The Journey Begins

In a few short hours I will step out the door of my comfortable apartment tucked into an alley in El Segundo, California. I’ll walk away from the stacks of the refinery, past the towers of a power plant, and along the beach before taking a turn inland. Once I do, it’ll only be about 2,090 miles to my destination: my parents’ doorstep at their new house in Seattle.

Most of those miles will be on the Pacific Crest Trail, so I’ve included a photo of me at the PCT Southern Monument. I know it looks different than last year’s photos of some posts surrounded by a bunch of dirt, but such is the pace of development in California.

Okay so it’s not the actual PCT Southern Monument, heard that one looks more like a pile of wood posts or something.

Which is fine, because I didn’t set out to hike the whole PCT. Not this year anyhow. Still, aside from about 50 miles of urban walking and connector trails on each end, the PCT will be my home for the next few months.