East Tennessee's best-traveled adventurer

At age 31, Apison resident JoJo Macatiag has visited every state in the Lower 48, nearly 300 national parks, monuments and battlefields, hiked over 1,300 unbroken miles of the PCT — twice — and is now attempting to become a member of the "Highpointer Club," in which he will have summited the tallest peak in every contiguous U.S. state. So far, he has completed over 25 state high points. (Photo by Crystal Case)
At age 31, Apison resident JoJo Macatiag has visited every state in the Lower 48, nearly 300 national parks, monuments and battlefields, hiked over 1,300 unbroken miles of the PCT — twice — and is now attempting to become a member of the "Highpointer Club," in which he will have summited the tallest peak in every contiguous U.S. state. So far, he has completed over 25 state high points. (Photo by Crystal Case)
photo Macatiag climbs Washington's Mt. Rainier, which stands at 14,410 feet. While the mountain is only the fourth tallest in the U.S., it is considered one of the most challenging because it requires travel across the largest glacier in the Lower 48. (Photo by Crystal Case)

In 2014, JoJo Macatiag and Crystal Case were hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, a 2,650 mile footpath that extends from Mexico to Canada. About a month into their trek, they were crossing the Mojave Desert in Southern California, preparing to ascent a 2,000-foot tall peak when they ran out of water - still 20 miles from their next water source.

At night, the desert temperature peaked at around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. But during the day, it rose into the 100s. Macatiag and Case weren't sure what to do.

They decided to hike down to a nearby road. There, they found a tree to rest beneath. A moment later, a jeep full of campers pulled up and offered the two water and fruit. A moment after that, a 4-wheeler stopped, its driver offering more water.

"My faith in God is big," says Macatiag. "We stayed on that road for another seven miles and saw no other traffic."

The trail is all about that give and take, he says.

"When you can help others, you should. And that's how the world should be. You just never know the difference you might make with one kind gesture," says Macatiag, who is particularly sensitive to others' struggles.

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At age 31, Macatiag might be East Tennessee's best-traveled adventurer.

In 2005, he traveled over 100,000 miles to visit every state in the Lower 48. He has visited nearly 300 national parks, monuments and battlefields, hiked over 1,300 unbroken miles of the PCT - twice - and is now attempting to climb the tallest mountain in every contiguous U.S. state. So far, he has completed 25, including the five most challenging: Washington's Mt. Rainier (14,410 feet), Wyoming's Gannett Peak (13,809 feet), Idaho's Borah Peak (12,667 feet), Montana's Granite Peak (12,807 feet), and Oregon's Mt. Hood (11,249 feet).

Most recently, over the course of one weekend, he summited the highest points in Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

But this whirlwind sort of lifestyle wasn't always Macatiag's choice.

Born in the Philippines, Macatiag moved to the States at age 8 with his sister and mother. First, they lived in Chicago, bouncing from house to house.

"I went to a different school every year of my life," he says.

Then his mother remarried. The family moved to Apison, Tennessee, where Macatiag says he finally began putting down roots. A year later, when his mother left his stepfather to return to Chicago, Macatiag and his older sister Jewel chose to stay behind with their mother's now ex-husband.

"That's when he became abusive. We started showing up to school with bruises," Macatiag says.

After a tumultuous time involving social services and a brief move back to Chicago, Macatiag, 12, and Jewel, 14, returned to their Apison trailer home. Their stepfather had moved out. The siblings continued living there alone.

"We ate nothing but ramen and egg drop soup for a year," Macatiag remembers.

Before long, a local family noticed the children and began to help out, providing rides to and from school and inviting them along on weekend backpacking trips. The couple were leaders for Pathfinders, a Scouting-type program sponsored by the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Compared to the chaos of his home life, the wilderness soothed Macatiag. Pathfinders, he says, is "the one stable thing I can look back on."

But perhaps more than that, the experience taught him how altruism can change one's world.

At age 22, Macatiag became a volunteer firefighter in neighboring Collegedale. He was also working full time for a tanker truck wash service and training to become an emergency medical technician. In 2011, when a string of deadly tornadoes devastated parts of Apison, Macatiag threw himself into helping rebuild homes - including the home of his estranged stepfather.

"Having experienced so much heartache, it isn't something I can just pass by," he says of his decision to help.

Still, the hectic schedule took its toll on Macatiag. When he learned about the PCT, which takes the average hiker five months to finish, he thought that might give him time to clear his mind.

"I was burnt out. I thought, if I can balance the basics: food, shelter, water, then I can apply those lessons when I come back," says Macatiag.

To fund the trip, Macatiag sold all his possessions. He quit his job at the tanker truck wash service and took a year off from firefighting. In May 2014, Macatiag and then-girlfriend Crystal Case started the hike. Case, a film student at Southern Adventist University, planned to document the trip for her senior project. So, in addition to basic necessities, the two carried camera gear and solar panels. The extra weight slowed them down. But the greatest burden soon became their arguing.

After eight months on the trail, Macatiag and Case broke up and returned to Tennessee. But Macatiag was determined to salvage his adventure. So he began climbing mountains, starting with the five peaks considered the most challenging. He plans to complete all 48 high points within the year.

He still has plans to one day section-hike the PCT.

"I find satisfaction in pushing my body and trying to learn its limit," he says.

But, he adds, he's also working on accepting limits.

"I learned on the trail that you can't set a goal and push yourself to death to meet it. Can you hike 30 miles today? No, sometimes you can't. I have to balance rest like I have to balance work."

And as for learning his body's limit?

"I'm still alive," he says.

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