When you’re a tech nerd who reads Reddit and researches camping and outdoor gear for fun, it only makes sense that you’d thru-hike the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, right? Right!
That’s at least the reason Jake Braun decided to thru-hike.
“I was a boy scout, so I had some experience camping,” says Braun. But, he decided to thru-hike because of his interest following other hikers on other trails. Plus, he really likes gear.
“I delve way too much into the details of gear,” he says, admitting his thru-hike justified purchases of things he researched.
At the start of his thru-hike, he planned to do 15 miles a day. But, once he got his hiking legs, he realized he could achieve more daily miles.
He says “finding campsites is the most stressful thing.” And “road walking is not as bad as people say.”
Although he’s not scared of ghosts, Braun says this hike has helped him understand why people believe in them. Being outside, alone, at night is “fairly terrifying,” he says.
Braun was under-the-radar with his hike, avoiding making any public social posts about it. Instead, he left posting up to his Dad.
“My Dad’s a huge fan of my hike,” says Braun. “My Mom just wants me to finish so I don’t die,” he said, laughing.
“My Dad’s a huge fan of my hike. My Mom just wants me to finish so I don’t die.”
Braun, who lives in Sun Prairie, says he likes the idea of the minimalist, thru-hike culture, but knows he isn’t a minimalist. Therefore, he’s pretty sure this was his only thru-hike.
“Thru-hiking is not fun,” he says, “but I didn’t expect it to be. Each day is kind of the same.” He says, sometimes he’d would be hiking along and “all the sudden your sister sends you a picture of your cat, and then it’s sad.”
When those moments hit him, he changed his playlist.
Braun figures his future hiking endeavors will involve shorter backpacking trips with friends.
“Thru-hiking is not fun, but I didn’t expect it to be. Each day is kind of the same.”
His plan was to finish the Trail before deer hunting season started and before it snowed. “If we got a lot of snow, there’s a BIG chance I would stop,” Braun said. Jake never did stop. He reached the Eastern Terminus on November 17, when there was just a couple of inches of snow on the ground.
