Walking Together: What I Learned From a Woman I Met in San Rafael

Last week, I felt the weight of restlessness and the intense desire to be in the desert. So I packed up my 4runner and hit the road. After a long day of driving, I set up near the San Rafael wilderness area and prepared for the next morning’s slot canyon adventure.

I couldn’t prepare for the random encounter I had.

At first, I wanted to run the trail, but I quickly gave up when I realized how much maneuvering I had to do to get through the canyon. About 4 miles in, I started hiking past a woman wearing a big-brimmed hat, loose-fitting clothing, and the biggest smile. She turned to me, “You look like you’re fast!”

After explaining that I’m a runner and gave up because the trail was more technical than I expected, she began to tell me her story.

Kim is from Connecticut and just finished backpacking the Arizona trail. Like me, she couldn’t ignore the pull of the road and rented a Rav 4 to keep exploring the Southwest. We kept hiking together as she told me how she had backpacked part of the Appalachian Trail and loved being outside.

I don’t quite remember how it came up, but I told her about my knee surgery. She stepped in front of me, stopping me in my tracks. “I’ve met Fulkerson!” She exclaimed with a huge smile on her face. “I used to work at Yale and he did my MRI and consultation for that surgery!”

So we talked for another long while about our love for the outdoors, how I recovered from the intense surgery, and connected over our determination to see as much of the world as we can. I gave her my phone number before heading off and finishing my run through the sand pits and told her if she needs any advice or support through her recovery after surgery to call me.

Meeting Kim made that trip special. To know that there are women out there of all ages, working through physical and mental struggles to explore the world, is so encouraging. Instead of giving up, she continued to backpack and work with her body as she entered her 40s. People like her inspire me every day to find the strength to keep pursuing adventure and learning to love where I’m at in life. There will always be a roadblock, whether physical or emotional, but we can choose how we overcome it.