Welcome to the FCL
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Nature creates beauty, and people dream up new long-distance hiking routes within the beauty. This website is dedicated to a new hiking route I called the Four Corners Loop (FCL). This is the website will promote and work on creating physical trails on the ground so hikers like you can enjoy the beauty for the FCL.
After hiking my envisioned route in 2021 and watching Buck30 and Steady repeat the endeavor in 2024, I am still convinced the FCL has the scenic beauty necessary for a new long distance hiking route and possibly a new National Scenic Trail. I imagine the term "National Scenic Trial" attached after one says Four Corners Loop because it is awesome! Currently, the trail needs additional development, and needs to be hiked by more than just The Animal, Buck30 and Steady in my opinion. Eventually, Congress could approve this trail to become a new National Scenic Trail, but this needs local support from amazing people in New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. I can imagine the trail being routed on an even better path than the one I hiked on in the summer of 2021 because I am not a local, and the local people know better, more scenic routes that will surpass the beauty I experienced. The overall geologic ring of mountains I feel will keep the overall circular shape of a loop as it morphs into something better. Below is some history about me, The Animal, and why I created the FCL. I hiked the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) in 2004, which changed my life. I was a 28-year-old with a zest for adventure who loved navigating by map and using my sixth sense, which is a tremendous mental compass. I followed a hand-drawn line across 26 pounds of 7.5-minute series maps with these tools. My line was from Mexico to Canada. I will never forget my journey along the route with fellow hiker Garlic Man. Long-distance hiking hooked me and captured my spirit. I knew there would be more to come. Ten years of hiking and climbing in Washington state quickly passed, and memories of the CDT permeated my mind daily. Memories existed of the sharp and round stones I stepped over, and my thoughts about the expanse of free-flowing air just past a cliff edge made me smile. I thought of post-holing through cold, wet snow and the wind pushing my body eastward. The people hikers meet along their journey are always amazing. So when a friend, George, and his wife Karen asked me to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) in 2014, the answer was an immediate "YES!" On the PCT, I enjoyed all the wonderful people, the fantastic scenery, and the unique towns, and I experienced the creation of my life's stories. Long-distance hiking is widespread, and it should be because it is a healthy endeavor. The Four Corners Loop creates a new opportunity for others to follow and make a hike for themselves. I plan to plant a seed that will grow into a new "National Scenic Trial." In 2021, I wanted to prove the route to see if it is worthy of the National Scenic designation Four Corners Loop is worthy. I am happy to create a new long-distance hiking route from existing trails and paths. Through my time spent on this project, I am making the possibility of something grand and worthy of the National Scenic designation that Congress has the power to create. Thank you for following the development of the Four Corners Loop a hike, and dream that I put actual footsteps on. People say, "hike your own hike," and I did! Let's walk together and grow the trail so others can create their stories. Thanks, The Animal |
Christine Coney, a friend and an incredible graphic artist, designed the logo. She used her creativity to give the logo a southwest flair and did an excellent job representing the four corners area.
