Back of the Pack Hikers

# Welcome to Back of the Pack Hikers

This group is for people who want to enjoy the hike, not survive it.

A few years ago, I stopped hiking.
Life got busy. Priorities changed. Then an injury came along and made it even easier to stay off the trail.

Now, after a four-year hiatus, I'm starting over.
Not from scratch, but close enough to remember what it feels like to be the person in the back of the group.

Before the break, I spent years hiking all over Southern California. I completed both the San Diego Six-Pack of Peaks and the SoCal Six-Pack of Peaks, summited Mount Baldy solo, and logged countless miles chasing bigger summits and tougher challenges.
You may have even taken a photo with one of the summit signs I used to make and haul up the mountains.

But through all those miles, somewhere along the way, I realized I just wasn't having fun anymore.

I used to be the guy pretending to tie my shoe just so I could catch my breath.
Or stopping to "take a picture" when what I was really doing was trying not to die.
I'd finish a hike and instead of thinking, "That was awesome," I'd think, "Well... that sucked."

Then one day it hit me.
I was spending so much energy trying to keep up that I never looked up.
My eyes were glued to the trail, watching my footing, staring at the next switchback, and trying my best to catch the people in front of me.

I missed the views.
I missed the wildlife.
I missed the random conversations.
I missed the quiet moments.
I missed a lot of the reasons I started hiking in the first place.

And even when I made it to the summit, nobody ever seemed to slow down long enough to enjoy it.
We'd get to the top, snap a quick photo, take a bite of a protein bar, and immediately start heading back down.

After all that work, after all those miles and all that elevation gain, nobody slowed down long enough to appreciate what they had just accomplished.

The summit became a checkpoint instead of a destination.

Coming back to hiking after four years reminded me of something important:
I don't need to hike faster.
I need to hike differently.
I want to look up.
I want to enjoy the views.
I want to spend a few extra minutes on the summit.
I want to have conversations that last longer than a water break.
I want to finish a hike thinking, "That was awesome. Let's do it again."

That's why Back of the Pack exists.

We're here for the views, the conversations, the summit photos, the bad jokes, the snack breaks, and the occasional "hold on, I gotta do this for the gram" moment.

If you've ever finished a hike feeling more discouraged than inspired because you spent the entire day trying to keep up, you're in the right place.

## What "Slow Pace" Means

Let's define it, because "slow" means different things to different people.

🥾 Approximately 2 mph on incline sections
🥾 Roughly 30 minutes per mile

We're not racing, but we're not wandering aimlessly either.
We keep moving, we complete our hikes, and we challenge ourselves.
We just do it at a pace that leaves enough room to enjoy where we are.

If you can comfortably maintain about a 30-minute mile ON AN INCLINE and like the idea of hiking with people instead of chasing them, you'll fit right in.

## Who This Group Is For

✔ Hikers who enjoy the journey as much as the destination
✔ Newer hikers looking to gain confidence on the trail
✔ Experienced hikers looking for a recovery-day pace
✔ Anyone who appreciates good conversation, good company, and good snacks
✔ People who remember that hiking is supposed to be fun

## Who This Group Is Not For

If you're here to:

❌ Crush Strava segments
❌ Set personal records every weekend
❌ Race to the summit
❌ Spend your day waiting at trail junctions because everyone else is too slow

This probably isn't your group. And that's okay.

There are plenty of great fast-paced hiking groups out there.
This one exists for people who want something different.

## One Last Thing

This is probably not the hiking group for overly sensitive people:

• There may be sarcasm.
• There will be profanity.
• There will definitely be inappropriate jokes.
• And if you show up with celery sticks instead of proper trail snacks, expect to be publicly shamed.
  (jk, bring your celery sticks... just don't forget the honey and peanut butter! 🍯🥜)

Our mascot is a honey badger because honey badgers don't give a s**, and frankly neither do we.

We're here to laugh, hike, eat snacks, take too many summit photos, and enjoy the mountains.

Everything else is just background noise.

Welcome to the Back of the Pack.