Recent grad hikes 2,650 miles on Pacific Crest Trail

Anyone waiting for a graduate school acceptance letter knows the days can be long, boring and unproductive.

Not so for recent Auburn grad Bekai Heffley. Three days after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in biomedical sciences, Heffley began a 2,650-mile hike on the Pacific Crest Trail, a challenging trek from Canada to Mexico that takes hikers through deserts, forests and mountain ranges.

Heffley started preparing for the trip while finishing her studies in the College of Sciences and Mathematics (COSAM). She took up running and began training for a half-marathon to build endurance, and she spent her spring break on the Appalachian Trail doing a “shakedown hike,” a short practice run before a longer trip.

“That shakedown really helped me with all aspects of preparing,” she said. “It gave me an opportunity to dial in my gear, become attuned to a trail mindset and get my body ready.”

Although she was well-prepared to tackle the trail alone, Heffley was glad to have the company of fellow COSAM grad Jack Kimbrough for the trip’s first 560 miles. Once she was alone, she tried to think of the Pacific Crest Trail as a series of shorter hikes done back-to-back. That doesn’t mean she didn’t sometimes feel overwhelmed by the many miles ahead of her.

“The most challenging part of hiking the trail was the length and duration,” she said. “It's months and months of a lot of the same thing. It’s tough not to just give up on the hardest parts and to push through and keep on walking. I learned a lot of grit.”

Heffley is no stranger to challenges. Last summer, she shadowed a physician in India for six weeks, where she gained clinical experience at hospitals and rural village medical camps, and she also has volunteered locally at Mercy Medical Clinic in Auburn. These experiences helped her confirm her chosen career path as a physician assistant (PA).

“I have always been interested in the medical field, but for a long time, I didn’t know what that path looked like,” she said. “From pharmacy to pre-med, nothing felt like the right fit. When I learned about being a PA, I felt like I could have the flexibility and responsibility level I was looking for.”

Due to her interest in preventative care, Heffley also completed a minor in public health through the College of Veterinary Medicine.

“I chose public health because I believe that having an alternate, more well-rounded perspective is an important factor in being a health care provider,” she said.

Heffley began hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in mid-May and finally returned home to Alabama on Oct. 8. Auburn’s emphasis on hard work and persistence prepared Heffley for the challenges of hiking the Pacific Crest Trail and developing a career plan, and between her public health minor and pre-PA studies, she also learned the importance of community involvement.

“Auburn created an environment where I felt encouraged and equipped to pursue volunteering,” she said. “Here I felt like I had the resources to find volunteer opportunities, and I was really able to see the value of what I was doing.”