How the Pacific Crest Trail Made Me a Minimalist

A plethora of ideas and inspirations have come about from the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) or any thru-hike really. For me, outdoor skills were built, friendships were made and obstacles were overcome. One takeaway stuck and has changed my lifestyle for good: minimalism. The image to the right summarizes this ideology.

Before the hike, I watched the movie "Minimalism: A Documentary" by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus. (link to their movie: Minimalism: a Documentary About the Important Things) . By chance, I watched this movie just in time to live a minimalist existence. However, after finishing college and moving all my things back to my hometown of Shoreline, WA, minimalism hadn't become an inherent part of me.

The 21st century is an awesome time to live with limitless opportunities to learn and be successful. Unfortunately, it is a social norm in our age to define success in money and things, even though we know this doesn't always lead to happiness.

I was raised in a quaint home in the Seattle suburbs, attended private Christian school and this ideology is driven into my decision-making process. Everything I owned before the PCT had it's place in my life (or so I thought). Even if it wasn't exactly clear why I owned a large collection of crafts from my 4+ years working with kids, it seemed right to keep them. If I needed more space to put things, I'd just buy some kind of storage to fit it!

Now the PCT..... At all costs, I don't want to carry anything I don't need. This is the most basic principal of thru-hiking. After leaving the Mexico border, this concept was foreign to me as I had way to many extra outfits and even a bear canister. I carried a lot of my girlfriends extra belongings too which later coined my trail name "Mule"..... Luckily, I wasn't alone and you learn quickly. I've heard stories of people bringing cast-iron skillets, chess boards and backpacking showers (NO THANKS!!).

Look how small my backpack is!

The point is, on the PCT every single piece of equipment you have, you constantly consider it's value. You question other hikers on what they own and continue disposing of things that don't seem valuable. After hiking the state of California and Oregon, the process of evaluating my belongings became automatic for me. To the right is a photo I'm proud of because of the few belongings I fit into my backpack and how small it became.

Now, the trail is over for me, but I'm still considering the value of every item I own. That means all the old snowboards, my many many t-shirts and extra electronics can all go "bye bye". So, basically, half of my belongings have been given away. My closet is shown below. YES, I  OWN LESS THAN 5 PAIRS OF SHOES. That's all I need. Furthermore, my dresser only has two drawers of clothes.

All the belongings in my closet!

I define success in reaching goals, not money and things. My goals are specific to my passions of health and expression in snowboarding; I therefore, don't need more stuff. THIS REALIZATION IS LIBERATING. A simplistic lifestyle has enabled me to live nomadically, continue to follow my passions and reach my goals

 I encourage my reader to research minimalist lifestyles and tips further. The Minimalists is a good starting point and I enjoyed their movie and podcasts. Here's one of their more popular books: Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life