Marc Connelly, Alaska

Marc started and finished the thru-hike in seven days in September 2025. He came all the way down from Alaska to visit a friend in Taos. He even brought a little snow down with him, as you can see in the photos below.

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Hi Pam,
Thank you for your recent support on the SF2T thruhike.
I had an excellent time and enjoyed the world class scenery.
On the walk out of Santa Fe, I met another hiker from Taps named Gregory and we leapfrogged each other all the way up the trail.  I enjoyed camping with him several nights.  The weather did not disappoint: 2 thunderstorms, snow, hail, and sunny days too!

I got rabbit in my blood, and ended up hiking the trail in 7 days.
My favorite part of the trail was going through Santa Barbara Divide.
The Elks bugling in our camp at Gallegos Park was memorable too.
Thanks for all the good intel on water sources.  No worries there.  
The resupply point was an awesome break and well appointed.  A pack hanging scale would be sweet there to see how much damage the resupply does to one’s ultralight aspirations.  Let me know if you don’t have one; I’m glad to send one for the cause via Amazon.

The maps and gps track were great.  I should have paid more attention on the Ojitos section as I was thinking of town, and got off track a few times.
I really enjoyed the adventure.  There was plenty of challenge, fun alternates, and a chance to get into the backcountry.
I liked the altitude challenge coming from sea level.  I’m glad I acclimatized for a few days before starting.
And I had fun hitting hot springs at the beginning and finish of the hike.

I look forward to doing it again; maybe Southbound next time.
Sincerely,
Marc