Tom’s First Long Trail

The Arizona National Scenic Trail (AZT) runs about 800 miles across the entire state, from the US-Mexico border to Utah border.

Tom had agreed to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) with me in 2023, but Mother Nature had other plans. California, the start of the PCT had received record-setting amounts of snow – 232% of an average year. Almost 200 miles of the trail within the first 400 miles, was already closed due to avalanche activity. We could start our hike and skip the closure, but the deep snow presented additional issues – excruciatingly slow days, frozen water sources, and snow-covered campsites.