By Heather "Anish" Anderson 

May 2005

I picked up my blue, sil Mariposa backpack, now completely emptied. Its contents were strewn around the guest bedroom of a Trail Angel’s home in Wrightwood, CA. I peering inside and carefully removed the carbon stays.

“One of these is broken!” I cried in dismay. My partner looked at the pieces of stay I held in my hands.

“You should call Gossamer Gear. We’re only 350 miles into the trail,” he suggested.
I dug through my papers and found the phone number for the small, cottage brand and dialed it on the Angel’s phone.

“Hello, this is Glen,” a man answered.
I paused, tongue-tied for a minute. Glen? As in Glen Van Peski the creator and owner of
Gossamer Gear?

‘Hi, I, I’m a PCT thru- hiker and uh, one of the stays from my Mariposa is broken,” I stammered.

“Oh no! I’m sorry to hear that! Where are you on trail?”

“Wrightwood, California.”

“I can get a new set out to you today. Where can I mail it?”

I gave him the address of yet another Trail Angel a week up the trail.

“Alright, I’ll have that right out to you. I’m sorry that happened. Need anything else? Aqua
Mira?”

“No, no, that’s all. Thank you.”

July 2018

I reached the highway at Mackenzie Pass in central Oregon mid-day. My partner and I were hot and tired after many long days of logging 30’s along the PCT. I was even more exhausted by the 2,000 miles I had completed before we even left the Mexican Border. I was halfway through my Calendar Year Triple Crown hike and I’d taken less than 5 zero days. I set my Gossamer Gear

Gorilla pack down alongside my partner’s new Mariposa both constructed of durable Robic fabric. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed.

“Hello, Glen here.”

“Hi Glen! This is Anish. We’re at Mackenzie Pass.”

“I’ll be right there!”

Glen Van Peski picked us up, took us shopping, and, along with his wife Francie, hosted us in his beautiful Bend home. We zero’ed and it was glorious. While we were there, I taught him how to roast coffee the Ethiopian way in a frying pan.

March 2026

I stepped out of the Trail Angel’s car at Walker Pass and headed south toward Campo,
California. On my back was a purple Mariposa with a new pivot frame and robust hip belt.
Completely unlike the one I’d worn through here 20 years prior. I was embarking on a LASH to mop up another big section in pursuit of my 4 th PCT completion.

I’ve walked a lot in 20 years. My feet have covered over 50,000 miles on trails from the USA to Tanzania to Fiji. Along the way I’ve set records and completed incredible challenges. I’ve gone from hiking with only map and compass to using GPS powered apps like FarOut and Gaia. And, yet some things haven’t changed much. The PCT is still beautiful and rugged. The CDT is wild and brutal. The AT is redolent with wildlife and myriad flora. The dirt ribbons I’ve walked are pathways to healing, adventure, and camaraderie. And Gossamer Gear has been with me all along the way.

I’m not sure when I first met Glen in person, but he has become a friend over these many miles. His designs and redesigns of packs and other UL gear have always found their way into my kit, no matter what hike I take on. From that very early Mariposa to the modern versions of the packs, poles, and tents. Though the company has grown beyond just him making and selling gear, I’m still grateful for the small team that has ensured that there are options for those who like to "take less. do more." 

When I first started hiking, there were guys doing trail magic that talked about their first hikes in the 70’s and 80’s. They seemed like wisemen who should be on mountain tops, dispensing their hard-earned knowledge. I was 21 on my first thru-hike and utterly amazed and fascinated by their stories. The changes they had seen in the trails and the gear seemed mind-boggling.

As I trod southward on the Pacific Crest Trail, 21 years after my first thru-hike, I realized that now I was the one who remembered the trails of the past. Hiking in the early aughts was vastly different than it is now. Without cell phones or GPS and only a handful of ultralight gear manufacturers, we figured out our way from one end of the country to another. We cut straps and buckles off heavier equipment to make it lighter and sometimes sewed things ourselves. In towns we waited in line at payphones to let our Pocketmail devices “talk” to the computer on the other end of an 800 number, magically transferring our journal entries from the device to a website for our family and friends (and the wider world) to read. Then we used our calling cards to call loved ones. A 30-minute block at the local library afforded us the chance to email people we didn’t have time or minutes on our cards to call. After our hikes were complete, we wrote letters by hand to those we’d befriended…if we’d ever learned their names or gotten an address.

I thru-hiked the PCT for the second time in 2013, the AT for the second time in 2015. Payphones were gone by then. I had an iPhone in my pocket instead. I could call my mom from my tent at night and dash off an email at lunch. I posted journal entries to my social media from towns and the high points of ridgelines. My Gossamer Gear pack, Dyneema tent, and sundry gear weighed in at well under 10 pounds without me having to cut apart anything. Friends I made along the way were added to Facebook in real time.

By the time I hiked the CDT for the 2 nd time in 2017, and all of the Triple Crown for the 3rd time in 2018 all navigation was done with a GPS-based app. Rides to town, Trail Angels, or to hostels was coordinated on my phone. The status of water caches and natural sources was up to date, and there was no guesswork about whether there was water up ahead.

Now, on the PCT in 2026, it is obvious to me that the trail community and the hikers are even more connected. Logistics are easier than ever and so is staying in touch with the people who become family on trail. There are dozens of options in the ultralight gear market and pack weights are lighter than ever. Bad weather rolled in while I hiked across the Lagunas, and, unlike my terrifying bout with hypothermia in 2005 I texted a friend who took me home for two days until the weather passed.

And yet, the trails remain rocky and difficult. Snakes, bears, lions and more still call these wild places home. A glimpse reminding you how lucky you are to travel here. A simple tap on your phone puts it into airplane and you can relax into disconnected silence for as long as you please. The trees still offer shade from the sun and protection from the rain. The Earth itself still provides enough to drink. I am still wearing sneakers and thrift store sundresses with the tags cut out. I still find all that I seek and more when I’m living outdoors, following narrow paths through overgrown tangles and up rocky summits.

May 2026

After Appalachian Trail Days, I started north from Damascus…working on my 4 th AT as well. Despite the technology I carry in my pocket and the improvements in my gear, I could be 21 again. My body strains uphill, but I smile from ear to ear. Squirrels chatter overhead, trees whisper in the wind. The forest is alive and welcoming. I sink into attentive walking. No matter how many things change, the important things stay the same. The familiar white blazes still leading me northward…leading me home.

About the Author: 

Heather Anderson is a National Geographic Adventurer of the Year, three-time Triple
Crown thru-hiker, writer, and professional speaker whose mission is to inspire others to “Dream Big, Be Courageous.” She is the author of three hiking memoirs Farther: 8 Months on America’s Triple Crown Trails, Thirst: 2600 Miles to Home and Mud, Rocks, Blazes: Letting Go on the Appalachian Trail as well as co-author of a preparatory guide to long-distance hiking Adventure Ready.

Find her on Instagram @_WordsFromTheWild_ or at wordsfromthewild.net