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…
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 the Hell For Sure route in late June, along with his dad, older sister and family friends which included 6 kids and 5 adults in total. At Fleming lake on day two, he caught the first fish of his life. Five days, 40 miles, 12 lakes, and close to 50 fish later, he was “Hooks!” Brooks played organized soccer for training, and did day hikes with his family, including with a pack, in the weeks leading up to the trip.
“Effing Ita” got her trail name backpacking the Hell For Sure route in early August. She was roped into it by her son, who also brought along his two kids. This was a first for TSX: three generations on one trek from one family. Ita earned her trail name by being “F”unny, showing “F”ortitude, and dropping her fair share of “F”-bombs along the way… “This is f***ing hard!” or “Can’t believe we f***ing did that!” It was her first ever backpacking experience, and likely her last… but we know her son and grandkids will be back on the trail with us soon. The things you do for family! She is an active runner, which was her primary source of training.
Discover Hell For SureÂ
Our Hell For Sure Challenge is an exhilarating 5 night, 6 day backpacking experience that we created out of joy and love for our favorite region of the Sierra. We invented this route ourselves to maximize time in some of the most spectacular, least appreciated, and rarely traveled parts of California. The experience includes 6-8 miles of off-trail travel with hand-and-foot scrambles over mountains and ridgelines that require team efforts for success. The Hell For Sure Challenge route passes more than a dozen high Sierra lakes providing opportunities to swim, fish and soak in the beauty of the Sierra each day. We are currently booking trips for summer 2021 – prices rise Nov 12th! Learn more.
Here are 18 pictures from Brooks’s and Ita’s summer adventures!
Chris first backpacked the Sierra to Mt. Whitney in the early 90s. He completed the John Muir Trail in 1997, and founded TSX Challenge in 2011 as a way to positively impact the lives of others through inspirational backpacking experiences.
