About Me

When was the moment when I fell in love with the outdoors? Living outside, working outside, playing outside. Could it have been my venture into Boy Scouts of America...weeks of my childhood spent playing in the 'woods' out back...maybe it was a camp up in Maine for a summer backpacking around the White Mountains. I'd truthfully have to answer all of the above and then some. My name is CJ Smith but more recently I've spent half the year for the past four years responding to 'Baboon'. This is my 'trail name' given to me on the AT for my frequently exposed red covered ass. When I first started my thruhike on the AT, my pack hipbelt was way to big which in turn caused my pack hang low and drag my shorts down to leave my red boxers exposed to all those behind me. Quite Classy, I know. The rest has been recorded, in picture or in my blog...life as Baboon. The Monkey Man. Monkeying Around in the Mountains....

During my Appalachian Trail thru-hike in 2011 I would have told you I was one and done as far as long distance trails were concerned. But then I finished the trail, returned to 'normal life' and it wasn't the same. Things were different and I knew immediately I wanted more trail, I needed more trail. From 2011-late 2013 that is what I have been doing, six months on, six months off. My yearly motto. I set out to achieve the Triple Crown of hiking and became part of a small group of hikers to have completed all three trails, the Appalachian, Pacific Crest and Continental Divide Trails. With the Triple Crown having been complete already over a year ago (gasp!) I've found myself searching fro shorter distance routes that take weeks to a couple months to complete. My new goal is to hike 10,000 miles before I hit the age of thirty.

Dream big, do bigger.