
ASTRAL
What is it like to be mostly disconnected from typical society while you thru hike?
SPARKLE
It feels amazing – life is simple but hard, thru-hiking is hard but simple. It is both liberating and isolating, grounding and surreal. Every motion feels more deliberate and intentional, and you can physically see the progress you make from your daily actions. You start to gain a new perspective being so far removed. You can really look at the big picture, and this introspection is what leads me to personal growth and using a new approach.
ASTRAL
What are a couple of the most surprising things you have learned from thru hiking?
SPARKLE
The power of simplicity, and using that ultralight mindset of only taking what you need and making work what you do have. On trail, your needs shrink down to the bare essentials: food, water, shelter, and that next footstep.
The importance of letting go. Life doesn’t care about your plans, plans are only preferred options. Things are never guaranteed to work as you plan, so learning to accept and let go of the things you can’t control.
My body’s ability to adapt. As someone who struggles with chronic pain and endometriosis, I never thought I’d be capable of thru hiking. What I learned was that I didn’t have to be the fastest, strongest, smartest, or best, I just had to commit and keep putting one foot in front of the other.
ASTRAL
Describe your first experience with the Nosobos?
SPARKLE
I immediately felt more comfortable than I had with any other trail shoes! I took them on the Arizona Trail and was so happy to not have the pokies be able to stab me through my sole. It was wild weather, I went through blazing hot desert, snow, so many creeks and rivers, and so much sand/dirt. I was surprised at how well they held up!
ASTRAL
How do your Nosobos feel on your feet?
SPARKLE
Even, balanced, the zero drop helps my foot spread out and the wide toe box gives my toes room to wiggle (or buffer when I accidentally kick rocks!).
ASTRAL
Can you expand on the concept of your feet as your main connection to the ground/earth?
SPARKLE
Physical connection, balance and stability, my feet are my foundation and my shoes are the most important part of my gear because without them I couldn’t do anything else! I love the sensory feedback which helps me determine my pace, almost like an exchanging of energy.
ASTRAL
What does “trusting nature” mean to you?
SPARKLE
In hiking we talk a lot about having a “why.” This is suppose to be your lifeline for when things get tough or go wrong you have this to remember why you shouldn’t quit on a bad day. But my unpopular opinion is that, after thousands of miles, my “why” didn’t matter so much. Many days it was just trusting nature and putting one foot in front of the other, even when my reason wasn’t clear. There were days I didn’t know why I kept going when my body was screaming at me to quit, but the act of relentless forward motion and committing to the journey itself was ENOUGH. In the end my “why” wasn’t some grand, life-changing purpose, it was the sheer resilience and act of showing up every single day even when I didn’t have all the answers and trusting that your journey will take you exactly were you need to go. That’s how you accomplish something nobody’s ever done before.
ASTRAL
How does the concept of buoyancy relate to a through hike?
SPARKLE
I relate this back to the act of staying afloat, some days you’re just barely able to keep your nose above water and you want to quit, but on trail you really don’t get that luxury. Quitting means either moving forward or backtracking the hard miles that made you want to quit in the first place. Some days you see your goal and you fight like hell to swim towards it, and someday you’re not sure where or why, so you float, save your energy, and let the waves guide you for a bit until you know where you want to go.
