Local Hiker Still on the Pacific Crest Trail 600 Miles in!

Tri-Cities Hiker Aaron Ellig on the Pacific Crest Trail (courtesy Aaron Ellig)

Tri-Cities hiker Aaron Ellig is on a journey he will remember for a long time. He is hiking from Mexico to Canada on one of the most beautiful trails in the world, the Pacific Crest Trail. I introduced you to Aaron a couple of months ago when he was just getting started.

Now, he is 600 miles into this epic journey and he spent the early morning on top of the tallest peak in the continental U.S.: Mount Whitney in California.

Aaron Ellig near Mount Whitney in California (courtesy Aaron Ellig)

His blog is very interesting and entertaining, you can check it out here.  Ellig writes about surviving the Mohave Desert, hiking through wind turbine farms, nearly getting bit by a rattlesnake (speaking of snakes, see my latest post on snake safety!).  He also talks a lot about the unique culture he is finding on the trail with fellow hikers on a similar journey and the “trail angels” who help make a difficult trip more enjoyable even though he’s traveling with 50 pounds of gear on his back.  He even talks about the little joys like finding a wiffle ball bat and playing some pickup baseball along the trail.  Not to mention the beautiful sites he is enjoying along the way.  I’ve got to admit, I’m a little jealous!  I’ll try to keep you updated here on hiketricities.com and maybe I’ll get in contact with Aaron somewhere along the trail or, at least, when he returns to the Tri-Cities.