This post will contain a short description of the recurring characters. I’ll update it as we meet more people.
Marcus
From: California
Description: Me.
Trail Name: Town Food
Named By: Pathfinder
Origin Story: When Pathfinder learned that I’ve eaten town food nearly every day, my name was born.
Elizabeth
From: Texas
Description: My sister.
Trail Name: Pitter-Patter
Named By: Pathfinder
Origin Story: Pathfinder and Pitter-Patter are both runners. It seems her stride length is unusually short for her speed.
Alex
From: U.K.
Description: First seen heading south at high speed from Lake Morena Campground, convinced he had missed it. I wanted to name him “Southbound” for that, but he was too nice.
Trail Name: Rain Man
Named By: Wonky
Origin Story: Whenever Wonky saw him, it started to rain
Garrett
From: Idaho
Description: A fast, experienced backpacker, and a former engineer for long-term storage of nuclear waste.
Trail Name: Pathfinder
Named By: Rain Man
Origin Story: The directionally-challenged Rain Man was impressed by his ability to follow the PCT.
Breanna
From: Wisconsin
Description: A UX engineer for an ad agency. Has a theory that engineers are wildly overrepresented on the PCT. We met her and Garrett under a shady rock while descending into the blisteringly hot Anza Borrego desert.
Trail Name: Wonky
Named By: Rain Man
Origin Story: Early in her hike, she packed her backpack so awkwardly it wobbled with every step.
Bill
From: Wisconsin
Description: A specialist in culturing and fermenting of dairy.
Trail Name: Bobber
Named By: Somebody on the Appalachian Trail.
Origin Story: It sounds like his middle name.
Graham
From: Antarctica
Description: A mechanical engineer and food enthusiast.
Trail Name: Sprout
Named By: ?
Origin Story: He carries jars of mung beans in water in his pack, waiting for them to sprout so as to achieve a different nutrition profile.
Find and clever, that one!