The idea of walking 3000 or 4000 miles is so daunting that it is difficult even to know how to begin to think about getting started. But if you slow down, put things into perspective, and develop a plan, you can scale down the hugeness of the project and get a grip on what you need to do.

Remember that a walk like this is a long, long process, and you likely can’t get ready for it overnight.

Step One:  Don’t worry!

First off, don’t worry if you don’t have a $1000 tent or a North Face technical fleece. Eventually, you will have to get equipment, and when that time comes, I’ll help you save a ton of money on equipment. But right now you are just planning, just thinking about this. It’s ok. Take deep breaths.

Step Two:  Don’t Tell Anyone Yet!

Now, don’t tell anyone your idea. Literally thousands of people each year decide that they are going to walk across America, and almost zero of them ever even start. This leads to a lot of embarrassment. So keep your plan secret for now. It’s just between us. I advise people to tell their friends and family about 6 months ahead of time.

Step Three:  Know Your Trail, Know Yourself.

Next, look at a map. It’s a long way from the right coast to the left coast, and there are millions of different routes. You need to decide if you want hike on trails or if you are willing to walk along roadsides. (Roads are way, way, way more dangerous.) If you want trails and limited roads, then you better research the American Discovery Trail. If you want to get out there and do the post-Apocalyptic trans-American Long Walk, then prepare for a lot of time besides roads.

In How To Walk Across America, I wrote that the first thing you need to do is to know your trail. Decide if you want trails or roads. Cities, or small towns? Will you cross mountains? Deserts? How far is it between towns? Between water stops? Will it be cold or hot?

That’s the first step of actual trip planning: Know Your Trail. It will take some research, and I’ll point you to resources in future posts.

Next, know yourself.

There’s no way around this: Walking across America is physically demanding, and you’ll need to know how your body will react to heat and to cold, to long walks, to heavy packs, to hours without water. You will not be able to plan how much water to bring on a given day, for example, unless you know both a) how far it is to the next water, and b) how much water you personally need to walk that far.

You’ll also need to know how long you can go without human contact, because there will be some long, lonely stretches out there.

Some of this knowledge, this knowing yourself, will happen on the trail. But you need to begin right now to think about these things. Be conscious of your water intake and your breathing. When possible, see how your breathing and your heartbeat interact with your walking pace. Try to be present in the moment as much as possible with your own body and your own needs. (It’s kind of like mindfulness, I guess.)

There we go: Those are the first steps. Begin here, by working to know your trail and to know yourself, and before too long you can be on the open road walking across America to raise money, to raise awareness, or just to have fun.

For more discussion on this, see How To Walk Across America.