Miles (and Miles) of Heart: One Hiker's 20-Year Journey to the Triple Crown

Two decades, three trails, and a lifetime of lessons learned on foot, Amy Mann is nearing her goal of earning the coveted Triple Crown title.

Making The Trail Her Lifelong Passion

For nearly 20 years, Amy has been chasing the Triple Crown of hiking—completing the Pacific Crest Trail, Appalachian Trail, and Continental Divide Trails.

Her unique approach: She’s tackled it one section at a time.

Balancing her life as a teacher with her love of the outdoors, she’s proven that big dreams don’t have to happen all at once, but instead, they can be built mile by mile and year after year. Her journey serves as a wake-up call for many, reminding us that perseverance—not speed—is what ultimately carries us to the finish line.

Amy didn’t plan to become a long-distance hiker. So how did this journey start in the first place?

In college, fresh off a breakup, she signed up for a weekend women’s backpacking trip on California’s Lost Coast—and promptly shivered through the night with a blanket instead of a sleeping bag and Nike running shoes instead of boots. It didn’t matter. She’d found a new love.

“Thatfirsttrip,Ifrozeallnightunderablanket.ButIwokeupknowingI’dfoundsomethingthatwouldstaywithmeforever.”

It’d be quite the feat to fit every wild mishap, wrong turn, or trail magic moment from Amy’s 20-year hiking saga into one story. But here’s the quick-and-dirty breakdown of her travels so far:

• Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) – Amy began her Triple Crown journey here after moving to San Diego. She started section hiking the PCT in the early 2000s, tackling small spring break sections at first and eventually finishing all of California, Oregon, and Washington.
• Appalachian Trail (AT) – Next, she took on the AT, hiking it in three years. Her first major section covered 1,000 miles from Georgia to Harper’s Ferry, and she eventually completed the entire trail through multi-year section hikes.
• Continental Divide Trail (CDT) – The CDT is her final and current trail. She’s completed New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho, and most of Montana—with 425 miles remaining between Butte and the Canadian border, which she plans to finish next year in 2026.

Carried by Kindness, Mile by Mile

Life on the trail has been anything but easy. However, her travels have carried her through picturesque deserts, faraway forests, and pristine high alpine ridgelines, each stretch shaping her into the hiker who knows that endurance is as much about heart as it is about muscle. She’s also met some incredible people along the way.

“Youmeeteveryoneonthetrail—thequietones,thefunnyones,theoneswhosaveyouwithkindnesswhenyouleastexpectit.”

Trail magic seems to follow her wherever she goes, whether it’s the generosity of fellow hikers sharing food, the hospitality of strangers who open their homes, or the quiet comfort of a sunrise in solitude.

From the Pacific Crest to the Appalachian and now the Continental Divide, she’s pieced together her Triple Crown one section at a time as she’s balanced teaching, life, and logistics while steadily adding miles each year. The trail has offered endless lessons in patience, resourcefulness, and community, with a fair share of wrong turns, heavy packs, and unexpected kindness from strangers and community alike.

“Mystudentsfilledmyresupplyboxes.Theymadeeverybitetastelikeencouragement.”

Another fond memory for Amy is some of the affectionate trail names she’s been given along the way, like “Princess,” for her love of painting her nails in town, and “Trail Mom,” for her compassion and wisdom shared freely with others on the path.

Above all, the journey hasn’t always been easy; it’s tested her resolve, her strength, and her humor. But through every mountain pass and muddy mile, Amy has found a deep sense of belonging in the rhythm of her footsteps and the simplicity of living by the trail’s pace.

The Last 425 Miles

After two decades of section hiking, Amy is now within striking distance of the Triple Crown.

She has 425 miles left—from Butte to the Canadian border—and a teacher’s calendar to thread the needle: fly in late June, celebrate the Fourth in Augusta, and, if all goes to plan, finish in early August just before classes begin.

For Amy, the Triple Crown isn’t just three long trails. It’s twenty-plus years of choosing courage, kindness, and momentum one honest mile at a time.

“Thetrailhasawayofhumblingyouandremindingyouthatslowisstillforward.”

Amy’s Triple Crown Section Hike Journey (of a Lifetime) Teaches Us:

• You can do hard things
• Community makes the hard things possible
• There’s no one right way to chase a horizon. “Hike your own hike,” she likes to say—whether that means 15 miles a day, painting your nails in town, or skipping a section that doesn’t serve you.