Another reason that I got behind last week was something completely spontaneous. My wife learned from friends that there was couple walking across America and looking for an over night host in out town. I really didn’t give it two thoughts and considering we were later down the line then others, but it turns out that we were selected to host them overnight. Their names are Torin and Paige Rouse.

I didn’t know anything about them really until I started to look for some video to add to this post. Then, I found their website which had a lot more about motives and past. I am not sure that what they wrote really translates well so I will probably add a little based on the conversation that we had. Don’t be surprised if we end up on their social media as well (In fact, we already did).

Talk about a boon for the aspiring PCT hiker that I am. I got a chance to ask them gear questions from people that have literally spent two years walking in the last five. I asked about travel distance and pack weight as well; it was very informational to me. Plus, Torin has already completed some long (200 miles) hikes on the Colorado Trail. So, it is not just America’s sidewalks that they can discuss even though they are very closely related.

They arrived at our home approximately 5 PM on Sunday. They had come from the neighboring town about 11 miles away. When discussed, they said that was a pretty typical distance for them. They claim that walking longer than ten miles a day not only increased fatigue but also the risk of repetitive motion injury which they have suffered through the journey. Given that they are half my age, it doesn’t bode too well for my goal of being able to do 20 miles a day.

We talked about footwear and they didn’t seem to be too keen on anything in particular. That is the bravado of youth I guess. But they also said that they have not found any shoe that they liked or would recommend. That makes me feel a little better about my struggles to find the right shoe.

I also found it both refreshing and disturbing that they have not gotten completely comfortable with the forty plus pound packs. To me, that means I have done nothing wrong, but I also know that this will be a grin and bear it expedition. They also informed me that anything inflatable like my Nemo sleeping pad is bound to develop holes and recommended foam pads instead. It was their claim that thorns find their way everywhere. I am not doubting that but maybe because I am not going out for weeks at a time, I might not have the same experience.

I have developed a fondness for the water bladder. It allows me to drink without having to take my pack off. They had never used one but they said they had one that already had a hole in it. I am still going to use one, as you might remember I was planning on carrying a second one so that those one mile walks off the trail to a water source would only happen once.

It seems to me that their reasoning for the walk is more etherical and personal than the story that they tell online. The official line is to spread kindness throughout the United States. But, it was my personal conversation that opened more insight. It was Torin’s initial hike on the Colorado trail that cleared his mind from the world and he sought that as inspiration for life. It doesn’t hurt that their ethics orient toward a less material living.

There were other hints at motives for the trip. They told me that they lived in a van for a couple of years. Because they were living in a van, they felt it was the next logical step to get rid of that as well. Part of me envies the freedom and I wish that this hadn’t been so spur of the moment because I would have loved to interview them on my podcast. Unfortunately I really didn’t think about it until I was writing this.

End Your Programming Routines: This is not something that I would have ever done. In fact, I didn’t have much to do with it other than saying OK but I am glad that I did. I also am glad that I didn’t know anything about them until they left because I feel like my experience would have been more guarded and biased. While I appreciate their neutral vibe at an intellectual level, I think in their position it is the best and safest policy relying totally on strangers.