My Mountain

A good friend once said to me, "John, before you marry that girl, you need to find a mountain and live by yourself for at least a year. You know, to find who you are as a person." Given, my friend was joking and he didn't believe he was saying anything profound or sage, but my next thought was "I know exactly who I am. I love to hunt, fish and play sports. I am in love with a great girl. I want to become a wildlife biologist. I go to church almost every Sunday, I disrespect my mother and father on a daily basis, and I am firmly rooted among the criss-crossing dirt roads of eastern Kansas. I don't need a mountain." Four or five years later I still love everything outdoors and I am working towards a Master's degree in biology, but that's where the similarities end. I'm single, I don't remember the last time I intently listened to a Sunday sermon, I at least try to be more respectful to my parents, and I'm currently enjoying a job in the sparsely populated, glaciated mid-grass prairies of northern Montana.
You're right to think "Big deal. Those aren't big changes. Everyone waivers." However, this process has taught me that the maturation of a young man into an adult is a complex journey rather than a 21st birthday or the illusion of independence. That lesson brought more questions to the surface. The most apparent is  "What else is in store and how do I get there?" The answer is simple in my mind. There's no instruction manual for a reason. You cannot control, plan, or see around the corner. The journey is transparent if you don't pay attention. It will escape you if you let it and will expose you for the fool that all of us are. Embrace the chaos.

Moving forward, my journey is no longer going to be invisible, fleeting or ephemeral. My goals will be simple. I want to be in the moment, attentive, and curious. I'll strive to be uncomfortable, inexperienced, and impulsive. The golden rule is "always be learning." On the flip flop, I'll be comfortable in the decisions I've made, proud of the experience I possess, and know the difference between a sound impulse and one that leaves me in toil. The only step I see from here is doing something I've never done in a place I've never been. It's time to find My Mountain.

Enter, Te Araroa. Maori for "The Long Pathway". It kinda fits right? Te Araroa is a roughly 3,000 km hiking trail traversing the topography and culture of New Zealand. Beginning in Cape Reinga on the northern tip of the North Island and ending in Bluff, a town on the southern end of the South Island. The trail requires a man of modest fitness around 120-130 days to complete and exposes travelers to much of what New Zealand has to offer. Even though I enjoy the books and movies, this isn't an attempt to enter the pages and stories of J.R.R. Tolkien's famous series. My decision grows from the desires described above. Due to timing, my destination needed to be in the southern hemisphere (starting in October) and I've always wanted to visit the country. If my Spanish was better and I had more funding, the destination would most likely be along the western coast of South America. However, New Zealand will due just dandy. I'll explain more about the trail in subsequent posts.

Te Araroa (The Long Pathway) shown in red. 

The logic for writing this blog is fairly diverse, but a few core reasons inspired the venture.

1) Anyone who knows my Father, knows that I would never escape for 6 months without any contact. This is a way to keep folks informed and allow them to follow me in my adventure. I've marked libraries (wifi costs money in shops and stores in New Zealand) along the trail where I can upload pictures and blog posts.

2) I've received a ton of information from other online posts and blogs about the trail. Information paramount to planning, gearing up and what to expect on the trail. Hopefully this blog will assist hikers of the future.

3) Call me a teeny bopper, but entering thoughts and stories into a journal (I refuse to call it a diary) is therapeutic for yours truly. It allows me to reminisce, reflect and summarize. All beneficial exercises in my book.


I can see the faces and hear the comments of folks I know as they read this.

"John John! What are you thinking?! Come home!" - some twin I know

"So you're just gonna be a bum or what?At least you'll have some stories to tell." - a skeptical cousin

"Good for you, John. Do it while you can." - pretty much everyone

"Awesome! I need to do something like that!" - supportive friends


Stay tuned for more.