Here's what OP's post says without the broken formatting:
>I’m planning a thru-hike on the PCT and thinking about something I can do to entertain myself. I thought I could learn a new skill. I could learn to draw, paint, code, write or knit.
>What do you think of this idea? Have you done it? Any suggestions?
OP, you can fix the formatting by removing the indentation on the first line.
You’ll get pretty good at finding covert pooping spots, managing ass chafe, grocery shopping like a toddler with a credit card, and climbing over blow downs. All have been pretty useful post hike when I inevitably go on my next thru hike because that’s what we do
I didn’t feel like I had time for anything except water, food, shelter, and walking. And that was enough, which was one of the great experiences on trail.
I learned to roll my R's. As an American with a retroflexive R and a tongue made out of cardboard, it was tough. But 30 minutes a day for months on end of "perro perro perro, carro carro carro", I finally got the hang of it.
Anything that you can't do while walking... ain't gonna happen.
Did you literally just attempt over and over and over, or was there some sort of method you used to learn how to roll? I assumed I'd never be able to do it, and I'd really like to.
Lol there is no chance. I learned to be dirty, understand my body in states of starvation and hydration, I learned to walk… ha. Maybe you could draw. I only managed audiobooks because physically reading something was too exhausting after long days. Maybe if you only walked half days and carried your supplies for the rest. Don’t think you would finish with that plan.
I didn’t manage a journal even because of how exhausted I was at the end of each day. Started with one but slowly gave it up to save weight.
If you're section hiking, you might have more freedom in how many miles you're hiking in a day. But if you want to complete a thru hike, your days are gonna be pretty full. Between walking 8-12 hours per day along with all the other daily tasks you need to do, you really won't have tons of time or energy to focus on much else.
However, If you want to learn something, it would be best to have it be knowledge-based podcasts. Something like history or philosophy or anatomy.
Alternatively, there are some things that could be interspersed with your walking or done in small 15-30 minute sessions. These would also need tools that are relatively lightweight. For these I'm thinking birding (binoculars & a bird ID app or book), photography (a lightweight digital camera & carrying case), sketching (notebook + pencil), or mycology/botany (plant/mushroom ID app or book).
If you end up not having enough time for your hobby, you can always send your tools back home at the next resupply.
I taught someone how to roll cigs on my AT thru hike. If you hiked in 2011 then I know you are Adam and I'm glad to see you again, on the internet anyway 🫨
I read the books that I should read but in regular life wouldn’t have. For example:
The Scarlet Letter
Gulag Archipelago
Greek Philosophy
I probably got a semester of Great Classics reading in over six months.
Books were sent in my resupply boxes. There was always an hour or two to read while resting your weary bones.
I'm with everyone else saying that you're not going to be able to pick up anything that involves any extra effort. I did, however, listen to a ton of podcasts, and I definitely learned some science and history. A couple tramily members and I even started a mini podcast club where we'd listen to the same episodes and discuss.
I can say from my own experience, skills I didnt know I needed ended up developing -> thriving.
I took the advantage of the thru-hike to learn (the skills needed) what it was required to get me to Canada and that included soft + hard skills
some valuable examples below:
Stoicism, mountaineering, orienteering, resource management, leading a pack, cold plunges, facing tough conversations, owning my own shit (postive-negative), tying knots, Ayn Rand philosophy posture (dont share it yet interesting), compassion, appreciation... the list goes on and on
I know all these people are saying no, but I believe it was on the AT that I met a guy who learned how to juggle during his hike. Not going to claim that’s a big life win, but it is something he learned.
Thank you for the comments! After a long discussion with myself, I decided that two good skills to learn on my thru-hike would be piano tuning and interior design. Does anyone know a good piano and house for the PCT?
A baby grand will save you anywhere from 200-600 lbs of baseweight over a regular grand, and if you go for a shipping container tiny home you could probably sneak in around 4000 lbs... Not sure if the mini grand would fit in it though.
As someone who is missing the trail, don’t distract yourself from it. Be there, on the trail. Spend your time and energy making miles and friends. That’s what matters way more.
I listened to a 40+ hour biography of Ulysses s grant. I now know more about that president than I ever thought necessary.
(This is what happens when you’ve listened to all your “good” audio books and you’ve had no decent WiFi in weeks.)
I *tried* to learn through audiobooks.
I wanted to brush up on my Spanish so I listened to Spanish language CDs, but they were rented from the library (libby) & woefully out of date. I might've felt more motivated if they'd been a little more modern.
I also wanted to improve my chemistry background... but I couldn't find any chemistry audiobooks. Granted I also listen to microbiology texts sometimes when I'm driving-- not professionally recorded ones, but the mechanical AI voice that will attempt to read a book when you toggle it to "read out loud." So my tolerance for terrible is pretty high.
If you can learn from listening/absorbing, that's probably the way to go.
My friends and I whittled spoons. That’s something I had never done before so it a new skill.
Edit:imo all these comments acting like there’s zero chance is a bit much. It’s true you won’t have much down time to learn something but it’s not inconceivable.
Double edit: check out Jupiter or Evans backpacking videos on YouTube. Evan also has an IG dedicated to his trail sketches (@evan.schaeffer) Both have done successful thru hikes while painting or sketching on trail with a small minimal art kit. They were both pretty established in their art already but again it’s totally plausible. You can EASILY find half an hour to an hour a day at least to dedicate to something like this. I regularly took hour to two hour lunch breaks on the pct, that’s usually when my friends and I would do our whittling.
I think you’re dramatically overestimating the your free time you’ll have and underestimating how much resting time you’ll need. Audiobooks are my suggestion because you can do it while walking.
There is some app where you can practice learning a language hands-free. Most of your free time is spent walking - many people listen to audiobooks, podcasts, and music while walking. You could use the language app (can't remember what it's called) or listen to audiobooks that would help you learn something.
Trying to learn how to code while hiking the PCT is maybe one of the most ridiculous things I've heard about thru-hiking
I learned to tie knots this year. It was actually pretty dope finding random string on trail and using knots to make them useful on my gear
Edit: also learned how to roll joints
Probably not. It seems more a question from someone who hasn't thru-hiked previously, and isn't aware of the physical demands and how tired they'll be at the end of the day.
yo broskis, if you truly && genuinely didnt learn anything new, I invite you into reflecting one more time on your own thru-hike experience.
There are many (soft/hard) skills that I learned as a by product of thru-hiking... Especially if its your first one and even more on 2023.
I thought thru-hiking could be boring and repetitive at times and was looking for a solution. I didn't know this was a bad idea. According to nearly everyone here, the PCT is going to provide its own entertainment, etc. I should forget about what I think it's going to lack.
It's not a bad idea! And it's absolutely a valid question. Some people do find the time/energy to do stuff when they hit camp, and others don't. Give it a week or three, see how you feel, and if you find you have energy to spare at the end of the day you can have a friend/family member ship you something you can work on.
I thought the PCT could be boring and repetitive at times, so to cope I would learn something useful for life afterwards. Do you think it's a bad idea? From what I'm being told the PCT provides plenty to do anyway.
Being bored is a state of mind - if walking in the wilderness for weeks seems like it would not be enough stimulus for you, a thru-hike might not be very enjoyable. No judgment - I think a lot of folks leave trail because they start thinking about all the other things back home they would rather be doing. It’s hard work, and often a slog.
I listened to music on trail for a few days in the desert, but actually stopped doing that because it distracted from the hiking experience, which became almost meditative. Like I posted earlier, eliminating almost everything from my senses except water, food, shelter, and walking was a unique and extraordinary experience.
if you ever get bored, that might be an interesting opportunity to learn something about oneself, those were my favorite moments to sit and reflect (and take a hit)
however if you want something active then go for thru-hiking made-up challenges.
e.g. 24 hour hike challenge
Bathing daily regardless the circumstances. Without plenty of water around, if you can spare 2 liters it is a dream but 1 liter does a darn good job. If dry camping I’ll go several miles with some extra water for the luxury. Often cold but can be done very quickly yet thoroughly. Invigorating so that you feel refreshed and great around camp as well as sleeping much better.
I am curious (and not judgemental)... did you ever use water from water caches for this purpose? (That includes already having water and filling up water to drink and using the "original" to drink).
To me it seems like it would be a difficult task in the desert...
I’ve basically never have used caches. My experience in the desert goes back decades ago when caches were basically not even a thing. I have never pulled water from a cache except to drink.
But, I’m kind of obsessed with taking a bath so at times I’ve carried 7+ liters to camp and for the following day.
Hike your own hike, just know that anything that requires you to stop moving, like drawing, will cut into your miles making it harder to keep up with your community bubble. This isn't a problem if you're a fast hiker looking to limit your miles. But most people are trying to do 20+ miles a day.
I am curious how many danger noodles you encounter on a thru of the pct? My count on the AT was 4 rattlesnakes, one copperhead, a green snake (really cool), a water snake, almost daily black/rat snakes, and several dozen garters
Depends on the year. In ‘21, I was running into 3 or 4 per day. In ‘19 .. 1 or 2 a day.
In ‘22 I ran into zero, though I saw a couple a bit ahead of me jump when they almost walked on one sunning itself.
Locals say some years are snakier than others.
Reading classics or and philosophy, as well as journaling is a lot easier for me on trail or while traveling than it is in my day to day. The lack of distraction helps.
Developing your capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and developing a world view is important, and a thru hike is a wonderful opportunity to do so.
I learned how to walk.
That’s a deadpan laugh line, but for real, i learned that I’ve been walking sub-optimally all my life, like most people, because you can get away with it. But when walking all day most every day becomes your life, especially if you’re older like me, just any stride won’t do.
I had to get off trail 19 days at Wrightwood, on my third pair of shoes already, to let extensor tendonitis heal. I consulted a couple of physiotherapists to avoid repeat. From that moment I paid much more attention to walking properly, avoiding ingrained bad habits, lacing shoes just so, etc. It worked, and I walked 1000 more miles without injury.
Over a year later, I still walk much more every week than before, mindfully, often barefoot or at least in minimalist shoes, as a way to extend and celebrate my hike.
Other than that, I learned to pitch my hammock damn near anywhere like a boss, fast, trees or no. I also travel light like a wilderness backpacker even when the trip is by car or plane, and it’s much lower stress knowing that my one easily ruckable pack makes me ready for just about anything without needing to pay for fripperies like a lemming tourist.
Oh and if you enjoy and wish to expand your solitude: Kargyraa throat singing, which ties into breath control, another aspect of walking properly.
Okay I didn’t hike the pct, but spent a summer surveying trail camps so a ton of hiking/backpacking daily. I practiced whistling. I’m still terrible at it but much better than I was to start.
Overall, I’d tend toward no: most (including me) think they’ll have tons of free time, but you kind of don’t…Really depends on your personality and what your true desires are on the trail, though. You can definitely learn a lot from listening to audiobooks and podcasts. If you’re passionate about photography or videography those are two things that can compliment a thru hike. The most successful vloggers I’ve hiked with tend to be very introverted, as in: rather than hang out with other hikers and town folks in town or at camp they lock themselves in their room or tent quite a lot in order to edit/upload, etc. I find this is not me, but who knows, could be you.
Overall though, you learn a TON of intangibles on a thru hike which are amazingly profound and valuable. Good luck on your hike!
As someone who is rather proficient at knitting and also likes to hike, nah don't do that. You'll need extra tools to fix your mistakes, you'll be unsure how to fix mistakes without help (or YouTube) and it will just frustrate you. You could pack a teeny sketch book and mail it home and then mail yourself new ones in the resupply boxes. For paint, you can get individual empty palette pans (these are magnetized already, and I'm stoked to find out that exists [https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Half-Pans-Magnetic-Stripe/dp/B07G75R43R](https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Half-Pans-Magnetic-Stripe/dp/B07G75R43R)) fill them with paint, and stick them in an altoid tin. There are such things as travel paintbrushes ([https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Brushes-Professional-Kolinsky-Artists/dp/B085BLVRLN](https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Brushes-Professional-Kolinsky-Artists/dp/B085BLVRLN)) and a travel water cup [https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Portable-Cleaning-Container-Watercolor/dp/B08JCRXLNL](https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Portable-Cleaning-Container-Watercolor/dp/B08JCRXLNL). Paper for watercolor should be a weight of 140 lb/300 gsm for good results (lighter and the paper will wrinkle from the water). Here's a cute notebook. [https://www.amazon.com/tumuarta-Watercolor-Sketchbooks-Notebook-Bookmark/dp/B08NY3NHJ1](https://www.amazon.com/tumuarta-Watercolor-Sketchbooks-Notebook-Bookmark/dp/B08NY3NHJ1)
I had the same thought, and the truth is that you just won't really have much time. At least for me and everyone I knew, after hiking for the full day only really stopping to eat and chat a bit, you get to camp, set up a tent, eat, and immediately go to sleep even if its pretty early. I sent some stuff home in Julian that I brought thinking I'd use my spare time on.
As a knitter and hiker, I can assure you that those two hobbies don't go well together. Most arts in general requires material, which adds unnecessary weight. Stick to audiobook, podcasts. Maybe audiobooks about a specific topic. Learn how to identify plants, animals, clouds, weather systems comin at you, meteorological patterns. Learn how to cook the best hiking food, how to maximise your shower with limited water. Plenty of knowledge and skills to acquire on the trail. That would be my recommendation :)
I think most people start hitting the mental capacity opening up after the Sierras. Till then full focus on the trail is most likely going to be no problem. I never thought I would need something other than the trail but I started to teach myself a bit of coding mostly while I was in towns for resupply-- I never got too far but I learned a bunch of concepts and made myself some apps to calculate my estimated food/days on trail based on mileage and elevation gain which was pretty fun. That fell off after a while and so I got a cardboard tube and rolled up canvas and acrylic paints I kept on the back of my pack. But again I mostly only ever got to using it in towns. It was still worth it to me to carry though! You will absolutely have some free mental capacity-- I can second the bajillion voices in saying that it will mostly just be applicable to podcasts or audiobooks though, that is the main thing people start doing when mentally bored.
I liked the roll your r's example, I think trying to do a language might be a great idea if you can find the right app or audio series or something. Even deep in, you won't want to be distracting yourself toooo much, but there is totally a lot of downtime on a through-hike.
Here's what OP's post says without the broken formatting: >I’m planning a thru-hike on the PCT and thinking about something I can do to entertain myself. I thought I could learn a new skill. I could learn to draw, paint, code, write or knit. >What do you think of this idea? Have you done it? Any suggestions? OP, you can fix the formatting by removing the indentation on the first line.
You’ll get pretty good at finding covert pooping spots, managing ass chafe, grocery shopping like a toddler with a credit card, and climbing over blow downs. All have been pretty useful post hike when I inevitably go on my next thru hike because that’s what we do
this 😃
I didn’t feel like I had time for anything except water, food, shelter, and walking. And that was enough, which was one of the great experiences on trail.
I learned to roll my R's. As an American with a retroflexive R and a tongue made out of cardboard, it was tough. But 30 minutes a day for months on end of "perro perro perro, carro carro carro", I finally got the hang of it. Anything that you can't do while walking... ain't gonna happen.
Did you literally just attempt over and over and over, or was there some sort of method you used to learn how to roll? I assumed I'd never be able to do it, and I'd really like to.
Pure repetition. I'm still not great at it, but usually gets rhe job done.
Lol there is no chance. I learned to be dirty, understand my body in states of starvation and hydration, I learned to walk… ha. Maybe you could draw. I only managed audiobooks because physically reading something was too exhausting after long days. Maybe if you only walked half days and carried your supplies for the rest. Don’t think you would finish with that plan. I didn’t manage a journal even because of how exhausted I was at the end of each day. Started with one but slowly gave it up to save weight.
I learned how to suffer harder than I ever have before, but with that, I learned I can actually do a lot more than I thought I was capable of.
If you're section hiking, you might have more freedom in how many miles you're hiking in a day. But if you want to complete a thru hike, your days are gonna be pretty full. Between walking 8-12 hours per day along with all the other daily tasks you need to do, you really won't have tons of time or energy to focus on much else. However, If you want to learn something, it would be best to have it be knowledge-based podcasts. Something like history or philosophy or anatomy. Alternatively, there are some things that could be interspersed with your walking or done in small 15-30 minute sessions. These would also need tools that are relatively lightweight. For these I'm thinking birding (binoculars & a bird ID app or book), photography (a lightweight digital camera & carrying case), sketching (notebook + pencil), or mycology/botany (plant/mushroom ID app or book). If you end up not having enough time for your hobby, you can always send your tools back home at the next resupply.
I learned how to roll cigarettes on my AT thru hike lol
I taught someone how to roll cigs on my AT thru hike. If you hiked in 2011 then I know you are Adam and I'm glad to see you again, on the internet anyway 🫨
Same, and I don't even smoke. I'd sit there and roll shitty cigs for the crew.
I read the books that I should read but in regular life wouldn’t have. For example: The Scarlet Letter Gulag Archipelago Greek Philosophy I probably got a semester of Great Classics reading in over six months. Books were sent in my resupply boxes. There was always an hour or two to read while resting your weary bones.
No chance unless it’s an audio book. You’ll learn a lot but it might just be hiking related.
I'm with everyone else saying that you're not going to be able to pick up anything that involves any extra effort. I did, however, listen to a ton of podcasts, and I definitely learned some science and history. A couple tramily members and I even started a mini podcast club where we'd listen to the same episodes and discuss.
I can say from my own experience, skills I didnt know I needed ended up developing -> thriving. I took the advantage of the thru-hike to learn (the skills needed) what it was required to get me to Canada and that included soft + hard skills some valuable examples below: Stoicism, mountaineering, orienteering, resource management, leading a pack, cold plunges, facing tough conversations, owning my own shit (postive-negative), tying knots, Ayn Rand philosophy posture (dont share it yet interesting), compassion, appreciation... the list goes on and on
I know all these people are saying no, but I believe it was on the AT that I met a guy who learned how to juggle during his hike. Not going to claim that’s a big life win, but it is something he learned.
I learned how to twirl my trekking pole like a professional baton twirler. Plenty of time to practice.
Thank you for the comments! After a long discussion with myself, I decided that two good skills to learn on my thru-hike would be piano tuning and interior design. Does anyone know a good piano and house for the PCT?
A baby grand will save you anywhere from 200-600 lbs of baseweight over a regular grand, and if you go for a shipping container tiny home you could probably sneak in around 4000 lbs... Not sure if the mini grand would fit in it though.
As someone who is missing the trail, don’t distract yourself from it. Be there, on the trail. Spend your time and energy making miles and friends. That’s what matters way more.
I think the only skills you could learn would be ones using audio. Like you might be able to learn a language while you walk. Or maybe singing
pretty sure my singing improved on my thru hike, good times
I listened to a 40+ hour biography of Ulysses s grant. I now know more about that president than I ever thought necessary. (This is what happens when you’ve listened to all your “good” audio books and you’ve had no decent WiFi in weeks.)
I *tried* to learn through audiobooks. I wanted to brush up on my Spanish so I listened to Spanish language CDs, but they were rented from the library (libby) & woefully out of date. I might've felt more motivated if they'd been a little more modern. I also wanted to improve my chemistry background... but I couldn't find any chemistry audiobooks. Granted I also listen to microbiology texts sometimes when I'm driving-- not professionally recorded ones, but the mechanical AI voice that will attempt to read a book when you toggle it to "read out loud." So my tolerance for terrible is pretty high. If you can learn from listening/absorbing, that's probably the way to go.
My friends and I whittled spoons. That’s something I had never done before so it a new skill. Edit:imo all these comments acting like there’s zero chance is a bit much. It’s true you won’t have much down time to learn something but it’s not inconceivable. Double edit: check out Jupiter or Evans backpacking videos on YouTube. Evan also has an IG dedicated to his trail sketches (@evan.schaeffer) Both have done successful thru hikes while painting or sketching on trail with a small minimal art kit. They were both pretty established in their art already but again it’s totally plausible. You can EASILY find half an hour to an hour a day at least to dedicate to something like this. I regularly took hour to two hour lunch breaks on the pct, that’s usually when my friends and I would do our whittling.
I think you’re dramatically overestimating the your free time you’ll have and underestimating how much resting time you’ll need. Audiobooks are my suggestion because you can do it while walking.
There is some app where you can practice learning a language hands-free. Most of your free time is spent walking - many people listen to audiobooks, podcasts, and music while walking. You could use the language app (can't remember what it's called) or listen to audiobooks that would help you learn something. Trying to learn how to code while hiking the PCT is maybe one of the most ridiculous things I've heard about thru-hiking
Cuz revision control with mittens and 12% battery on those cold desert nights after banging out the day’s miles teaches lean coding like nothing else.
I learned to tie knots this year. It was actually pretty dope finding random string on trail and using knots to make them useful on my gear Edit: also learned how to roll joints
Is this... a joke?
Probably not. It seems more a question from someone who hasn't thru-hiked previously, and isn't aware of the physical demands and how tired they'll be at the end of the day.
yo broskis, if you truly && genuinely didnt learn anything new, I invite you into reflecting one more time on your own thru-hike experience. There are many (soft/hard) skills that I learned as a by product of thru-hiking... Especially if its your first one and even more on 2023.
I thought thru-hiking could be boring and repetitive at times and was looking for a solution. I didn't know this was a bad idea. According to nearly everyone here, the PCT is going to provide its own entertainment, etc. I should forget about what I think it's going to lack.
It's not a bad idea! And it's absolutely a valid question. Some people do find the time/energy to do stuff when they hit camp, and others don't. Give it a week or three, see how you feel, and if you find you have energy to spare at the end of the day you can have a friend/family member ship you something you can work on.
In that case, what opportunities does the PCT or a thru-hike provide? What did you do to entertain yourself?
Hiked the PCT? 🤷
I thought the PCT could be boring and repetitive at times, so to cope I would learn something useful for life afterwards. Do you think it's a bad idea? From what I'm being told the PCT provides plenty to do anyway.
Being bored is a state of mind - if walking in the wilderness for weeks seems like it would not be enough stimulus for you, a thru-hike might not be very enjoyable. No judgment - I think a lot of folks leave trail because they start thinking about all the other things back home they would rather be doing. It’s hard work, and often a slog. I listened to music on trail for a few days in the desert, but actually stopped doing that because it distracted from the hiking experience, which became almost meditative. Like I posted earlier, eliminating almost everything from my senses except water, food, shelter, and walking was a unique and extraordinary experience.
if you ever get bored, that might be an interesting opportunity to learn something about oneself, those were my favorite moments to sit and reflect (and take a hit) however if you want something active then go for thru-hiking made-up challenges. e.g. 24 hour hike challenge
Bathing daily regardless the circumstances. Without plenty of water around, if you can spare 2 liters it is a dream but 1 liter does a darn good job. If dry camping I’ll go several miles with some extra water for the luxury. Often cold but can be done very quickly yet thoroughly. Invigorating so that you feel refreshed and great around camp as well as sleeping much better.
I am curious (and not judgemental)... did you ever use water from water caches for this purpose? (That includes already having water and filling up water to drink and using the "original" to drink). To me it seems like it would be a difficult task in the desert...
I’ve basically never have used caches. My experience in the desert goes back decades ago when caches were basically not even a thing. I have never pulled water from a cache except to drink. But, I’m kind of obsessed with taking a bath so at times I’ve carried 7+ liters to camp and for the following day.
You can vastly expand your knowledge. I finished an audiobook every day or two. I still smugly work it into conversations today
Hike your own hike, just know that anything that requires you to stop moving, like drawing, will cut into your miles making it harder to keep up with your community bubble. This isn't a problem if you're a fast hiker looking to limit your miles. But most people are trying to do 20+ miles a day.
I’ve gotten pretty good at rattlesnake identification.
I am curious how many danger noodles you encounter on a thru of the pct? My count on the AT was 4 rattlesnakes, one copperhead, a green snake (really cool), a water snake, almost daily black/rat snakes, and several dozen garters
Depends on the year. In ‘21, I was running into 3 or 4 per day. In ‘19 .. 1 or 2 a day. In ‘22 I ran into zero, though I saw a couple a bit ahead of me jump when they almost walked on one sunning itself. Locals say some years are snakier than others.
Reading classics or and philosophy, as well as journaling is a lot easier for me on trail or while traveling than it is in my day to day. The lack of distraction helps. Developing your capacity for critical thinking, empathy, and developing a world view is important, and a thru hike is a wonderful opportunity to do so.
I learned how to walk. That’s a deadpan laugh line, but for real, i learned that I’ve been walking sub-optimally all my life, like most people, because you can get away with it. But when walking all day most every day becomes your life, especially if you’re older like me, just any stride won’t do. I had to get off trail 19 days at Wrightwood, on my third pair of shoes already, to let extensor tendonitis heal. I consulted a couple of physiotherapists to avoid repeat. From that moment I paid much more attention to walking properly, avoiding ingrained bad habits, lacing shoes just so, etc. It worked, and I walked 1000 more miles without injury. Over a year later, I still walk much more every week than before, mindfully, often barefoot or at least in minimalist shoes, as a way to extend and celebrate my hike. Other than that, I learned to pitch my hammock damn near anywhere like a boss, fast, trees or no. I also travel light like a wilderness backpacker even when the trip is by car or plane, and it’s much lower stress knowing that my one easily ruckable pack makes me ready for just about anything without needing to pay for fripperies like a lemming tourist. Oh and if you enjoy and wish to expand your solitude: Kargyraa throat singing, which ties into breath control, another aspect of walking properly.
Okay I didn’t hike the pct, but spent a summer surveying trail camps so a ton of hiking/backpacking daily. I practiced whistling. I’m still terrible at it but much better than I was to start.
Overall, I’d tend toward no: most (including me) think they’ll have tons of free time, but you kind of don’t…Really depends on your personality and what your true desires are on the trail, though. You can definitely learn a lot from listening to audiobooks and podcasts. If you’re passionate about photography or videography those are two things that can compliment a thru hike. The most successful vloggers I’ve hiked with tend to be very introverted, as in: rather than hang out with other hikers and town folks in town or at camp they lock themselves in their room or tent quite a lot in order to edit/upload, etc. I find this is not me, but who knows, could be you. Overall though, you learn a TON of intangibles on a thru hike which are amazingly profound and valuable. Good luck on your hike!
As someone who is rather proficient at knitting and also likes to hike, nah don't do that. You'll need extra tools to fix your mistakes, you'll be unsure how to fix mistakes without help (or YouTube) and it will just frustrate you. You could pack a teeny sketch book and mail it home and then mail yourself new ones in the resupply boxes. For paint, you can get individual empty palette pans (these are magnetized already, and I'm stoked to find out that exists [https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Half-Pans-Magnetic-Stripe/dp/B07G75R43R](https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Half-Pans-Magnetic-Stripe/dp/B07G75R43R)) fill them with paint, and stick them in an altoid tin. There are such things as travel paintbrushes ([https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Brushes-Professional-Kolinsky-Artists/dp/B085BLVRLN](https://www.amazon.com/Watercolor-Brushes-Professional-Kolinsky-Artists/dp/B085BLVRLN)) and a travel water cup [https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Portable-Cleaning-Container-Watercolor/dp/B08JCRXLNL](https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Portable-Cleaning-Container-Watercolor/dp/B08JCRXLNL). Paper for watercolor should be a weight of 140 lb/300 gsm for good results (lighter and the paper will wrinkle from the water). Here's a cute notebook. [https://www.amazon.com/tumuarta-Watercolor-Sketchbooks-Notebook-Bookmark/dp/B08NY3NHJ1](https://www.amazon.com/tumuarta-Watercolor-Sketchbooks-Notebook-Bookmark/dp/B08NY3NHJ1)
I learned how to twirl my trekking poles like a baton Edit: with both hands similtaneously! Lol
I had the same thought, and the truth is that you just won't really have much time. At least for me and everyone I knew, after hiking for the full day only really stopping to eat and chat a bit, you get to camp, set up a tent, eat, and immediately go to sleep even if its pretty early. I sent some stuff home in Julian that I brought thinking I'd use my spare time on.
As a knitter and hiker, I can assure you that those two hobbies don't go well together. Most arts in general requires material, which adds unnecessary weight. Stick to audiobook, podcasts. Maybe audiobooks about a specific topic. Learn how to identify plants, animals, clouds, weather systems comin at you, meteorological patterns. Learn how to cook the best hiking food, how to maximise your shower with limited water. Plenty of knowledge and skills to acquire on the trail. That would be my recommendation :)
I think most people start hitting the mental capacity opening up after the Sierras. Till then full focus on the trail is most likely going to be no problem. I never thought I would need something other than the trail but I started to teach myself a bit of coding mostly while I was in towns for resupply-- I never got too far but I learned a bunch of concepts and made myself some apps to calculate my estimated food/days on trail based on mileage and elevation gain which was pretty fun. That fell off after a while and so I got a cardboard tube and rolled up canvas and acrylic paints I kept on the back of my pack. But again I mostly only ever got to using it in towns. It was still worth it to me to carry though! You will absolutely have some free mental capacity-- I can second the bajillion voices in saying that it will mostly just be applicable to podcasts or audiobooks though, that is the main thing people start doing when mentally bored. I liked the roll your r's example, I think trying to do a language might be a great idea if you can find the right app or audio series or something. Even deep in, you won't want to be distracting yourself toooo much, but there is totally a lot of downtime on a through-hike.
yes!! Not on the PCT but the CT, I knitted a pair of socks!