The utility of hiking

Recently a friend of mine has started putting together TEDx-style conferences, where she has invited friends, coworkers, and so forth to come listen to several speakers talk about "ideas that matter". I think that's the TED tagline, at least. She's had two of these now, and she invited me to speak at the second one (which was last Friday, February 13th). A lot of my friends didn't get to go and expressed interest in the transcript of my talk. Here it is, more or less (I went off script a few times), with slides included. Enjoy.

The Utility of Hiking

I’m a big fan of hiking. I’ve done a lot of it over the last few years, mostly in Washington state where I grew up and in Utah when I was an undergrad at BYU, and a little out here in the East.

My brother Jeff and Mt. Timpanogos

This is Mt. Timpanogos. I first hiked Timp in 2005 as a freshman in college, and I’ve hiked it 6 more times since, and spent a good deal exploring the mountains and canyons around Provo and Orem. I can honestly say that those mountains have changed my life for good.

I think almost everyone has had some sort of experience or encounter with hiking. For some people hiking elicits an “I’m tired, too wet and cold, or too hot and sweaty” type of response. As it should -- hiking is all of those things. But it can also be exhilarating, fun, and inspiring. For me personally, I’ve found that hiking has had a very practical and real utility, to borrow the economic term. In economics, utility is the amount of usefulness something provides, something intrinsic that causes you to choose it over something else. It is sometimes simplistically described as the amount of happiness that something provides for you. Hiking has brought me a whole lot of happiness over the years. Here are just four ways that hiking has proved its utility for me, and anyone else who gives it a chance.

First, achievement.

Me at the top of Cascade Mountain, a big challenge.

Hiking has provided a way for me to feel an unambiguous sense of achievement. I tend to second-guess myself on whether I’ve done a good job on just about everything I do, whether it’s writing an essay at school or work, or teaching a Sunday School lesson, or being a good brother, son, and friend. It can take kind of a heavy toll on me sometimes. But even I can’t tell myself that I haven’t accomplished anything when I arrive at a mountain summit or a lake or waterfall. With hiking, everything becomes simple and streamlined, but not without significant effort expended. In this way, hiking is kind of an antidote for impostor syndrome – you can’t trick yourself into thinking you’re not qualified or just BSing when you’ve already successfully hiked a mountain and made it back down.

Second, self-image.

My self, hiking Squaw Peak.

Hiking has been a way for me to have a healthier self-image and appreciate my body more. Believe it or not, I actually struggle with a negative body image. I may be tall and skinny, but I really don’t love the way that I look and I’m sometimes embarrassed by my body. But I remember one day that I was coming down a trail out of a canyon above Orem, and I realized that even if I didn’t like the way that my body looked, I admired it for what it could do. I felt strong, and that was good enough for me. Function triumphed over form, and I’ve learned to be grateful for the body that I have, and that it can take me up thousands of feet of elevation gain and across miles and miles of trails.

Third, clarity.

At the top of Little Baldy, clear winter day.

There’s a lot of confusion in my life, a lot of uncertainty. Am I doing the right thing? What is right, what is wrong? Do I like my job or do I hate it? Did I actually make the right choice with my education? What about my dumb future? How am I going to find a satisfying career and have a family someday? This list could go on and on. Sometimes I feel like I’m in the middle of a big fog that muddles my brain and makes me stressed out and anxious about everything. But when I go hiking, I’m able to leave that fog behind. I have felt at times like I was literally ascending above a haze that sits over my everyday life, down in the city. On my way up to the top of a mountain, or as I walk through a forest, I can finally think and see clearly. I gain perspective that I don’t have down in the valley. And I’m grateful for these moments of clarity that help me keep going. And let me add as a sort of addendum to this point: nature is beautiful, and being out there in the middle of it contributes that sense of clarity and peace.

Fourth, friendship.

Amazing memories hiking in England with friends, 2009

There’s a certain camaraderie that hiking builds that comes from shared experience, hardship, discovery, and achievement. My brother and I didn’t always have the best relationship when we were teenagers, but in college we bonded over hiking, something we both loved and that inspired both of us. I’ve actually spent a lot of time hiking by myself, and sometimes prefer it that way, but some of the best times of my life have been spent hiking with friends and family. It creates wonderful memories, and these memories are unforgettable. It makes you feel like the life that you’ve lived has been worthwhile.

My sister and me at the top of Timpanogos

So, to sum up here are four ways that hiking has great utility: hiking gives you an unambiguous sense of achievement, gives you a healthier self-image, provides you with mental and even spiritual clarity – and it brings people together. So get out there. Thank you.