Hiking in Ecuador - The First Week

The flight(s) from Detroit to Quito, Ecuador took forever. I got zero sleep the night before I left so I mostly stumbled through the airports like a zombie. I didn’t arrive in Quito until very late at night. Fortunately, the hotel I was to stay at had someone waiting to give me a ride. 

It’s ‘i-e-r’ but that’s okay. I’m just glad for the ride!

I slept solid for a few hours but I was anxious to get up and get going on my adventure. While I enjoyed a simple breakfast at the hotel, the clouds slowly cleared to reveal tall mountains all around me. This is, after all, the beginning of the massive Andes mountain chain that stretches clear down to Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America. 

I took a short cab ride to the Nahual Farm and School just outside the city. This fantastic place teaches organic and sustainable farming techniques to people from all over the world. It’s run by the Dammer brothers and has a reputation for being friendly to bikepackers. I’d have to see how they felt about hikers. 

I was greeted warmly by Michael Dammer and given a tour of the farm. What an amazing place!

One of the classrooms at the Nahual School:

Michael speaks perfect English (and Spanish and some French) and he let me stay the night in a very comfortable loft in exchange for completing some simple chores (work-for-stay). I used my free time to gather some last minute things (canister fuel, batteries, etc... ) from town. 

Work-for-stay means turning this:

Into this:

I set off early the next morning for Tulcan,near the border with Columbia. That trip took about six hours and a couple of different buses. Even with Michael’s help, navigating a busy bus system when you don’t speak the language can be tricky. Somehow, it all worked out and I made it to Tulcan. Since I didn’t get there until later in the day, I was anxious to get out of town and find a place to camp. 

I made it to Tulcan!

The route out of town seemed to climb relentlessly. I was soon up over 10,000 feet of elevation and I was feeling it! Exhausted but thrilled to have even made it to the start of the hike, I found a quiet spot to camp and crashed. Hard. 

Finally home:

Between all the travel and excitement of the last few days and the fact that I sleep best in my tent far away from towns and people, I slept solid for ten hours straight. I woke to a light rain but giggling with joy to be back where I belong: On the trail. 

In my element:

The next few days were just what I had hoped for: Beautiful mountains and rolling,  green farms, charming people and a trail that was mostly old dirt roads and two-tracks. It was easy to follow (thanks to the GPS tracks laid out by bike packer Cass Gilbert) and stunningly beautiful. 

I stopped at little towns like El Angel and San Isidro to get a cup of coffee or to buy more rice and hot sauce (the staples of my diet so far). I met some really cool people but my lack of Spanish kept me from really getting to know them. 

My new friend Fernando:

Every little town has a church:

The St. Peter’s Parade in El Angel:

Quiet streets on a Sunday morning:

Typical breakfast in Ecuador:

Lots of statues and murals depicting Jesus as a creepy farmer:

Giant hog ready for slaughter (trekking poles against the wall for scale):

Bigger towns like Cotacachi are cool, too, as they offer more choices for food and drink. I find I’m also more likely to meet people who speak English in these towns - there are a surprising amount of American ex-patriots down here. 

Sunday open market:

My goal, for now, is to make it back to the Nahual Farm. There, I have clean clothes and a new pair of hiking shoes waiting for me. It probably wouldn’t hurt to take a shower as the layers of sunscreen, DEET, dirt and sweat hide my actual skin. 

I stink:

After that, I’ll just keep hiking south until Ihit Peru or until I have to fly home (September 10th), whichever comes first!

Got a comment or a question about hiking in Ecuador? Click below and start typing!

The TEMBR

On June 25th, I'll fly from my home in Detroit, Michigan to Quito, Ecuador. After staying the night there, I'll take a six hour bus ride to the northern terminus of the Trans Ecuador Mountain Bike Route. Here's how it all came about.

I first heard about this trail while following the bikepacking adventures of my dear friends, Neon and Onnamove. They lead me to Cass Gilbert, who helped develop the trail. Along with important intel from Fidgit of Her Odyssey, a plan came together.

Neon and Onnamove hiked with me on the PCT '12

There are actually two versions of the TEMBR, the 'Dirt Road' route and the 'Singletrack' route. They intersect at multiple points along the way and I think my hike will probably be a combination of the two. My gear is in good shape. I'll be carrying my trusty Bandit Quilt from Underground Quilts. I've been in touch with Michael from the famous Nauhal's School and Farm near Quito and I hope to visit them. Travel plans are set. All systems are GO.

I really love this part in the planning process for a big hike when everything seems to be coming together. I constantly remind myself to have a plan and to prepare for contingencies but to be flexible and go with the flow. I also have to be careful to discern between gathering important information from those who have done it before me and not ruining my own experience by knowing full well what to expect on this adventure.

I just came off of a five day stretch out on the Appalachian Trail with my friends from Moosejaw Mountaineering (I've been Loving The Madness since 2011). They went all out with Magic at the trailhead, shuttles to and from the trail, tons of SWAG for the hikers, goofy contests with great prizes (like serious gear from ThermaRest, NeoAir, Eno and Nemo) and beer tokens galore to spend at the Devil's Backbone.

From the Israel National Trail '17.

 I first visited THIS AWESOME PLACE during a SOBO thru of the AT '15. They were so very kind to me back then, it was really fun to return and see how much they've grown. And they were especially accommodating to all the hikers with free camping, bathrooms and hot showers and a $6 hiker breakfast special that filled their bellies. The whole thing was such a positive experience that it filled me with gratitude just to have been a part of it. However, it also left me jonsin' BAD for the Trail. I can't WAIT to get back out there. 

I'm giving myself plenty of time for side trips. I'll be back September 11th. Think I'll make it? Leave me a comment below:

Lessons Learned from the Bruce Trail

Eight days ago, I began an attempted thru-hike of the Bruce Trail in Ontario, Canada. This is a 550 mile trail that starts on the Canadian side of Niagara Falls and finishes at the tip of the Bruce Peninsula that sticks out into the Georgian Bay. I knew there would be many hurdles to overcome with this hike, yet I was determined to start during the first week of November and finish by January 1st. Only 74 miles into it, I had to call it quits. Here’s why:

1) Failed Sponsorship 

I’ve worked successfully with many sponsors over the years. Most provided gear. Some provided cash. A few provided both. I had trouble finding support for this hike but eventually worked out a deal with a large, Canadian, agricultural firm. They grow and sell organic vegetables and their mission statement includes encouraging healthy lifestyles. We agreed that I would receive financial support and shipments of their veggies in exchange for submitting blog posts and photos for use on their website. I should have declined their offer since it was only a fraction of what I asked for and it came more than two weeks after the date I had intended to start. They did send me some yummy veggies during the hike but they never came through with the cash they had promised. I can hike on a shoestring budget but I can’t do a hike like this without some funding. I learned a hard lesson about being more selective about what companies I work with and making sure they understand the (often time-sensitive) needs of a thru-hiker before I hit the trail.

 

2) Nowhere to Camp

I had been warned repeatedly that this trail was not intended to be hiked ‘end-to-end’ as the Canadians say. Much of this trail runs through urban areas and across private property where camping is strictly prohibited. Secure in my stealth camping abilities, I was sure I could get away with it but the risk of getting caught and getting into trouble in a foreign country was huge. Plus, it sometimes took me hours to find a secluded spot to camp and that ate up valuable hiking time. Speaking of time...

3) Limited Daylight

I have lots of winter hiking experience but at this latitude and this late in the year, I had precious few hours of daylight with which to make miles. It would often start getting kind of gloomy around 2:30pm and be dark by 4:30pm. If I hadn’t already found a spot to camp, I would find myself stumbling around in the dark with my headlamp blazing, giving away my position, looking for a place to set up my tent. Then I had another 14 hours of freezing boredom in my tent until it was light enough to start hiking again. 

4) Batteries Were No Match for Single-digit Temps

Even if I started the day with a fully-charged iPhone and a giant backup battery, both were dead by the end of the day. I kept my phone on a lanyard against my warm body but every time I took it out, the charge fell by 20%. I can navigate with a paper map and compass just fine but no phone means no pictures, no writing blog posts and no reading in my tent at night. I was back to 14 hours of shivering and waiting.  

5) No Local Support

Because I was often camping illegally, I had to do this hike on the down-low. I would have liked to have met and hiked with members of the local chapters that maintain each section of the trail but then I would have had to answer questions about where I stayed every night. I couldn’t even mention that I was thru-hiking to people I met on the trail; I would just tell them that I was day hiking and wish them well. Celebrating a thru-hike with locals often brings opportunities to make new friends, maybe enjoy a meal and sometimes even results in a warm bed to sleep in. Not on this hike. 

Despite these challenges, I really feel like I could have completed this thru-hike. The biggest disappointment was my ‘sponsor’ not coming through with the money. I eventually found myself starving and freezing in Canada with just enough cash to get a bus ticket home. Overall, it was still a great adventure and I’m glad for the experience. I learned some important lessons and I am not discouraged. 

Got a question or a comment? Leave one below and I’ll gladly respond. 

Reflections on the Baja Divide Trail

I broke this topic down into two simple lists: Things I liked about the Baja Divide Trail (BDT) and things I hated about the BDT. ‘Hated’ may be a strong word but it’s accurate.  These were things that really tipped the scale from having an easy, fun hike to a difficult (but rewarding) journey. 

Things I liked about the BDT:

The Coasts. Both the Pacific and the Sea of Cortes offer fantastic hiking. The Pacific Coast features huge, crashing waves and cool breezes. The Sea of Cortes is like the Gulf of Mexico in that the water is warmer and the waves are smaller and there’s always weird but cool stuff swimmin’ around in there. Always something to see.  Both coasts frequently had miles and miles of deserted beach and great camping. 

The People. I found the residents of the Baja to be friendly and fascinating. I met loads of them on this hike but I was often held back from learning more about them by my lack of conversational Spanish. The expatriate community was a different story. Mostly friendly but with a bit of attitude. They can’t wait to tell you how long they’ve lived there and almost every one of them seems to claim to have been the first American to have moved there. 

The Wildlife. I saw many species of birds that I’ve never seen before. Plus seals, whales and dolphin... All matter of flora (none of which I could identify)... All sorts of insects and reptiles.... Coyotes and jack rabbits.... Part of it is just being outdoors 24/7 (I only spent four nights indoors this whole trip). You’re bound to see more wildlife wherever you are just because of increased exposure. 

No Bears. No need to tie your food up at night. Even eat in your tent, if you like. There were still plenty of mice, though, and they can be just as bad!

No Rain. I always try to see the beauty in all kinds of weather but heavy rain really slows me down. A wet pack is heavier and wet feet are more prone to injury. I didn’t see so much as a cloud the last two months of this hike. 

Easy To Hitchhike. I often judge a community by how easy it is to get a hitch into town for resupply. I never had my thumb out for more than a few minutes before someone pulled over. Even when I was road walking part of the trail people would offer me a ride. My favorite hitch was jumping in the back of a pickup truck (which is perfectly legal in Mexico). No need to worry about the language barrier or offending anyone with my horrific body odor. Just make sure your hat doesn’t blow off and enjoy the ride. And they never took the money I offered for gasoline - they were just being kind for the sake of being kind. I love that. 

The Food. The stuff I carried with me on the trail got old pretty quick (plain white rice splahed with hot sauce almost every night) but the food in the towns was pretty awesome. Ceviche, menudo, birria and tacos de pescado, carne, tripitas... even cabeza(!) were all amazing. Sweet fruit sprinkled with spicy chili powder and cold horchata made for tasty treats on hot days. 

Things I hated about the BDT:

The Heat. This may seem obvious but toward the end of the hike, the heat was so severe that I couldn’t even sleep at night. It wouldn’t cool off until about 4am so I would only sleep from 4am to 7am some nights. Makes it really hard to hike 20 to 30 miles a day when you don’t get a good night’s sleep. Plus, my water was always warm (sometimes downright hot!). I would stash a couple of liters deep in my pack early in the morning so that it would stay cool but that didn’t last long and warm water is super unsatisfying - especially when you’re really thirsty. 

The Flies. Luckily, they weren’t biting flies but they were often relentless; constantly trying to get into my eyes, ears and nose. I could wear my bug netting but that made it even hotter. I just had to do my best to get used to them. 

The Unchanging Scenery. The first quarter of the trail did feature some interesting landscapes and different deciduous trees but after that, it was nothing but rolling brown hills and cactus. Every time I saw on the map that the trail turned inland, I knew it was gonna be miles and miles of plain dirt roads running through the desert until I got back to one coast or the other. 

The Language Barrier. This one is my own fault for not learning (and remembering what I had learned years ago) more Spanish before I left. I knew enough to get what I needed but I dreaded that awkward point where someone would ask me a question and I could not answer. Interesting that way more people in Israel spoke English than in this part of Mexico.

Dogs. Lots and lots of stray dogs in Mexico. I used to brag that I didn’t carry a weapon when I hiked because I didn’t need one but I found myself wishing I had some pepper spray with me on several occasions. I experienced packs of threatening dogs with me in the middle fending them off with a two-foot piece of hose that I found on the ground. Not fun. Never got bit but still, not fun. 

The Cactus. I often joke that “every plant down here wants to hurt me!”  While that may be an exaggeration, there are cactus with solid three-inch needles that will poke right through the sole of your shoe and into the arch of your foot. I met two Canadians in a van who were looking for ancient cliff drawings. One poor guy hopped out of the van, took two steps and got stabbed by a cactus. He showed me the bloody flip flop to prove it. He also vowed never to get out of the van again!

The Beer. I’m a beer snob and proud of it. Part of the joy of travel to me is trying all the great beers from the places I visit. The Baja features nothing but mass produced lagers. No ales. No ‘craft beer’. Just loads of bad beer in cans. This aspect of the hike really made me miss Michigan. 

The Deep Sand. This was a problem because of the cart I had to push to carry my water. Every time the trail got sandy, my heart would sink. I knew it was going to be difficult and time consuming to push that cart through the sand. Even when I finally got rid of the cart, hiking in deep sand is no picnic. There were times when I’d trade anything for just a few feet of nice, compact earth. 

The Trash. One American expat that I met down here told me that the main reasons American pack it up and move home are the dogs and the trash. Most of the Baja does not have formal trash pickup. Folks down here just take their garbage to the edge of town and dump it. So, there I am with my gallon-sized ziplock baggie stuffed with empty wrappers and used wet wipes, carefully obeying the Leave No Trace principles when, all around me are mountains of trash!  Even when I finally got to a town and responsibly put my trash in a can, I knew that it was going to be taken right back to that dump on the edge of town. The Baja Peninsula is sparsely enough populated for now but, eventually, they’re going to have to figure something out. 

So, having read this, what do you think? Would you hike this trail? Leave me a comment below and let me know. Thank you!

Thank You!

No way I can do crazy hikes like this on my own. A ton of people helped me accomplish my goal of becoming the first to thru-hike the Baja Divide Trail and I am filled with gratitude and joy to have had so many friends and family with me on this hike. 

First of all, I am deeply grateful to my friend and AT ‘15 Trail Angel, ‘Camping Nancy’ Smith. I dedicate this hike to the memory of her son, Steven T Smith. 

Huge thanks, as always, to Tom and Andrew and all my friends at Moosejaw Mountaineering. They have been with me since the early planning stages of this hike and I am grateful for all their help. I hope you’ll visit Moosejaw.com whenever you need gear. 

Big thanks to Paul and Missy McWalters and all my friends at Underground Quilts. They built a very special quilt for me to use on this hike and it was not only super comfy but super durable. Check out their stuff at UGQOutdoor.com

Thanks to George ‘Neon’ and Onna ‘Onnamove’ Voellmer for hiking with me on the PCT ‘12, the CDT ‘14 and for all their help with planning and intel on this hike. They rode this trail (and much more!) on mountain bikes a month or two before I hiked it and they guided and encouraged me the whole way. Check out the blog of this globe-trotting couple at TheRedHeadedNomad.com Love you guys!

I am grateful for my friend (and computer genius) Noam Gal from Tel Aviv, Israel.  He helped me a ton with planning and navigation for this hike. Noam, Orna and Cupcake were also very good to me on my hike of the Israel National Trail in 2017. 

Thanks to all my friends at OBO #133 but especially to Roberta McCoy and Ruth Schenk. 

Huge thanks to the entire Wolverine Lake Crew: Susie Hollyer and Drew Chinarian, Traci Rink and Ron Foon, and especially Marlyss Hollyer for keeping up the website. Check out her handy work at HillierHikes.com

Thanks to my beautiful nieces, Dayna Hillier and Laura Marquez for welcoming me back to California and for getting me to the start of the trail in San Diego. Love you, both!

Thanks to my friends and Trail Angels, Jerry and Becky Patterson of Virginia who welcomed a tired hiker into their home in 2015 and have been good to me ever since. 

Thanks to my friends from the American Cancer Society’s Relay For Life, Dustin and Tiffany Newman. We spent many hours walking together to raise money for the fight against cancer and they’ve always been very supportive of my hikes. 

Thanks to my Trail Angels from the CDT ‘14, Keith and Mary Schwarzer who took great care of me then and again on this hike. Because of them, my stop in Loreto was the highlight of this hike. Thanks to both of you!

Thanks to Bob ‘Beaker’ and Chris ‘Dragonfly’ Turner for all their help. I’ve known them since the AT ‘11 and enjoyed every mile we’ve hiked together since. 

Thanks to my friends Jenifer Tislerics and Carol Rogers from the SOLAR Club.

I hope to get together with that bunch again soon and talk some trail. 

Thanks to my dear sisters Pat Vineis and Carol Machak for helping out and following along. And for practically raising me since birth. Guess I should mention that. 

Thanks to all my friends at the Michigan Hiking and Backpacking Facebook group, especially Eric Choi for his help. 

Thanks to my friends POD, Disco, D-Low and PMags at The Trail Show for their encouragement. Listen to their podcast at TheTrailShow.com

Thank you to Nicholas Carman for mapping out this magnificent trail in 2016. I used notes and maps from his website, 

BajaDivide.com, extensively to prepare for this hike as well as the Baja Divide Facebook page. The folks in that group were very welcoming and a great resource. 

Thank you to Graham Mackintosh for being a hiking legend on the Baja and inspiring me. Check out his website, GrahamMackintosh.com.

Finally, to my friend since forever, Jeff Weiner and his wonderful family for helping me celebrate the big finish in style. Knowing that Jeff and Lori were waiting for me in Cabo with a cold beer really gave me something to look forward to during those last, long days in the burning desert sun. Thanks, Jeff!

The Earl Shaffer Fantasy

In 1948, Earl Shaffer was the first person ever to thru-hike the Appalachian Trail. He wrote a fantastic book about it called ‘Walking With Spring’. Since his historic hike, Earl has become a legend among long distance hikers. Hundreds of people hike that trail every year and they all know who Earl Shaffer was. 

In 2013, I was the first to hike both the Ironwood Trail (now called the Ironbelle Trail) and the Great Lake to Lake Trail (both are in Michigan). With a little luck, I’ll be the first to have thru-hiked the Baja Divide Trail here in Mexico. 

The problem is that I will be the first and most probably the ONLY person to have hiked these trails. That leaves the fantasy unfulfilled: Earl Shaffer is only a legend because subsequent hikers remember him. 

The feat is further diminished by the fact that these trails are already changing away from the version that I hiked. The Ironwood Trail, for example, has since been split into two different trails: One for bikes and ATV’s and one for foot-traffic only. The latter is essentially the North Country Trail as it runs through Michigan. Even the name has been changed; When I first hiked it, it was referred to as ‘the Governor’s proposed but as yet unnamed trail’.  After the amazing reception I received upon finishing it, I promised the City of Ironwood that I would forever refer to it as the Ironwood Trail. Months later, Michigan’s DNR had a naming contest and the winner was the ‘Ironbelle Trail’.

As far as the Baja Divide Trail is concerned, I’m pretty sure that, in it’s current configuration, no one else is going to want to hike it. If I reported back to the long distance hiking community that this trail was fairly easy and lots of fun, some may try it. But I have to be honest when I say that it was difficult (yet rewarding) and had lots of highlights but wasn’t exactly fun. It was intended to be a mountain bike trail and many have reported that as such, it’s both challenging and fun to ride. Not so much doing it on foot. 

In the end, I guess I should just be thankful that I am able to get out and hike these trails. I should be less concerned with ‘who did it first’ and just enjoy it. I freely admit that it’s incredibly narcissistic to wonder if I’ll ever be remembered as having hiked these trails first. Maybe I should do as Thoreau suggested and “Be mindful of each step.”

It is just walking, after all, and I suspect I’m not the first person to have done that. 

Got a thought or a comment? I’d love to see it posted below. In the meantime, mo’ pics!

This might be me if I don’t get out of this desert soon. 

I was able to get >1000 miles out of these shoes by switching to crocs when the trail was easy. 

These guys work at (what I call) The Water Store. Almost every town has one and for just a few pesos you can get plenty of clean, cool, purified water. 

Possibly my new avatar or Facebook pic. 

The beach north of La Paz. 

Feelin’ that cool breeze. 

And, of course, the obligatory sunset shot:

The BDT: Loreto

First things first: A sincere ‘Thank you!’ to everyone who clicked on that ‘donate’ button. The amazing outpouring of generosity was really heartfelt and now I should have plenty of funds to get me to the end of this crazy hike. My heart is full of gratitude and my spirits are soaring!

I’m also fresh off a great zero day with my dear friends Keith and Mary in Loreto. They were very kind to me and sent me back to the trail with a belly full of good food, clean clothes and a well-rested body. They blessed me with a head full of memories that will last a lifetime. 

I can’t tell if I liked Loreto so much because it really was the coolest town that I’ve visited yet on this hike or if it’s because Keith and Mary took such good care of me. 

Loreto sits on the Sea of Cortés and has a population of about 18,000 people (including many Americans). It’s actually 20 miles off the trail but it’s an easy hitch and the city has everything a thru-hiker needs including a well-stocked grocery store, several coffee shops with WiFi and some cheap motels.

The waterfront is fantastic. It goes on for miles and miles and features loads of ‘palapa’ which are little grass huts that you can use to get out of the sun. There’s a thriving town square with shops and restaurants and a good mix of locals and tourists. 

I would have liked to have stayed longer in Loreto but I’m excited to get back to the trail and see what new adventures await me!

In the meantime, mo’ pics!

Best food, so far, on this whole hike. Keith raves about this place and now I know why. 

What would you order at El Rey? Leave your answer in the comments below!

I can smell this picture. 

The town square was busy including these kids practicing for a formal dance. 

Miles of empty beaches and the Sierra de la Giganta mountains in the background. 

Loreto has a really nice marina and some beautiful (but expensive) hotels along the waterfront. 

Huge thanks to Keith and Mary for such a wonderful visit!