#154 - Thru-Hiking France with Thomas Bouïssaguet of Hexatrek

The By Land Podcast

Text the show!

The Hexatrek is a 3000 km long-distance trail across France that begins at the border of Germany, traverses the Pyrenees Mountains, and ends at the Bay of Biscay. Thomas works for the Hexatrek organization and spent the summer and fall of 2022 hiking and documenting the trail.

Thomas is able to recognize the realities of hiking a long and share all sides of that reality. He can describe the trail as an epic adventure that includes vineyards, castles, and mountains, but he’ll also tell you how mentally complacent you can become when one view blends into the next.

If you’re dreaming of backpacking through France one day, you’re going to love this episode.
Show Notes and Links

• Introduction to the Hexatrek
• Hexatrek backstory
• European hiking culture and trail experience
• Thru-hiking popularity in Europe
• The importance of having a beginning and end
• Hiking the Hexatrek vs an American long trail
• Daily life and cadence of the trail
• Making the hike your own
• Visa considerations
• Camping along the Hexatrek
• Food along the Hexatrek
• Experiencing France by foot
• Thomas’s backpacking story
• The highs and lows of thru-hiking
• Thoughts on losing reverence for an experience
• Life after the Hexatrek
• Finding balance in life is actually finding contrast
• The importance of gaining perspective through contrast
• What’s next for the Hexatrek
• Why “Hexatrek”
• How to followup with Thomas and the Hexatrek
• https://en.hexatrek.com/
• https://www.instagram.com/hexatrek/
• https://www.facebook.com/LHexatrek/
• https://www.instagram.com/cartapouille
• https://youtu.be/9qIlOONM8sY
• Podcast:
  • Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/in-a-tent-with-a-french-man-a-daily-thru-hiking-journal/id1502733870
  • Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0P8RD04n8UX0ubqwnFOvXj?si=b502ebfdafda4793

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