Wherever You'll Go

Ultimate Hiking on the Lone Star Trail

Many years ago I hiked Mt. Kilimanjaro. The company I worked for sent out an email, which most people promptly deleted, to get a group of people to each raise $5000 and hike Kili. The donations we raised would benefit a community outreach organization that provided home care to those infected with HIV/AIDS. This had my name written all over it. The only downside for trips like this is that you are on the hook for any funds you don’t raise, and that probably scares some people. Well, I didn’t raise all the money, but I can say I summited the highest mountain in Africa.

So, when I read a tiny blurb imbedded in a work email about a hiking coach needed for
Cure Search I was intrigued. Next thing I know I’m on the phone with the organizer offering my services. While I’m describing my qualifications to Michelle, the organizer, about the hikes I’m completed, the run club I coach and my love of endurance events (that may have been a slight fudge of the truth), I realized how thankful I was that I saw the opportunity and just said yes before I had time to doubt myself.

In that moment, I was the person I wanted to be. But could I coach the hikers to success? Would I be able to encourage them, and would I even be able to hike 25 miles in one day? I was unsure.

The Ultimate Hike for Cure Search in Texas goes like this: a one day hike of 22.7 miles on the Lone Star trail in the Sam Houston National Forest while participants raise $2500 for pediatric cancer research. The Austin area group consisted of seven hikers and their coach – me. We would meet other hikers from around Texas at the actual event.

Every couple of weeks we’d meet at a central Texas trail to hike for 3-6 hours. We had about ten weeks to train, starting in August – the hottest time to be outdoors. But we did it anyway, which is the best part of having a team. We explored Austin’s River Place Nature Trail, Lake Georgetown’s Goodwater Trail, Dripping Spring’s Reimer’s Ranch Park, and Pedernales Falls State Park.

Pedernales Falls training hike.

During training we encountered high humidity, never-ending heat, no shade, cactus, spider webs (let the tallest person go first), snakes – including a coral snake, tree branches that jump out of nowhere and smack you in the head, and all the beauty the hill country could offer. I just needed a reason to finally explore the local trails with new friends.

My new friends!

I was confident we’d all survive the Ultimate Hike, even though the most we hiked as a team was 14 miles. Our Austin hikes were hilly, rocky and un-shaded, but the shady Lone Star Trail had small undulations and soft piney needle terrain. It was a moderate October day that started out chilly, ideal conditions for our 11 hour hike.

We arrived at the trailhead at a very dark, cold and early 4:30am. While I have hiked in the early morning hours before, we started summiting Kili about midnight, it is wearing on the soul. You have to be extra aware of tree roots in those dark hours and a few people fell. You have to be extra aware of your map directions, as the signage is easy to miss. And miss it we did. After only a mile, we found ourselves unclear of which direction to go. We stumbled around a campsite for about 30 minutes until someone realized we missed our turn. After we were back on track, and especially after sunrise when it started to warm up a bit, we were able to appreciate the journey. We had two aid stations about eight miles apart where we re-fueled and rested our feet. By 3:30pm, all of the hikers had completed the trek. My GPS watched died somewhere after 20 miles. I guess after I logged 50,000 steps it was too tired to go on, but not us!

We showed up in Cleveland, TX on a Friday night, and shared our stories for why we were here. Some hikers had kids that survived cancer, and many had friends, nieces or brothers that had been affected. Others, just understood the importance of the mission and wanted to help prevent more families going through that hell. For me – my dear friend Erin (see New York) survived leukemia as a child, not only is she a doctor today, she is my hero. These amazing hikers raised about $35,000. Something amazing happened that day. The hikers experienced a physical success, but the lasting impact of their donations will be felt by families they may never know.

Why we do this.

Tips:

• Just say yes. Get involved, volunteer or donate to any cause that moves you.
• Cycling jerseys are great for hiking and those extra pockets are perfect for snacks!
• Training is the time to test out your equipment and clothing. Buy the fancy socks and boots – your feet with thank you or at least not hate you.
• Explore! Enjoy the beauty and quiet of the outdoors as often as you can.