Free Outside: A Trek Against Time and Distance

by Jeff Garmire

It was time to adopt the day to day mindset and take each challenge as it came.

“You miss 100% of the steps you don’t take.”

Giving back is one of the most fulfilling actions in life and doing so on the trail is exponentially more fulfilling.

Kindness is an important ingredient in the enjoyment of life and I wanted to take advantage of any reasonable chance I had to show it to others.

The mind wants to quit before the body.

There was no choice but to point my feet uphill and embrace the suck.

Embrace the suck. Saying I learned during awful days in the military….

There are times when moving too fast causes some of the best things in life to be missed.

It doesn’t matter if we have known each other for years or minutes, the bond that hikers forge with each other and the trail angels, create a culture that words can’t do justice. It is something that is so pure you will question how true your relationships off the trail really are.

This is so true!

Triple Divide Pass is unique, even for the Continental Divide. The pass is three-sided and precipitation flows to three separate oceans depending on where it lands. It is the only place in the world where two different Continental Divides meet at a summit. Water and snowmelt flow into the Arctic Ocean (Hudson’s Bay), the Pacific Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean. It was a crazy fact to consider on top of the summit.

Hitting the wall in long-distance hiking is common. Successful hikers are those who can break through that wall and persevere. It is a test of will and desire. I needed to channel my no-quit mentality.