The Hayduke Trail Documentary
A 90-minute Documentary and a 10-part series
America's most rugged thru-hike
Alex Maier's Figure it Out on the Hayduke Trail is a film about one of America's most challenging long-distance hikes. To call the Hayduke a trail is a bit misleading it is a route that exists on maps and only occasionally on the ground.
The 800-mile-long route begins in Arches National Park in Utah and winds its way through the canyon country of the Colorado Plateau in Utah and Arizona. It snakes down south to enter and exit the Grand Canyon three times before winding back north to terminate in Zion National Park. Most of the time there is no trail to follow and navigating through the canyons can be extremely difficult and dangerous. A hiker is left to figure out what to do almost every day. Water is scarce in the desert, sun exposure is extreme and civilization is very far away at times.
Out there one is completely submersed in untouched wilderness. Along the way, Alex discovered valuable life lessons that can only be learned by going deep into the wilderness alone. The movie uses the hike as a metaphor for life itself.
Where to Watch
Watch the Feature-Length Film here,
Watch the Series here,
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Reviews
Over 2 millions views and 295 ratings on Amazon Prime Video.
4.3 out of 5 stars!
The whole premise of this hike is baloney. The hiker claims to be alone but he's accompanied by at least one camera person.
This is not for those that prefer to sit on a couch and read about how interesting a place is. It is a courageous film that captures the essence of one of the worlds most difficult hikes. All this done on a tight budget, timeline and with only equipment limited by weight, size and power is amazing. To have the energy and positive mental attitude to film after a long hard day is rare.
This is not for those that prefer to sit on a couch and read about how interesting a place is. It is a courageous film that captures the essence of one of the worlds most difficult hikes. All this done on a tight budget, timeline and with only equipment limited by weight, size and power is amazing. To have the energy and positive mental attitude to film after a long hard day is rare.
"Figure it Out" "DIY" "Go Meditate" All these terms have become common place in the culture, so much so that they have really failed to mean anything. I feel the author of this film does a great job pointing to the essence of these terms, and reminding the viewer that in order to really understand what he means...they do in fact, have to "figure it out". I.e. everyone is different. But everyone is the same. In the nakedness of nature, the church of self is revealed after 60 days of self reliance and camaraderie, mixed with some word of wisdom.
This book is based on my 2018 thru-hike of the Hayduke Trail, but it goes much deeper than that. The hike is a metaphor for life and it inspires lessons and perspectives that we can incorporate into “regular life” to put us on a path of growth.
The Hayduke Trail is an 800-mile hiking route across the Colorado Plateau. It starts in Arches National Park in Utah, winds its way through remote canyon country, dips into Arizona to go through the Grand Canyon, and ends in Zion National Park. There is no trail most of the time and the terrain is harsh and unforgiving. It’s considered by many accomplished hikers to be the hardest long-distance hike in the country.
