The Thru-Hiking City Administrator

The Thru-Hiking City Administrator
By, Charlie Bush, City Administrator

In the world of hiking, there are day hikers, backpackers, and thru-hikers, with the number of hikers becoming smaller as you progress to more intense activity. Day hikers go out and hike for a day. Backpackers hike overnight for 1-6 nights at a time. Thru-hikers backpack day after day, often covering 15 or more miles per day, to complete the full distance of a trail. Some of the longer thru-hikes in the United States include the Continental Divide Trail (3,100 miles), the Pacific Crest Trail (2,650 miles), and the Appalachian Trail (2,194 miles).

Like many hikers, I got into day hiking first. As a young adult working in city government in Arizona, in the late 1990s, I began day hiking and then backpacking with coworkers at the City of Glendale.

Those early mentors helped me form a passion that led me to further day hiking and backpacking upon moving to Bellevue, Washington. I eventually led hikes for the Seattle Mountaineers in the mid-2000s and met my partner Jessica on a club singles hike. Work as a City Administrator took me to Prosser, Washington in 2008. Hiking took a backseat to my career and then, unfortunately, I suffered some health issues. Upon returning to Western Washington (City of Issaquah) in 2012, I was able to get on the road to recovery from chronic fatigue syndrome and slowly regained my hiking form. From that point forward, hiking became a vehicle to help manage chronic fatigue.

By 2015, I was not only day hiking and backpacking, but was ready to thru-hike. I completed the Wonderland Trail (92 miles), which circumnavigates Mount Rainier, in 2015, prior to starting a new job as the City Manager in Sequim, Washington. The Wonderland Trail opened my mind to the possibilities of thru-hiking longer trails, and I felt far stronger at the end of that 10-day hike than I did at the beginning, and I wanted to keep going.

Starting another new job meant setting bigger trips aside for a few years but soon I was at home in the solitude of the Olympic Mountains, becoming more comfortable hiking alone. I section-hiked (hiking part of a longer trail) the Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT) in Olympic National Park in 2019. During this trip, I met the employees of a small ultralight backpacking company, bought some of their gear, and significantly lightened the equipment I would carry for the 2020 season.


Standing in front of Blue Glacier and Mount Olympus, in Olympic National Park, 2020

In 2019 I also started a YouTube Channel, Charlie’s Hikes (@charlieshikes), in 2019 and brought over content from a Vimeo Channel that I had started previously. Charlie’s Hikes currently has 53 videos covering my hiking trips from around the United States.

In 2020, I completed the Timberline Trail (40 miles), which circumnavigates Oregon’s Mount Hood, and did many shorter backpacking trips.


Early morning on the Timberline Trail, with Mount Hood in the background, 2020

Backpacking a section of the Olympic Peninsula Coast that is part of the Pacific Northwest Trail was a goal for 2021, which I accomplished, along with many shorter trips.


Backpacking the Pacific Northwest Trail along the Olympic Coast, 2021

During 2022, I attempted the Tahoe Rim Trial (170 miles), which circles Lake Tahoe in California and Nevada, completing about half of it before I had to help my hiking partner leave the trail due to an injury. I also hiked from Cascade Pass to Stehekin in 2022 with two City of Sedro-Woolley coworkers.


At Cascade Pass with two of my City of Sedro-Woolley coworkers, Julie Rosario and Bill Chambers, 2022

My plans for 2023 include the 223-mile Ouachita Trail, which crosses the Ozark Mountains from Oklahoma into Arkansas and the 144-mile Maah Daah Hey Trail, which meanders throughout the badlands of North Dakota, with many shorter trips planned locally as well. I absolutely love the local hiking, and I also enjoy the variety of hikes that come with travel.

At age 48, I train year-round, mainly though cycling and hiking, for bigger trips. I enjoy donating time to local trails through the Sedro-Woolley-based Pacific Northwest Trail Association, and one of my goals for retirement, in 10-15 years, is to thru-hike many of the long trails in the United States, and across the world.

What keeps me hiking?

I am driven by a desire to challenge my mind and body, while keeping myself fit and healthy throughout the year. The obstacles that you face on the trail, and how you handle them, translate directly to life. Trail experiences provide tremendous opportunities for personal growth. I am also grateful for the beauty and peacefulness offered by nature that soaks into my soul with each experience.


Volunteering for the Pacific Northwest Trail Association on the Olympic Peninsula, 2019