Mile 445

by Claire Henley Miller

Not many people can say they met and married their spouse within thirty days of beginning to hike the Pacific Crest Trail.

But that’s exactly what happened to twenty-five-year-old Claire Henley Miller.

Mile 445 is the inspiring—and romantic—true story of how Miller left corporate life behind to embark on a 2,650-mile hike from Mexico to Canada. She is doing it alone, and the only gear she takes to survive the trek in the mountains of California, Oregon, and Washington fits inside her sixty-eight-liter backpack.

At the start of her five-month journey, she meets a handsome young man known on the trail as Big Spoon. Their paths keep crossing. The two quickly see a greater reason for their expedition than to explore the rigorous wilderness. They fall madly in love and get married. But their adventure is just beginning.

Told with rich vitality, Miller’s quest unfolds in mystical ways through deadly desert storms, 14,000-foot ascents, and decisions that will affect the rest of her life. This bold tale of courage and determination brims with humor and suspense as it reveals life, love, and loss in the rawness of the wild.

Genres: Nonfiction, Travel, Memoir, Nature, Biography Memoir

374 pages, Paperback

First published August 11, 2016

About the author

Claire Henley Miller is the author of Mile 445 and the writer behind the Substack newsletter Tennessean in Maine. She holds a BA in Creative Writing from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and currently lives in Maine with her husband, four children, and two cats. Claire loves hiking, canoeing, and camping with her family, and she draws inspiration for her writing from their many adventures. Follow her on Instagram at @clairehenleymiller and subscribe to Tennessean in Maine to follow along on her family’s adventures.

Reviews

[Iliana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started reading this because I had just finished another PCT memoir and Kindle said "other people also enjoyed these.." so I just started reading this one. I didn't realize that the author got married WHILE hiking the PCT. After only knowing the dude for like, 3 weeks. I assumed the book title meant they got married on the trail AFTER their hike and actually dating and getting to know each other. ANYWAY, that's not relevant. The good (?): I guess it was interesting to get the perspective of people who don't finish a thru hike and who weren't totally enamored with the trail. But it was shadowed by how much I despised the dude she married and how I felt like he basically forced her to quit.

The book itself is a quick, easy read. It felt kind of like a college writing project, at times written well enough but most of the time not so much. There were a lot of weird descriptions I thought were unnecessary. Specifically describing people by their ethnicity. I don't know, something about it seemed...off to me. Another thing was that some of it felt truly made up and I didn't believe some conversations actually happened. I realize it's impossible to recount conversations word for word but some parts of the book I just didn't believe. It was interesting how the tone of the story shifted once she ditched her hiking friends to only hike with her new husband. I wonder what her experience would've been if she never met this annoying guy and stayed with her original group. She probably would've had more fun since she wouldn't have been hiking with someone who didn't even want to be there! The way their "love story" was written was pretty bad too which makes them getting married even more absurd. When I read this I didn't think "wow, fate! these people are so in love and truly meant to be!" because nothing like that came across. Which made their marriage just look like an act of immaturity and impulsiveness. Apparently these two are still married so good for them?

Long, ranty story short: there are other PCT memoirs you should read before this one.

[Donna Pelletier · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the beginning which was about her hike. Then it turned into a love story which I am sure many people will like as it was well written. However that is not for me. I was disappointed when she left the trail.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loved the first part when she was hiking with Saltlick and Pandora. I feel bad saying this since this is the author's love story, but I got so bored once she and Big Spoon started hiking together and once they got married I found myself skimming at times. Not because they got married, I mean, I started reading this book knowing that was going to happen, but it felt like the tone shifted and hiking with him just sucked the soul out of her that she had with the women. I was all set to five star this book ~ 50% of the way through, but honestly, there are better PCT memoirs out there and I didn't hate this book but I also could have gone without it.

[Lindsay Feliz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was addicted to this book from the very first page. That addiction continued to the very last page. The writing flows easily, you feel like you are being told a story sitting in a pub over a glass or two of wine. The descriptions are perfect, allowing the reader to see, feel and touch the surroundings without being over dramatic or over flowery, and the wry sense of humour is sprinkled throughout. The characterization brings each of the different people to life so it is not just about the author but you get to know the people she meets along the way
For me a good memoir should educate as well as entertain and this book certainly does that as I learned so much about hiking and the trail and its surroundings. Would I do it? Never, but kudos to the author for having done so.
The love story between the author and her husband is touching and realistic and I loved the realization that when one becomes two there is a need to adapt one’s own wishes. I could understand Claire’s dilemma when the decision was made to leave the trail as throughout the book we are waiting for the finish line to be reached. However life is not about the achievement of goals but the journey and the realization of this is one of the moments when the book, for me, satisfies another key element of an excellent memoir which is to make one think and realize the different paths we can all take, should we be brave enough to follow our dreams, and keep on going wherever life takes us.
Highly recommended, easy to read, thought provoking, educational and very enjoyable.

[Jasmine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I loved the first part of the book. The authors determination and desire to achieve a goal solo was very inspiring to me. The tone in the beginning part of the book was that of a strong and independent woman...who then proceeded to give it all up for a boy.

Im all for true love, and I do trust that fate puts people in our lives for a reason. However, her goal was to complete the trail and then she let Big Spoon change her trajectory because he didn’t want that. This happens to women all of the time: they set out to do something and then compromise themselves for a relationship. This is not the book I thought I was signing up for.

Plus, I do agree with other reviewers on how judgmental she was of other women’s bodies in the book. It actually shocked me a few times. Maybe denying the emboldened feminine in herself seeps out in her resentment towards other women and their bodies.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book to read when you can't leave the house. This was my mother in law's and was on my bookshelf. I did like the story, I did like the hiking and like to hike, just not that much~ After finishing the story I looked up the author to see what happened in the rest of her story. I was amused to see that she and her family eventually settled close to me on the Maine coast, it's a good place to be. Fun, easy to read book!

[Kelsey · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's amazing how someone so ~blessed~ could manage to let their derision about other people absolutely drip through the pages. Seemed like every person who helped her was "fleshy" "pearshaped" "doughy" "round" or just plain described by their race which was also weird. Maybe comes par for the course with a preachy attitude.
I'd love to see a rebuttal or essay from her fellow hikers' point of view.
I made myself finish it but honestly it kind of left a bad taste in my mouth and really espoused how much privilege a lot of thru hikers seem to have - the hardships are totally self imposed and it made me consider for the first time whether the trail angels & others that help the thru hikers would similarly help others who they didn't romanticize &/or otherwise identify with.
Just a thought...

[Bambi Kline · Rating 5 out of 5]

"At the end of the road, adventure begins."

The author and her husband met as thru hikers on the Pacific Crest Trail and after only knowing each other for a few weeks, got married at mile marker 445. This is her memoir about their journey, falling in love, life after, and taking leaps of faith. They are still married to this day and have 4 kids together. Sometimes you just know.

I've always wanted a grand hiking adventure but lack the motivation to plan something so big.

[Inge Ulversoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Makes me want to hit the trails!!

[Northview Drive Little Free Library · Rating 2 out of 5]

4 stars for the first half.
1 star for the 2nd half.
I'm torn on this review. I really enjoyed the first half of the book. Maybe I'm not remembering correctly, but I feel like her writing and tone changed once she left her friends to hike with Big Spoon. It became negative and judge-y "our flighty waitress, who skipped around in a skimpy top that exposed her floppy breasts". Maybe this happened in the first half and I just didn't notice it. Either way, the 2nd half of the book was hard for me to finish. The synchronistic-type events (like the dream about the crystal that looked EXACTLY like Big Spoon's crystal) didn't feel real to me, and the spiritual side of the two together also came off as somewhat fake. For the record, I believe in synchronicity, and I normally enjoy books where people discover their spiritual side...it just didn't work for me in this book. I was especially disappointed that she left the trail because of (I feel) Big Spoon, and the ending just seemed to be thrown in just to finish the book.

My rankings:
5 - LOVED IT! I own (or plan to own) the e-book AND hardcover. Will definitely read again.
4.5 - Almost perfect.
4 - Really liked it. Can't quite say the "L" word.
3 - It was fine. Not mad about it.
2 - Eh, could have gone without reading it.
1 - Did not like AT ALL. Sorry I wasted hours reading it.

[The Bookish Gardener · Rating 4 out of 5]

* content warning: i tend to rave and ramble. if that's not your thing, please feel free to scroll right on by. no need to write a nasty message. i get it. you are bored. leave my meagre offerings to those who may wish to wade on in on a small chuckle or an oblique segue suggestion. thank you. the review author.

it's been quite a while since i wrote a review, so buckle up kiddies, this could be a bumpy ride.
update: I am now traipsing around south-east asia and considered a serious library risk, so I am only allowed to visit the foreign reading room at the scientific library in downtown da nang, central vietnam.
the chairs are erect and monastic. two words that probably should not be used together. my book of choice there is 'shirley, i jest' by cindy williams of laverne and shirley fame. I am three quarters of the way through. there are two copies. i think it is safe to presume no one has read either or both of those books in quite a few years. but still the books must stay there, side by side, until my next visit.
in australia, i work in a library. surrounded by books, making those who love books envious of me while we talk about the joys of smelling new books together.
long story short, i don't usually buy books. and as a prospective author, i know that is wrong. but frugality has allowed me to see the world. so it has been a hard slog for me these past few months, not having a ready supply into which to dive.
now that i have sorted out my mobile phone and three amazon accounts later, i have been able to buy some budget priced books to read.
mile 445 is my third ebook, read on my phone. i don't usually like to read on a device, but this is what we have and this is where we are, in my george costanza, the opposite of everything i usually do year.
previously a dedicated reviewer, i would approach each review by writing it first and then comparing my report to others. so in the keeping of my about faced year, today i read a few reviews of miller's first book before i wrote this. and it has swayed my judgement. so i may revert.
other reviewers commented on miller's commentary on the physicality of people she came across during her time on and off the pct. the pacific crest trail. to be honest, i only noticed that briefly, so it didn't affect my enjoyment of the memoir. i have grown up with people who are not scared to provide a running commentary on the antics and appearance of others, and i too find comfort in getting completely outside myself and writing down my own observations, which make quite probably highly litigious copy.
i liked mile 445. i liked the premise and i liked most of the characters. this pct memoir is not my first rodeo, and i must admit to reading, seeing and discussing cheryl strayed's wild quite a number of times. i feel i know the campsites, the curves in the trail that can trick a first timer. a person still to earn their nickname.
speaking of trail names, another reviewer wrote a pithy account of the anonymity such names bring, so not only is the world of the walkers left behind, so too is their off-trail persona, in a sense. i found that interesting and it took me down a rabbit-hole that also included the trail angels, the friendly souls who base their real estate purchases, portaloo hiring and campability of their backyards around the trail and those who tread its parts. am i the only person that thinks this sub-category of the community a little strange? it's like they liked summer camp so much, they bought a home nearby and made it their life's work to relive those memories with other people with strange names. just an idea.
i liked mile 445 so much that i didn't pay a great deal of attention to the details. i couldn't wait until she realised she needed the next size up boots. i was wondering who she would click with as she went to grills in angels' backyards. who would be her besties. who would be the person to push her along.
soon it became apparent that she clicked with two women called saltlick and pandora. i got a bit of a sense of who they were, but i wasn't too sure how saltlick got her name. was because she was a bit salty or was she a farm girl? regardless, i found her annoying. pandora seemed a better friend and i was happy when big spoon, the love interest came along.
now, quite a bit has been said about big spoon, proper name, caleb and people not liking him. i thought he was nice enough. claire, trail name hands because they were tanned, liked him a lot. so much in fact that she agreed to marry him within the month. this too, brought much discussion, in the book, on the trail and on the goodreads' review board. the 'honeyspooners' as they were later known as on the trail. became somewhat of a local legend. i quite liked their impetuousness. being one not to put too much credence into the sanctity of marriage, i thought their decision to get married before they had a sit down meal together or were totally clean, was quite the adventure. i wasn't invested in whether it would work or not. i just took it as another unexpected part of life on the trail.
when saltlick refused to go to the wedding i was annoyed. she didn't want to lose her miles. miles. friends. it seemed a little incongruous. pandora took the time off to be the witness and the wedding day itself was quirky and full of unexpected surprises and more gifts from helpful strangers. it was well written and fun. in man ways, i would have been happy for the story to end there.
after the wedding, and with saltlick and pandora forging their own path, the book took a decidedly different turn. hands and big spoon became disenchanted with the trail. they lost their love of discovery as they raced to make up time. there's a lesson in there somewhere.
now, it was at this point that a lot of the reviewers started rating the two parts of this book separately. and therein lies the rub. it was like the manuscript was two books. before marriage and after marriage. so the spontaneous wild and free act acted as a wedge that was driven into any cracks that were starting to appear, both for hands and her friends, the self named the tally-hos. it also drove a wedge between claire and her aspirations to walk the entire length of the trail, forcing her to abandon the thru-hike and to leave with caleb to start another adventure on their own.
and this is where i found the book fell apart. i felt it needed more of the alaskan side of things. more about who claire and caleb were becoming off the trail. i wished miller had switched the names back to their real names, to show this shift, but she didn't. the story then, like their disenchanted making up of the miles before the quit, seemed to race to the end, throwing a few picturesque and frightening stories our way.
but i really think this last part of the book needed more. more time to show us who they were becoming as individuals and as a couple.
so, i wasn't annoyed at big spoon. although i would have liked to have known if they even considered doing their own thing for a while. but i guess they were embarking on a new life and they wanted to stay together, even though claire really wanted to stay on the trail. relationships are all about compromise. as a reader, i just wished there had been more time to delve into this different life that they chose and to get to know them more.
maybe mile 445 (and i think that was when they got married?) should have been one book and the alaskan adventure, another. there could even been room for a third, for their other adventures and the biggest adventure of them all, having children. maybe then, the reviewers could see each story on its own rather than casting caleb as the villain who thwarted claire's hopes and dreams. life is all about choices and each of the main players clearly chose what they wanted to do.

[Ronald Mackay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mile 445 : Hitched in Her Hiking Boots Claire Henley Miller
It is clear from the outset of this well-written account of the author’s ‘adventure on the Pacific Crest Trail and beyond’ that the Trail (PCT) has a culture all of its own and differs in many significant ways from the ‘rest’ of the world or even what we might call the ‘real’ world. Walkers on the trail conceal their previous selves and even their previous lives behind the anonymity of nick-names. These walkers have a common goal – to complete all of a portion of the PCT and their world becomes focused on that daunting task. Who and what they were before taking that first step is less important than who they are day by day, how they portray themselves and what they truly seek by undertaking and being tempered by the challenge.

Claire Henley Miller eloquently explains how the world becomes reduced and simplified on the PCT and at the same time forces each self-selected walker deeper into themselves and occasionally into the lives of others with whom they come into daily contact, all the while enjoying the euphoria as well as the pain that the trail offers and inflicts on them.

In this hothouse microcosm of the wider world, the author shares frankly with the reader her hopes and fears, the friendships she makes as a solo walker and the emotions generated by meeting, hesitantly courting, falling in love, and finally marrying all within a very short number of days on the trail. She tells of both the physical and the emotional challenges honestly, discreetly and in depth.

As a reader much older than the author, I was as concerned for the her as many of those actually on the trail who witnessed these events evolve day by day. So, when she and her (by now) husband finally get off the trail without finishing it in its entirety, the concern grows. Will feelings generated in a hothouse be strong enough to survive the return to a world where daily work, earning a living, finding a place to live and making the practical plans about ‘real’ life as opposed to ‘trail’ life? Will there be revelations of character and habit, of behaviour and manners that were hidden or romanticised on the trail that disappoint when exposed to the more mundane light of everyday?

In a skillfully-written final chapter, the author goes a log way to quieting this reader’s fears and presenting an optimistic future.

A well-formed ending to an interesting book. But of course, it may not be an ending but a new beginning. I sincerely hope so.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It actually took me a while to get into this book. Started the first chapter and put it down for a couple weeks but, once I got into it I couldn't put it down. I feel it was written much better than several trail books I have read as she made you feel you were there with her. It wasn’t just a hiking book but her life that she took us on. At the end she does give us an insight into how her life has moved on. I wouldn’t want to do it but love that she took me on her trip! I highly recommend this book.

[Larry E. Carlson]

Relation Book, NOT a PCT thru Hike

I enjoyed the desert section hike of the PCT. The real question and only time will tell. When the going gets tough, will they find an excuse to quit or will they stick it out. If a child or one of them gets sick will the other be there or make an excuse and bail. I can say this with 40 years of marriage and medical, financial and all the other things life throws at you. I won’t be here to read the sequel. I wish them well, but don’t buy this book if you want a story of thru hiking the PCT.

[cat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really will read almost any book that is about thru-hiking. This 'love story' on the trail was not at the top of my list, but the PCT will make me set aside standards.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another entertaining PCT memoir. The writing is not the greatest but if you're interested in the subject matter it will hold your attention. The marriage is certainly an interesting twist.

[Krista · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like the beginning, but had a hard time connecting and supporting the authors decisions later on. Overall enjoyable read

[Ashley Schultz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. I enjoyed the story of her hike in the beginning. Getting married and quitting the trail? Not so much. Just another story of a woman who meets a man who derails her plans.

[Pat Ellis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked rather than loved this memoir - hence 4*s. The author left her ’sitting in a box’ corporate life and embarked on this trail-hike from Mexico to Canada - no mean feat - with a huge backpack and at just 24/25 years of age. I really enjoyed the descriptions of the surroundings on this hike, I also enjoyed meeting some of her ’trail companions’. There’s romance on the trail too - won’t give too much away. Well written - although I did find the use of the trail name ‘big spoon’ a little off-putting/excessive (having said that, I do understand that folks on trails are given trail-names)— I tried to focus on calling this particular trail-person ‘Caleb’ (his given name in the book). I have no hesitation in recommending this memoir - interesting and inspiring.

[Katherina]

PCT and AT memoirs are my favorite books to read and I've read a lot of them. This was my top two least favorite books I've read about long distance hiking.

Spoilers ahead-- I felt she and her husband acted entitled, like everyone owed them food and rides. I didnt like how she remarked about so many people's bodies and referred to people as "the black woman" and "Asian man." And (biggest spoiler) she didn't even finish the trail. I just feel like if you're going to write a book about it, you should have finished the trail in my opinion. Like I said, out of the probably 20 long distance hiking books I've read, only this one and one of the more famous ones didn't finish the trail. And the worst part is she would have finished it had she been with her friends. Very disappointing.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

2 1/2 stars. Was really enjoying the first part of the hike where Claire was a strong and determined female who set out to achieve her goal. She planned/prepared for her hike and pushed through some rough weather, terrain and injuries. She met some very cool “trail angels” and other interesting hikers. I found her journey and the story quite fascinating - until she met this guy who she instantly became obsessed with and the rest of the book went downhill sadly.

[Patti St · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully written

I enjoyed this book very much. Claire has a way with her descriptions which is felt in your every pore. I'm afraid if I say more would take away from her descriptions, trail friends, the remarkable people who opened their hearts and homes, and all the spirituality this trail brought Claire.

[Marsha Harwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved everything about this book!!! I love hiking so that is why I decided to read it. It’s like a beautiful fairytale. Even though they did not finish the trail, they found each other and that was all that mattered. Maybe someday they will finish the trail. But for now enjoy the book!!! It is refreshing.

[Lin L Barrett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not up to snuff

There is creative writing, and there is mangling often used phrases to seem to be creative. Alas, there's a lot of this stuff in the memoir.

Also please be aware that I genuinely do not like memoirs. This may will rate a fourth star, even a fifth, although I rather doubt it with the strange mangling of everyday phrases present.

[Laura Shrum · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I expected something different from this book before reading it, it was a lot less about hiking the PCT and more about Claire's personal journey and romance. Weirdly felt more like reading a romance novel sometimes than a hiking memoir. Would recommend if you want a cute story about falling in love, not so much if you want a thru hike travelogue.

[BRIAN ROBERTS · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an amazing start to life

Hands Thank you for sharing this amazing and almost unbelievable but beautiful story of your journey and life changing experience now at 50 I'm trying to find the confidence to step and see what Big Spoon and yourself felt and endured in this experience. Thank you again from a fellow hiker and want to be through hiker.

[Gretchen Staebler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun, well-written read. As a hiker, though less intrepid, I enjoyed Claire's description of life as a thru-hiker, the friendships formed, the hardships overcome, the love of the trail, the descriptions. I was looking forward to reading about the Washington (where I live and hike) section of the PCT!

[Samantha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was great, however, it came to a quick end. I feel very strong about the PCT, so I wanted Big Spoon and Hands to finish the trail. I craved to know the rest of the adventure. But it took a quick turn into Alaska and beyond.

[RS chandrasekhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Drink life to the lees

Very well written ,adventure begins where the road ends. Pacific crest trail and its terrain,enormous challenge it throws... Remarkable agility and ability of the hikers in over coming those..good read

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good and interesting

I liked this book. It was interesting and the love story was fun and it made it more fun that is true. The writing is good, a little repetitive at times, but enjoyable.