From Wildwood to Wild Woman By Kirsten Anderson

Five years ago, I woke up unable to move my right arm. A bulged cervical disc left me on medical leave, sitting on the couch on oxy for six weeks, talking to neurosurgeons about whether I'd ever hike again. The only thing I could do was walk.

So I walked. First around the block. Then eventually, six months later, I walked all 30 miles of Portland's iconic Wildwood Trail in a single day. That walk changed everything. After completing the Washington section of the PCT in 2022, I needed a new challenge and decided to walk the Wildwood once a month for a year—a physical and mental test to see what my healing body could do.

Something shifted during those twelve months. My break times got shorter. My pace quickened. And on downhills and flat sections, I started jogging. Not because I was trying to become a runner, I didn't even think of myself that way, but because my body wanted to move faster. By August 2024, for my final Wildwood, I shaved nearly 3 hours off my original time and was running more of the trail than I was hiking. It got me curious. 

And that's when my curiosity won, and I did something that terrified me: I signed up for a trail running class with Wy'east Wolfpack, a local running and fitness company. I showed up as the slowest, probably the oldest, and the only one with trekking poles. I was completely intimidated. But I kept showing up. I ended up taking a few trail running series and now I’m taking their track speed classes. Who is this person? On trails, I still use poles sometimes, especially on wet, muddy trails where I'm scared of slipping and reinjuring my neck. They're part of what makes this possible for me.

I'm in my late 40s and perimenopausal. My body feels unpredictable. Some days everything aches, other days I feel strong. I'm on HRT to manage symptoms, but I'm learning that this phase of life doesn't mean slowing down. It means finding new ways to move forward. In total, I've now completed the Wildwood fifteen times and logged about 450 miles on that single trail. In April, I'm training to run the Gorge Waterfall 30K. In June, I'm attempting my first 50K at Wild Woman Trail Runs, supported by the First 50K Sisterhood scholarship by Cairn Project.

I still don't call myself a trail runner. Maybe I never will. But I'm out there, moving through the trails that helped me heal, discovering that my body is capable of more than I imagined, even when I have aches and pains. Which I have plenty of!

If you've been curious about trail running but think you're too old, too slow, or too late to start something new, I want you to know: you're not. Five years ago, I was talking to neurosurgeons about my future. Now I'm training for my first 50K. It started with barely being able to walk around the block.

Your journey doesn't have to look like mine. Maybe it's a local trail you walk once a month. Maybe it's signing up for that class that intimidates you. Maybe it's just showing up with your poles and your comfortable pace and seeing what happens. Find your people, a class, a running group, a coach, a community that welcomes you exactly as you are. The trails are waiting, and so is the strength you didn't know you had.

It's never too late to start something new. It's never too late to surprise yourself.

Follow along:@littlestuff_pctsobo