Thru-Hiking 11,000+ Miles Together with Chris and Sara, aka Endless and QB (BPR #326)

In today’s episode of Backpacker Radio presented by The Trek, brought to you by LMNT, we are joined by thru-hiking power couple who’ve hiked more than 11,000 miles together Chris and Sara, known on trail as Endless and QB. “What haven’t they hiked?” is a fair question, because it’s been a lot, including the AT, the PCT (twice), CDT, CT (twice), Arizona Trail, Manaslu Circuit, Hayduke, Long Trail, Cohos Trail, Loowit Trail, Wonderland Trail, Ruby Crest Trail, Why-wash, (ahl-pah-MY-oh) / Santa Cruz Trek, the GR20, and more, believe it or not. They share the story of how they met, offer tips for making a marriage work both on trail and off, discuss how they befriended Mac from Halfway Anywhere and Viking during their many trail adventures, and explain why rafting the Grand Canyon stands out as the most epic adventure of them all. We wrap the show with news of the asshat who vandalized the Katahdin sign, the triple crown of seafoods, and definitively answer the age old question of window vs. aisle. LMNT: Get a free sample pack with any order at drinklmnt.com/trek. Gossamer Gear: Use code "LT520" for 20% off LT5 Trekking Poles at gossamergear.com. Ka’Chava: Get 10% off at kachava.com/backpacker. [divider] Interview with Chris & Sara aka Endless & QB Chris’s Instagram Chris’s Website Sara’s Instagram Time stamps & Questions 00:05:00 - Apply to blog for the Trek and listen to our episodes ad-free on Patreon! 00:09:10 - Introducing Endless & QB 00:15:55 - We Love Love: Where did you meet? 00:21:20 - Tell us about getting together on the CDT 00:23:55 - What’s it like to be a firefighter? 00:29:11 - What are some standout firefighter stories? 00:32:15 - Would you recommend being a firefighter to others? 00:35:35 - Is it difficult to align both of your schedules? 00:36:30 - When did you know you wanted to hike more trails together? 00:37:50 - When did you meet Jabba? 00:39:50 - How did you meet Twinkle and Grace? 00:43:36 - Any stories from the AZT? 00:45:40 - Tell us about Nepal 00:51:36 - Tell us about getting married at a pool party 00:56:10 - Tell us about your road trip in 2018 00:58:00 - Discussion about their speed of hiking 01:02:15 - How many miles have each of you hiked? 01:03:40 - What do you disagree about on trail? 01:05:15 - Was it hard to transition to an off-trail relationship? 01:10:50 - Discussion about knee surgery 01:11:56 - Tell us about your honeymoon roadtrip 01:14:55 - Tell us about hiking in the Sawtooths 01:16:50 - Tell us about the Loowit Trail 01:19:20 - Discussion about trail running and transitioning from thru-hiking 01:24:15 - Tell us about backpacking in the Wallowa Mountains 01:25:40 - How do you divvy up tasks in the backcountry? 01:28:30 - Tell us about the rest of the 2020 road trip 01:32:50 - How did you decide to hike the PCT a second time? 01:34:20 - Tell us about rafting the Grand Canyon 01:43:45 - Tell us about your hikes in Peru 01:46:40 - Why’d you get off the Oregon Desert Trail? 01:48:40 - Tell us about your hiking in Europe 01:59:15 - Did you dirtbag the whole time in Europe? 02:01:10 - Are you looking to do more international hiking? 02:01:45 - What’s your top 5 travel bucket list? 02:04:00 - Are you thinking about having kids? 02:05:30 - How was your recent hike of the CT? 02:06:45 - Stay Salty Question: What’s your hottest take in the world of backpacking or the outdoors? Segments Trek Propaganda: Someone Vandalized the Katahdin Sign — Rangers Are Asking for Your Help by Kelly Floro QOTD: Window or aisle? Triple Crown of seafoods Mail Bag 5 Star Review [divider] Check out our sound guy @my_boy_pauly/ and his coffee. Sign up for the Trek’s newsletter Leave us a voicemail! Subscribe to this podcast on iTunes (and please leave us a review)! Find us on Spotify, Stitcher, and Google Play. Support us on Patreon to get bonus content. Advertise on Backpacker Radio Follow The Trek, Chaunce, Badger, and Trail Correspondents on Instagram. Follow Backpacker Radio, The Trek and Chaunce on YouTube. Follow Backpacker Radio on Tik Tok. Our theme song is Walking Slow by Animal Years. A super big thank you to our Chuck Norris Award winner(s) from Patreon: Alex and Misty with NavigatorsCrafting, Andrew, Austen McDaniel, Bill Jensen, Brad & Blair Thirteen Adventures, Bryan Alsop, Carl Houde, Christopher Marshburn, Clint Sitler, Coach from Marion Outdoors, Eric Casper, Erik Hofmann, Ethan Harwell, Gillian Daniels, Go Bills, Greg Knight, Greg Martin, Griffin Haywood, Hailey Buckingham, Matt from Gilbert, AZ, Patrick Cianciolo, Rebecca Brave, Rural Juror, Sawyer Products, SPAM, The Saint Louis Shaman, Timothy Hahn, Tracy ‘Trigger’ Fawns A big thank you to our Cinnamon Connection Champions from Patreon: Bells, Benjy Lowry, Bonnie Ackerman, Brett Vandiver, Chris Pyle, David, David Neal, Dcnerdlet, Greg Floravanti “Lumberjack”, Jack Greene, Jeanie, Jeanne Latshaw, Luke Netjes, Merle Watkins, Peter, Quenten Jones, Ruth S, Salt Stain, ...