My mother thinks I’m nuts. She doesn’t understand why I backpack. Who would subject themselves to the physical and mental deprivations involved with an intense backpacking wilderness experience? I can’t blame her. There are so many benefits to backpacking, and I have come up short time and again trying to answer that question “why?” Well…
Thank you and congratulations to the amazing teams we had with us on the trail this summer! With Labor Day here, and California’s forests temporarily closed, our summer season ended with just shy of a dozen teams who joined us for inspirational treks across the Sierra this summer. Share in the joy, inspiration, and challenges…
One year ago this week we had some heart breaking news to share with our TSX family. Jan, who had completed seven TSX Challenge experiences over several years and had become an iconic figure in the TSX family, was on his second hike of the day…. just a “short one” to the top of Meadow…
The person who first introduce me to this route, and to backpacking, was a fifth grade teacher at Gettysburg Elementary School in Clovis, California, a school I attended for 3rd – 6th grades. Clovis is a proud community in Central California, east of Fresno, who’s boundary butts up against the foothills that lead to Yosemite,…
Ready for the most inspirational vacation of your life? Discover the perfect escape and adventure for 2021.
Every year we take motivated people of all ages and experience levels into the Sierra and Grand Canyon, but this year we hit new records with our youngest participant ever, Brooks “Hooks” (9 years old), and our oldest female participant ever, “Effing” Ita (72 years young). About their stories “Hooks” got his trail name backpacking…
One of the BEST parts of every TSX backpacking experience is the people we spend time with on the journey. For us, it’s incredibly rewarding to help people overcome challenges, and accomplish goals they might not otherwise reach on their own. This year, we were inspired by two individuals, Jan, age 76, and Claire, age 11 our…
While each TSX experience has moments that are “pretty hard,” challenges are overcome as a team with great spirit. Get a feel for the challenge and spirit of TSX in this short 50-second video! [siteorigin_widget class=”WP_Widget_Recent_Comments”][/siteorigin_widget]
(by Chris Casado, Co-Founder, TSX Challenge, originally published 2019, updated 2020) It’s time to come clean. Two moms are largely responsible for making TSX a reality. I started TSX in late-2010 with the help of Mike Murphy and incredible family support. At that time, our family had two full-time working parents, two young kids under…
Great stuff comes with backpacking the Sierra and Grand Canyon. You’ve seen the glamour shots, inspirational quotes and incredible achievements. Less appreciated (but often more rewarding!) is the laughter, sweat, tears and and friendships that build the journey of each experience. Here’s a peek into the less glamorous moments that keep it real and make…
