Hello, my name's Kyle, and I am a thru-hiker/programmer based in Chicago with my partner and our dog Dax. I've been on several thru-hikes all around the world, from South America to Nepal, and I've been programming continously since 2010. I like to refer to it as "designing code", and it allows me to live this life. As a hobby/side-project I made some apps for garmin smartwatches.
The journey, rather than the destination, leaves the most impact and I discover what I’m capable of after walking for days-on-end, miles upon miles, and mountain pass after mountain pass.
My first experience with thru-hiking was the Camino de Santiago, a 500 mile trail, or Way (as it's called), in Northern Spain. It was a 33-day journey across the country, full of new experiences and hardships, and I met so many amazing people on it. There was nothing quiet like carrying everything I needed on my back, while walking across open land from village to village, day after day. Yes my feet hurt (a lot), but I discovered what I was capable of, and I experienceed the world in a unique way while meeting all kinds of people from all walks of life (no pun intended).
Needless to say, I was hooked — I've done 7 thru-hikes, and summitted 9 mountain peaks, in addition to having traveled to more than a dozen countries. My favorite places so far have been Spain where I did the Camino de Santiago, and the Annapurna Circuit in Nepal, a place where I almost didn't make it.
Here's a map of (nearly) everywhere I've been since 2018:
In my free time I like to take long walks along the lakefront trails in Chicago, as cliché as that may sound, and read a good fiction book. I also enjoy playing the entire series of Halo (it's my favorite).
What's next
In July of 2024 I returned to Europe and re-hiked the Tour du Mont Blanc, this time with my partner. It had been nearly six years since I first thru-hiked it, and I hope to be able to repeat another experience of mine from 2018 sometime soon and walk the Camino de Santiago, maybe in the next year or two. There's also plans for making a trip to Peru in the next year.