Sunday, May 07, 2000
They intend to walk the world
Backpacking couple plans a year on the road
Steve and Cindi McCloskey did it: They looked, looked again, then leaped.
They saved their money, quit their jobs, moved out of their home, stored the Jeep, stored the furniture, found foster parents for the fish and studied maps late into the night.
Now they're off to follow that dream: a year on the road.
It begins early Monday deep in Georgia's Chattahoochee National Forest when they begin a 2,160-mile hike from Springer Mountain to Maine's Mount Katahdin — the length of the Appalachian Trail.
![[photo]](/editions/2000/05/07/mccloskey150x178)
Steve and Cindi McCloskey
(Joseph Fuqua photo)
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Then catch a breath.
Then it's Russia, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Egypt, Tanzania, India, Nepal, China, Tibet, Mongolia and Thailand, much of it on foot, such as their backpacking trip to Mount Everest base camp.
A lot of walking, but the 28-year-old McCloskeys do it a lot: They spent their honeymoon four years ago backpacking in the Grand Tetons. Since then, they've settled in to four or five backpacking trips a year.
“We have been dreaming about a trip like this, but not on this scale,” says Cindi, former Work Force Division Manager at the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce. “It's scary dropping everything, but we think it's the right thing, even if we don't know what we'll come back to.”
“It can be scary,” says Steve, former manager of quotes and estimates at Plastic Moldings Co. “But you know what helps? Our parents. They were so supportive and positive. They never once said, "What are you doing? Are you crazy?' They even helped with logistics.
Hmmm. Right now they're sipping beers and agreeing on everything. Let's separate them, ask the same 10 questions and see if they still agree. You know, he-said she-said.
Steve said
The hardest part of making this decision ...
Was making sure you have enough money and worrying about what to do job-wise when you get back. We built in some extra cash, so we won't be penniless while we're job hunting. We just decided it's worth the risk.
What I'll miss most about Cincinnati ...
Friends and family. But we'll be keeping a journal and putting stuff on a Web site, so we'll keep in touch that way. It will be personal stuff, so we're not telling many people the address.
(Cindi) (Steve) will have the hardest time maintaining pace ...
Cindi, because, I don't know how to say this without getting in trouble, but she walks slow. I'm taller, so I usually let her set the pace.
If nothing else, I hope this trip ...
Opens my eyes to the rest of the world. How people live their lives. You don't see that in Cincinnati.
I think the biggest stress factor will be ...
The language barrier on the overseas portion.
(Cindi) (Steve) looks better in hiking gear because ...
I'll say Cindi because I don't feel many wives would do a trip like this. It takes more courage for her.
Besides this adventure, I'd like to ...
Go to Alaska — do the wilderness because it's last really wild place in the U.S. I want to see the wildlife and the national parks.
If I had to come up with a theme song for this trip, it would be ...
“Glory Days” by Bruce Springsteen.
Cindi said
The hardest part of making this decision ...
Dealing with money and the question, is this really what we want to spend our savings on. What brought me around is not too long ago, my sister passed away suddenly and both our fathers were sick. That made me realize you never know how long you have, so do it now.
What I'll miss most about Cincinnati ...
That's a given: Skyline and Graeter's. And I do love my job. This would be easier if I had a job I hated.
(Cindi) (Steve) will have the hardest time maintaining pace ...
Oh, me. For sure. He's got a quicker stride and longer legs, but we won't split up.
If nothing else, I hope this trip ...
Gives us great memories to look back on.
I think the biggest stress factor will be ...
Physical exertion. I know there'll be times when we're exhausted.
(Cindi) (Steve) looks better in hiking gear because ...
That's interesting. Steve because, uh, he has great calves. He looks good in those hiking boots.
Besides this adventure, I'd like to ...
This'll sound lame, but be a mom. It's an adventure all its own. We have 10 nieces and nephews we hang around a lot.
If I had to come up with a theme song for this trip, it would be ...
Ooooh that's hard. I guess AC/DC's “She Shook Me All Night Long,” and there's a reason for that. It's our friend Nik. Somebody told him when you're backpacking in the woods you should sing to keep bears away. That's the only song he knows words for. Oh wait, can I change that? How about “Wide Open Spaces” by the Dixie Chicks?
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