We woke up with literally every other person in our hostel to take a shuttle up to the start of the trail, setting off into the wilderness with hundreds of fellow trampers. My host mom reminisces about the days she could do the crossing in solitude, but no longer: the secret is out. I had to laugh at the absurdity of spending a day far from civilization with a steady stream of bodies on all sides.
"Happiness only real when shared."