Pride in Stride: Long Island Agent Mathew Johnson Mounts 3,000-Mile Thru-Hike in Support of LGBTQ+ Youth
by ELLIMAN INSIDER TEAM
June 2026
Rest assured that Mathew Johnson will be getting his steps in this summer.
An agent for Douglas Elliman based in East Setauket, on NY’s Long Island, Johnson is an experienced thru-hiker who has completed numerous end-to-end hikes of national trails, including the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). This month, he is setting out to hike the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), which spans some 3,100 miles from Canada to Mexico.
The journey won’t just get him several thousand steps closer to his goal of completing all three U.S. National Scenic Trails: the PCT, the CDT and the Appalachian Trail (AT). It’s also a chance to, as Johnson put it, “support something bigger than myself” by raising funds for The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ+ young people.
“This cause is deeply personal to me. I’ve lost people I care about to suicide, and I know firsthand how devastating those losses can be for families, friends, and entire communities,” he says. “As a gay man, I also understand how important it is for LGBTQ+ youth to know they are seen, supported, and valued. The Trevor Project provides free, 24/7 crisis counseling and life-saving support to young people who may have nowhere else to turn.”
We reached out to Johnson as he prepared to hit the trail to find out what inspired him to take this epic journey (which he'll be documenting on Instagram and TikTok), what he anticipates from the experience and what impact he’s hoping to make beyond fundraising.
How did you become so passionate about hiking?
As a kid growing up in the Hudson Valley in the 1990s, I spent most of my time outside getting lost in the woods. This was long before cell phones, and the single family computer was shared among five siblings. When it was time for dinner, my mom would ring an old cowbell hanging from our back deck and we knew it was time to come home.
My favorite books were Hatchet and My Side of the Mountain, and my favorite computer game was “The Oregon Trail.” Needless to say, I was fascinated by wilderness adventures and often dreamed of embarking on a grand adventure of my own.
The Appalachian Trail runs through my hometown of Warwick, New York, and passes right by Bellvale Farms Creamery, where we’d go for ice cream. It wasn’t uncommon to see thru-hikers—dirty, exhausted, and happy to be enjoying a cone after weeks on the trail. I later learned these backpackers were hiking all the way from Georgia to Maine.
I think my love for the outdoors, combined with seeing those hikers as a kid, ultimately inspired me to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail after graduating from San Diego State University. In 2018, I completed all 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada over the course of five months. Once I finished, I was hooked.
I knew it might be years before I had the opportunity to tackle another trail of that magnitude, but I made it a goal to complete America’s three great National Scenic Trails: the Appalachian Trail (AT), Pacific Crest Trail (PCT), and Continental Divide Trail (CDT). Together, they span nearly 8,000 miles across 22 states.
Since completing the PCT, I’ve also hiked the 93-mile Wonderland Trail around Mount Rainier and the Four Pass Loop in Colorado’s Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness. The CDT is the next chapter in that journey.
Is this the first time you’ve paired your passion for hiking with fundraising?
This will be my first fundraiser. I first learned about The Trevor Project in 2021 through Carl Nassib, the first active NFL player to publicly come out as gay. Having lost friends and family to suicide, and being a gay man myself, this felt like an organization I could really get behind.
I kept the idea on the back burner for a few years until recently when I decided I was finally going to hike the CDT and wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to raise funds for a cause I was passionate about.
The outdoors have always been a place where I felt at home, safe, and at peace. I feel incredibly fortunate to be able to step away from work and everyday life to pursue a dream like this, and I wanted to find a way to give back in the process. I thought this would be a great opportunity to raise awareness for an organization that is literally saving lives by providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ+ youth. Their counselors are available 24/7, free of charge, via phone, text, and chat.
How many miles per day are you aiming for — and what are you doing for lodging and meals along the way?
The mileage will vary greatly from section to section and state to state, but I’m hoping to average roughly 25 miles per day.
Most thru-hikers start at the southern border in the desert, where the terrain is generally easier, and the mountains are smaller. I’m starting at the Canadian border in Glacier National Park, which is one of the more challenging sections of the entire trail. So, I’ll likely start out averaging closer to 15 miles per day and gradually increase my mileage as my body gets stronger and more conditioned to life on the trail.
One of the amazing things about thru-hiking is how adaptable the human body becomes. The first few weeks can be tough, but eventually hiking 25 or even 30 miles in a day starts to feel surprisingly normal.
As for meals, they’ll be far less glamorous than what you’d find in a restaurant. Most days consist of calorie-dense backpacking foods like instant mashed potatoes, ramen, tortillas, peanut butter, bars, nuts, and dehydrated meals. When you’re hiking 20 to 30 miles a day, food becomes fuel, and it’s amazing how good even the simplest meal can taste after a long day on the trail.
I’ll need to resupply on food every week or so. This typically means hitchhiking from the nearest road crossing into the closest town to buy groceries and restock my backpack.
Most hikers will spend a night in town after a resupply to shower, do laundry, eat a few real meals, and recharge before heading back into the wilderness. The rest of the time, I’ll be sleeping in a lightweight backpacking tent and carrying everything I need on my back.
On occasion, I’ll also “cowboy camp,” which is exactly what it sounds like—sleeping directly under the stars without a tent. Some of my favorite memories from the Pacific Crest Trail were nights spent cowboy camping in remote places where the stars felt close enough to touch.
Are you doing this solo or with fellow hikers?
That’s another great aspect of hiking these trails: the community that forms around them. Every year, people from all over the world come with one goal: to complete the trail before winter arrives and snow blankets the mountains.
When I hiked the Pacific Crest Trail in 2018, a few thousand hikers were issued permits. Roughly half completed the trail, but because there were so many people out there, it was almost impossible to hike alone for very long. You were constantly meeting people and forming friendships. Hikers often travel in groups known as “trail families.”
The CDT is significantly less traveled. Only a few hundred people attempt a thru-hike each year, and I’ll be hiking in the opposite direction of most hikers. Because of that, I expect to spend a significant amount of time alone.
That said, one of the best parts of thru-hiking is the people you meet along the way—not just other hikers, but also the incredible network of “trail angels.” These are complete strangers who support hikers in various ways, whether it’s leaving a case of water in the desert, stocking a cooler full of cold sodas at a trail junction, offering a ride into town, or even opening their homes for a meal and a place to rest.
The kindness, generosity, and support from these individuals was one of the greatest gifts I received on the Pacific Crest Trail, and I’m looking forward to experiencing that sense of community again.
Besides raising money for The Trevor Project, is there a specific action you hope to inspire or something you’d like others to understand about suicide, particularly among LGBTQ+ youth?
More than anything, I hope this reminds people that small acts of kindness and support can have an enormous impact.
Many LGBTQ+ young people face challenges that can leave them feeling isolated, unseen, or alone. Organizations like The Trevor Project provide life-saving resources during those moments, but creating a culture of acceptance and compassion starts long before someone reaches a crisis point. It starts with everyday interactions, the way we treat one another, and our willingness to make people feel seen and valued.
As a gay man, I’ve been fortunate to have supportive friends, family, mentors, and colleagues throughout my life. Not everyone has that experience. That’s one of the reasons this cause feels so important to me.
Whether someone chooses to donate, learn more about the issue, check in on a friend, mentor a young person, or simply lead with empathy, those actions matter. You never truly know what someone else may be carrying or how much a small gesture of support can mean.
If this hike inspires even a few people to be a little more intentional about supporting those around them, that would be incredibly meaningful to me. The funds raised are important, but so is the conversation.
Support Mathew Johnson's Fundraising Campaign.
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