#168 | Section Hiking vs. Thru-Hiking: Defining Each Style, Benefits and Drawbacks, and Who They're For

In today's episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, we are bringing you another panel episode. Today we are joined by Backpacker Radio regular, Clay Bonnyman Evans aka Pony to compare and contrast thru-hiking and section hiking. We go deep, focusing largely on the benefits of each of these styles of hiking, who they're for, what we have personally gained from them, and much more. If you're curious about whether you should hit the pause button on your life and take a half year to meander in the mountains, this episode will hopefully serve you a ton of value. And, as always when Pony is studio, this one is delightfully wild.

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Panel with Badger, Chaunce, and Pony

• Tom Turcich (and His Pup) Set to Complete 7-Year Around-the-World Walk Next Month by Clay Bonnyman Evans
• Leave us a voicemail!

Time stamps & Questions

00:05:03 - QOTD: What's the stupidest thing you've done this week?

00:20:05 - Reminders: Apply to be a blogger for 2023!

00:20:32 - Introducing the panel topic

00:22:30 - Panelist's hiking experiences

00:23:55 - Discussion of the definition of section hiking

00:26:05 - Chaunce's Thru-Hiking Pro #1

00:28:25 - Zach's Thru-Hiking Pro #1

00:31:40 - Pony's disclaimer about section hiking

00:34:02 - Pony's Thru-Hiking Pro #1

00:38:15 - Chaunce's Thru-Hiking Pro #2

00:46:18 - Zach's Thru-Hiking Pro #2

00:57:44 - Pony's Thru-Hiking Pro #2

01:02:00 - Chaunce's Thru-Hiking Pro #3

01:05:55 - Zach's Thru-Hiking Pro #3

01:06:50 - Discussion of friends and trail families while thru-hiking

01:09:05 - Pony's Thru-Hiking Pro #3

01:12:10 - Chaunce's Section Hiking Pro #1

01:17:48 - Zach's Section Hiking Pro #1

01:20:56 - Pony's Section Hiking Pro #1

01:26:40 - Chaunce's Section Hiking Pro #2

01:27:30 - Zach's Section Hiking Pro #2

01:30:05 - Chaunce's Section Hiking Pro #3

01:32:48 - Pony's Section Hiking Pro #2

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