Something has been showing up on the trail lately.
And it’s not just one person carrying it. Not one city, age group, or life stage.
Everyone.
The new job that feels like “a burning building.”
The woman on sabbatical after years of nonstop work, suddenly unsure what to do with all that silence.
The woman who realized, somewhere around mile three, that she'd spent years making herself smaller inside a marriage that didn't fit anymore.
The man visiting from Denver, moving to Austin in three months, who introduced himself by saying he wanted to talk about home… what it actually is, how you build one on purpose, whether identity changes when a city does.
Different people. Different stories. Same trail.
What we kept noticing was that almost nobody knew they were all in the same chapter.
They came for the movement, the conversation, the Saturday ritual of it.
They didn't come expecting to find company in the in-between.
But that's what they found. 🧡
From our walking villages in 16+ cities around the world:
Sacramento said "perfect weather, great people, and one dog who is clearly the wisest one here."
Nobody told Madrid that "storm warning" was a reason not to show up. Noted and respected. Walk number one of many. 🇪🇸
Fog rolled in. Didn't matter. These people could talk their way through anything. Austin Walk #198. Walk #200 is coming. 🧡
🏆 During a recent walk in Austin, one participant opened up about being laid off after ten years at the same company, saying she suddenly had more space than she knew what to do with. Later, she shared how that unexpected time allowed her to notice something was “off” with her mom’s health. She caught it in time.
🏆 During a walk in Detroit, host Izzy jokingly said in the opening circle, “I want to pull a complete stranger into the walk today.” Hours later, a traveler visiting from California spotted the group near the riverfront, asked, “Are y’all a walking club?” and spent the rest of the morning walking and talking with strangers he had met just minutes before.
🏆 In Aveiro, Portugal, one regular couldn’t make the walk because he was traveling in another city. Instead of disappearing for the week, he posted a rainy photo from where he was and walked anyway from afar. Somehow, even in a different place, the ritual still happened.
A man wondered whether his new job is the right job. A woman said she lost herself in someone else. A filmmaker who recently left her stable tech career asked how you keep going when everything tells you to stop.
They were all on the same trail… but none of them knew they were in the same story.
What Cam has been quietly noticing on Saturday mornings is that the trail has become a place where people process transitions. Not loudly or even consciously. Just... naturally, the way a long walk with nowhere to be tends to pull things out of people.
This week, he wrote about what it actually looks like when 40 strangers all happen to be between versions of themselves.
It's quieter than you'd expect. And more comforting than you'd think.
This week on The Board Walks, people brought these topics:
“What are you telling yourself right now that might not actually be true?”
“If life is trying to teach you something right now, what do you think the lesson is?”
“What’s something that genuinely feels like self-care to you… not just avoidance?”
“What do you think it actually means to live a good life?”
“What’s something about connection that most people get wrong?”
Screenshot these. Steal with pride. Bring one to your next dinner party to shift the conversation from “meh” to marvelous.
Quick hits:
🔓 The Board is open. Our private, application-only network is here. First Salon: May 21st. Our topic is Identity, Purpose & Becoming. Which, given everything on this trail lately, feels exactly right. Join the magic →
🌍 Our podcast is officially in its consistent era. New episodes from Cam and Elle (head gardeners of The Walks) dropping regularly. If you like what happens on the trail, you'll like what happens on the mic. Plug in →
🎉 The Host network is thriving. We've built the infrastructure to bring The Board Walks to any city in the world, with full training, full support, and a warm landing into a global community of hosts. Apply →
The internet is loud.
Come touch grass with thoughtful humans.
Good questions. Fresh air. The occasional conversation that weirdly changes your week.
Somewhere this weekend, someone is about to hear exactly what they needed.
Have a whimsical week,
Head Gardeners of The Board Walks
P.s. Know someone who sounds like a perfect fit for the new room we’re building together? Forward this email. ✨
