Fenella Eastaugh
At just 19 years old, she will be one of the youngest solo British hikers to complete the gruelling 2665 mile, Pacific Crest Trail.
Most of us would agree that being outdoors and active is a positive lifestyle goal. Perhaps we walk the dog, play golf or go for the occasional bike ride and feel we have done our bit to improve our mental and physical wellbeing. Some might throw caution to the wind and join a gym or do a spot of wild swimming, but Fen Eastaugh has taken the challenge to a whole different level.
At the end of April 2017, Fen will fly to America and travel to the Mexican border. From there she will walk the Pacific Crest Trail – all 2665 miles of it - hiking independently, carrying her tent and all essentials. The Pacific Crest Trail is one of three renowned trails in America; it runs along the western coastline taking in California, Oregon and Washington, ending just inside the Canadian border.
The first 750 miles will be desert where Fen will face not only fierce temperatures during the day and extreme cold at night but also the likes of rattle snakes and water stations that are spaced 20 miles apart. She will travel through the snowy peaks of the High Sierras, and in northern California will cope with forest fire hazards which will mean route closures and diversions. In Oregon she must navigate through volcanic wastelands and in Washington she may well endure torrential rainfall. All this whilst looking out for bears and mountain lions!
Her bible has been the Pacific Crest Trail Handbook by Jackie “Yogi” McDonnell which has helped considerably in the planning of her excursion including advice obtaining all of the necessary paperwork such as the “thru-hike” permit which places a limit on the number of hikers per day. Fen anticipates walking approximately 25 miles each day and hopes to meet and befriend other intrepid hikers - although she will be entirely self-sufficient. She expects the challenge to take six months and is aware of the high failure rate. I asked why she was undertaking such an ambitious trip. “I just want to see what America is like; I’m competitive and enjoy challenging myself.” Fen believes that at 19 years old, she will be one of the youngest solo British hikers to complete the trail. It is truly not for the faint hearted.
Born and raised in Yelverton, Fen attended Tavistock College and for the past two years has been working at The Royal Oak in Meavy raising funds to finance her trip. She featured here in Moor Links back in 2014 when she visited Ghana – another self organised trip. There she worked with orphans and helped to build school libraries. She says the visit was an amazing experience and she would love to go back to Africa and do more.
Fen is no stranger to physical activity having undertaken the Ten Tors Challenge and the gruelling London River Race as part of the Tamar and Tavy junior gig crew. Fen has sailed along the south coast as part of the Tall ships expedition and played for the Tavistock U18 Rugby Club as well as swimming competitively for both Kelly and Tavistock swim teams. However she says that this unique challenge to the States, is difficult to prepare for; she can’t even wear in her walking boots as she expects to go through several pairs of “trail runners” (specially designed trainers) to cope with the range of terrain.
I truly admire Fens’ positivity, courage and determination to complete this impressive quest. It will be an epic adventure and I hope when she comes back in October she will let us all know how she got on.
We wish you all the very best of luck Fen.
You can follow Fen’s progress at fenellasadventures.wordpress.com