Into the Wild inspired a life of adventure – but the traveler learned freedom is a state of mind, not a physical escape
After 20 years of travel and hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, the author realizes that true freedom is not about abandoning society but finding inner peace and connection.
A traveler who first watched the film “Into the Wild” at age 16 and was immediately inspired by Christopher McCandless’s rejection of society has come to realize after two decades that the freedom he sought was not a physical escape but a mental one.
The author, now hiking the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail from Mexico to Canada, recalls being captivated as a teenager by the idea of breaking away from expectations and living on his own terms, far from his north London home. Over the next 20 years, he traveled to India, Nepal, Brazil, and beyond, always chasing the next adventure in hopes of understanding himself.
However, with time, his view of the film shifted. He no longer admired McCandless’s abandonment of society but saw the cost of such a choice. A lonely evening in Los Angeles, feeling isolated in a city of millions, prompted him to move back to London, where he nurtured relationships instead of seeking the next escape.
When he finally embarked on the Pacific Crest Trail this April, it was not to run away but to move toward a deeper connection with nature and self-trust. Hiking has become a form of walking meditation, helping him manage anxiety. The trail’s greatest lesson, he says, is to take life step by step. He has found peace in not needing to have everything figured out. Alone on the mountain, he never feels lonely; he has learned that loneliness and isolation are not the same, and isolation can bring comfort when one has roots to return to.
