International Header

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

After becoming the first Mexican to complete the Triple Crown of hiking, Zelzin Aketzalli dreams of building Baja California’s first thru-trail.

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

Last updated:
October 20, 2025
|  5 min read
A lady on a trail.

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

YouTube video highlight

After becoming the first Mexican to complete the Triple Crown of hiking, Zelzin Aketzalli dreams of building Baja California’s first thru-trail.

Read more about the project

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

該当事項はありません。

Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

The journey that Zelzin Aketzalli is on could take 50 years—or even longer—but she’s not daunted. In 2019, she became the first Mexican to complete hiking’s Triple Crown (the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails), and the 31-year-old immediately dreamed up an even more ambitious project: developing the first national trail system in her home country. The inaugural installment is a prospective 1,300-mile trail across Baja California, which Aketzalli has mapped out across a trailless expanse of mountains, desert, canyons, and beach.

Aketzalli says her experiences thru-hiking the Triple Crown helped her discover her true passion for long-distance trekking. Though she was already an accomplished athlete when she logged her first mile on the PCT, she had spent more time on a bike than on her feet.

Continue reading to learn more about Zelzin Aketzalli's journey, written by Julie Schwietert Collazo.

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

The journey that Zelzin Aketzalli is on could take 50 years—or even longer—but she’s not daunted. In 2019, she became the first Mexican to complete hiking’s Triple Crown (the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails), and the 31-year-old immediately dreamed up an even more ambitious project: developing the first national trail system in her home country. The inaugural installment is a prospective 1,300-mile trail across Baja California, which Aketzalli has mapped out across a trailless expanse of mountains, desert, canyons, and beach.

Aketzalli says her experiences thru-hiking the Triple Crown helped her discover her true passion for long-distance trekking. Though she was already an accomplished athlete when she logged her first mile on the PCT, she had spent more time on a bike than on her feet.

Continue reading to learn more about Zelzin Aketzalli's journey, written by Julie Schwietert Collazo.

写真サムネイル ブログ執筆者
Freelance Writer
Julie Schwietert Collazo
Julie Schwietert Collazo is a bilingual freelance writer, editor, and translator.
メディア

Backpacker: Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

Meet the Thru-Hiker Intent on Building Mexico's First Long Trail

The journey that Zelzin Aketzalli is on could take 50 years—or even longer—but she’s not daunted. In 2019, she became the first Mexican to complete hiking’s Triple Crown (the Appalachian, Pacific Crest, and Continental Divide Trails), and the 31-year-old immediately dreamed up an even more ambitious project: developing the first national trail system in her home country. The inaugural installment is a prospective 1,300-mile trail across Baja California, which Aketzalli has mapped out across a trailless expanse of mountains, desert, canyons, and beach.

Aketzalli says her experiences thru-hiking the Triple Crown helped her discover her true passion for long-distance trekking. Though she was already an accomplished athlete when she logged her first mile on the PCT, she had spent more time on a bike than on her feet.

Continue reading to learn more about Zelzin Aketzalli's journey, written by Julie Schwietert Collazo.

写真サムネイル ブログ執筆者
Freelance Writer
Julie Schwietert Collazo
Julie Schwietert Collazo is a bilingual freelance writer, editor, and translator.
メディア
browse all articles
ここソーヤーでは
February 27, 2026
6 Min
Garage Grown Gear: 2026 PCT Top Picks!
Read More

メディア

An investment helps provide years of safe drinking water for entire families and schools.

Blueprint Digital
Blueprint Digital
Online Marketing Agnecy

メディア

You spray [permethrin] on your clothes and gear and it turns them into a barrier bugs don't want to cross.

Consumer Betterment
YouTube Channel

メディア

The Smartwater bottle’s small opening allows you to screw on filters, such as those from Sawyer.

Mary Andino
寄稿ライター
<<  Previous Post
No previous post!
Check out our Directory
Next Post  >>
No next post!
Check out our Directory