Finding stillness and connection through hiking

Finding stillness and connection through hiking

Kayla Costigan is an American travel nurse I met while I was trekking solo in New Zealand. We connected over a shared passion for travel, nature, movement, and helping others. We have since hiked together throughout the United States, as well as in Morocco, Portugal, and Prague. I asked Kayla some questions about what hiking means to her. This is her story…

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As a kid, my parents would have to drag me to go hiking. We would go to New Hampshire from our small Boston suburb and hike for one to two hours. I remember trying to beat my sister to the top, eating Clif Bars, and only pausing for one minute before running back down.

I then hiked a few times as a young adult. Once, when planning a trip in Colorado with my sister, I remember thinking, ‘these reviews on AllTrails are not right. I could push myself to more advanced hikes and higher peaks’. As sports slowly exited my life and physical feats were harder to come by, I began turning to other things to feel accomplished and focus on, and hiking filled that void. 

In early 2020, I was planning a solo trip to New Zealand and Australia for two months. The perk of traveling solo was that I could plan the trip that I wanted. I searched online for the best hikes in New Zealand and learned about the Great Walks. I was hooked. My first choice was the popular Milford Sound Track, but it was sold out for my dates. The second was the Kepler Track. The hike was for four days and three nights. Woah, overnight hiking? I hadn’t done anything like that before. I wondered what it would entail? Would I sleep in a tent? What gear would I need to bring?

I signed up for the trek on Christmas eve, as my family watched Harry Potter next to me, complaining about the light from my laptop. I smiled to myself as I closed my computer after reading the confirmation email. I was ready to take my hiking to the next level. I would be doing the Kepler Track.

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Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

I learned that I was not sleeping in a tent but in hiker huts tucked into the mountains. I had never done anything like this. I made it to the start of the trek after countless Google searches for flights, buses, and hostels in these ‘Southern Alps’.

The day was finally here. With my bag packed, I stood at the permit office in New Zealand. “You should not do the trek!” the woman at the desk said as she judged the abnormally small size of my pack. “The forecast is for inclement weather, the most rain New Zealand has seen in 100 years. There is a risk of mud-slides”. I had traveled so far to do this hike and had my heart set on it. I had been running every day to train for it. I needed it. 

I thought to myself, ‘okay, I will go to the first hut, if I feel unsafe, then I just turn around and hike out, as simple as that.’ I felt prepared with enough food and water to last me a few days and I had plenty of layers to keep warm.

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First hut on the Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

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Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

I followed my gut, the same one I have learned to listen to and trust. I entered the trail alone with hours and miles of hiking ahead of me. I can do this, I know I can. I watched my cell phone service bars dwindle with the sunlight. The clouds were upon me but I kept moving forward. I realized that I had never been alone in the mountains before, let alone mountains on the southern island of New Zealand. It was gorgeous. 

I started seeing glimpses of giant fjords through the clouds, proof of my elevation gain and an inspiration to fuel those endorphins and tolerate the raindrops beginning to fall from the sky. 

For one of the first times in my life I felt peace and was comforted by the silence and solitude. I was no longer afraid but energized, walking step by step toward my goal, and knowing that I had got myself to this moment. I felt a sense of calm that would help shape many future decisions. Instead of only chasing the highs, the excitement, and the peaks, I started seeking out quiet sacred moments with my best friend: myself.

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Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Throughout the trek, I was sometimes alone, but at other times I connected with hikers on similar, parallel journeys who, like me, appreciate the power of nature and the peace it provides. Yes, I did make it to the first hut that day! After four 4 days of walking, I completed the Kepler Track; hiking through record rainfall, finding direction through nature, both presently and for my future, and connecting with new friends along the way. 

At that first hut, I met Sam, a hiker from Seattle who was also trekking and traveling solo, seeking peace and connection with nature to help her along her personal journey. People you meet on the trail are special and they stick with you. You create a bond that is unique to the disconnection from the rest of the world, something that is hard to come by in our connected world. The trail provides this space. 

Since meeting in that hut in New Zealand, Sam and I have hiked in 4 additional countries, completing a road trip through the National Parks of Utah, USA, on a guided trek through the Atlas Mountains in Morocco to the second highest peak in Africa, up the coast of Portugal on The Fisherman’s Trail, and on a day hike outside of Prague. 

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Sam Goldklang and Kayla Costigan on the Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Any conversation on a trail is pure, whether it is with other hikers or with yourself. It is my favorite place to get quiet and tune into my gut. Hiking is where I am the most present and able to fully listen with the intent to learn and share my own wisdom and experience in return. The presence that I found on the trail is something I now try to bring into the rest of my life. 

I now seek out other ways to shut down my mind without needing a flight across the world or an epic adventure. These are things I can bring into my everyday life. I fell in love with meditation and recently became a certified meditation teacher. I find quiet moments in my days to be still, feel present, and take it all in. I practice yoga, find nature wherever I can, go for walks or runs wherever I am, and drag friends and family to appreciate the power that the quiet of nature provides. 

The Kepler Track changed what it is I seek out in life. It made me crave peace, a type of peace that is easily found in nature, and it brought amazing people into my life. It helped me begin to explore the body mind connection and the power that exists between the two. 

Hiking is a form of moving meditation to me, and whether alone or with others, it is the time I use to check in with myself and where I am in life and on my journey. It is a time where I find a sense of stillness in motion and that in turn brings me peace.

Hut on the Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Kayla Costigan on the Kepler Track, New Zealand. Jan/Feb 2020. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Sam and Kayla on the Fisherman’s Trail, Portugal. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Fisherman’s Trail, Portugal.

Kayla and Sam on the high Atlas mountains, Morocco.

Sam and Kayla trekking in the Altas Mountains of Morocco. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Kayla in the Atlas Mountains, Morocco. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

The start of the Fisherman’s Trail, Portugal. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

Sam and Kayla on the summit of Mount Toubkal, the highest peak in the Atlas Mountains, Morocco. 13,665 feet / 4,165 metres. Photo: Sam Goldklang.

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Author: Sam Goldklang, USA
Sam is an everyday adventurer who resides in Washington State, USA. She has completed the Wonderland trail and summited the 5 tallest peaks in the lower 48 states, including Mt Rainier. Sam has hiked around the world with some of her notable trails being: the Tour Du Mont Blanc in the Alps, The Kepler and Routeburn tracks in New Zealand, the Salkantay Trek in Peru, the Mt Toubkal trek through the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, The Fisherman's trail in Portugal, and Trolltunga in Norway. Sam spends her days working as a Pediatric Nurse Practitioner and on the weekends she'll be hiking, camping, trail running, backpacking, or skiing around the Pacific Northwest.
Follow her adventures on instagram: @sgoldk

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WHO ARE WE?

The Hiking Club empowers anyone to walk the way they want in the wild with personalised self-guided hiking experiences that are easy to find, quick to plan and simple to navigate.

We believe hiking experiences have the power to transform lives. With a growing range of personalised hikes that take into account your preferences, fitness and interests, we give you everything you need to explore the legendary trails of the world!

Forging friendships from Mt Ninderry to The Great Wall of China

Forging friendships from Mt Ninderry to The Great Wall of China

Community Leader Spotlight: Di, Liz and The Adventure Angels hiking group
on the Sunshine Coast, Australia.

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In 2015, while in recovery from breast cancer, Di Olson pledged to walk 5 days along The Great Wall of China to raise funds for cancer research. “I’ll do it with you!” was the instant commitment from her best friend Liz Ward. Little did they know, this hike would spark a love of hiking for more than just the two of them.

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Di and Liz and The Adventure Angels on a sunrise training hike on the Sunshine Coast, Australia.

New to hiking, Di and Liz were aware of the challenges of the 5 day hike they had planned nearly 12 months away. With difficult access to parts of the trail, some less well-maintained sections, and heights up to 3250 m (10,662 ft), both knew they would be disappointed if their physical fitness let them down. So they began scheduling regular training hikes in their local areas on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia. Before long, a group of friends and acquaintances were joining them on sunrise hikes up Mt Ninderry, Ngungun and Mt Coolum.

After months of religiously meeting at 5am for a hike, several times a week, a core group of women had become close friends. “Acceptance, tolerance and camaraderie became what our group was about,” Di recalls the atmosphere of those training hikes in the early days of The Adventure Angels.

The group is made up of women between the ages of 47 and 67 who are also business owners, parents and professionals from a variety of backgrounds. Like Di, some of the women are also cancer survivors. 

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Di Olson climbing the Great Wall of China.

In the lead up to The Great Wall of China hike, not only did they become fitter and stronger, but almost everything in their lives soon revolved around hiking and hiking equipment. They laugh about becoming complete gear nerds and their long conversations about the virtues of walker’s wool for blister protection.

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The Adventure Angels on The Great Wall of China.

After successfully completing their very first multi-day and international hike along The Great Wall of China, Liz and Di were exhilarated. However, on returning to Australia, they realised they had accomplished more than just a hike, they had created something so valuable in the hiking group, that they just couldn’t stop. 

“The momentum snowballed from there”, Liz says, “and in the months afterwards we were training and completing Coastrek 30- and 60-kilometre charity day-hikes all over Australia, from the Fleurieu Peninsula in Adelaide, the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, to Bondi  and Palm Beach in Sydney”. Together the group hiked the 125km multi-day Cape to Cape Walk in  southern Western Australia - the highlight being able to combine hiking with incredible beaches, wine and food! 

In late 2019, Liz, Di and I (Meg), walked the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage trail in Japan. Together they hiked the 4 day Nakahechi route from West to East across the Kii peninsula, with the highlight being the Kumano Hongu Taisha temple, deep in the middle of the peninsula. After so many hikes together, Liz and Di developed a post-hike recovery tradition of icy cold beer and hot chips. 

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Highlight of the Kumano Kodo: The Kumano Nachi Shrine and Nachi Falls.

Liz and Di’s families and children are incredibly supportive of their new found love of adventure, and can see how hiking has changed their lives. Di recalls, “I’d never been exposed to much sport growing up, so I’m proud of myself at my age for doing what I’ve done physically and mentally, and on the back of that, also forging friendships I’ll have for life. Now, nothing is a barrier for me.”

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The Adventure Angels group travelled to Western Australia to hike the Cape to Cape Track, a 123 kilometre trail along the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Ridge, between the lighthouses of Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin in the Margaret River region in the far south west of Western Australia.

From two friends to a group of at least 6 women, The Adventure Angels have found support, fitness and friendship in their regular sunrise hikes. While the COVID pandemic and long lockdowns in Australia have made it difficult for the hiking group to get together in the last 18 months, Liz and Di are determined to keep the group hiking together as often as they can. 

With their sights set on Machu Picchu and the Via Alpina in Switzerland, The Adventure Angels are only just getting started. Together they are committed to hiking for as long as they can, both questioning: “Why didn’t we do this sooner?”

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Author: Meg Appleby, Die Basler Wanderdamen hiking group
Meg always enjoyed being outside but an unexpected relocation from Australia to Switzerland plonked her in the outdoors equivalent of Mecca. Inspired by the über-fit Swiss she met on her day-hikes, Meg co-founded a hiking group and walked The Haute Route with the help of The Hiking Club. She lives to hike/snowshoe most weeks all over Switzerland and can’t think of a better pastime as she negotiates major mid-life changes.

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WHO ARE WE?

The Hiking Club empowers anyone to walk the way they want in the wild with personalised self-guided hiking experiences that are easy to find, quick to plan and simple to navigate.

We believe hiking experiences have the power to transform lives. With a growing range of personalised hikes that take into account your preferences, fitness and interests, we give you everything you need to explore the legendary trails of the world!

Join our global hiking community!

Yoga and hiking: when two worlds entwine

Yoga is an ancient practice dating back some 5,000 years or more, but it’s not as old as the act of walking.

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Studies have shown that hiking offers some parallel benefits to yoga bringing you not only physical but also mental well-being benefits.

The great thing about yoga is it offers total body conditioning, incorporating strength work, aerobic exercise, flexibility training and stretching. Like hiking, yoga brings you into the present moment and can be part of a soul-full practice. 

The importance of maintaining a strong and flexible body for improved physical fitness while hiking in the mountains goes without saying. But many of us take it for granted that we need to keep our bodies in good condition to help us enjoy the sports we do and love.

After a day of hiking, you might develop some soreness and niggles in your body. More specifically in the back, shoulders, legs, hips, knees, ankles and feet. 

Hiking in the mountains for several days or weeks at a time, carrying a heavy pack, camping or sleeping in unfamiliar beds, can take its toll on your body. Completing  a fitness regime and training for your trip will ensure you are physically ready. But maintaining your body while you are hiking is just as important.  

So why include yoga as part of your training regime for a hiking trip? 

(and continue your practice on the trail) 

• Yoga helps to improve your balance, which reduces your chance of getting injured while hiking over varied terrain

• Doing yoga strengthens your core muscles, which are important for your hiking endurance

• Yoga promotes strength and mobility and will enable you to move more efficiently through the mountains and expend less energy

• Yoga will reduce tightness in the key areas affected by hiking, that being the hips, hamstrings and lower back

• Regular yoga practice will maintain loose muscles, and allow you a full range of motion

• Yoga helps you feel more mentally balanced and helps you to relax, and that in turn brings physical health benefits

The beauty of yoga is that you can do it almost anywhere. To learn proper technique, like any new exercise you should seek out a qualified yoga instructor. Yoga is something you can do at the start of your day to warm up or at the end of the day as a reset. Yoga will maintain your body so you can continue to hike for longer with less risk of injury and reducing fatigue.

So how does yoga help you in other ways with your hiking experience?

Breathing is the most important thing you do; aside from keeping us  alive, it is a way we connect  to one another and all living creatures on the planet. It goes without saying that breathing techniques in yoga – pranayama (prana – vital life force; yama – to control), bring concentration to your practice and allow you to tune into your body. 

These same techniques can be used during your hiking adventures, to center yourself and bring you into the moment, but also to help you get up those steep alpine climbs.  

A slow and steady breath should be practiced while doing yoga and whilst hiking, and by learning to control your breath you will in turn keep your hiking at a steady manageable pace and bring yourself into the present moment.

A regular yoga practice will bring you a greater awareness of your bodily proprioception and control. Yoga builds your form, developing your strength, flexibility and balance. It can help reduce bodily pain and can calm the mind and reduce stress. By practicing a regular yoga routine, you will see the benefits throughout your life including when you hike the mountain trails. 

Yoga teaches you to listen to your breath and to your body

You will be able to tune into the small signs that something may need attention when you are out hiking, and you will be able to rest up before you potentially do damage that could take some time to heal. 

By practicing yoga, you will more easily be able to bring yourself into the moment. 

As a result, when you are hiking you become more present in the experience of nature, and you will be aware of your surroundings and appreciate the very moment you are in. 

What are you waiting for? Invest some time today in a new yoga practice, a mental and physical practice that will bring benefits to your hiking form and to the rest of your life.

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Author: Alistair Crompton, France
Alistair is a hiking and running guide, and a yoga teacher based in the Chamonix Valley in the French Alps. After using yoga to help train for the Sydney marathon in 2014 he decided to qualify as a yoga teacher and since moving to the Alps, his love for trail running in Chamonix has led him to train as an international mountain leader, where he now combines his love of hiking, running and yoga. He is now trying to figure out how to combine his passion for paragliding!

All photography by Alistair Crompton.

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WHO ARE WE?

The Hiking Club empowers anyone to walk the way they want in the wild with personalised self-guided hiking experiences that are easy to find, quick to plan and simple to navigate.

We believe hiking experiences have the power to transform lives. With a growing range of personalised hikes that take into account your preferences, fitness and interests, we give you everything you need to explore the legendary trails of the world!

Join our global hiking community!

Welcoming the New Year in Wallace Falls State Park

Cindy Scheyer is the winner of The Hiking Club competition that ran alongside our New Year’s Day Global Hike Event 2022. Cindy lives in Seattle, USA, and is an avid hiker. Cindy shares her new year’s hiking adventure to Wallace Falls State Park, a 5.6 mile / 9 km out and back hike with 1300 ft / 396 m elevation gain.

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Discovery Park, Seattle on New Year’s Day.

After stepping out on the right foot for a hike on New Year’s Day in Discovery Park, we opted for a longer hike to Wallace Falls the following weekend. I hiked with my partner, Bob Hamilton, and friends John and Koren.

It was a sunny Sunday hike in the snow! After one week of sub-freezing temps and lots of snow, both unusual for Seattle, followed by another week of torrential, record-breaking rain, we were ready for a sunny day in nature! We chose the Wallace Falls hike, a pretty gentle trail, about a 5 mile (9 km) round trip with an elevation gain of 1300 feet (396 metres). You can read more details about the hike itself here.

The rain we had in Seattle translated into heavy snow in the mountains and caused the department of transportation to close all four of the major mountain passes in the state, literally cutting most people off from hiking and skiing in the mountains, and for good reason, since the avalanche danger was super high.

Wallace Falls is reached on the same highway which was closed over Stevens Pass due to slides, avalanches and 4 inch thick ice. Fortunately, the trailhead starts about 30 miles before the road closure. 

It was great to be outside with friends in the sunshine on a bluebird sky day! We weren’t the only ones escaping the indoors, as the trail was crowded with other like-minded hikers. We all wore microspikes anticipating the compact snow and ice on the trail although we noticed many other hikers didn’t and were having a hard time coming down the trail. 

The hike is through a heavily wooded area with gorgeous views of the multiple falls from scenic wood bridges and along the way. As it’s a state park, the trail is well-maintained. The views of Middle Falls are especially stunning!  Eating lunch with the sound of the falls nearby was just about perfect.

While we love moments like these on the local trail, Bob and I are looking forward to more international hiking trips in the Swiss and French Alps, Austria, Norway and Machu Picchu. Our bucket list of hikes is pretty long! 

We hiked the Walker’s Haute Route in September 2019 following The Hiking Club’s self-guided program, which was wonderful, and we had planned to do it again in 2020, but our plans were disrupted with the pandemic. In the meantime, we’ve been staying busy hiking in the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon states, the Tetons in Wyoming and hikes near Moab, Utah in the La Sal mountains in Manti-La Sal National Forest. If European hiking isn’t open (or easier to access) in the summer of 2022, we will continue to keep our hiking adventures local and hope to hike in Glacier National Park in Montana, and maybe the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia in Canada.

I just love The Hiking Club community! It's so motivational and inspirational to see everyone's photos and read about your adventures. Wishing you all a wonderful year of hiking!

— Cindy S.

All photos by Cindy Scheyer.

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WHO ARE WE?

The Hiking Club empowers anyone to walk the way they want in the wild with personalised self-guided hiking experiences that are easy to find, quick to plan and simple to navigate.

We believe hiking experiences have the power to transform lives. With a growing range of personalised hikes that take into account your preferences, fitness and interests, we give you everything you need to explore the legendary trails of the world!

Join our global hiking community!