A few days after hiker Nick Fowler completed the Arizona Trail—the 800-mile trek across deserts, mountains, and yes even the Grand Canyon—he had a pedicure.
The nail technician took a pumice stone to Fowler’s blisters and calluses, and she dug into exposed nail beds. She rubbed. She massaged. But even after the tender love and care, Fowler’s feet still throbbed.
“I’ve never had this much foot pain before,” Fowler told Outside from his home in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Monday, November 25.
The aching feet are daily reminders of the massive and historic physical effort that Fowler, 36, accomplished while hiking southbound on the Arizona Trail. On November 9, Fowler reached the AZT’s terminus on the U.S. Mexico border, 12 days, 17 hours, and 33 minutes after starting from the trail’s northernmost point.
Fowler’s time shaved nearly two days off of the trail’s previous self-supported speed record (hikers can use any infrastructure that is equally available: gas stations, hotels, scheduled re-supply caches, etc.), set by Josh Perry in 2019. But Fowler also broke the fully-supported fastest known time (individuals have teams of helpers cooking food, preparing beds, and yes, even rubbing feet) as well, which ultrarunner Joe “Stringbean” McConaughey set in 2021 at 13 days, 3 hours, and 21 minutes.
Fowler is now the only person to ever break the 13-day barrier on the trail.
The tight-knit community of American thru-hikers and ultrarunners has witnessed a handful of eye-popping Fastest Known Time attempts in 2024. In September, Will “Sisyphus” Peterson broke his own speed record on Vermont’s 272-mile Long Trail (3 days, 21 hours, 9 minutes) and over the summer multiple hikers set records on the 500-mile Colorado Trail (the trail has four different routes). Then, in late September, hiker Tara Dower garnered international attention when she completed Appalachian Trail faster than anyone in history.
But even among these accolades, certain statistics from Fowler’s hike stand out. He covered 460 miles during the first seven days on the trail—a blistering pace for a week on the trail.
And he maintained this pace despite inauspicious preparation and a disastrous start to his adventure. Fowler planned the Arizona Trail hike for late 2024, when temperatures cool across the desert. But his life off the trail got somewhat more complicated.
In September, Fowler and his wife, Hannah, welcomed their first child, a son named Canyon. Infants, of course, have a way of disrupting training anThe Oklahoma thru-hiker overcame nausea, sleep deprivation, and crushing foot pain to set the fastest ever time on the 800-mile traild rest, and Fowler struggled with the usual challenges of early parenthood.
Still, Fowler pushed ahead with his Arizona Trail effort, hoping to at least surpass the self-supported record on the trail. His confidence evaporated 100 miles into his attempt. While descending into the Grand Canyon, Fowler felt a quiver in his stomach and intestines. After crossing the Colorado River and beginning the ascent to the canyon’s southern rim, Fowler was overcome with nausea.
“I’m puking my guts out just getting passed by hikers in flip flops,” Fowler said. “I gave up. I was like ‘I just need to get out of the canyon.’ I was embarrassed.”
Fowler climbed to the south rim and then hitchhiked to nearby Flagstaff. After a night’s sleep and some food, he hitched back to the trail’s start on the Utah border. He rested for two full days, replenishing his body with fluids and calories. He weighed whether to go home or give the trail another try.
Fowler is already a decorated athlete in the world of thru-hiking, and in 2023 he set the speed record for completing the Pacific Crest Trail self-supported from North to South (52 days, 9 hours, 18 minutes).
“A lot of people think 800 miles is long—in my mind it’s pretty short,” he said.
So Fowler set out again, hiking even faster than he had on his first attempt. He completed 143 miles in the first two days, barely sleeping.
He slept just three hours a night for the first week. He ate 300 calories an hour—”half junk-food, half healthy stuff,” he said.
As the miles ticked by, Fowler softened his focus on pacing and instead soaked in the natural wonders of Arizona’s backcountry. He marveled at the sunrises and sunsets, and kept his eyes peeled for desert animals. He spotted a Gila monster, a ring-tailed cat, and two desert tortoises.
Those highs helped Fowler push through many lows. On the sixth night Fowler was engulfed by a thunderstorm that blew down his tarp and soaked his sleeping quilt. From the third to the seventh day he began to endure painful chafing. After ascending 9,171-foot Mount Lemmon outside of Tucson, Fowler encountered below-freezing temperatures.
As Fowler pushed through the final half of his journey, his body began to surrender. His feet ached with every step and his mind took longer to focus.
“On day eight I realized that too little sleep becomes detrimental,” he said. “Even taking three hours off my feet didn’t mean I was actually sleeping for that amount of time.”
Fowler had planned to push through the final night and hike two straight days, but late in the evening he lay down to rest. When he started hiking again, Fowler gave up on snapping photos. He just wanted the effort to be completed. Around 7:30 P.M., Fowler approached the trail’s southern terminus, which is marked by a white stone obelisk.
A friend had spelled out “NICK AZT FKT” in candles at the foot of the monument. Fowler reached the point and lay down on the rocks and dirt.
“I just started bawling,” he said. His feet continued to throb, but at that moment he no longer cared.
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