October 10, 2017 – As I laced up my hiking boots to take my first steps on the Pacific Crest Trail, I had no idea of the journey that lay ahead. In a matter of weeks I would face challenges big and small, from rodent robbers and extraneous equipment, to black bears and shin splints, to a devastating wildfire that halted hikers in their tracks. I learned many things in my time hiking the PCT. Among them, that alongside the natural ecosystem of the trail exists a human one. In three weeks on the trail, I only camped alone two nights – one by choice. There were always people around, always someone on the trail with whom to share a moment, an afternoon, or an entire journey. Most of the hikers I met started at the Mexican border months before I set out on my 511 mile trek of Washington’s PCT. They had names like Hollywood, Noodle, Chewie, Double Tap, Gusher, and Cowboy, and had seen much worse than me. Yet, these happy hikers met me as Tom, the old man hiking for the young kids of Kindering, and bestowed on me the trail name “Fearless.” Hiking with Courage the Lion garnered a lot of attention on the trail, and I became known first as the Lion Tamer, then the Fearless Lion Tamer, then simply, Fearless. I worked my hardest to live up to this nickname for the Kindering kiddos who overcome their own challenges and embody this moniker every day. Courage and I were able to complete all but 150 miles of the trek. The fire closures from White Pass to Chinook Pass forced many of us to “jump” 98-miles ahead. Then, with only [...]

September 11, 2017 – After a few zero days, Tom has been back on the trail and feeling good. While he was in town, we chatted with Tom about what he’s learned and if he’s going to make any changes as a result of those lessons. Here’s what he said. Fuel your Body The biggest personal challenge during my first weeks centered on hydration, due to the high temperatures, and nutrition. I just didn’t have enough calories to fuel my body, especially on the longer days. I am making adjustments now to add more fat and protein in the forms of olive oil, cheese, nuts. I’m also making a few gear adjustments, including and upgraded water filtration system. The oddest thing I’ve eaten was a packet of instant oatmeal dry as a snack for lunch. It tasted better than mixing it up for breakfast, and I didn’t have to deal with clean up. Same calories. It’s fuel, NOT food. Adapt to the Weather Given weather forecast for the next couple weeks (predictions are calling for warm-to-hot days, with overnight lows in the 50’s and 60’s), I’ve left all of my down and extra clothing behind – which will save considerable weight and enable me to hike faster. I’ve also opted for a footwear change to low top light hikers instead of my high tops to save weight and increase foot comfort. Watch out for Vermin As you know, I was attacked by mice the first night on the trail, and they chewed through bags to get at my food. After Courage and I chased them off and moved our food into the tent, one ambitious little critter chewed a hole in the side of our tent [...]

September 2, 2017 – I had been on the trail for four days when I learned that a section of the Pacific Crest Trail was closed just north of White Pass due to danger from The Norse Peak Fire. A lightning storm on August 11 ignited 13 fires in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National forest, forcing 23 – then 52 – miles of the PCT to close. The closure impacts access to the 98-mile section from White Pass to Snoqualmie. While it’s not all closed, poor accessibility makes it hard to get back on the trail at Government Meadow where it’s open. Most hikers are skipping the full 98-mile section and jumping forward to Snoqualmie, and they’ll return to hike this section at a later time. The other option is to hike White Pass to Chinook Pass, then walk a dangerous road for 26 miles and/or hike around on alternate trail systems and hitchhike to get back to the PCT. After six days and 148 miles on the trail, I was picked up at White Pass on Friday, September 1. Right now, I’m taking my two days of rest (called ‘zero’ days due to no mileage). My plan is to go back and complete this section once it’s safe to traverse in one push. I’ll be starting back on the Trail at Snoqualmie Pass on Monday, September 4. My body reacted well to the overall mileage of the first week, and outside of a few nagging blisters and a toenail I’ll likely lose, the rest of me is sore but in good shape. My plan was to average 18-19 miles a day, but over the first six days I’ve actually averaged over 22 miles per day. That included [...]

August 29, 2017 – The time for training, logistics, and preparation is over, and Tom and Courage the Lion (Kindering’s mascot) have started their journey on the Washington section of the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). They began their month-long hike at 8 AM on Saturday August 26. To tackle the challenge, Tom and Courage have broken the hike up into seven sections, and they plan to hike an average of 19 miles and gain/lose 4,015 vertical feet per day. They started at the Columbia River on the Oregon State border, and have climbed up and out of the Columbia River Gorge toward the Indian Heaven Wilderness. Right about now they should be enjoying an abundance of lakes and huckleberries, keeping them cool and well fed. It has been hot, so Tom’s strategy to beat the heat is to hike as much as possible before noon, then take a long break in the afternoon when the sun is at its peak. Then, after a siesta and dinner, hit the trail again for a few final miles in the early evening. Courage and Tom are making progress! Together, they covered 19 miles on Saturday and Sunday, and look to remain on track for the ambitious goal. They’ve been cruising north, and are currently due West of Mt. Adams. Surely they’ll enjoy a beautiful sunset from camp tonight. They’re both in good spirits and are feeling strong. Only one small setback so far in the form of field mice: the first night on the trail mice found Tom’s pack and food sack and chewed a hole right through the tent! Apparently Courage was asleep on the job and didn’t smell the small critters, but no doubt will redouble his [...]

August 22, 2017 – Months to years worth of planning and preparation go into thru hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. In addition to figuring out gear and getting your body into hiking shape, you also have to decide what – and how much – you’re going to eat. Hiking the full PCT takes 4-5 months. Trying to carry enough food to sustain you for that amount of time is impossible, leaving PCT thru hikers with two choices when it comes to food: either prepare, pack, and ship meals to predetermined stops on the trail, or plan to buy food along the way. Using Resupply Boxes to ship meals and other supplies is common for folks with dietary restrictions or who are particular about trail food. Buying food along the trail is a way to support local businesses and assure you aren’t beholden to the post office. In my case, I’ll be hiking the 511 miles of the Washington State PCT in about 30 days. That still requires way too much food to carry! A PCT hiker will consume between a pound and two pounds of food per day, so on an eight-day leg one can carry as much as 16 pounds of weight. To manage my food, I’ll be resupplying my trek with the goal of never carrying more than about a week’s worth of nutrition. I should also mention – calling it “food” is a stretch for those of you who know that I am a cook/foodie! Here’s my plan (you can revisit the overall trail map here): My first section is 148 miles from the WA border to White Pass. I’ll have 8+ days of provisions when I start, making this the longest section [...]

August 15, 2017 – When embarking on a new challenge, it can be really important to learn from those who came before us. That’s why I reached out to someone to help me with my hiking goals: Pacific Crest Trail Thru Hiker Sarah McCroy. I love spending time outdoors, but I’m hardly a PCT expert like Sarah. She completed all 2,650 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail in September 2015, and continues to be an avid hiker, backpacker, backcountry skier, and trail runner. We’re also both members of The Mountaineers, an outdoor education nonprofit in Seattle, where she leads hikes and has contributed numerous blog posts about thru hiking. Her personal life motto is “never live vicariously.” I knew we would get along well before we even met. Sarah graciously gave me an hour of her time, patiently going through my packing list. She was supportive yet firm, telling me my base weight for my pack – at 23.2 lbs. without food and water – was too much. One thing I already knew – but that she strongly reiterated – is that the lighter your pack is, the faster you can move. With an ambitious goal of completing all 511 miles of the Washington State Pacific Crest Trail in 30 days, averaging 19 miles per day, dropping a few pounds of gear can help me move more quickly and efficiently. It also decreases the likelihood of injury, either from physically overextending or from a fall due to extra weight. I’m grateful for Sarah’s sage advice. Based on her knowledge, I have decided to: Leave the rain pants at home, knowing I may get wet but would probably get wet from sweat anyway. Remove 2 carabiners and a [...]

August 8, 2017 – Hiking is difficult, rewarding work. I will be putting one foot in front of the other for 30+ days to raise money and awareness for the Kindering kiddos that conquer their own mountains daily – and I’ll need a whole lot of fuel to help me do it. The average 175 lb. person burns about 500 calories per hour hiking. I plan to hike an average of 19 miles per day, and my average pace will probably be two to three miles per hour. That means each day I’ll be hiking for seven to nine hours. I’m going to need a lot of calories (about 4,000 extra!) each day to help me on my journey. In an upcoming blog post I’ll share more information on how I plan to carry all of this food and how resupply stations work. For now, I’m trying to get a list together of things I’ll enjoy eating for month on the trail. Due to weight constraints, it’ll be important for me to carry foods that are “calorie dense” – in other words, foods that pack the greatest number of calories per unit of weight. I’m also carefully considering how to balance the nutritional needs of my body, such as getting the right amounts of fats, carbohydrates, and proteins. For example, fats contain more than two times the calories – about nine per gram – that carbs and proteins do, which have about four calories per gram. However, I wouldn’t survive for very long on only high-fat foods. Carbohydrates are the body’s primary fuel (gas in the engine, if you will), which is why long-distance athletes have a calorie-dense carbohydrate balance in their diet, and why I plan [...]

Training, cats, and dogs: Prepping for the PCT with hiking partner Courage the Lion and special guest Tisza.  August 1, 2017 – Courage the Lion and I have been doing a bunch of training hikes to prepare for the big one. Much as I’d like to be able to roll out of bed and hike the length of Washington cold turkey, the Courage/Tom brain trust determined that some practice in the lead-up will probably make for an all-around better experience. Lucky to have such a wise hiking partner… it’s often the quiet ones who have the best insights. Below are a few photos from the trail. We've been increasing distance, and did a 19-miler yesterday with about 1,000 feet of elevation gain and loss. Even during moments of strain and occasional windedness, I couldn’t be more excited to embark on this journey. I think regularly about the families making extraordinary progress through Kindering, and the children who defy odds, diagnoses, and expectations. I also think about the unmet demand that still exists in our communities. Doing my small part to help Kindering reach more families in need is worth every blister, every bug bite, every step. Next up: more elevation! Want to get involved? Learn more and consider supporting Trek for Tots!   Courage the Lion, impersonating his favorite movie about a certain "regal" lion. Blue skies between the trees near Diamond Lake, Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Courage the Lion, taking a load off during a training hike. Taking in the scenery near Mason Lake.

July 24, 2017 – Packing for the PCT is a balancing act: you want your pack to be light-weight so you can maximize your daily travel, but you don’t want to leave any essential equipment behind. My goal is to average close to 19 miles per day, and so I’ve gotten the base weight of my pack down to 23.2 lbs. without food and water. I’ve adopted a long-distance hiking philosophy that balances being wise about weight and bulk without sacrificing too much comfort. For instance, I’ve decided to pack a one-man tent and rain fly. I need to be out of the rain and safe from bugs to get a good night’s sleep. The tent kit is 2.1 lbs. and is well worth the extra weight over an ultra-light tarp and trekking pole setup. The other area where I’m going with extra ounces is in the kitchen and stove setup. I’m choosing the dependability and convenience of a standard stove and gas cartridge. There are numerous other ways to cook, like super-light alcohol stoves built out of titanium (or even cat food cans), but I want more comfort for my journey. Having hot meals and drinks is critical fuel for the body AND serves physiological/emotional needs after many days of traveling in the mountains. One of the biggest kit items to carefully consider is footwear. One must weigh the time of year, the trail, etc., and decide what and how many pairs of footwear to take, as well as whether to pack them with you or change them out at cache points. I have decided to take only my Vasque light trail hikers, which are less than half the weight of my normal leather hikers. This [...]

July 17, 2017 – Did you know the Washington Section of the Pacific Crest Trail spans 511.8 miles through the diverse landscape of the rugged Cascade Mountains? Stretching from the Bridge of the Gods on the Columbia River to E.C. Manning Provincial Park (in Canada), the total elevation gain is 111,000 feet with a total elevation loss of 107,450 feet traveling south to north. That’s like climbing Mt. Rainier from Paradise over 12 times in a month! I’m getting really excited about this PCT hike, which we’re calling “Trek for Tots” in honor of the children at Kindering who conquer obstacles and move mountains every day. I’ve been accompanied on my training hikes by Courage the Lion, Kindering’s mascot who will be joining me on this trek, to be sure he’s trail-ready as well. The Plan To tackle this big challenge, we’ve broken the hike up into seven sections with only three days built in for rest out of the 30 total days for the trip. We plan to hike an average of 19 miles and gain/lose 4,015 vertical feet per day. The longest section will be six days, traveling from Stevens Pass to Stehekin on the far north shore of Lake Chelan. We will definitely need one of my rest days after that big push. The Trip On our journey, Courage and I will climb up and out of the Columbia River Gorge toward the Indian Heaven Wilderness, home to an abundance of lakes (and huckleberries), after which we’ll round the base of Mount Adams and head into the Goat Rocks Wilderness. This place is especially rugged, with rocky trails leading to the Packwood Glacier. To begin section 3, we’ll cross Highway 12 at [...]