Need encouraging words, just quit job of 14 years for PCT

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#1

Subject line says it all. I’m giving up a six figure job I’ve had for 14 years in order to thru-hike the PCT. I’m in my late 30s and have been unhappy and uninterested in my work for a number of years. I know if I stay where I am I’ll end up becoming another gray barnacle on the ship’s hull. It comes to a point where you can’t even remember what being happy, engaged, and stimulated feels like. What am I looking for is to gain some clear perspective and regain my self confidence.

The longest hike I’ve ever done was in 2005 on a 100 mile stretch of the Long Trail in Vermont. Aside of much shorter AT and Ice Age Trail sections hikes, I took 5 weeks off in 2001 and camped every night on a long wilderness car trip. What I learned from these experiences was that when things are reduced to the barest essentials what is really important to you becomes clear. Coupled with the self confidence you gain from these kinds of adventures, it’s possible to find direction in life and the will to make it happen.

At any rate, right now, naturally, I feel great fear and anxiety. I don’t know if I’m a fool or courageous. Crazy or wise. It would be great to hear from those of you who have been through this!

joflaig

#2

If you do not have fear, then you won’t have the opportunity to exhibit courage ! Large scale change brings up many emotions, and with the stability of a 6 fig job, I’d probably have some fear and anxiety as well. But don’t forget that we are only afforded one brief chance to walk through this life and spend our days. Allowing yourself to reconnect with who you desire to be, and not with what you do for work, may be well worth the fear of the unknown.

I think that walking the path less travelled, will make all the difference. Carpe Diem !! :cheers

Thru-Hiking Addict

#3

I think that’s awesome! I can’t say much else because Thru-Hiking Addict said it so well, but life is short and you have to follow your dreams. I quit a comfortable job a few months ago to go back to school (obviously a different situation) and it was the best decision I’ve made in years, despite the fact that I’m poor and stressed all the time :slight_smile: If you feel the pull of life taking you somewhere other than where you are, you have to follow it or you’ll always wonder “what if?” If you had a six-figure job before the trail, you can get a good job after the trail. Maybe you will end up doing something you never imagined and it’s the best thing you could have done for yourself. Good luck!:slight_smile:

marshbirder

#4

I just quit my job to hike the AT. I understand how you feel.

It will be worth it. There will always be other jobs, and I’m sure you can go back to being a workaholic after your hike if you really miss it that much. :slight_smile:

Don’t worry. Just hike. Enjoy the PCT!!
-Acorn

Rayana

#5

I was just in to see my Doctor at the VA. I told her I was considering doing the AT again. She told me she has talked to many people on there death beds. Not one of them said “I should have worked more”

Go for it Buddy

Sub Class of 03

Subman

#6

You’re doing the right thing. I was in a similar situation in my late 30’s. When one door closes, another one opens. Go for it!

bowlegs

#7

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained…"
There’s no real security in money or things. Your PCT hike might just be a turning point in your life - no doubt it will put things in perspective.
Happy Trails!

freebird

#8

It’s not as intimidating as you might think. I’ve hiked most of California on the PCT, and some in Oregon. Your worst experience will probably be the mosquitos. My suggestion: if it turns out to be a high or even average snow year, consider bypassing the Sierras and coming back to do them in September or another time. Besides the mosquitos, the scariest things for me were the slippery icy snow, and the river crossings. Next time I would not do the Sierras with lots of snow. Use your head, follow your gut instincts, talk to other hikers, and have a BLAST! Hope you’re going to Kickoff! That’s a MUST! tigger AT '07, and PCT '08, '09, '10 (sections)

LuAnne

#9

There are some great answers here. I think it wise to continually ask ourselves: “What is this job costing me?” Because everything has a cost, no matter what or how much it pays. We have to remind ourselves that ultimately it’s just a job, and that life is far more important.

Here in the US we tend to wrap up our whole identity in what we do for work, as though it’s what we do for a living. Let us not fall for that trap, even when we love our job.

“The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin living it.” -W. M. Lewis

You’re going to LOVE the PCT and remember it far better than the money you’ve brought in or may have brought in. It’s weird, but I can still remember where I slept each night on the trail, all these years later. And yet I can hardly remember anything about my tasks at work, even yesterday’s!

Now for a selfish wish: Joflaig, with your obvious ability to convey your thoughts so well, I just hope you keep a trail journal!

~Funnybone!

Funnybone!

#10

I was in kinda the same situation before my AT thru-hike although I made much less money. You had actually more backpacking experience that I did when I started. My longest trip was like 30 miles. You’ll be fine, the fact that I quit my job helped me to make it all the way. I would have felt real bad to quit my job to hike only to quit my hike, so that works as a good motivator. At least it did for me.

Anyways, three years after my AT hike I’m quitting another job to hike the PCT this year. I’ve found jobs aren’t hard to find as long as you’re willing to relocate.

Brian

#11

Change happens when you change the things you do.

Living on the trail will strip away most of the things you now rely on and do habitually. You will live a bear-bones and simple life. Lots of time to think at a pace that will force you to reflect and meditate.

I did my thru-hike in 2011 it did not change who I am but it did. Sounds contradicting but it’s strangely true . My likes and dislikes have pretty much remained the same; however, my priorities and how I view things have changed. I have a more calm and easy going demeanor. Before beginning my thru-hike, I had retired at an age of 68.

Follow the trail and trow away the guide books and/or maps. See it as an adventure lasting 2,180+miles in a void waiting to be filled. Now that’s exciting and a little scary. Have fun and stay strong. Let us know how it went.

Did not mean to go on this long.

onegreywolf

#12

“Follow your heart, rather than your head” has worked for me these past 20 years. Enjoy your hike!

ursula

#13

joflaig, think of it as a great resume builder. Determination, entrepreneural-ship, detailed planning, logistics, goal-setting, financial planning and management; all of the great things that employers are looking for at the highest levels of management or operations. I hiked the AT with a lot of young guys and gals out of college and I always talked to them about including their thru-hike experiences in their resume and emphasizing the things we have to do in preparation and execution of a long distance trek. This is a detailed and extraordinary event in your lofe so document it and put it to work for you when you get off teh trail! Hardcharger

Hardcharger

#14

The saying goes you can’t take it with you in the end, Except you can take the hike with you.
HAPPY TRAILS !

frank

#16

If you happen to have even a couple years’ worth of a 6-figure salary in the bank at this point, then even in this market you could conceivably live off the interest, assuming you aren’t tethered to the usual things that go along with a 6-figure salary. If you can let go of those things that do not really matter, and by and by the trail will show you which is which, then you can create your own safety net that will let you do this hike and potentially continue with an adventurous outdoor lifestyle indefinitely. Or at the least, you will have a bridge in place between the PCT and your next career path, and will not need to worry about that during or right after the hike.

Money in exchange for happiness is nothing but a bribe. So congratulations on breaking the cycle and starting over. Only a fool would do otherwise.

TR

#17

at age 53 I was in your position , including income, started hiking and this will be my 9th summer having done 9500 miles . I continued to work half time and hike and ski the other half.Best choice re work I ever made! Have fun! May see u in Ore. or Wa. thyis summer

floater

#18

Just curious how you are doing? As someone who will be in your position next year…I’d love to hear about your journey.

nelaina

#20

“Once you realize that the road is the goal and that you are always on the road, not to reach a goal, but to enjoy its beauty and its wisdom, life ceases to be a task and becomes natural and simple, in itself an ecstasy.”
? Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

There’s no ecstasy without knowing misery.

Affirm