Well, part of it, anyway. Oregon, from the California border to the Washington border with only one pack, no resupplies except for water. I used to live with the guy who wrote the story, too.
My goal was simple: to hike from the California border to the Columbia River with only the food and gear I could carry on my back — no restocking. No restaurants, no grocery stores, no accepting snacks from other hikers, no shipping packages of food across the state — nothing.
...
To reduce the weight of my already immensely heavy pack, I chose foods of the highest calorie-to-weight ratio I could find. The new menu consisted of raw macadamia nuts and cashews, a mix of coconut and pecans, some dried pepperoni sticks (of the plastic jar, gas station variety), a bunch of broken tortilla chips, crunchy peanut butter, a variety of energy bars, and straight olive oil to wash it all down. With this unappetizing array I was able to achieve an average of 175 calories per ounce and a total of about 40 pounds of food. Of course, I could not justify the added weight of a stove and fuel — I would eat only cold food for the entire journey. As long as I did not consume more than 14 ounces for every 10 miles hiked, I would have enough.
I also made some important alterations to my gear list to ease some of the inevitable discomfort. My new tent would prove to be a life-saver as protection from precipitation and what would be the worst mosquito season I have ever experienced. I added trekking poles to the lineup to (hopefully) prevent another exertion-related injury to my right knee. A warm stocking cap helped ward off the chilly night air. My first aid kit actually made it into my pack this time. Back again were the very functional GPS check-in beacon, the same 109-liter pack, and the detailed albeit somewhat outdated topographical maps I printed from a website two years earlier, with my faded blue pen markings indicating water.
